Gate News reports that on March 18, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released data showing that U.S. crude oil inventories for the week ending March 13 increased by 6.156 million barrels, significantly exceeding market expectations of 380,000 barrels, with the previous value being an increase of 3.824 million barrels.
Gate News reported that on March 18, prediction market platform Polymarket announced the acquisition of crypto infrastructure startup Brahma. This acquisition aims to expand Polymarket's infrastructure scale in the cryptocurrency and DeFi sectors.
Despite the crypto market pullback since last year, the latest survey shows that institutional investor confidence remains solid, with 73% planning to increase digital asset allocation by 2026, and 74% expecting market rebound within the next 12 months. Most institutions prefer investing through regulated instruments, while paying attention to market regulatory clarity and risk management.
On March 18th, Garrett Jin posted a warning on the X platform about misdirected attention regarding oil price direction, pointing out that although Brent crude and WTI appear manageable, the actual market pressure is primarily in Dubai and Oman, with oil prices near $155, reflecting supply tightness globally, especially in Asia.
Over 20 DeFi projects have jointly called on U.S. universities to incorporate DeFi and cryptocurrency education into core curricula of business schools and law schools, advocating for the inclusion of blockchain and decentralized technology courses and providing practical opportunities. The campus tour initiative is scheduled to launch at the University of Pennsylvania on March 27.
Gate News reported that on March 18, Canada's Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC, Canada's financial intelligence agency) took concentrated enforcement action against 23 money services businesses (MSBs) providing cryptocurrency-related services, revoking their full registration status in one action, marking a further escalation of Canada's anti-money laundering regulatory efforts. The reasons for revocation of registration included: failure to respond to information requests in a timely manner, non-compliance with registration requirements, and failure to update relevant records promptly and other compliance violations.
