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NBA Playoffs: What to expect in Cavaliers-Raptors series
Immanuel Quickley and the Raptors will look for an opening against the Cavaliers after rising to 5th in the East.

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Typically the 4-5 series lends the understandable perception of being the most competitive of all the first round best-of-7s. And this one could follow that example, if only because the Raptors swept the Cavs 3-0 this season. There’s also a counter argument: Cleveland is just one year removed from being a top-seed and this season got stronger by adding James Harden; they are 19-6 when he plays. Meanwhile, Toronto avoided a late slide and the SoFi Play-In Tournament, improving by 16 wins over last season and will enter the postseason on an encouraging note.

Series schedule

Here’s how to watch the Cavaliers vs. Raptors series:

All times Eastern Standard Time
- Game 1: Raptors at Cavaliers (TBD)
- Game 2: Raptors at Cavaliers (TBD)
- Game 3: Cavaliers at Raptors (TBD)
- Game 4: Cavaliers at Raptors (TBD)
- Game 5: Raptors at Cavaliers (TBD)*
- Game 6: Cavaliers at Raptors (TBD)*
- Game 7: Raptors at Cavaliers (TBD)*
* = If necessary

Top storyline

James Harden is known as one of the greatest players of this generation, and also for his lack of a ring. He can’t resolve that blemish in the first round, but this is where such a quest must begin — with a new team, once again.

Give him this: Harden smoothed his midseason transition with the Cavs by wisely being a facilitator first and foremost. This allowed him to defer to Donovan Mitchell and also put his new teammates in position to score, namely big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.

Meanwhile, the Raptors are young and quick and bring a group that’s fully familiar with each other and seemingly in sync. Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett will need to collectively produce for the Raptors to have a chance. This is the first playoff trip for this bunch and there are other players in the rotation who have underachieved or are still developing; you wonder how they’ll respond in the bright lights.

Keep your eyes on

Evan Mobley’s production. Mobley had a solid season, nearly averaging a double-double while providing a credible job on defense. And that’s where it ends. He didn’t come anywhere close to copying his breakout 2025 – when he earned All-Star, All-NBA Second Team and Kia Defensive Player of the Year honors – so, in that sense, this followup was uninspiring. Contrast him to Ingram, who led the Raptors in scoring and earned an All-Star berth alongside Barnes.

1 more thing to watch for each team

For Cavaliers: Their defense, which wasn’t exactly championship-quality during the regular season, will be tested this series. The Cavs must find someone to keep Toronto’s active wings in check because Ingram, Barrett and Barnes are the heart of this team. All three are capable of not only dropping 20 points, but being threats late in tight games.

Who’s the best option defensively for the Cavs? Max Strus, Sam Merrill, Dean Wade or Jaylon Tyson? Is there a stopper or two amongst that bunch? The length of this series, or maybe even the outcome, will rest with that question.

For Raptors: A few years ago center Jakob Poeltl was a solid interior presence for the Raptors and the club extended him. This season, he missed 39 games and looked spotty when he did play. While Toronto finished allowing the ninth-fewest points this season, the Raps could use some force from him.

As a tandem, Allen and Mobley can be bullish on the boards; Toronto finished 24th in rebounding. Toronto did get encouraging play from Collin Murray-Boyles, but coming up big (literally) in the playoffs might be a big ask for the 20-year-old rookie.

1 key number to know

89 – The Cavs’ most-used lineup played a total of just 89 minutes this season. That was the fewest minutes for any team’s most-used lineup, and that particular group included Darius Garland and De’Andre Hunter, who were both traded mid-season.

James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen played together in just seven games and for a total of just 92 minutes. The Cavs were terrific in those 92 minutes, outscoring their opponents by 26.7 points per 100 possessions. But that’s a very small sample size and the Cavs go into the playoffs with the least continuity of any team.

