Canada's Department of Finance confirmed Bill C-15 has received Royal Assent, opening the door to a federal stablecoin regime overseen by the Bank of Canada. The plan would require fiat-backed issuers to register, hold 1:1 reserves, and offer par-value redemptions, while restricting yield and certain marketing. Authorities expect consultations over the next 12 to 18 months, with full rollout targeted for 2027.

On April 2, 2026, U.S. markets finished modestly lower after President Donald Trump’s Wednesday-evening address warning Iran would be hit "extremely hard", helping drive oil sharply higher. WTI surged to $111.50 intraday before ending at $103.6, while bitcoin slipped about 1.6% to around $67,024 and gold futures fell nearly 3% to roughly $4,680 per ounce.

Stablecoin supply rose by about $8 billion to a record $315 billion in Q1, as stablecoins captured 75% of total crypto trading volume and transaction volume exceeded $28 trillion. Retail-sized transfers fell 16% while bots represented roughly 76% of stablecoin transaction volume. USDC supply increased by around $2 billion, whereas USDT supply declined by about $3 billion.

Bitcoin was rejected near $69,000 on Wednesday and held around $66,000 through the week as oil jumped and risk appetite softened. Private credit fund redemption limits, rising US continuing jobless claims, ETF outflows, and reported miner/corporate sales have added near-term pressure. Traders are watching whether BTC can keep support into the Easter market closure while the $75,000 target remains dependent on improving risk perception.

Crypto ETF flows reversed after two days of inflows, led by bitcoin products posting $173.73 million in net redemptions. Ether ETFs also slipped to a $7.10 million outflow even as several funds took in money, while XRP ETFs saw a $1.32 million exit and Solana ETFs again showed no activity.

Polymarket has launched price-based prediction contracts linked to equities, commodities and exchange-traded funds, with outcomes automatically settled using Pyth Network price feeds. The lineup includes daily up-or-down and closing-price markets for major equity indexes, gold and oil, plus more than a dozen US-listed stocks such as Tesla, Nvidia and Apple. Contracts reset at the end of each trading session.

Coinbase said it received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to form Coinbase National Trust Company under federal oversight. Announced on 2 April, the national trust charter is positioned as a custody and market-infrastructure vehicle rather than a commercial bank, with no deposits or lending.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Department of Justice filed separate lawsuits on Thursday against Illinois, Connecticut and Arizona, challenging state actions targeting prediction market platforms. The CFTC argues that event-contract prediction markets fall under its exclusive jurisdiction as federally regulated designated contract markets, after the states sent cease-and-desist letters in 2025 citing gambling and licensing rules.