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The Russian government has submitted a bill to the country's lower house of parliament that would introduce criminal penalties for operating cryptocurrency services without regulatory approval, Cointelegraph reported. Under the draft legislation, companies providing services related to the circulation of cryptocurrencies without a license from the Central Bank of Russia could face up to seven years in prison.

Strategy (MSTR) has proposed changing the dividend payment schedule for its perpetual preferred stock, STRC, from monthly to bi-weekly. According to CoinDesk, Strategy founder Michael Saylor stated that the move would not affect the dividend payment obligation or the dividend rate, which is currently 11.5%. He explained that the change aims to stabilize the price, mitigate economic volatility, enhance liquidity, and increase demand. The vote on the amendment will close on June 8, and if approved, the first payment will be on July 15.

U.S. Representative Sheri Biggs purchased up to $250,000 worth of BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) last month, Cointelegraph reported. Because U.S. lawmakers are only required to disclose transaction sizes within a set range, the actual purchase amount could be as low as $100,000. Biggs has received an "A" grade from the pro-crypto advocacy group Stand With Crypto, indicating strong support for the industry.

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal has sent a letter to the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) requesting information on Binance's regulatory compliance. According to Cointelegraph, the senator pointed to allegations that the exchange's anti-money laundering measures are "dangerously lax." The letter follows Binance's earlier guilty plea to anti-money laundering and sanctions violations brought by U.S. regulators, which resulted in a $4.3 billion fine. As part of that settlement, Binance agreed to comply with monitoring and reporting requirements set by U.S. authorities.

The three major U.S. stock indices closed higher today. - S&P 500: +1.20% - Nasdaq: +1.52% - Dow Jones: +1.79%

Coinbase has announced it will suspend trading for Seamless (SEAM) at 6:00 p.m. UTC on May 18. The decision follows an announcement from the Seamless protocol that it will be terminating its services on June 30.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren has accused U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Paul Atkins of potentially making false statements to Congress about a decline in the agency's enforcement activities. According to Decrypt, during a Feb. 12 Banking Committee hearing, Atkins was asked about the sharp drop in new sanctions under the second Trump administration and responded that he disagreed with the premise of the question. However, recently released SEC data shows the regulator brought only 456 new enforcement actions last year, with 200 of those initiated under the previous Biden administration. This figure is down from a 10-year annual average of 765. Warren noted that the sharp decrease in enforcement, coupled with significant staff reductions and a sudden change in leadership, raises serious questions about the commission's commitment and ability to protect investors and the market.

Vessel tracking data shows that nearly all ships attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz have turned around, according to industry sources.

Iran and the U.S. are drafting a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to establish the overall framework for a permanent peace agreement, an Iranian official stated on April 17. The official expressed optimism that the MOU will be signed during negotiations in Pakistan in the coming days, adding that it provides for a 60-day period of follow-up talks to reach a final deal.

World (formerly Worldcoin), the iris-scanning identity verification cryptocurrency project co-founded by Sam Altman, has upgraded its World ID system. According to CoinDesk, the update's core is a redesigned architecture aimed at improving privacy, security, and usability. New features include attestation-based identity verification, multi-key support, and a recovery mechanism. Additionally, World plans to launch a dedicated World ID app, which is currently available in beta. The project stated that World ID serves as a complete human authentication infrastructure, allowing consumers, businesses, and AI agents to verify a user is a real person without exposing personal information.

Federal Reserve Governor Waller said he is not worried about the U.S. dollar losing its reserve currency status, adding that it is still trusted by countries around the world.

Whale Alert reported that 4,000 BTC has been transferred from an unknown wallet to Bitfinex. The transaction is valued at about $309 million.

Bitcoin miners are grappling with a triple threat that includes quantum computing, a shift to artificial intelligence, and low network activity, DL News reported. The outlet described quantum computing as the greatest risk, a threat emerging as many miners pivot to AI. To make matters worse, network activity is so low that miner revenue is not even approaching the break-even point, the report added. DL News warned that the Bitcoin network could collapse instantly if quantum computing becomes a reality and more miners move their infrastructure to AI. In an interview, Nick Hansen, CEO of Bitcoin mining software and services company Luxor, expressed extreme concern, stating that there are currently no positive catalysts for the sector.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Baghaei stated on April 17 that a U.S. naval blockade against Iran would violate the ceasefire agreement, announcing that Tehran would take necessary countermeasures. Baghaei emphasized that Iran is the guardian of the Strait of Hormuz, adding that the country would act decisively to protect the interests and rights of the Iranian people if necessary.

A spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry stated in an interview with Iranian state television that if the United States continues its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran will take reciprocal action.

Whale Alert reported that 250 million USDC has been minted at the USDC Treasury.

Whale Alert reported that 290,000,000 USDT has been transferred from an unknown wallet to Aave. The transaction is valued at about $290 million.

Whale Alert reported that 300,000,000 USDT has been transferred from Kraken to an unknown wallet. The transaction is valued at about $300 million.

X's pilot service for stock and cryptocurrency trading via its Cashtags feature has recorded an estimated $1 billion in trading volume since its launch this week, Watcher.Guru reported.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has submitted a proposed rule change to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to support the trading of tokenized securities within the framework of the Depository Trust Company's (DTC) tokenization pilot project. Trading will be limited to stocks included in the Russell 1000 index and major index-tracking ETFs. The tokenized securities will use the same CUSIP numbers and tickers as their traditional counterparts and will trade in parallel on the same order book. The settlement cycle will remain the standard T+1, and all existing regulations, including those for short selling and market surveillance, will apply equally. The move follows Nasdaq, which received SEC approval for trading tokenized securities in March.

BlackRock's spot ETF, IBIT, has risen almost every day for the past three weeks, according to ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. He noted that the fund surged another 3.5% today and is now up approximately 19% from its low. Balchunas suggested this is due to a growing perception that fears over the conflict in Iran and other early-day market jitters have subsided.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will continue until an agreement is reached with Iran, Reuters reported.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he might visit Islamabad if an agreement is reached, but has not yet made a decision. He added that there could be further negotiations on the Iran nuclear deal this weekend, Reuters reported.

Over the past four hours, $400 million in short positions have been liquidated across the cryptocurrency market, the Watcher.Guru X account reported.

U.S. President Donald Trump said in an interview with NewsNation that Iran has agreed to halt its uranium enrichment.