Headline
▌US Vows to Stop Iran from Acquiring Nuclear Weapons, Says Operation Progressing Faster Than Expected
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he had ordered an attack on Iran to stop it from advancing its nuclear program and a "rapidly developing" ballistic missile program. This is Trump's most detailed statement to date regarding the war. Trump said, "This is our last and best chance to act." Trump said the military operation is progressing "faster than expected," but did not disclose details. Trump said the core premise of the operation is to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons and thwart its long-range ballistic missile program. Trump said, "An Iranian regime with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would pose an intolerable threat to the Middle East and to the safety of the American people." He also said the US military had sunk 10 Iranian ships and expressed confidence in the progress of the operation. He stated that the goals of the war include destroying Iran's missile capabilities, annihilating its naval forces, and preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Trump also stated that the third objective is a long-standing U.S. strategic direction—preventing Iran from supporting armed groups in the region. Nasdaq plans to launch a new type of option contract that allows "yes or no" bets on major stock indices, becoming the latest exchange operator to enter the rapidly growing prediction market. According to a proposed rule change submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company hopes to list "binary options" on its flagship Nasdaq 100 index and Nasdaq 100 Mini index. The document shows that Nasdaq contracts will be priced between 1 cent and $1, reflecting market perceptions of the likelihood of a particular outcome. This will be Nasdaq's first foray into mirror prediction market products. These so-called "outcome-related options" will allow traders to take binary positions on whether a specific event occurs. Binary options are a simplified version of option contracts where payouts depend on the outcome of a "yes or no" proposition. The financial contracts listed in the prediction market industry cover sports, politics, and popular culture. Unlike event contracts regulated by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), such as those from Kalshi, Polymarket US, and the CME Group, binary options are regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Nasdaq's contracts are currently awaiting SEC approval. As of press time, according to CoinGecko data: BTC price is $68,867.69, a 24-hour change of +4.7%; ETH price is $2,032.36, a 24-hour change of +4.7%; BNB price is $638.12, a 24-hour change of +2.9%. SOL price is $86.82, up 3.9% in the last 24 hours; DOGE price is $0.09353, up 1.6% in the last 24 hours; XRP price is $1.39, up 2.9% in the last 24 hours; TRX price is $0.2833, up 0.8% in the last 24 hours. WLFI price is $0.107, a 24-hour change of -1.6%; HYPE price is $32.97, a 24-hour change of +3.9%. Policy: Trump: The situation in Iran will become more insecure. According to CNN, Trump stated on Monday that the US military is "striking hard" at Iran, but the "big wave" is yet to come. Trump stated, "I think things are going very well. We have the most powerful military in the world, and we are using it." When asked if the U.S. was doing more than just military strikes to help the Iranian people regain control of their country from the regime, Trump said, "Yes." Trump added, "The situation in Iran is about to become even more insecure. We want everyone to stay home. We haven't even started our big attack on them yet. The real waves haven't come yet. The real waves are coming soon." On March 2nd local time, the Public Relations Department of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement saying that Iran used "Habar" missiles to launch a fierce attack on the Israeli Prime Minister's office and the location of the Israeli Air Force Commander. The statement indicated that Iran's tenth round of missile attacks on Israel mainly targeted Israeli government buildings, and the results of the military operation and more information would be released later. (CCTV News)
Blockchain Applications
▌Vitalik Buterin Proposes Solutions to Curb Ethereum Block Builder Centralization
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has published an article warning of the risk of “block building centralization” in the ecosystem. He points out that although the “proposer-builder separation” mechanism is about to be implemented through the “Glamsterdam” upgrade, if builders are monopolized by a few entities, they can still censor transactions or extract user benefits through “harmful MEVs” (such as front-running and sandwich attacks). Vitalik’s proposed solutions include: introducing random participants through the FOCIL mechanism to enforce transaction inclusion rights; using encrypted transaction mempools to prevent front-running; and adopting an anonymous routing system to enhance network layer privacy. He believes that as Ethereum scales, the challenge of decentralization is shifting from validators to the infrastructure that decides “which transactions can be on the chain”.
▌Large Number of OpenAI Users Switch to Anthropic, Which Tops the US App Download Chart
After the Trump administration suspended Anthropic's artificial intelligence technology products, OpenAI quickly reached an agreement with the US Department of Defense to deploy OpenAI models in the Department of Defense's classified network. This triggered outcry and a boycott by OpenAI users; within a short period, 700,000 people unsubscribed or even uninstalled ChatGPT and switched to Anthropic's Claude. With a large user base, Anthropic Claude topped the US App Store's free download chart, while OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google Gemini ranked second and third respectively. Claude's previously increased malfunction rate may be related to the surge in traffic.
▌Stablecoin Issuer Tether Hires Deloitte for USAT Reserve Report
After years of claiming that large accounting firms were unwilling to provide auditing services, Tether Holdings SA has finally obtained confirmation from Deloitte for its first reserve report for the USAT stablecoin, launched to comply with new US regulatory requirements. According to a letter released on Monday, the world's largest accounting and professional services firm reviewed a report provided by Anchorage Digital Bank NA, the bank responsible for issuing the token. Anchorage reports that it currently has $17.6 million in reserve assets to back the 17.5 million redeemable USAT tokens issued.
