DIB 13 MAR 2025

BTC Daily Intelligence Bulletin (DIB)
Block: 887,628
DTG/ICOD: 1200Z 13Mar2025
Precedence: Routine (RR)
Controls: Public Release
QQQQ
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BLUF: Russia Recaptures Kursk Area, Setup for Peace Negotiations / China, Russia, Iran Meet to Discuss Iran’s Nuke Program / CR Shut Down by Dems in Senate, Shutdown Looms / SecDef Hegseth to Get DoD Up to Standards / Green Card Holder Still Held Facing Deportation / Nebraska Bill Clarifies Bitcoin ATM Regs / Bolivia Using Crypto For O&G Trades / BITCOIN Act Introed in House and Senate / Rumble Buys Bitcoin / Bitcoin 4-Yr CAGR in Single Digits / US Inflation Less Than Expected / US Budget Deficit Jumps in Feb / China Cyber Targets US Defense / NASA Space Station Launch Delayed

Market Data: Price: 1 BTC= $82,793, 28.07 oz Gold, .19 Median US House
24hr Hi: $84,358 / Lo: $80,635
Vol: $36B (Down 23%)
Mkt Cap: $1.64T (Even)
HashRate: 835 EH/s
Avg Fee Rate: 2 sats/vBtye (Down 50%)

—Reports—
-International Events-
1. Russia says it has recaptured key Kursk region town, as Trump says peace is ‘up to Russia now’: Russian forces have recaptured Sudzha, the largest town that Ukraine once occupied in the Kursk region, according to Moscow, threatening Kyiv’s sole territorial bargaining chip amid pressure to negotiate an end to the war. It comes as US special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow Thursday, Russian state news agency Tass reported. Putin made a surprise visit to the Kursk region on Wednesday. (CNN)

2. China Urges ‘Diplomatic’ Iran Nuclear Solution Ahead Of Beijing Talks: Beijing is set to host Russia and Iran — both key diplomatic partners — on Friday for trilateral talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme. Trump said last week he had sent a letter to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urging negotiations and warning of possible military action if Iran refused. A quarterly report by the UN’s IAEA in February said Iran had significantly increased its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to 60 percent purity — a short step from the 90 percent needed to make a nuclear weapon. (IBTimes) (AC-This is the potential conflict flying under the radar right now with major ramifications.)

-US Events-
1. Government shutdown likely after Schumer says Senate Democrats will block GOP funding bill: Senate Democrats do not have the votes to advance a Republican bill to fund the government, according to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The six-month funding bill, which passed in the House by 217-213, requires 60 votes to overcome a filibuster in the Senate. (GroundNews)

2. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Orders Force-Wide Review of Existing Fitness and Grooming Standards: “Unfortunately, the U.S. military’s high standards on body composition and other metrics eroded in recent years, particularly during the tenure of former Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley, who set a bad example from the top through his own personal corpulence. Secretary Hegseth is committed to restoring high standards, and this review is the first step in doing so.” a DOD spokesman said. (Breitbart)

3. Green Card Holder Faces Deportation Over Protests: Mahmoud Khalil, a legal permanent resident of the U.S. and recent Columbia University graduate, is currently detained by ICE following his participation in protests against Israel’s military actions in Gaza. The Trump administration has initiated proceedings to deport Khalil, citing his support for Hamas as a reason for revoking his green card. Despite no criminal charges being filed, Khalil remains in detention in Louisiana, raising concerns about the rights of green card holders and freedom of speech. His case has sparked a legal and public debate over national security versus civil liberties. (X, Various)

-Regulatory and Legal-
1. Nebraska Enforces New Crypto ATM Rules to Protect Consumers: Nebraska has enacted a new law requiring cryptocurrency ATM operators to obtain licenses, disclose fees, implement anti-fraud measures, and submit reports, strengthening consumer protections against crypto-related fraud. (BitcoinCom)

-CBDCs/World Currencies/Strategic Reserves-
1. Dollar-Strapped Bolivia to Rely on Cryptocurrency for Energy Imports: Bolivia has integrated a crypto-powered system to pay for fuel imports through its state-owned company YPFB, as it is facing a shortage of dollars and a reduction in its dollar-denominated foreign reserves. The stablecoin USDT is primarily being used for this. (BitcoinCom)

2. The Bitcoin Act: US Pushes for 1M BTC Reserve Without Taxpayer Cost: The U.S. is pushing to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, with the BITCOIN Act of 2025 in the House and a Senate companion bill, aiming to acquire 1 million bitcoin in five years without taxpayer burden. (BitcoinCom)

-Institutional Concerns-
1. Right-Wing Video Platform Rumble Buys $15.5 Million in Bitcoin: Rumble recently invested $17.1 million in Bitcoin, purchasing 188 Bitcoin at an average price of $91,000 per token. This move is part of their plan to allocate up to $20 million of excess cash reserves to Bitcoin, aiming to hedge against inflation. (Decrypt)

-Economic Indicators-
1. Bitcoin’s Four-Year Compounded Annual Growth Rate Drops to Record Low of 8%: Bitcoin’s (BTC) four-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) has dropped to its lowest recorded level of 8%, according to Glassnode data. The four-year period was chosen to align with bitcoin’s (BTC) halving cycle while also capturing the typical bull/bear market cycle, which tends to follow a similar timeframe. (CoinDesk)

2. US Inflation Rate Below Forecasts: The annual inflation rate in the US eased to 2.8% in February 2025 from 3% in January, below forecasts of 2.9%. (TradingEconomics)

3. US Budget Deficit Exceeds Expectations in February: US recorded a budget deficit of $307 billion in February 2025, surpassing the $296.2 billion shortfall from the same month a year earlier. February’s figure slightly exceeded market expectations of a $303.2 billion gap. February’s spending increase was primarily driven by higher interest payments on public debt, expanded Child Tax Credit disbursements, and increased Social Security payments, partly due to a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment for 2025. (TradingEconomics)

-Security Incidents and Concerns-
1. China continues cyberattacks on routers, this time targeting Juniper Networks devices: An espionage group operating out of China is targeting routers made by Juniper Networks, according to incident responders from Mandiant. The researchers said the state-backed group — dubbed UNC3886 — was behind a campaign last year to deploy custom backdoors on the company’s Junos OS routers. The group appears to be “focused mainly on defense, technology, and telecommunication organizations located in the US and Asia,” they said. (TheRecord)

-Technology and Science-
1. Hydraulics issue on strongback causes scrub of Crew-10 launch: NASA and SpaceX were less than an hour away from the launch of a new four crew to the International Space Station on Wednesday evening when a hydraulics issue caused a mission scrub. The flight is needed to relieve the station’s current crew, including the two astronauts who originally launched on Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft. The mission is now targeting a launch no earlier than Friday, March 14, at 7:03 p.m. EDT ((SpaceFlightNow)

-Bitcoin Community-
NSTR

-Bitcoin Sentiment-
1. Fear(0)/Greed(100) Index: 45/100 (Up 9 pts)

Analyst Comments (AC): NSTR

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Analyst: BV2A
END REPORT
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*NSTR-Nothing Significant To Report