For comparison, the Raptors’ starting lineup had played 348 minutes together prior to the season finale against Brooklyn, even though Jakob Poeltl missed 36 games. That group outscored opponents by 7.5 points per 100 possessions, a mark which ranked 12th among the 19 lineups that played at least 200 minutes.

–John Schuhmann

The pick

Cavs in five. Mitchell has three 50-point games and seven 40-pointers in the playoffs, which suggests he’s built for this time of year. Despite those feats, he has never reached the conference finals. In that sense he has something to prove especially since the Cavs lost in the second round last season. The first step in checking that box is getting beyond the first round. Mitchell needs to be, and should be, the best player on the floor this series. The Raptors are equipped to make each game close; whether they can outplay Mitchell and Harden in those fourth-quarter moments of truth, though, is questionable.

* * *

Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at spowell@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
April 13, 2026
US military threatens to blockade all Iranian ports starting on Monday

Vessels will still be able to transit Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports, says CENTCOM; Iran warns any approaching military vessels will be breaching ceasefire.

Published On 13 Apr 2026

The United States military has announced it will begin blockading all Iranian ports on Monday, its latest move to exert pressure on Tehran after marathon peace talks in Pakistan concluded without a deal.

In a statement on Sunday evening, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the blockade would apply to “all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports” from 10am Eastern Time (14:00 GMT) on April 13. That includes “vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas”, including those on the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

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However, US forces “will not impede freedom of ⁠navigation for vessels transiting the Strait ⁠of Hormuz to and ⁠from non-Iranian ports,” CENTCOM said, in an apparent scaling back from President Donald Trump’s earlier threat to blockade the entire strait and pursue ships paying tolls to Iran.

“There are a lot of questions here,” said Al Jazeera’s Heidi Zhou-Castro from Washington, DC, pointing to “conflicting information” coming out of the US side.

“Trump said the blockade would target any and all ships trying to enter or leave the Strait of Hormuz. But CENTCOM is saying this would only target ships going to or from Iranian ports.”

The price of US crude oil jumped 8 percent to $104.24 a barrel after the US blockade threat. Brent crude oil, the international standard, increased 7 percent to $102.29.

Iran has essentially taken control over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for the global energy market, since the US and Israel launched a war against the country on February 28. Traffic through the waterway has since slowed to a trickle, nearly paralysing about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.

Iran has continued to move its own vessels through the strait, while allowing limited passage of ships from other countries. Iranian officials have discussed setting up a toll system after the fighting ends.

In a statement responding to Trump’s blockade threat, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said any approaching military vessels would be in breach of a US-Iran ceasefire – meant to be in effect until April 22 – and “will be dealt with severely”.

The US-declared blockade appears to be triggered by the failure of the talks in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, raising fears of renewed fighting.

Iranian officials blamed the US side for failing to reach a deal, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi saying US negotiators shifted the “goalposts” and obstructed efforts when a memorandum of understanding was “just inches away”.

Zohreh Kharazmi, an associate professor at the University of Tehran, said the US “is not in a position to dictate” to Iranians how to behave, or “to choose which vessels may pass”.

“If this blockade becomes a contest between the resilience of the Islamic Republic and the resilience of global markets, it will not take long to see who is losing,” she said, adding that Iran “is ready for a prolonged war”.

“Technically, they [the US] cannot control the situation. With Hollywood-style strategies, they cannot prevail in this battleground.”

April 13, 2026
How ‘Euphoria’ Season 3 Keeps Fezco Alive After Angus Cloud’s Death

First-time actor Angus Cloud was an immediate standout when “Euphoria” premiered on HBO in 2019, and built that momentum even further in Season 2. His character, drug dealer Fezco, ends up in a climactic shootout when his home is raided by a SWAT team, creating one of the biggest cliffhangers of the season finale in 2022. But in 2023, while “Euphoria” was on hiatus, 25-year-old Cloud died from a fentanyl overdose.

Now “Euphoria” is back after more than four years off the air. The Season 3 premiere picks up after a five-year time jump, with its previously high school-age characters all exploring early adulthood in different ways. And Fez, surprisingly, is still alive.

