Global TradFi & Macroeconomics

Gate News message: On April 13, the spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters of Iran’s armed forces said that in the face of U.S. threats, Iran will decisively implement a “permanent mechanism to control the Strait of Hormuz.” The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and it is a major global oil shipping route.

Gate News message: On April 13, European stocks opened broadly lower. The EURO STOXX 50 Index (the benchmark for European blue-chip stocks) fell 1.02%, the German DAX Index (the benchmark for the German stock market) fell 1.42%, the UK FTSE 100 Index fell 0.5%, the Spain IBEX35 Index fell 1.06%, and the France CAC40 Index fell 0.89%.

Gate News: According to the latest Gate TradFi data, USDZAR (USD/ZAR) has surged by 1% in a short period. Current volatility is significantly higher than recent averages, indicating increased market activity.

Exodus CEO JP Richardson said that in 2026 the crypto market will see an unprecedented structural shift, with institutional investors moving in rapidly, while retail investors are absent at scale due to a cost-of-living crisis. Data shows retail activity has fallen to a nine-year low, and some funds are flowing to traditional markets. While sentiment is fragile in the short term, the outlook for the mid term is still viewed positively.

The Bank of Korea recommends introducing a circuit breaker mechanism in the crypto-asset industry to prevent abnormal trading, and points out that the Bithumb mistaken payment incident reveals a structural vulnerability. The governor nominee, Hyun-sung Shin, emphasizes that CBDCs and deposit tokens should be the core of digital currencies, and proposes a phased opening strategy for stablecoins. The Bank of Korea also plans to launch an offshore KRW system with real-time gross settlement in 2027 to reduce credit risk.

The U.S. Navy began blockading the Strait of Hormuz starting April 13, U.S. Eastern Time, with all passage halted. Crude oil prices jumped nearly 10% in a single day, while Bitcoin fell 1.2% over the past 24 hours.

Exodus CEO JP Richardson said this year, financial institutions have accelerated their participation in the cryptocurrency market, while retail investors have sharply reduced their activity, with engagement falling to a nine-year low. The main reasons are the cost-of-living crisis and inflation pressures.

Gate News message: On April 13, according to official sources, French listed company Capital B increased its holdings by 37 bitcoins, bringing its total bitcoin holdings to 2,925.

On April 13, XAU (gold contract) was trading at $4,717.28, down 0.56% over the past 24 hours. With the breakdown of the U.S.-Iran negotiations, market volatility has intensified; trading volume reached $1.34B, up 504.45% from last month. Liquidity is primarily concentrated across three centralized exchanges.

April 13, XAU is currently quoted at $4,717.28, down 0.56% over the past 24 hours. Geopolitical developments have affected trading activity, driving fluctuations in volume. Total trading volume for XAU futures across the entire network reached $1.34B, up 504.45% month-over-month. Liquidity on centralized exchanges is mainly concentrated on three leading platforms.

Taiwan’s solar power giant, United Renewable Energy, has seen its stock price swing sharply recently. After the National Development Fund announced changes to its holdings, selling pressure was triggered, pushing the shares to a daily trading halt. The fund’s exit is seen as a signal that policy is easing. Combined with news about the restart of nuclear power, it increases short-term selling pressure. United Renewable Energy emphasized that this is a phased exit, and expressed gratitude to its shareholders for their support.

SigmaIntell predicts that global DRAM prices will continue to rise in 2026 Q2, but the rate of increase will slow significantly to 30% to 50%. Driven by strong AI demand and weakening consumer electronics demand, the DRAM market is being restructured, and the supply-demand shortfall is widening. Although AI server demand is forecast to grow year over year by as much as 105%, demand for traditional consumer products is falling, so the overall supply-demand balance will shift from a surplus in 2025 to a shortage in 2026.

Bitmine rose to the NYSE main board on April 13 and increased its share repurchase authorization from $1 billion to $4 billion to support its stock price. Chairman Tom Lee said that U.S. stocks may have already bottomed out because the Iran-Iraq ceasefire agreement eased geopolitical risks and because the fundamentals of ether (ETH) have improved. Bitmine holds about 4.8 million ETH, and each 1% increase brings roughly $100 million in asset appreciation.

A whale-sized investor was already down $345k when betting that the Iranian regime would collapse on June 30, and the prior investment also failed. The market’s judgment rules are strict, and only under specific conditions is a regime collapse recognized; ordinary regime change is not considered.

The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region signed a cooperation memorandum with the National Internet Information Office to advance technological innovation and support the high-quality development of the digital economy, covering areas such as artificial intelligence and blockchain, with the aim of implementing the country’s “15th Five-Year Plan.” Lee Ka-chiu said it will deepen cross-border data cooperation within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Gate News message. According to Gate’s official announcement, Gate contract stock section will be launched on April 13, 2026 at 14:00 (UTC+8) with live trading of TENCENT (Tencent Holdings 00700.HK), XIAOMI (Xiaomi Group 01810.HK), MEITUAN (Meituan 03690.HK), KUAISHOU (Kuaishou 01024.HK), and HKEX (Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing 00388.HK) perpetual contracts. The trading will use USDT settlement and support 1–20x long and short operations. Among them, the TENCENT contract is based on Tencent Holdings, the XIAOMI contract is based on Xiaomi Group, the MEITUAN contract is based on Meituan, the KUAISHOU contract is based on Kuaishou, and the HKEX contract is based on Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing; the price of each contract is denominated in USDT.

SpaceX's commitment to its Bitcoin reserves, despite significant losses, signals a potential wave of corporate adoption, according to SkyBridge Capital's Anthony Scaramucci. The upcoming IPO will require public disclosure of its $603 million Bitcoin position.

Gate News update. On April 13, Iranian Islamic Consultative Assembly lawmaker Seyed Mahmoud Nabaviyan, who took part in negotiations between the United States and Iran, posted on social media on April 12 listing three demands put forward by the United States, and then deleted them. The three demands are: The U.S. demanded that the benefits from the Strait of Hormuz be jointly shared with Iran; the U.S. demanded that all highly enriched uranium with a concentration of 60% be shipped out of Iran; and the U.S. demanded that Iran not carry out uranium enrichment activities during the next 20 years.

U.S. Central Command confirms that, starting April 13, it will impose a maritime blockade on Iranian ports, while international shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is not affected. WTI crude oil prices break above $105, and Bitcoin falls back to around $71,000, with global energy and crypto asset markets responding in sync.

A single address on the Hyperliquid platform held a $73.05 million crude oil short position in a day; its floating profit of $5.89M turned into a floating loss of $2.10 million. Of this, the CL and BRENTOIL short positions were down $1.4M and $620k respectively. The address became the largest leveraged position in BRENTOIL.