Richard Heart Detained in Turkey as Starknet Suffers Sharp Decline
HEX founder Richard Heart was reportedly detained in Istanbul, while Starknet's value plunges amid protocol changes.
HEX founder Richard Heart was reportedly detained in Istanbul, while Starknet's value plunges amid protocol changes. Starknet (STRK) is trading at $0.0605, up 1.1% since this brief published. This is an original TLT brief based on reporting by Cointelegraph, with live market data added, as of Mon, 19 Oct 2026 00:00:04 UTC.
The detention of a prominent crypto figure and the significant drop in Starknet's value highlight regulatory risks and market volatility in the sector.
- Richard Heart detained in Istanbul, details of charges unclear.
- Starknet TVL drops 43.2% in a week, market cap falls to $454M.
- Starknet's transition to L1 coincides with sharp price decline.
- HEX Founder Richard Heart Detained in Istanbul Police Raid
- Richard Heart Detained in Istanbul: $7.15M Seized in Turkish Raid
- HEX Founder Richard Heart Arrested in Turkey Amid International Probe
- Richard Heart Detained in Turkey as Starknet Suffers Sharp Decline — this brief
Richard Heart, the founder of the HEX cryptocurrency, was reportedly detained in an early morning raid in Istanbul, according to Cointelegraph. The exact charges against him remain undisclosed, but the news has sent ripples through the crypto community.
In a separate development, 
Starknet, a layer 2 scaling solution for 
Ethereum, has seen its value plummet. The protocol's TVL has dropped by 43.2% over the past week to $361.31M, as per DeFiLlama. This decline coincides with Starknet's recent vote to transition into a Layer 1 blockchain, which may have contributed to the market's negative sentiment.
The broader crypto market remains relatively stable, with the total market cap at $2.8T and 
Bitcoin up 0.48% in the last 24 hours. However, Fear & Greed remains in the 'Neutral' zone at 53, indicating a lack of strong sentiment in either direction.
Starknet's native token, STRK, has been particularly affected, currently trading at $0.059831, down 7.34% in the last 24 hours and 47.17% over the past week. This decline has reduced its market cap to $453.93M.
The developments involving Richard Heart and Starknet underscore the regulatory and market risks present in the crypto sector. Investors will be watching for further details on Heart's situation and the impact of Starknet's transition to a Layer 1 blockchain.
Since this brief published about 1 hour ago, Starknet (STRK) has moved from $0.0598 to $0.0605 — +1.11%.
The chart plots STRK's price: grey is the move before this brief published, the vertical dashed line marks the moment it published, the horizontal dashed line is the price then, and the coloured area is the move since — from TLT's market data (daily resolution). It shows what happened after the news, not that the news caused it; many factors move prices. Not financial advice.
At today's peer-to-peer rate, 1 STRK ≈ ₦82.5 (about $0.0605), down 6.0% over 24 hours. The naira itself trades about 2.4% above the official rate on the P2P market, so a Nigerian buyer's effective cost differs from the headline dollar price.
Live market data
Current prices for the asset in this story — live, source-stamped, updated every 15 minutes.
Figures and sectors in this story, checked live against on-chain aggregators · October 18, 2026.
TLT reads these figures directly from on-chain aggregators (DeFiLlama, mempool.space) at build time — independent of what any outlet reported. Sector totals aggregate every protocol DeFiLlama tracks in that category. Values are live and will change.
Richard Heart Detained in Turkey as Starknet Suffers Sharp D — questions & answers
What happened to Richard Heart?
Richard Heart was reportedly detained in an early morning raid in Istanbul, though specific charges are unknown.
Why is Starknet's value declining?
Starknet's TVL has dropped 43.2% in a week, and its transition to a Layer 1 blockchain may be contributing to the decline.
What is Starknet's current market cap?
Starknet's market cap is $454M, down from previous levels due to recent price declines.
How much is 1 Starknet worth in naira today?
About ₦82.5 at the live peer-to-peer (P2P) USDT rate, which is what Nigerians typically trade at — equivalent to roughly $0.0605. The naira price moves with both STRK's US-dollar price and the USDT/NGN rate; use our Starknet in naira page for any amount.
Has Starknet's price moved since this brief was published?
STRK is up 1.11% since this brief first published — trading at $0.0605 now versus $0.0598 at publication. TLT re-checks this figure against CoinGecko and Binance every 15 minutes.
Which outlets reported this story?
This is an original TLT brief that synthesises reporting from Cointelegraph. It is not a copy of any one article — follow the source links above for the original reporting.
Original summary — not financial advice. This is an original TLT brief that summarises a development reported elsewhere and adds live market data for context; it is not the original article and reproduces no part of it. Follow the source link above for full details. Crypto is volatile and high-risk — always do your own research.