Welcome to your crypto update for yesterday, April 23rd, 2026. The headlines include developments in the areas of regulation, high-level issues related to security, and important legal aspects for all stakeholders in the crypto industry.
Market Structure Bill: Call for Senate Action From Crypto Industry
There is growing concern on the part of all stakeholders in regard to action being taken towards developing a market structure bill. There is a risk of the U.S. falling behind its competitors technologically.
Major crypto companies, venture capitalists, and digital asset firms have called on the United States Senate to expedite progress on the market structure bill.
A broad coalition warns that continued delay could undermine America’s competitiveness in the global financial arena. In a signed letter dated April 23, representatives from across the industry expressed concerns about the slow decision-making process on this issue, noting that many countries are actively updating their regulatory frameworks.
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The supporters of the proposed law point to several areas where meaningful progress has already been achieved. These include preserving incentives for consumers related to payment stablecoins, establishing clear jurisdictional boundaries for regulatory powers, and safeguarding developers of decentralized products.
The bill is also seen as a step toward uniform standards nationwide, reducing fragmentation and the burdens of overlapping compliance procedures that can burden innovation.
The letter, authored by leaders of major industry players, was addressed to members of the Senate Banking Committee. The digital currency industry representatives urged legislators to move into the next stage of discussion for the market structure bill and to begin the markup phase of the project. The goal is to translate advocacy into concrete legislative momentum that can support a stable and innovative regulatory environment for crypto companies, exchanges, and related services.
Phishing, deepfakes, others to fuel 2026’s biggest crypto hacks: CertiK
Real-time deepfakes, phishing attacks, supply chain compromises, and cross-chain vulnerabilities are projected to be the root causes of some of 2026’s most consequential crypto hacks, according to CertiK senior blockchain investigator Natalie Newson.
The industry has already seen over $600 million in losses due to hacks this year, driven in part by North Korea-linked thefts in April. Notably, the cross-chain messaging infrastructure on LayerZero experienced a high-profile incident contributing to the overall risk landscape, alongside a separate $280 million exploit on Drift Protocol.
The average size of crypto hacks rose to $19.5 million in 2025, underscoring the escalating scale of incidents.
Another North Korea–linked incident involved AI-assisted social engineering. Crypto wallet Zerion disclosed on April 15 that hackers affiliated with North Korea used AI to execute a social-engineering attack that drew away about $100,000 from the company’s hot wallets. Newson warned that, in certain respects, the accelerating use of AI could intensify crypto-attacks, demanding deeper defense measures from firms and investors alike.
FTX’s SBF Drops Retrial Motion, Escalates Push to Remove Judge Kaplan
In a continuing high-profile legal narrative, FTX’s former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has withdrawn a motion for a new criminal trial. He is simultaneously intensifying efforts to have the presiding judge, Judge Lewis Kaplan, removed from the case. Bankman-Fried is serving a 25-year prison sentence for one of the largest financial frauds in American history.
The latest court filing reflects a tactical pause rather than a surrender, as Bankman-Fried reserves the right to refile after related appeals and reassignment requests are resolved.
On April 22, a letter filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York reveals Bankman-Fried’s formal withdrawal of his Rule 33 motion, a request for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence.
He clarified that this withdrawal is conditional and tied to ongoing appellate and reassignment matters. The filing reacts to a March 23 order from Judge Kaplan, who asked Bankman-Fried to confirm whether outside legal help was used to draft filings that were, in part, pro se.
Prosecutors raised questions about a suspicious FedEx package sent from Menlo Park, California, used in connection with filings that raise concerns about who authored the court documents.
Bankman-Fried acknowledged that his parents, both Stanford law professors, provided editorial and organizational assistance and helped print documents since he lacks access to a word processor in prison. He maintained that he authored the filings himself.
Eric Trump fires back at Justin Sun’s WLFI lawsuit with $6M banana art jab
The public exchange between Eric Trump and Justin Sun continued to draw attention in the crypto space. Eric Trump publicly dismissed a federal fraud lawsuit filed by Tron founder Justin Sun against World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a Trump family–backed DeFi project.
In a post on X on April 22, 2026, WLFI co-founder Zach Witkoff parried Sun’s credibility by referencing the $6.24 million banana artwork, famously duct-taped to a wall that Sun purchased in 2024.
Eric Trump wrote: “The only thing more ridiculous than this lawsuit is spending $6 million on a banana duct-taped to a wall. We are incredibly proud of the WLFI team.” The post targeted Sun’s November 2024 purchase of “Comedian,” a 2019 conceptual artwork by Maurizio Cattelan that consists of a banana duct-taped to a wall with silver tape.
Sun filed a complaint on April 21, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, suing for breach of contract, fraud, conversion, and unjust enrichment, and seeking to unfreeze tokens and damages while asking the court to prevent WLFI from destroying his holdings.
WLFI co-founder and CEO Zach Witkoff responded on X, characterizing the lawsuit as a “desperate attempt to deflect attention from Sun’s own misconduct” and calling the claims “entirely meritless.” He expressed confidence that the case would be dismissed promptly.
In terms of the context of this case, it should be noted that the complaint was filed by Sun, who filed the claim together with two entities he is associated with in the British Virgin Islands due to problems associated with token possession.
With the passage of time, the crypto news of the week clearly shows that regulation issues, along with security issues, play an important role in defining the course of cryptocurrencies because of the legal conflicts taking place.