He first comes up when Rue (Zendaya) is catching up with Lexi (Maude Apatow) and tells her, “You know, you really should call Fez.” Lexi looks uncomfortable, and says she knows she should, but that she’s been too busy. Rue says Fez has told her multiple times that he misses Lexi, and Lexi makes the excuse that their hours don’t line up.

“Just pick up the phone and call him. It’s not like he’s going anywhere. He’s in prison for 30 years,” Rue says.

Speaking to Variety‘s Marc Malkin on the red carpet for Season 3, series creator Sam Levinson said, “There’s a lot of scenes where people are talking to him on the phone. I thought, if I couldn’t keep him alive in life, then maybe within this show I could keep him alive.” He added that Cloud “would be cracking up at his storyline” in the last few episodes of the season. “I think he would love it,” he said.

In another interview with Variety, Levinson expanded on his thoughts about Cloud. “Losing Angus was a tragedy,” he said. “I spent a lot of time trying to make sure that he was healthy, and when he passed, I was very angry. He’s one of 70,000 people that died of a fentanyl overdose in this country in that year. There’s a lot of questions that poses as an individual who’s loved someone and lost them. What is this all about? What does this mean? And I think death has a way of giving life its meaning. You realize how much the small moments matter. The interactions, the good deeds, the way you talk to the people around you. It reveals how precious life is.”

“And in terms of ‘Euphoria, I thought, how do I how do I tell a story about that?” Levinson continued. “How do I tell a story about what it means to be alive and to have the freedom to choose whatever path you want to choose — but there’s also the consequences that come with it? In many ways, this season was about honoring Angus and exploring what the greater meaning of life is. And I think what it comes down to is gratitude. You gotta have gratitude for the small moments, for the tragedies and also the beautiful parts of life. It became the thematic backbone.”

The “Euphoria” Season 3 premiere also paid tribute to Cloud with an “in memoriam” note at the end of the episode that features his name alongside supporting actor Eric Dane, who died earlier this year, and executive producer Kevin Turen, who died in November 2023.

Additionally, the episode seemed to reference Cloud’s death by depicting the dangers of fentanyl in the plot. For spoilers, read Variety‘s recap.

Marc Malkin contributed to this story.

April 13, 2026
‘Euphoria’ Season 3 Premiere Ends With Tribute to Angus Cloud, Eric Dane and EP Kevin Turen

The Season 3 premiere of “Euphoria” paid tribute to three key members of the show who died after Season 2. The new episode ends on a black screen reads “In Memoriam” and takes a moment for each of the three names: actors Eric Dane and Angus Cloud, as well as executive producer Kevin Turen.

Cloud was one of the breakout stars of “Euphoria” when the series premiered in 2019, having famously been scouted off the streets of New York City. He played Fezco, a drug dealer with a difficult and dangerous life who was also a kindhearted friend to Rue (Zendaya) and Lexi (Maude Apatow). Cloud died on July 31, 2023 from an accidental drug overdose. “There was no one quite like Angus,” series creator Sam Levinson said in a statement at the time. “He was too special, too talented and way too young to leave us so soon. He also struggled, like many of us, with addiction and depression. I hope he knew how many hearts he touched. I loved him. I always will. Rest in peace and God Bless his family.”

In the Season 3 premiere, Fezco is still alive off-screen.

Dane starred in “Euphoria” as Cal, the cruel and secretive father of Nate (Jacob Elordi), who is a closeted bisexual and has a sexual encounter with Jules (Hunter Schafer). Dane died on Feb. 19 of this year of ALS after announcing his diagnosis publicly in 2025. He completed his work on Season 3 before his death. “I’m heartbroken by the loss of our dear friend Eric,” Levinson said in a statement. “Working with him was an honor. Being his friend was a gift. Eric’s family is in our prayers. May his memory be for a blessing.”