▌CoinShares: Digital Asset Investment Products See $1 Billion Inflow Last Week
According to CoinShares monitoring, digital asset investment products recorded $1 billion in inflows last week, ending five consecutive weeks of cumulative outflows totaling $4 billion. Bitcoin was the main beneficiary, with inflows reaching $881 million, but only $3.7 million flowed into short-Bitcoin investment products, indicating that market sentiment remains polarized. Ethereum also recorded $117 million in inflows, marking the largest single-week inflow since mid-January. Ethereum and Bitcoin are still in a net outflow state so far this year. Conversely, Solana recorded $53.8 million in inflows last week, bringing its year-to-date inflows to $156 million. Chainlink recorded a small inflow of $3.4 million, with no significant outflows.
▌NYDIG: Bitcoin to Benefit if AI Drives Easing Monetary PolicyGreg Cipolaro, head of research at crypto services firm NYDIG, said that Bitcoin would benefit if artificial intelligence disrupts the labor market or causes volatility that prompts central banks to ease monetary policy. In a research report on Friday, Cipolaro stated that AI is likely to be viewed as a "general-purpose technology" similar to electricity, and its macroeconomic impact on employment, economic growth, and risk appetite will consequently affect Bitcoin. "If AI-driven growth is accompanied by an environment of liquidity expansion and controlled real interest rates, then this backdrop will be favorable for Bitcoin," Cipolaro said. "However, if stronger growth pushes up real yields, tightens policy, and reduces the need for monetary easing, Bitcoin could face headwinds." He added, "Conversely, if AI causes labor market disruptions or volatility, leading to fiscal expansion and looser monetary policy, then the resulting liquidity pulse is likely to be beneficial for Bitcoin." Currently, the economy is already beginning to show the effects of this technology.
▌Strategy spent approximately $204.1 million to purchase 3,015 Bitcoins last week
Strategy purchased 3,015 Bitcoins last week, for a total price of approximately $204.1 million, or approximately $67,700 per Bitcoin. As of March 1, 2026, Strategy holds 720,737 Bitcoins, for a total price of approximately $54.77 billion, or approximately $75,985 per Bitcoin.
▌BitMine increased its holdings by approximately 50,000 ETH last week, bringing its total holdings to over 4.47 million ETH
As of March 1, Eastern Time, BitMine's total holdings of cryptocurrency + cash + "Moonshot" totaled $9.9 billion.
▌Strategy currently holds 720,000 BTC, with a paper loss of approximately $7.35 billion; BitMNR currently holds 4.47 million ETH, with a paper loss of approximately $8.164 billionAccording to Ember Monitoring, Strategy (MSTR) purchased 3,015 BTC last week at a price of approximately $67,700, spending approximately $204 million. The company currently holds 720,737 BTC, worth approximately $47.415 billion, with an average cost of $75,985, resulting in a paper loss of approximately $7.35 billion. BitMNR (BMNR) purchased 50,928 ETH last week at a price of approximately $1,954, spending approximately $99.54 million.
The company currently holds 4,473,587 ETH, worth approximately $8.652 billion, with an average cost of $3,759, resulting in a paper loss of approximately $8.164 billion.
▌ProCap Financial Adds 450 Bitcoins
According to the Wall Street Journal, ProCap Financial, the publicly traded Bitcoin treasury company owned by crypto investor Anthony Pompliano, has been actively repurchasing shares to narrow the discount relative to net asset value, while also purchasing 450 new Bitcoins.
▌BlackRock Makes First Purchase of Bitcoin Treasury Company MetaPlanet Shares Through ETF
According to market news, BlackRock, with assets exceeding $14 trillion, has made its first purchase of Bitcoin treasury company MetaPlanet shares through the iShares Japan ETF.
(The Bitcoin Historian)
▌Uniswap “Fraudulent Coin” Class Action Lawsuit Completely Dismissed by Court
A U.S. federal judge ruled on Monday to dismiss the lawsuit against Uniswap Labs and its founder Hayden Adams, and forbids further litigation, marking the official end of this nearly three-year-long class action lawsuit. The plaintiffs accused Uniswap of providing a trading platform for “fraudulent coins” issued by third parties, constituting aiding and abetting fraud. However, Judge Katherine Polk Failla held that holding smart contract code writers accountable for third-party abuse “defies basic logic,” and that the plaintiffs failed to prove that Uniswap had actual knowledge of the fraud. Previously, the federal securities law claims in this case were dismissed in 2023, with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upholding the original ruling. Following the announcement of the judgment, the UNI token rose 6% to $3.92.
▌Binance: Opinion (OPN) Airdrop to Open for Claim on March 5
According to official news, Binance Alpha will list Opinion (OPN) on March 5. After trading opens, eligible users can use Binance Alpha points to claim the airdrop on the Alpha activity page.
Important Economic News
▌Bloomberg: This Iranian War Will Not Trigger an Oil Crisis
Bloomberg columnist Javier Blas, specializing in energy and commodities, wrote that the Iranian attacks have a negative impact on oil prices but are not a shock. Blas's article points out that the market's biggest concern is whether both sides will target energy infrastructure and the forced closure of tanker routes. Neither of these things has happened yet. Not yet.
Kikyo
Catherine
Weiliang
Alex
Miyuki