Bitcoin miners are increasingly looking to artificial intelligence as a potential exit strategy, tokenized real-world assets have pushed past $43 billion in total value, Ripple is deepening its payments network in Africa, and Sam Bankman-Fried has lost his appeal. These stories, spanning mining, DeFi, payments, and legal news, paint a busy picture for crypto this week.
Miners Bet on AI
Bitcoin miners are pivoting toward artificial intelligence, viewing it as a possible way out of a tough post-halving margin squeeze. The shift comes as mining margins remain tight and AI compute demand keeps climbing. Several miners have started reallocating hardware and data-center capacity to serve AI workloads rather than just hashing for Bitcoin.
Tokenized RWAs Cross $43 Billion
Tokenized real-world assets — from Treasury bills to private credit and real estate — have now hit a total value of over $43 billion. The milestone underscores how traditional finance is slowly moving on-chain. Most of the growth this year has come from institutional players issuing debt and funds as tokens on public blockchains.
Ripple's Africa Push
Ripple is strengthening its payments network in Africa, the company said this week. The expansion focuses on enabling faster cross-border payments using XRP and RippleNet. Africa has become a key battleground for crypto-based remittances, and Ripple is betting that its infrastructure can undercut traditional corridors.
SBF's Appeal Fails
Sam Bankman-Fried has lost his appeal. The former FTX CEO had challenged his conviction on fraud and conspiracy charges, but a federal court rejected the bid. The decision upholds his sentence, effectively ending his legal challenge for now.
