Stablecoin Total Market Capitalization Hits New All-Time High, DeFi TVL Reaches $100 Billion

On April 22, crypto exchange Hotcoin announced the launch of the **Hotcoin Alpha Trader House Point Survival Challenge**—featuring an immersive "Trade & Travel" trading experience. Registration is open from April 22 to April 26, 2026, with the competition running April 27 through May 3. During the event, users earn points by completing trades and other tasks. Top-ranked participants qualify for **up to 60-day stays at overseas trading retreats** in popular destinations like Chiang Mai, Osaka, Phuket, and Kuala Lumpur. Beyond accommodation, standout participants will gain access to exclusive platform partnerships, increased visibility (including broader traffic reach), and support for building their personal brand. Hotcoin notes the event aims to boost user trading activity and community engagement via innovative incentives, strengthening ecosystem interaction and user retention on the platform.

April 22 Coinbase Pro has launched perpetual gold and silver futures trading on its international platform, per an official announcement. The announcement notes the trading is available to retail traders and institutions in select jurisdictions.

April 22 — Official sources confirm that Ethereum layer-2 network OP Mainnet has rolled out Privacy Boost, an enterprise-grade privacy solution. Developed by Sunnyside Labs (the core development team behind the Optimism ecosystem), the solution leverages a ZK+TEE hybrid architecture and generates cryptographic proofs in under 500 milliseconds. Privacy Boost is a plug-and-play SDK supporting private computations across any OP Stack chain. Sunnyside Labs, a firm specializing in blockchain infrastructure, has collaborated with OP Labs and other core contributors for over three years to build the OP Stack’s core infrastructure.

On April 22, South Korean Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Hyun-jung—who sits on the party’s Digital Assets Special Committee—told Edaily that the stablecoin-focused Digital Assets Basic Law will be filed for second-stage legislation after the June local elections, with the bill’s subcommittee convening around the same time. Kim noted unresolved controversies (including restrictions on exchange major shareholders) still require further discussion, but he expressed confidence the stablecoin legislation will ultimately pass, citing the new Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor’s supportive stance. The Democratic Party’s Digital Assets Special Committee plans to meet with the new BOK governor post-elections, he added. Kim also stressed the need to proactively update systems for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and Korean won stablecoins, align tax policies with international regulations, and strengthen infrastructure to combat digital asset-related crimes.

April 22 — Per BeInCrypto, traditional finance giant Mastercard has joined the Blockchain Security Standard Committee (BSSC) as a founding member. The firm will help shape security frameworks for blockchain networks and tokenized assets, plus join the working group focused on security and privacy guidelines. A nonprofit alliance, BSSC’s current members include Coinbase, Fireblocks, Anchorage Digital, BitGo, Figment, and Ribbit Capital. Mastercard’s Claire Le Gal will sit on the BSSC board as the company’s representative.

April 22nd – Per ZachXBT, Bitcoin Depot, a Bitcoin ATM operator, is facing issues with fees and security. A U.S. elderly fraud victim was able to convert $25,000 in fiat to Bitcoin via a Bitcoin Depot ATM, with the machine quoting $108,000 per BTC—well above the $75,000 market price at the time. The victim ultimately received just 0.232 BTC for their $25,000. Additionally, ZachXBT noted Bitcoin Depot was recently hacked, with 54 BTC (roughly $3.26 million) in funds going undiscovered for several days.