Virginia has enacted a new law requiring the state to hold dormant cryptocurrency "in kind" for at least one year, meaning the assets must be retained in their original form rather than being converted to cash.

21Shares has updated its filing for the Hyperliquid exchange-traded fund (ticker: $THYP), a move that points to continued momentum toward a possible U.S.-listed HYPE ETF. The amendment comes as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission remains in the process of reviewing the proposal.

Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Federal Reserve, has filed a 69-page financial disclosure with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) that details at least $192 million in combined assets held by him and his wife, Jane Lauder. The filing, submitted April 14, is the final procedural step ahead of his Senate confirmation process. The documents show Warsh has indirect exposure to at least 20 crypto- and Web3-related entities, spanning major areas of the digital-asset market. If confirmed, he would be the first Fed chair known to have ties to crypto venture investments. Warsh's confirmation hearing is scheduled for April 21. The path forward remains uncertain as Republican Sen. Thom Tillis has continued to signal he may oppose the nomination amid an ongoing standoff related to the Powell investigation. Across several venture fund structures, Warsh's disclosed crypto-linked positions include Solana, Optimism and the Lightning Network via AVGF I; dYdX and Polychain Capital via DCM Investments 10 LLC, which also holds stakes in projects such as Compound, Lighter, Lemon Cash and Blast (an Ethereum L2 protocol). Within the AVF fund series, the filing lists exposure to Dapper Labs, Deso, Eulith, Onjuno, Ridian, Friends With Benefits and Zero Gravity, described as an L2 AI blockchain platform. The filing also shows a direct holding in Web3 company Metatheory Inc. through Founder Bets Master SPV LLC, valued between $1,001 and $15,000. Separately, Bitcoin Magazine reported Warsh holds equity in Flashnet, a Bitcoin payments startup focused on merchant payments in a model similar to the Lightning Network. The portfolio touches multiple crypto segments, including L1s (Solana), L2s (Optimism, Blast), DeFi (dYdX, Compound), NFT infrastructure (Dapper Labs), prediction markets (Polymarket), Bitcoin payments (Flashnet, Lightning Network), social tokens (Friends With Benefits) and AI-blockchain projects (Zero Gravity). Under OGE rules, omitted holdings typically indicate an individual value below $1,000, suggesting many positions are small and speculative rather than concentrated. Crypto exposure represents a fraction of Warsh's broader balance sheet. The two largest positions listed are stakes held through Juggernaut Fund LP, each reported as "over $50 million," with the underlying assets withheld under confidentiality agreements; Warsh pledged to sell them if confirmed. Roughly twenty positions in the THSDFS LLC series, each with a maximum value of $5 million, are also not detailed due to confidentiality provisions. On the income side, the filing reports $10.2 million in advisory fees from Duquesne Family Office, founded by Stanley Druckenmiller, along with $1.55 million from GoldenTree Asset Management, $750,000 from Cerberus Capital Management and $750,000 in speaking fees from Brevan Howard—all firms with digital-asset trading operations. OGE reviewer Heather Jones wrote that once Warsh completes the pledged divestitures, he would be in compliance with the Ethics in Government Act. Warsh's crypto-linked disclosure lands alongside his long-running public comments on Bitcoin. He has argued that Bitcoin is not a substitute for the dollar but can act as a market signal that helps policymakers evaluate their decisions, and has framed crypto software development as part of U.S. economic competitiveness. Jane Lauder, an Estée Lauder heiress, is estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of about $1.9 billion. For the digital-asset industry, the filing sends mixed signals: a Fed chair with firsthand venture exposure could better understand the sector, but required divestments and potential recusals may limit how much that familiarity translates into policy actions early in his tenure.

Most U.S. cryptocurrency investors may not have fully reported their crypto activity to the Internal Revenue Service, Bloomberg reported, citing research data. The study found that just 6.5% of U.S. taxpayers reported cryptocurrency sales from 2013 through 2021, even as an estimated 12% to 21% of U.S. adults held crypto over the same period. Researchers said the gap suggests some investors did not accurately disclose related income and transactions, potentially costing the government tax revenue. The analysis also showed crypto holders skew younger and lower-income and are more likely to own meme tokens. Their trading patterns differ markedly from those of traditional stock investors. CoinTracker data indicates that for the 2025 tax year, crypto investors reported an average of 836 transactions. On average, they posted a $636 loss on short-term holdings and a $2,692 profit on long-term holdings.

On April 13, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued staff guidance clarifying that certain crypto user interfaces, particularly those linked to XRP and other digital assets, may operate without requiring broker-dealer registration. This exemption applies provided these interfaces strictly avoid functions such as custody, order routing, and trade execution. The guidance, which is time-limited for five years unless the Commission acts sooner, offers a clearer compliance framework for developers. This development is notably significant for the XRP Ledger (XRPL), with an XRPL validator, Vet, stating on X that providing user access to the XRP DEX should not trigger registration if the interface does not hold funds or execute trades, calling it "extremely good news for DeFi on XRP."

