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BlockBeats news, on March 16, Alibaba officially established the Alibaba Token Hub (ATH) business group, which is directly overseen by Alibaba CEO Wu Yongming. Alibaba Token Hub includes Tongyi Lab, MaaS business line, Qianwen business unit, Wukong business unit, and AI Innovation business unit, covering a complete layout from foundational model development, model service platforms, to AI applications for both individual and enterprise clients. As of press time, Alibaba's US stock price has risen nearly 3% in pre-market trading.

Foresight News reported, according to Nikkei News, that Japan's Financial Services Agency (FSA) plans to strengthen penalties and supervision for unregistered cryptocurrency operators. The plan intends to move regulations related to crypto assets from the Payment Services Act to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act to enhance investor protection. For operators selling crypto assets without registration, criminal penalties are proposed to be increased from the current "imprisonment of up to 3 years or a fine of up to 3 million yen" to "imprisonment of up to 10 years or a fine of up to 10 million yen (or both)." In addition, the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission will be granted authority to conduct compulsory on-site inspections and evidence seizures for criminal investigations. The legal name for registered operators is proposed to change from "crypto asset exchange operators" to "crypto asset trading operators." This move comes amid a growing number of disputes related to highly speculative Meme tokens.Foresight News previously reported that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi clarified on March 4 that she has no connection with the Meme token of the same name, causing the token to drop more than 65% in response.

⑴ On Monday, Asia's naphtha refining margins slightly retreated from the record levels set in the previous trading day, but ongoing feedstock shortages continued to impact market sentiment, keeping crack spreads and prices elevated. As the month changed, the crack spread against Brent crude fell by about $26 to $341.85/ton. ⑵ The futures premium structure between near-month and far-month contracts expanded to a historical high of about $105/ton, reflecting the market's extreme tightness in near-term supply. Market participants noted that Singapore's trading window saw multiple bids for cargoes in early May, late May, and early June, while there was only a single offer for early June cargoes. ⑶ Analysts and traders pointed out that recent cargoes have been most affected by the ongoing crisis in the Gulf region, with next month's parcels to Japan quoted at triple-digit premiums. Earlier reports indicated that oil loading operations at the UAE's Fujairah port were suspended due to a fire caused by a drone attack. ⑷ Gasoline crack spreads remained steady near a four-year high on Monday, around $34/barrel, as the market worried about supply shocks. The US President's call to form an alliance to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz appears to have gone unanswered, with both Japan and Australia stating they do not plan to send naval vessels to the Middle East for escort duties. ⑸ The continued rise in oil prices further supported the naphtha and gasoline markets. Although crack spreads have slightly retreated from their peak, the ongoing threat of supply disruptions has kept the market structure strong, and the near-month contract premium reflects the current tightness in physical supply.