Turen was a frequent collaborator of Levinson’s. The pair co-founded Little Lamb Productions alongside Levinson’s wife Ashley Levinson in 2018, and Turen produced Levinson’s HBO series “The Idol” (2023) and his films “Assassination Nation” (2018) and “Malcolm & Marie” (2021) in addition to “Euphoria.” Turen died on Nov. 12, 2023 from a cardiac emergency while driving.

Read Variety‘s recap of the “Euphoria” Season 3 premiere.

April 13, 2026
How This Active Mom of 2 Is Thriving With ‘Chemo-Resistant’ Colon Cancer
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Heather Kaiser was diagnosed with early onset colon cancer at 42, but continues to lead a full and healthy life. Image Credit: Healthline/Photo by Heather Kaiser
Heather Kaiser was diagnosed with early onset colon cancer at 42. She shares the story of her diagnosis, treatment, and living a full life with cancer.

As an overall healthy person, she never expected that her life would be turned upside down with a cancer diagnosis.

As a mother of two young boys, Kaiser’s greatest concern was how she could continue to show up for them amid her battle against colon cancer.
Heather Kaiser is a mom of two boys and an attorney living a full and busy life. When she went in to see her doctor in 2025 at age 42 about gastrointestinal issues, she had no idea she would be facing an indefinite medical journey.

The doctor sent her home, telling her that her symptoms were most likely related to hormones or her diet. She began to feel better and joked to her friends that there was no way she could have cancer.

However, her symptoms soon returned despite eating a healthy diet. Within a month of symptom recurrence, Kaiser found herself in the emergency room. She was once again sent home, this time being told that it was “women’s issues.”

At a follow-up with her OB-GYN, she said her symptoms were finally being taken seriously, and she received a referral to a gastroenterologist.

However, when she came out of a colonoscopy, the doctor was visibly upset. He told her, “I cannot believe I have to tell you this. I found a mass the size of a fist.” He continued to tell her that it would have to be surgically removed and that it was most likely cancer.

“I held out hope for a good week, as we waited for pathology,” Kaiser said. “But when I got it back, I was like, ‘OK, so … I have cancer.’”

She didn’t tell anyone, even her husband, for at least a day. She needed the time to process the news herself before she told others.

“We all believed that we had caught it early, and I was just gonna be able to do surgery,” Kaiser said. “It just hasn’t been my story.”
It was initially thought that Kaiser had a traditional form of colon cancer, which is generally slow-growing.

After talking with surgeons, she scheduled her surgery for June 2025, six months after her initial visit to the ER.

“[It] was kind of far out, but there was life going on. I have two small boys, who were 10 and 5 at the time. I wanted to wait until they were done with school,” she said.

While the surgery went well overall, Kaiser’s surgeon was fairly certain they didn’t achieve clean margins. Clean margins indicate that no cancer cells were present at the outer edges of the tissue removed during surgery.

Kaiser was then referred to an oncologist, who sent the tumor out for genetic testing.

“I remember sitting in the hospital, and I was so afraid of chemo,” she said. “I was afraid of how I was gonna feel, how I was gonna look, and mostly, how I was gonna be able to show up as a mom.”

Typically, colon cancer spreads to the lungs and liver. However, in her case, it spread to the lymph nodes surrounding the lungs and the liver.

Kasier’s health team noted how unusual this was and wanted to wait for her biomarker results before making a treatment plan.

When the biomarker testing results came back, Kaiser learned that she had a unique type of colon cancer called BRAF, a mutation only present in around 10% of metastatic colorectal cancers.

Kaiser had a BRAF mutation known as V600E, which appears in approximately 96% of BRAF colorectal cancer.

This meant that there would be a completely different treatment for her cancer.

“The prognosis was 13 months,” she said. However, there were clinical trials going on for that specific V600E mutation at the time.

‘Patient zero’ in a clinical trial

In August 2025, she became part of the protocol designed by the BREAKWATER clinical trial. She was the first person in Minnesota to participate in this protocol outside the trial.

