Trump Calls on Uncooperative Ally Nations: Either Buy Oil from the United States or Go Seize Oil in the Strait of Hormuz

March 31: Blockchain infrastructure provider Uniblock has raised $5.2 million in a new funding round, pushing its total funding to $7.5 million, per Decrypt. Investors in the round include SBI, AllianceDAO, CoinSwitch, Blockchain Founders Fund, Hustle Fund, AAF Management, NGC Ventures, plus strategic backers Alchemy and MoonPay. Uniblock is positioned as a cross-chain "custodial infrastructure layer," offering access to 3,000+ interfaces via a single API connection. Using patented automatic routing technology, it handles node selection, failover, and data normalization across 55 data partners, covering 300+ blockchains. The platform currently serves 3,000 projects and 4,000 developers. Production-environment clients include Plume Network, Stellar Blockchain, Hypernative, Oku Trade, and Apechain—with Plume and Apechain integrating Uniblock as their custodial RPC infrastructure through ecosystem partnerships.

March 31 — The Better Money Company, a stablecoin clearing service provider co-founded by former a16z investor Sam Broner, has closed a $10 million seed round led by a16z crypto. Participating investors include BoxGroup, Sunflower Capital, Circle co-founder Sean Neville, former Microsoft executive Charlie Songhurst, and other angel backers. The capital will be used to build a stablecoin clearinghouse and forge partnerships with stablecoin issuers. (Fortune)

March 31 — Italy denied landing permission to a U.S. military aircraft at an Italian Air Force base, citing "lack of authorization and a non-routine mission."

Per a March 31 Reuters survey, the average 2026 price of U.S. crude oil is forecast at $76.78 per barrel—up from February’s projection of $60.38—while Brent crude’s 2026 average is seen at $82.85/bbl, a jump from the prior month’s $63.85 estimate. (FXStreet)

March 31 — Coinbase announced via official sources that spot trading for EDGEX will launch on March 31, 2026. The EDGEX-USD trading pair will become available later today if liquidity conditions are met and trading support is confirmed.

March 31 — President Trump told CBS on Thursday that he is not ready to halt U.S. efforts to pressure Iran into reopening the Strait of Hormuz, despite disappointing allies by not providing military aid. He claimed Iran has been “destroyed” and downplayed the threat to the strait, adding that other nations should step in to secure oil supplies.