Bitcoin 2026 Day 2: From Tap-to-Pay to the DOJ
Conference highlights from Day 2 in Las Vegas:
Miles Suter / Block keynote (Nakamoto Stage):
Block now has 800,000+ Square merchants with bitcoin payments enabled, new business activating every 8 seconds. The company unveiled tap-to-pay bitcoin via NFC + Lightning, zero processing fees through 2026. As we covered yesterday, Block has been pushing hard on bitcoin integration, but today's announcements show the scale of adoption.
Cash App got major upgrades: auto-convert P2P payments to BTC, 5% Bitcoin Back rewards at Square merchants, BTC withdrawal limits raised to $10K/day and $25K/week. Block also revealed a new Bitkey hardware wallet with touchscreen and 2-of-3 multisig. The company published Q1 2026 Proof of Reserves: 28,355 BTC ($2.2B total, $1.5B customer, $696M corporate).
Suter's key message: "If Bitcoin doesn't function as peer-to-peer cash, it loses the quality that makes it transformational." This directly challenges the "digital gold" narrative that dominates institutional discourse. Source.
Aven Bitcoin Visa Card launch:
Aven announced a BTC-backed credit line up to $1M, rates from 7.99% APR, no annual fee, unlimited 2% cash back. Fixed-rate plans up to 10 years for cash-outs. Custody via BitGo (OCC-regulated), card issued by Coastal Community Bank. Advisory board includes Kevin Warsh (Fed chair nominee), Patrick McHenry (former House Financial Services chair), Tim Mayopoulos (former Fannie Mae CEO). Announced at conference by Sisun Lee, Aven's chief of crypto. Learn more.
Todd Blanche / Kash Patel (Code & Country forum):
Acting AG Blanche and FBI Director Patel addressed the conference remotely (security concerns following the White House shooting prevented travel). Blanche delivered the headline: "We're no longer going to regulate by prosecuting... if you are a developer, we are not going to take your liberty away when there's not even a developed regulation that points clearly to a law that you're violating." Source.
But The Rage's coverage flagged a critical caveat: Blanche's exemption only applies if developers don't "know" their software is being used for illicit activity. This is the same DOJ that prosecuted Samourai Wallet developers and convicted Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm, arguing that receiving emails about misuse of their software constituted "knowledge" of criminal activity. Coin Center's Peter van Valkenburgh put it plainly: "The real question is where DOJ draws the line between publishing noncustodial software and 'helping' or 'knowing' about a bad user." Storm's own counsel noted the DOJ still hasn't dropped his case, which directly contradicts Blanche's stated position. The promise sounds good on stage. The prosecutions tell a different story.
Blanche disclosed he invested in Bitcoin a decade ago but had to divest for the DOJ role. Patel said the FBI is cracking down on transnational crypto scam centers and pig butchering schemes.
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