“I called myself Patient Zero, even though I’m sure I was never [actually] called that!” Kaiser joked. “Mayo Clinic was following me, Minnesota Oncology was following me, I’m being followed by the [University of Minnesota], because I’m just so new.”

She began a regimen of four different drugs — three were administered by IV, and one was an oral medication called Braftovi.

Prior to Braftovi, Kaiser’s specific colon cancer mutation was chemo-resistant, which is why her outlook was so grim.

However, Braftovi not only targets the cells that allow cancer to reproduce, but also enhances the effects of other drugs.

“I was really cold sensitive. I couldn’t have anything cold. I couldn’t touch anything cold. It was really rough,” Kaiser said.

She tried many medications to help with symptoms like nausea, but nothing worked. She felt like she would just have to live with the nausea and spend her life eating toast and applesauce all the time.

“I take an oral cannabis pill. And that finally helped with the nausea. I take it before bed, and I take a gummy in the morning to help with the nausea and fatigue during the day.”

Kaiser went in for her first CT following treatment in October 2025. She had done eight rounds of treatment at that time.

“The CT scan came back, ‘complete response to treatment, no evidence of disease,’ which was a shock. It was a shock to my doctors. They didn’t even see those kinds of fast results in the trial.”

Kaiser’s doctors began to examine what might have contributed to her remarkable response to the treatment.

They said her age and overall health were possibilities. She had always exercised regularly and had continued to do so through treatment.

“My oncologist also thought that my positive attitude contributed to my quick response,” she said.

Despite her CT results, Kaiser has had to continue treatment. This is because the V600E mutation isn’t curable and doesn’t go into remission.

“They’ve never had anyone live for five years yet,” Kaiser said. “But they just don’t have people who are living and not treating.”

Now, at 43, Kaiser said that despite her stage 4 cancer diagnosis, she leads a full and busy life.

The most challenging part, she said, is navigating motherhood, work, and family life without the energy and stamina she once had.

Still, Kaiser’s supportive community of family, friends, and neighbors has made a big difference in her recovery and ongoing treatment. Knowing she has help when she needs it, and even when she doesn’t know she needs it, has allowed her to continue working full-time and be the best mom to her boys she can be.

Kaiser said the best advice she can give to people who are living with cancer, especially those like her who face indefinite treatment, is the way she has lived since she began treatment.

“The best thing to do for me was to plan my life, and then just fit cancer in there, rather than [allowing] cancer to run my life,” she said.

Kaiser added that she tries to run her life first and then make space for the cancer.

“I have this really busy, awesome, full life, and I have a chronic disease I also have to treat,” she said.

Kaiser currently works with the legal team of RVO Health, the parent company of Healthline.
April 13, 2026
The US government wants Reddit to snitch on one of its users through a grand jury

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has a certain Redditor in its crosshairs and it’s now strong-arming the social media platform to reveal who they are with a grand jury subpoena, according to a report from The Intercept. The nonprofit news outlet was able to obtain the subpoena that ordered Reddit to provide info on one of its users who’s been accused of criticizing ICE by April 14.

According to the report, ICE has been trying to identify this Redditor for a month without success. More specifically, Reddit is being asked to give up the user’s name, address, phone number and other personal data. The Intercept reported that the subpoena was issued by federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C. after a failed attempt from ICE to do the same through a federal court in Northern California, which has jurisdiction in San Francisco where Reddit is headquartered.

Reddit attorneys said their client’s posts and anonymity are protected under the First Amendment and described ICE’s use of a grand jury as “a disturbing escalation,” according to the report. Reddit didn’t state if it would challenge the government’s order or not, according to The Intercept, but it did provide a statement saying, “privacy is central to how Reddit operates and we take our commitment to protecting that seriously.” Reddit also said in the statement that it does “not voluntarily share information with any government, especially not on users exercising their rights to criticize the government or plan a protest.”