Bloomberg reports that a new study suggests many U.S. cryptocurrency investors may have failed to report digital-asset activity to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). After reviewing anonymized IRS tax records, Texas Christian University assistant professor Tyler Menzer and coauthors found that just 6.5% of taxpayers reported cryptocurrency sales from 2013 to 2021. Over the same period, surveys indicated 12% to 21% of U.S. adults had owned crypto. The authors say the gap points to underreporting of crypto-related income and transactions, which could translate into lost tax revenue. The study also finds crypto holders are more likely to own meme tokens, skew younger with lower incomes, and trade in ways that differ markedly from traditional stock investors. Separately, CoinTracker data show that for the 2025 tax year, crypto investors reported an average of 836 transactions, with an average short-term holding loss of $636 and an average long-term holding gain of $2,692.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said he is more optimistic than he has been in years after spending a day in Washington, marking his 11th anniversary at the company. Following meetings with Senators Bill Hagerty, Bernie Moreno, Tim Scott, John Boozman and Patrick Witt, plus an appearance at the Semafor World Economic Summit, Garlinghouse said the message to the crypto sector is clear: the window to advance the CLARITY Act is open, and the time to act is now. In a post reflecting on his journey since joining Ripple in 2014, Garlinghouse wrote that he never expected the company would still be pushing for regulatory clarity more than a decade later. "The fight has been worth it," he said, adding that after discussions in DC, "we are closer than ever." What the CLARITY Act does The CLARITY Act is the most consequential piece of U.S. crypto market-structure legislation currently moving through the Senate. The bill aims to set bright-line rules for when a digital asset is treated as a security versus a commodity, an unresolved distinction that has kept the industry in a long-running grey zone and empowered regulators to rely on enforcement actions rather than formal rulemaking. A tight and uncertain Senate timeline Hagerty, a leading backer of the bill and one of the lawmakers Garlinghouse met, said last week he believes the legislation could clear the Senate Banking Committee during the current work period and reach the full Senate floor before the end of April. No markup session has been confirmed for next week, leaving the end-of-month goal looking possible but not assured. People closely tracking the bill point to the week of April 27 as the next realistic window. The '30%' hurdle Ron Hammond, Head of Policy at market maker Wintermute, puts the odds of the CLARITY Act passing in 2026 at 30%, citing political friction, stalled negotiations and shifting timelines. If the bill slips into summer, attention in the Senate typically turns toward midterm positioning, and measures without broad bipartisan urgency are more likely to be sidelined in favor of issues with clearer voter appeal. Crypto attorney John Deaton echoed that view, warning that if the bill drifts into summer, the window does not merely narrow—it closes. Tags: Crypto news; Ripple (XRP)

Here are today's top 10 stories: 1) Ripple partners with Kyobo Life Insurance to pilot South Korea's first tokenized government bond settlement on blockchain using Ripple Custody. 2) President Trump said he believes the war with Iran is "close to over." 3) Anthropic has reportedly drawn multiple VC offers valuing the company at as much as $800 billion, more than double its current valuation, according to Business Insider. 4) Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said: "The CLARITY Act window is open. And now is our moment to act." 5) Only 6.5% of crypto owners reported sales to the IRS, pointing to broad tax underreporting among crypto investors, Bloomberg reported. 6) X is rolling out Cashtags, enabling users to track stocks and crypto with live charts inside the app. 7) The U.S. SEC scrapped the Pattern Day Trader rule, removing the $25,000 minimum balance requirement. 8) Kevin Warsh's nomination hearing for Federal Reserve Chair is scheduled for April 21 before the Senate Banking Committee. 9) Goldman Sachs filed for a Bitcoin Premium Income ETF tied to $3.6 trillion. 10) Trump's Fed Chair nominee Kevin Warsh disclosed assets worth more than $100 million, including holdings in crypto and AI ventures.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the drive for U.S. crypto regulation is approaching a pivotal moment as legislative momentum builds in Washington, arguing the industry is closer than ever to durable regulatory clarity. Marking 11 years at Ripple on April 14, Garlinghouse said on X that he never expected the sector would still be "fighting for regulatory clarity" more than a decade later, casting the issue as a long-running policy battle. He pointed to recent meetings in Washington with Sen. Bill Hagerty, Sen. Bernie Moreno, Sen. Tim Scott, Sen. John Boozman and Patrick Witt, and to his appearance at the Semafor World Economic Summit. "The fight has been worth it … I know we are closer than ever," he wrote. At the center of the current push is the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, commonly referred to as the CLARITY Act. The bill cleared the House of Representatives in July 2025 and is now under negotiation in the Senate Banking Committee. Lawmakers returned on April 13 after the Easter recess, opening what observers describe as a narrow window to advance the legislation. The committee, chaired by Sen. Tim Scott, is aiming for a markup in the final two weeks of April. Sen. Bernie Moreno has warned that if the bill does not move before May, consideration could slip until after the 2026 midterm election cycle. Negotiations have recently focused on stablecoin yield provisions, with talks pointing toward an agreement in principle that would curb passive yield while permitting activity-based rewards. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has publicly backed the bill, easing a key industry hurdle. Garlinghouse also argued that coordination between regulators, while helpful, is not a substitute for legislation. He has cited improved alignment between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as a meaningful shift, but said agency posture can change with leadership unless Congress codifies clear standards. On X, Garlinghouse pressed lawmakers to act: "The CLARITY Act window is open. And now is our moment to act." He also said Washington may be nearing a deal as frustration rises: "When people are at their peak frustration, that's when they finally compromise, and it gets done. I think we're there."