Grayscale updates its list of candidate assets for new products, covering six major crypto sectors including AI, finance, smart contract platforms, and practical tools. The AI sector adds 9 new projects, the finance sector adds 7 DeFi projects, the smart contract platforms sector adds 6 new projects, and the practical tools sector adds multiple tools. The list is updated each quarter and does not yet indicate that related products will definitely be launched.

The white paper jointly released by Gate Research Institute and Global HR states that by Q1 2026, the crypto industry will face job shifts driven by AI transformation, and cross-functional talent will become a core competitive advantage. The industry is mainly divided into four areas: exchanges, public chains and infrastructure, DeFi and derivatives, and stablecoins, with technology research and development needs being the most prominent.

Circle’s Chief Strategy Officer Dante Disparte responded to the Drift Protocol theft incident, emphasizing that freezing USDC is being carried out according to law, calling for stronger coordination between law and technology, and suggesting that DeFi protocols should draw on protection mechanisms from traditional markets to advance legal protection of property rights and financial privacy.

Gate News update, April 9, DeFi solutions provider Enhanced Labs announced it has completed a $1 million Pre-Seed round of financing, led by Maximum Frequency Ventures, with participation from GSR, Selini, Flowdesk, and a group of angel investors. The new funding will be used to support product development and operations, while also expanding options-based yield strategies to a wider range of on-chain assets, including tokenized real-world assets.

Gate News, April 9, the Solana treasury company DeFi Development listed on Nasdaq released its March operating report. The report shows that as of the end of March, the company held 2.22 million SOL, and the amount of the liquid staking token dfdvSOL increased from 513k to more than 656k. In addition, DeFi Development said it will continue to advance its strategic investment in the stablecoin protocol Apyx.

Multiple U.S. law enforcement groups oppose the provisions in the Senate's crypto market structure bill that protect DeFi developers, arguing that it would weaken the government's ability to combat financial crime. The bill's proposed amendments have triggered a bipartisan rift, and it remains unclear whether it can move forward in the future.

Gate News message, April 9, DeFi protocol Splyce Finance completes a strategic round of financing. Sui Foundation, Stellar, Solana Foundation, Lucid Drakes, Sarson Funds, and Kin Capital participated as co-investors. The specific amount of funding has not been disclosed yet.

The DeFi yield protocol Saturn officially launched on the mainnet on April 9. The private testing phase has ended; during this period, companies such as Flowdesk and Galaxy deposited $10 million. Its stablecoin USDat is built on M0, with partners including Galaxy, Securitize, and Clear Street. Saturn completed a $800k funding round in January.

Surf launched the Surf Skill CLI tool, enabling AI agents with the ability to query cryptocurrency data and replacing 60+ separate APIs. Users can analyze the market, DeFi TVL, and social trends in real time, and get $200k in free API credit to simplify the development process.

Gate News update: On April 9, according to Gate market data, as of the time of publication, IN (INFINIT) is trading at $0.0661. It is up 14.67% over the past 24 hours, having reached a high of $0.0686 and a low of $0.0572. The 24-hour trading volume is $366.4k. The current market cap is approximately $15.0928 million. INFINIT is an AI-driven DeFi smart protocol that helps anyone discover, assess, and execute DeFi investment opportunities in one click through smart agents and a natural-language interface. INFINIT is driving the development of Agentic DeFi’s economy— a decentralized, agent-based infrastructure where KOLs and DeFi experts can create and monetize solutions for community users