While this grand jury subpoena could set an alarming precedent, it’s not the first time a government agency has requested social media platforms reveal accounts that have spoke negatively about ICE. According to a New York Times report, the Department of Homeland Security has filed hundreds of subpoenas to Google, Discord, Meta and even Reddit again, for identifying details about its users.

April 13, 2026
Apple reportedly testing out four different styles for its smart glasses that will rival Meta Ray-Bans

Apple may be late to the smart glasses market, but it could be covering all its bases with up to four potential styles for its upcoming product. According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Apple could launch some or all of the four styles it’s currently testing for its smart glasses.

Gurman reported Apple is testing out a large rectangular frame that’s comparable to Ray-Ban Wayfarers, a slimmer rectangular design like the glasses that Apple CEO Tim Cook wears, a larger oval or circular frame and a smaller oval or circle option. Apple is also working on a range of colors, including black, ocean blue and light brown, according to Bloomberg.

Internally code-named N50 for now, Apple’s upcoming smart glasses will compete directly with the second-gen Ray-Ban Meta model. While similar, Apple might be differentiating its design with “vertically oriented oval lenses with surrounding lights,” according to the report. Like Meta’s smart glasses, Apple’s upcoming product will capture photos and videos, but is meant to better sync with an iPhone, allowing users to take advantage of Apple’s ecosystem for editing, sharing, phone calls, notifications, music and even its voice assistant, according to Gurman. The release of Apple’s smart glasses could even coincide with the upcoming improved Siri that should arrive with iOS 27.

Gurman reported that Apple could reveal its smart glasses as soon as the end of 2026 or early 2027, followed by an official release sometime in 2027. As for the competition, Meta released its latest model that’s better suited for prescription lenses and offers a more customizable fit.

April 13, 2026
SEC and CFTC Fast-Track US Crypto Oversight Using Interpretive Rules to Bypass Lengthy Rulemaking
U.S. regulators are accelerating crypto oversight by using interpretive rules, signaling a faster policy rollout strategy that prioritizes immediate clarity over traditional rulemaking processes.

Key Takeaways:
- Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlights fast-track crypto rules, boosting momentum across markets.
- SEC and CFTC move quickly with interpretive approach, reducing friction for digital asset expansion.
- Crypto framework signals lower barriers for issuers, supporting broader adoption and scalability.
Regulators Accelerate Crypto Oversight Using Interpretive Rules

A Government Accountability Office (GAO) review clarifies how U.S. regulators are advancing crypto policy while avoiding a judgment on the rule itself. The GAO, a congressional watchdog, issued its report on a joint rule from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on April 8. The report confirms the procedural path used to implement the rule, offering insight into regulatory strategy rather than policy effectiveness across digital asset markets.

The document makes clear that the agencies framed the rule as an interpretive measure, which is central to understanding its rollout. The report states:

“This rule provides an interpretation of the definition of ‘security’ as applied to crypto assets.”

That classification determines which legal requirements apply and which can be bypassed. By documenting this framing, the GAO confirms regulators selected a faster, lower-friction route to introduce crypto guidance within existing securities law structures.

That choice allowed the SEC and CFTC to avoid standard procedures tied to major financial rules. The report notes: “The Agencies determined that the interpretation in this rule may take effect immediately pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 808(2) because it is an interpretive rule and thus exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act’s notice and comment requirements.” Section 808(2) is a provision under the Congressional Review Act that permits immediate implementation of certain rules when agencies justify bypassing delays. The GAO also recorded:

“In its submission to us, the agencies indicated that they did not publish a proposed rule or solicit public comments.”

For market participants, this signals a regulatory preference for speed and clarity over extended consultation.

GAO Highlights Speed Over Process in Crypto Rulemaking Strategy

The report also highlights how regulators are positioning the rule’s economic impact without supporting it with formal analysis. According to the GAO, the agencies argued the framework “should reduce costs for issuers of digital securities and crypto asset-related securities.”

