Drift Protocol has suspended deposits and withdrawals after confirming an active attack and disclosing the incident on 1 April. Early on-chain estimates put potential losses near $285m, spanning assets such as $71.4m in USDC and $159.3m in JLP. The team said it is working with security firms, bridges, and exchanges, while the alleged exploit method remains unconfirmed.

On April 1, the US Treasury released the first rules to implement the GENIUS Act, outlining federal oversight, reserve standards, reporting duties, and issuer licensing for the stablecoin market. The framework sets a $10 billion threshold that affects whether an issuer may remain under state supervision, while also banning yield or incentive-like features on stablecoins. Regulators expect the final framework by July, with full rollout planned by the end of the year.

On April 1, the U.S. Department of the Treasury released a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking public input on how stablecoin oversight should align between state regimes and the federal framework under the GENIUS Act. The proposal says states may supervise payment stablecoin issuers with total issuance below $10 billion if their rules are deemed substantially similar to federal requirements, and comments are due within 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.

Drift Protocol, a Solana-based decentralized exchange, said it is under an active attack and halted deposits and withdrawals, emphasizing it was not an April Fools' joke. On-chain watchers reported that more than $270 million in assets were suspiciously drained and routed to a single wallet. The incident is being handled with multiple security firms, bridges, and exchanges, the protocol said.

Solana recorded 10.1 billion transactions in the first quarter of 2026, marking the first time the network has crossed 10 billion in a single quarter. The figure was posted on April 1 by Artemis, and it implies roughly a 50% increase from Q4 2025.

On April 1, bitcoin briefly moved above $69,000 two times, reaching $69,268 before pulling back amid profit-taking. By 1:30 p.m. EST it traded near $68,500, up about 1% over 24 hours, as liquidations topped $257 million and broader markets rallied alongside weaker Brent crude below $100 per barrel.

Algorand (ALGO) rallied 29% after Google highlighted it as an example of a blockchain taking steps toward post-quantum cryptography. The move pushed ALGO from $0.088 to $0.1045 and marked a new monthly high, though it remains below the 3-month peak of $0.144.

Drift Protocol said it was investigating unusual activity on April 1, 2026, after onchain trackers estimated $200 million or more was drained from protocol accounts. The outflows were traced to Solana wallet HkGz4KmoZ7Zmk7HN6ndJ31UJ1qZ2qgwQxgVqQwovpZES, while DRIFT fell from about $0.072 to $0.055 amid uncertainty.