News linked to this event type.
According to The Block, the UK Treasury has unveiled a payment regulatory reform proposal that aims to bring traditional payment services, stablecoins, and tokenized deposits under a unified regulatory framework. The proposal also plans to regulate stablecoins used for payments through subsequent issuance rules. Additionally, it seeks to expand the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) supervisory authority over open banking and explore regulatory adjustments for payment activities conducted by AI agents. Meanwhile, the UK Treasury will provide £1 million in funding to the Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology starting in April and has appointed Chris Woolard CBE to lead the development of a tokenized financial system for wholesale digital markets.
U.S. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins delivered a speech marking his first anniversary in office at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. The SEC is advancing reforms to its digital asset regulatory framework, integrating them into its “A-C-T” strategy—modernizing regulation, clarifying regulatory boundaries, and reshaping the rulemaking system. Regarding crypto assets, the SEC has released a classification framework for crypto tokens, categorizing digital assets into five types—four of which are not considered securities. Atkins stated that the SEC will soon introduce an “Innovation Exemption” mechanism, providing a limited, compliant framework for market participants to conduct tokenized securities transactions on-chain. The SEC has also launched Project Crypto to adapt securities rules and the regulatory system to the growing trend of capital markets moving on-chain. Additionally, last month the SEC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the CFTC to harmonize key definitions, clarify regulatory jurisdictions, and coordinate oversight of shared regulatory matters—including digital assets. Atkins further noted that the U.S.’s prior approach to crypto asset regulation had driven innovation overseas.
According to Bloomberg, 39 signatories—including Nasdaq, the Boerse Stuttgart Group, and fintech associations from multiple countries—have called on the European Commission and the European Parliament to expedite the review of the Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) Pilot Regime as a standalone piece of legislation and to separate it from the EU’s Market Integration and Supervision program. The signatories warned that if the overall negotiation process drags on, Europe risks falling behind the United States in DLT adoption. They urged the removal of asset-class restrictions, an increase in the aggregate transaction volume cap to €150 billion, and the elimination of license time limits. The letter also noted that the U.S. has already established a stablecoin regulatory framework through the GENIUS Act and is rapidly establishing leadership in tokenized assets. The European Commission is currently pushing for a swift resolution of the entire regulatory package, viewing it as a key component of its Capital Markets Union initiative. Financial Services Commissioner Maria Luisa Albuquerque has previously called repeatedly for all legislative proposals to be adopted simultaneously.
Cryptocurrency investment firm Unicoin Inc. has announced the establishment of the independent Unicoin Foundation, a mission-driven organization prioritizing education to advance the responsible adoption of blockchain technology and expand access to the digital economy. The Foundation will focus on financial literacy education, entrepreneurship training, and ecosystem support under the banner of “Crypto for Good,” with particular emphasis on women and underserved communities. In terms of governance, Robert Newman serves as Chair of the Foundation’s Board, which comprises 27 directors—all Unicoin investors elected by shareholder vote. Over 4,000 shareholders participated in the vote, with nearly 99% approving the transition to an independent foundation structure. Unicoin stated that this restructuring aligns with the “token taxonomy” framework proposed by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Paul Atkins.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the Philippines has issued an investor alert warning the public against investing on seven cryptocurrency trading platforms: dYdX, Aevo, gTrade, Pacifica, Orderly, Deriv, and Ostium. The SEC stated that these platforms are not registered with the Commission and have not obtained the necessary authorizations required under the Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) framework. The SEC also warned that individuals promoting these platforms within the Philippines may face criminal liability, including fines of up to PHP 5,000,000 (approximately USD 89,000) or imprisonment for up to 21 years.
According to DL News, the Russian government has published a draft bill on the State Duma’s website proposing criminal liability—including up to seven years of forced labor—for organizing cryptocurrency circulation without registration or without approval from the Central Bank of Russia. The draft states that ordinary violators could face fines of up to approximately $4,000 and imprisonment of up to four years; operators of large cryptocurrency exchanges could face fines of up to approximately $13,000, with responsible individuals facing five to seven years’ imprisonment. The bill also proposes requiring most cryptocurrency transactions to be conducted via commercial bank apps and imposes penalties on industrial-scale cryptocurrency miners who fail to declare their activities. If approved by the State Duma and the President, the new regulations are scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2027.
On-chain investigator ZachXBT updated that funds related to the KelpDAO attack have begun moving: approximately $1.5 million has been cross-chained from Ethereum Mainnet to the Bitcoin network via Thorchain, and roughly $78,000 has been transferred via Umbra. The attacking address initially sourced its funds from Tornado Cash, and fund laundering and cross-chain transfers are ongoing.