At the same time, they indicated that a cost-benefit analysis was not required. This reflects a broader pattern in crypto oversight, where interpretive guidance advances policy objectives while limiting procedural obligations. The GAO’s role is to record these claims for congressional visibility, not to validate them.

Ultimately, the GAO review functions as a procedural checkpoint that informs Congress while signaling how regulators are structuring crypto policy. It noted that the agencies classify crypto assets into categories “based on their characteristics, uses, and functions.” That framework suggests a systematic approach to aligning digital assets with securities laws. While the report does not assess effectiveness, it confirms that U.S. agencies are using interpretive authority to accelerate crypto rulemaking, a trend likely to shape market structure going forward.
April 13, 2026
‘First Crypto Bank’—Kraken’s Fed Approval Sparks $100K Bitcoin Warning

“The Federal Reserve officially approves Kraken Financial as the first digital asset bank with direct access to the United States’ payment systems,” the popular Bitcoin curation account @DocumentingBTC posted on X this week, racking up over 3,000 likes. The post set off a wave of commentary about what it means when a crypto company gets the same kind of Fed access that traditional banks have guarded for decades.

Bitcoin is trading near $70,000. Some market watchers think the Kraken news is exactly the kind of institutional plumbing upgrade that could push prices toward $100,000.

What Happened To Kraken

The Kansas City Fed approved Kraken Financial, a Wyoming-chartered Special Purpose Depository Institution, for a limited-purpose Federal Reserve master account on March 4. The term is one year. The access is restricted. But the symbolism is hard to miss.

Kraken Co-CEO Arjun Sethi told Fortune that Kraken went through Wyoming to get a Special Purpose Depository Institution charter rather than the OCC route other crypto firms have tried. Kraken’s head of policy Jonathan Jachym told Reuters the approval is “a great testament to regulatory rigor and cooperation,” adding that it “promotes principles of both safety and soundness, and innovation.” The account lets Kraken hold balances at the Fed and settle in U.S. dollars on Fedwire, bypassing the correspondent banks that crypto firms have relied on for years.

The reaction on X was not universally positive. “ICBA and 42 state banking associations objected to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s approval of a master account for Kraken Financial,” the Independent Community Bankers of America posted on their official account. Representative Maxine Waters, the ranking Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, demanded the Kansas City Fed explain its legal authority for the decision.

One anonymous trader on X captured the skeptics’ view: “Kraken’s Fed approval… isn’t pure adoption; it’s assimilation. Don’t mistake integration for decentralization.”

Why It Matters For Bitcoin’s Price

The Kraken news lands at a moment when institutional money is already flowing back into bitcoin. Spot bitcoin ETFs pulled in $789 million last week, the highest weekly total since February. BlackRock continues to lead those flows.

Charles Schwab, which serves roughly 39 million brokerage clients, recently published a risk-sizing framework showing that an aggressive portfolio model could hold up to 8.8% in bitcoin under certain return assumptions. Schwab stopped short of calling it a recommendation, but the signal caught attention across crypto X. Pete Rizzo, the Bitcoin historian and former CoinDesk editor, posted that “$11 trillion Schwab just told 40 million clients to add bitcoin to their portfolios,” a characterization that got over 2,000 likes even if it overstated what Schwab actually said.

Kevin Olsen, a payments industry educator who runs the Payments Professor YouTube channel, analyzed the Kraken approval in a video and predicted this is “merely the first of many approvals, signaling a permanent shift in how electronic banking and crypto institutions interact with sovereign financial rails.”

Bitcoin has gained about 3% this week, bouncing between $70,300 and $73,200. The $75,000 level is the next test.

The Bull Case

Pierre Rochard, CEO of Bitcoin Bond Company and a longtime Bitcoin advocate, put it bluntly on X: “No four-year halving cycle has ever had a consistent bid from institutional and sovereign wealth quite like what we’re seeing in 2026.” His argument is that the old four-year boom-bust pattern is breaking because institutions are now permanent buyers, not tourists.

