Weekly: Bitcoin above $78,000, the quantum threat, and nearly $4 billion in BitMine losses

Last week, the market finally delivered the move many had been waiting for: Bitcoin rose above $78,000, Ethereum followed, and the feed once again brought back the feeling that crypto is coming back to life. But along with that growth, old questions quickly returned as well. Miners are taking profits, the quantum threat no longer looks abstract, large companies are counting billion-dollar losses, and AI is increasingly interfering in the conversation about security and financial infrastructure.

That is why this week should be read not only as a story about a stronger chart. It is also a snapshot of how the market behaves at a moment when the price is going up, but the tension is not going anywhere.

Bitcoin is rising for the third week in a row

BTC had a strong week: on April 13, the price rose from about $71,000 to $75,000, and by the end of the week it briefly moved above $78,000. For the market, this was an important signal after a period of pressure from geopolitics and the macro backdrop, but the question of how sustainable this move is still remains open.

On-chain data paints a mixed picture. At CryptoQuant, they pointed out that the price is rising while open interest on Binance is declining, and this is usually considered a healthier market structure without overheating from leverage. At the same time, BCMI dropped into a zone of historical undervaluation, but its 90-day average still remains weak, so it is still too early to talk about a full and easy recovery.

Miners are selling, while big names are once again stirring up attention

Another important detail is the behavior of miners. According to analysts’ estimates, their reserves have decreased by around 61,000 BTC since the beginning of the current cycle, and Riot Platforms, Marathon Digital, and Core Scientific were named among the most notable sellers. This does not look like panic, but it does show the market mood well: some players are using current levels to lock in profits.

At the same time, the Musk family appeared in the news again. Errol Musk said that Elon and Kimbal Musk together hold 23,400 BTC, while Tesla holds about 11,509 BTC. Stories like these do not always move the market directly, but during a phase of uncertain growth they consistently add noise and pull attention toward themselves.

The quantum threat has already moved into the practical realm

The topic of Bitcoin’s quantum security sounded much more concrete this week. Adam Back directly said that the community should start preparing already now, and a group of developers led by Jameson Lopp proposed BIP-361 — a mechanism for the gradual freezing of bitcoins that could potentially become vulnerable to future quantum attacks. In theory, this also affects coins associated with Satoshi.

Part of the community saw this as a necessary step, while another part saw it as an overly radical scenario. Charles Hoskinson separately stated that even if such changes were introduced, about 1.7 million BTC would still remain at risk. So the market is no longer arguing over whether the problem exists, but it still does not have a shared solution.

Ethereum looks stronger on fundamentals

Ethereum also moved confidently last week and, for the first time since the beginning of February, rose above $2,400. At the time the weekly was being prepared, the asset was trading near $2,300, and the move was supported not only by market sentiment, but also by stronger fundamental signals. According to Santiment, the number of addresses with balances from 100,000 ETH rose from 54 to 57, which is often read as accumulation by major players.

At the same time, the network itself came back to life. According to Artemis, the number of daily transactions on Ethereum jumped by about 242% in three days and reached 3.6 million. This matters because it is no longer only about price, but also about more active use of the network. In addition, spot Ethereum ETFs on April 13 showed inflows of about $9.5 million, while Bitcoin ETFs on the same day saw outflows of $291 million. For the market, this is not a full reversal, but it is a very telling contrast.

BitMine reminded everyone how much the previous decline cost

One of the loudest corporate stories of the week was BitMine’s report. The company recorded a net loss of about $3.82 billion for the quarter that ended on February 28, 2026, while a year earlier the figure was only about $1.15 million. The main blow came from unrealized losses on digital assets in the amount of about $3.78 billion.

This story matters not only because of the figure, it clearly shows how costly the prolonged market decline at the end of 2025 was for large players. Even when the chart begins to recover, company balance sheets still do not let the previous phase be forgotten for a long time.

In the US, they are once again trying to give the market a framework

In the regulatory block, the main topic was stablecoin yield. Senator Thom Tillis said that already this week they may present a draft agreement regarding the dispute between banks and crypto companies within the CLARITY Act. The essence is simple: whether crypto platforms should have the right to pay interest on unused stablecoin balances. JPMorgan also spoke about a possible breakthrough in this discussion.

Another important change, the SEC approved the cancellation of the $25,000 minimum capital requirement for pattern day traders in the stock market. Formally, this is not purely a crypto decision, but for market sentiment the signal is noticeable: barriers to more active trading are being reduced. The problem is that this still does not add clarity in the systemic sense, and the market continues to read such steps cautiously.

AI is no longer seen as background, but as a risk

In the artificial intelligence block, the main topic was Anthropic’s Mythos model. The company restricted access to it after an internal security assessment, since the model, according to reports, turned out to be capable of independently finding and exploiting critical vulnerabilities in digital infrastructure. This is no longer about general conversations, but about a direct risk to banking apps, medical services, and network equipment.

At the same time, Jensen Huang reminded everyone that China has enough resources to train models of this level, and Anthropic’s pre-IPO valuation, according to The Kobeissi Letter, approached $851 billion. Together, this shows one simple thing: the struggle for AI has long moved beyond laboratories and now directly runs into geopolitics, finance, and control.

Fraud is once again hitting the weakest points of the market

One separate painful story was the fake Ledger app. American musician Gareth Dutton reported losing about 5.9 BTC, or around $420,000, after installing a malicious program instead of the real app. ZachXBT tracked the movement of the funds through KuCoin addresses, and the total losses from this scheme were estimated at around $9.5 million, with more than 50 victims. This is yet another reminder that in crypto, the weak point is very often not the protocol itself, but the user’s point of contact with the interface.

The overall FBI statistics look even harsher. In 2025, losses from cryptocurrency fraud exceeded $11.3 billion, while the number of complaints to IC3 surpassed 181,000. The biggest amount of money disappears in investment scams, but crypto ATM schemes, recovery scams, phishing, and fake tech support also hit hard. 

The Ukrainian story was also loud: law enforcement detained another member of an international hacker group who was responsible for laundering and withdrawing funds through cryptocurrencies, and the losses in the case are estimated at over $100 million.

Kraken is preparing for the next stage

Against this backdrop, Kraken’s corporate news looked much more constructive. Deutsche Börse Group invested $200 million in Payward, the parent company of the exchange, while Payward itself agreed to acquire derivatives platform Bitnomial for up to $550 million. At the same time, Kraken, according to reports, continues preparing for an IPO.

Kursoff’s opinion

Last week clearly showed what state the market is currently in. In terms of prices, it looks stronger than it did a few weeks ago, but in terms of sentiment it is still very cautious. Right now, it is important to look not only at the beautiful move upward, but also at what is supporting it. If the market is recovering on a healthier structure, that is one scenario. If, at the same time, risks continue to build up that have only temporarily moved to the background, that is another.