Odaily News A consortium of 12 European banks, led by Qivalis, has selected Fireblocks to provide infrastructure for the joint development of a euro stablecoin compliant with the MiCA regulatory framework. The stablecoin is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2026, pending approval from the Dutch central bank. It will be backed 1:1 by euro reserves and issued as electronic money under Dutch regulation, primarily targeting scenarios such as institutional settlement, fund management, and asset tokenization. Fireblocks will provide support for tokenization, wallets, and compliance tools, including identity verification and sanctions screening features. (Cointelegraph)
According to CoinDesk, custody provider Fireblocks will handle the issuance and distribution of the Qivalis consortium’s euro-pegged stablecoin. The project is expected to launch in the second half of 2026, under supervision by the Dutch Central Bank and in compliance with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). Qivalis members include 12 European banks, such as BBVA, BNP Paribas, ING, and UniCredit. The report notes that the current stablecoin market size stands at approximately $30.5 billion, of which about 99% consists of U.S. dollar–pegged stablecoins, while euro-pegged stablecoins account for roughly $650 million. Qivalis aims to boost institutional adoption of euro stablecoins through a compliant product.
Odaily News Coin Center released a report stating that cryptocurrency software code constitutes "functional speech" and should be protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The organization argues that writing and publishing code is akin to writing a book or publishing a recipe; developers are "expressers and inventors," not custodians of assets or intermediaries.The report points out that the mere act of publishing and maintaining software should be strictly protected. However, when developers directly control user assets, execute transactions on behalf of users, or make decisions for users, they may enter a realm subject to regulation.This statement comes at a time of increasing regulatory controversy. Coin Center emphasized that developers should not be treated as financial intermediaries for the convenience of law enforcement. It calls for upholding existing free speech principles in the context of new technologies, rather than expanding the boundaries of criminal liability. (Cointelegraph)
Odaily News Ripple has announced a phased roadmap, planning to advance the XRP Ledger towards a quantum-resistant upgrade by 2028. The plan includes formulating a "Quantum-Day" contingency plan to address potential sudden threats from quantum computing and will involve preliminary testing and validation in collaboration with Project Eleven. Ripple stated that this initiative aims to prepare in advance for the transition to post-quantum security, with the entire plan to be implemented in four phases:Phase 1: Q-Day Emergency Preparedness (Initiated). Establish a Quantum Day (Q-Day) emergency response mechanism. If existing classical cryptographic systems are suddenly compromised, the network will immediately stop accepting traditional public key signatures and enforce a mandatory migration to quantum-safe accounts.Phase 2: Risk Assessment & Algorithm Testing (First Half of 2026). Conduct a comprehensive assessment of the impact of post-quantum cryptography on the XRP Ledger's network performance, storage, and bandwidth. Collaborate with Project Eleven to perform validator-level testing and Devnet benchmarking, deploy the NIST-standardized ML-DSA quantum-safe signature scheme, and develop a prototype for a post-quantum custody wallet.Phase 3: Devnet Hybrid Integration (Second Half of 2026). Integrate candidate post-quantum signature schemes in parallel with existing elliptic curve signatures on the Developer Network (Devnet), allowing developers to test performance and system impact without affecting the mainnet. Simultaneously explore post-quantum zero-knowledge proof primitives and homomorphic encryption technologies for Confidential Transfers, to advance the privacy and compliance capabilities for tokenized real-world assets on the XRPL.Phase 4: Mainnet Full Upgrade (Target 2028). Submit a formal protocol Amendment. Upon approval through validator voting, natively enable full post-quantum cryptography on the mainnet. (Cointelegraph)
According to Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics at the University of Manchester, writing in the Bangkok Post, the Trump administration has vigorously pushed for deregulation of cryptocurrencies and promoted dollar-pegged stablecoins through the GENIUS Act, while refusing to develop central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Yet these policies are producing a self-defeating effect: in 2025, illegal cryptocurrency transaction volumes surged over 160% year-on-year, and countries including Russia, Iran, and North Korea are leveraging cryptocurrencies on a large scale to circumvent U.S. economic sanctions. Iran, for instance, has integrated cryptocurrencies into its toll-collection system for the Strait of Hormuz, with estimated daily revenues reaching as high as $36 million; Russia, meanwhile, is using cryptocurrency exchanges to bypass asset-freeze orders and finance military procurement.