The numbers back him up. Morgan Stanley launched its own low-fee bitcoin ETF (MSBT) on April 8, charging just 0.14%. “Morgan Stanley just handed Bitcoin to 16,000 wealth advisors managing $6.2 trillion in client assets,” posted Garry Krug, head of BTC strategy at aifinyo. “Their recommended allocation for growth portfolios: 2-4%.”

Wall Street price targets for year-end 2026 are stacking up. Standard Chartered’s Geoff Kendrick is at $100,000. TD Cowen has a $140,000 target tied to bitcoin treasury companies. Bernstein is at $150,000. Tom Lee at Fundstrat has floated $200,000 to $250,000. The Kraken approval feeds directly into every one of these theses because it removes a layer of friction between institutional dollars and the crypto ecosystem.

The Bear Case

The one-year term on Kraken’s account tells you something. The Fed is treating this as a trial, not a verdict.

“TD Cowen has cut its Strategy price target by 20.5% to $350, projecting the company’s Bitcoin gains will fall to $7.87 billion in 2026 from $10.17 billion in 2025,” CoinMarketCap reported. That is the same TD Cowen with a $140,000 bitcoin target cutting its bet on the biggest corporate bitcoin holder. Mixed signals, to say the least.

Not everyone on X is buying the institutional narrative either. “Expecting under $50K by November 2026,” one trader posted, arguing that short-term rallies to $80,000 or $90,000 will give way to a deeper correction. Another anonymous account pegged their year-end target at $52,500, citing historical pattern analysis.

Then there is the political risk. Waters’ investigation could lead to legislation restricting crypto companies from accessing Fed payment systems. The ICBA has 42 state banking associations backing its opposition. If Congress moves to pull the plug on Kraken’s experiment, the bullish narrative flips overnight.

What To Watch Next For Bitcoin Price

The big question is whether Kraken stays alone or other firms follow. Jachym has said the approval shows the regulatory path exists for any well-capitalized digital asset company willing to go through the process.

Bitcoin sitting at $70,000 with that $75,000 barrier overhead. A break through on heavy volume, combined with continued ETF inflows and more broker launches like Morgan Stanley’s MSBT, would be the kind of technical confirmation that turns Wall Street’s $100,000-plus targets from speculation into consensus.

April 13, 2026
Britney Spears Enters Rehab After DUI Arrest

Britney Spears has checked into a treatment facility following a DUI arrest last month.

A rep for Spears confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the singer voluntarily entered rehab on Sunday.

Spears, 44, was arrested on March 4 for driving under the influence, and then released from jail a day later in Southern California, according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. The singer is due to make a court appearance on May 4 at the Ventura County Superior Court.

“This was an unfortunate incident that is completely inexcusable,” a rep for Spears told THR at the time of her DUI arrest. “Britney is going to take the right steps and comply with the law and hopefully this can be the first step in long overdue change that needs to occur in Britney’s life. Hopefully, she can get the help and support she needs during this difficult time. Her boys are going to be spending time with her. Her loved ones are going to come up with an overdue needed plan to set her up for success for well being.”

Spears has previously admitted issues with substances and briefly entered rehab at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads facility in Antigua in 2007 following a series of public incidents, including shaving her head. In January 2008, in the midst of a bitter and very public custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline, the singer faced several mental health challenges was twice admitted to hospital under a temporary psychiatric assessment ruling, including after an incident in which she allegedly refused to surrender her sons in a stand-off involving police.

The January 2008 hospitalizations led to a temporary conservatorship that were made permanent later that year. The conservatorship left the singer’s father, Jamie Spears, in charge of making decisions about her career, as well as her estate and financial affairs.

After 13 years, Spears was finally freed of the conservatorship in September 2021 following a high profile “Free Britney” campaign from fans and prominent celebrities.

April 13, 2026