The Daily: Marc Zeller's ACI to exit Aave DAO, MARA opens door to selling balance sheet bitcoin, and more

The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

Happy Tuesday! Bitcoin has outperformed equities amid the escalating U.S.-Iran tensions — a divergence CoinShares Head of Research James Butterfill said underscores growing demand for a scarce, non-sovereign asset that trades continuously through geopolitical shocks.

In today's newsletter, Marc Zeller's ACI plans to exit the Aave DAO by July, MARA revises its digital asset management strategy to permit sales of bitcoin held on its balance sheet, the Bank of Japan experiments with blockchain technology for central bank settlements, and more.

Meanwhile, the U.S. government moved roughly $23,000 in bitcoin from an address labeled on Arkham as tied to funds seized from Miguel Villanueva.

P.S. Don't forget to check out The Funding, a biweekly rundown of crypto VC trends. It's a great read — and just like The Daily, it's free to subscribe!

Marc Zeller's ACI to leave Aave DAO in July amid growing governance tensions

The Aave Chan Initiative, a major Aave DAO delegate and service provider founded by Marc Zeller, said it will leave the decentralized autonomous organization by July and wind down operations over four months while completing outstanding commitments.

• The departure follows BGD Labs' recent decision to step away in April, deepening governance tensions and marking a second major contributor's exit in weeks.
• "The main spark is BGD leaving," Zeller told The Block when asked about the primary reason behind ACI's decision to step away amid recent Aave governance developments.
• A governance dispute that began over CoW Swap fee routing to Aave Labs without a prior governance vote has escalated into broader concerns about transparency, control of brand assets, and revenue accountability.
• Aave Labs' "Aave will win" temp check passed with 52.58% support, but Zeller argued the result relied on Labs-linked voting power that could sway outcomes.
• Zeller claimed that excluding roughly 233,000 AAVE from three address clusters he described as Labs-linked — including a 111,000 AAVE delegation from Aave founder Stani Kulechov — would have reversed the result, raising concerns about decentralization and budget oversight.
• As it prepares to leave, ACI is seeking to convert its funding stream into a 120-day lump sum to secure a clean transition, warning it will halt work immediately if the DAO rejects the proposal.

MARA opens door to selling stockpiled bitcoin in new policy shift

MARA revised its 2026 digital asset management strategy to allow sales of bitcoin held on its balance sheet, expanding beyond its prior policy that only permitted sales of bitcoin generated from operations, according to a 10-K filing with the SEC.

• The miner held 53,822 BTC worth $4.7 billion at the end of 2025, with about 28% activated under lending, collateralized borrowing, and trading initiatives, which delivered mixed financial results.
• MARA generated $32.1 million in interest income from 9,377 BTC loaned but recorded a $422.2 million fair-value decline and a $69.1 million loss in its trading segment for the year.
• The company mined 8,799 BTC in 2025, down 7% year over year amid rising network difficulty, with the policy revision marking a departure from its long-standing approach of holding mined bitcoin as a long-term investment.

Bank of Japan to test blockchain-based reserve settlement

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the central bank will test whether its current account deposits can operate on blockchain-based systems as part of a sandbox experiment.

• The BOJ plans to work with external experts to explore blockchain use cases for domestic interbank transfers and securities settlement, potentially integrating smart contracts.
• Japan is participating in the BIS-led Project Agora to study cross-border wholesale settlement using tokenized central bank money on blockchain infrastructure.
• The BOJ is also advancing its retail CBDC pilot and restructuring its CBDC Forum as Japan's broader crypto regulatory framework continues to evolve.

Spot bitcoin ETFs post $458 million in net inflows as institutions buy into global instability

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs recorded $458.2 million in net inflows on Monday, led by $263.2 million into BlackRock's IBIT, with no funds posting outflows.

• The inflows extend last week's $787 million rebound, following more than $1.8 billion in combined net outflows in January and February.
• Nick Ruck, director of LVRG Research, said major allocators view bitcoin's recent correction as an "attractive entry point" and are positioning for a macro recovery despite retail sentiment gauges remaining in "extreme fear."
• Meanwhile, Andri Fauzan Adziima, research lead at Bitrue, told The Block that institutions are buying into global uncertainty because they view bitcoin as a maturing diversifier and hedge.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says stablecoin yields should face bank-style rules, calls for 'level playing field'

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said in a televised CNBC interview that he wants a "level playing field" with crypto firms, arguing that stablecoins paying interest-like rewards should face the same rules as bank deposits to prevent a parallel banking system.

• Dimon said that paying yield on idle stablecoin balances effectively makes a firm a bank, while leaving room for transaction-based rewards as a potential compromise.
• His comments land as lawmakers debate stablecoin yield provisions under the Clarity Act and implement the 2025 GENIUS framework, with banks and crypto firms split over how rewards should be treated.

In the next 24 hours

• U.S. mortgage data are due at 7 a.m. ET on Wednesday.
• The Women of Bitcoin Summit kicks off in New York City.

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