According to the official announcement, Layer 1 public blockchain Pharos has unveiled the tokenomics for its native token PROS, with a total supply of 1 billion tokens. The initial supply allocation is as follows: Foundation Treasury (16%), Lab Co. Treasury (9%), Team (20%), Investors (20%), Ecosystem & Community (21%—including 6% for community airdrops: 1% unlocked at TGE and 5% reserved for future community growth and airdrop incentives), and Node & Liquidity Incentives (14%). Core team members and private-sale investors are subject to a 12-month lock-up period followed by a 36-month linear vesting schedule. Certain treasury and incentive allocations extend vesting periods to 48–60 months. PROS serves multiple functions: transaction fees, PoS staking, validator participation, governance, ecosystem incentives, and potential RWA-specific use cases. The staking issuance policy adopts a phased approach: zero inflation during the first six months following mainnet launch; starting in Month 7, annual inflation is set at 5%, subject to dynamic adjustment by the Foundation based on network operational conditions.
According to Crypto Briefing, Nik Storonsky, CEO of Revolut—the largest fintech company in Europe—told David Rubenstein in a recent interview that the company’s IPO is still at least “two years away,” meaning it would not go public before 2028 at the earliest. Prior to its IPO, Revolut will continue offering liquidity to employees and early investors via secondary share sales; a new round of such transactions is reportedly slated for 2026. The company’s latest valuation stands at $75 billion. Meanwhile, Revolut is actively expanding into the U.S. market and has completed its second application for a U.S. banking charter. If approved, it would gain direct access to the Federal Reserve’s payment systems and be able to offer loans and credit cards to U.S. customers.
According to The Block, Thom Tillis, a Republican Senator from North Carolina and a key negotiator on the Senate Banking Committee, stated that the committee does not expect to schedule hearings to revise and vote on the crypto market structure bill within April. The primary legislative disagreement currently centers on how to handle rewards associated with stablecoins: the current draft proposes banning rewards for idle stablecoin accounts while permitting returns generated from trading activity. Banking representatives fear such returns could draw deposits away from traditional banks, whereas crypto firms argue that restricting rewards would stifle innovation. Tillis suggested postponing the committee’s review to May. Previously, Senator Bernie Moreno warned that if the bill fails to pass before May, “digital asset legislation will stall indefinitely.”
Vercel has released an analysis of a security incident, stating that certain internal systems were accessed without authorization. The breach originated from a third-party AI tool, Context.ai, used by an employee, which was compromised. Attackers leveraged this to take over the employee’s Google Workspace account and access some environment configuration data. Preliminary impact assessment indicates that a small number of customers’ environment variables—unmarked as “sensitive” (e.g., API keys, tokens)—may have been exposed. Affected users have been notified and advised to immediately rotate their credentials. At present, there is no evidence that data explicitly marked as “sensitive” or the supply chain (e.g., npm packages) has been tampered with. Vercel notes that the attackers demonstrated a high level of technical sophistication. The company is collaborating with Mandiant and multiple security organizations to investigate the incident and has filed a report with law enforcement. Vercel also confirms that its platform services remain fully operational. Users are advised to enable multi-factor authentication, comprehensively rotate potentially exposed environment variables, and review account activity logs and deployment records to mitigate further risk.
Odaily News Grayscale has updated its ETF application document linked to Hyperliquid, changing the custodian to Anchorage Digital Bank, replacing Coinbase which previously served as the prime broker and custodian.This adjustment has garnered significant attention, as Coinbase has long dominated the crypto ETF custody space. Currently, almost all U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs (except Fidelity's) rely on its custody services.The filing shows that The Bank of New York Mellon will continue to serve as the transfer agent for this ETF (proposed ticker GHYP). The fund's staking functionality still requires regulatory approval and will utilize CoinDesk's Hyperliquid benchmark pricing data.Furthermore, Anchorage Digital Bank, as the first federally chartered crypto bank in the U.S., has been continuously expanding its institutional service capabilities in recent years, including areas such as stablecoins, wealth management, and token lifecycle management. (The Block)
According to Cointelegraph, Malaysian digital asset exchange Hata has completed an $8 million Series A funding round led by Bybit, with participation from multiple global family offices. Previously, Bybit also participated in Hata’s $4.2 million seed funding round. Hata holds licenses issued by the Securities Commission Malaysia and the Labuan Financial Services Authority, enabling it to provide digital asset trading and custody services in the country.
Odaily According to Bloomberg, as the U.S. Congress considers tightening regulations, the prediction market industry is intensifying its lobbying efforts in Washington to address criticism that it fuels the expansion of gambling and poses risks of potential insider trading.Leading platforms, represented by Kalshi, are joining forces with several crypto and sports betting companies involved in prediction markets to form lobbying teams. Their aim is to influence the legislative process and alleviate regulatory pressure. Industry insiders are concerned that regulatory actions targeting this multi-billion dollar industry may accelerate. (Bloomberg)
According to The Block, Grayscale has filed a revised Hyperliquid ETF application with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), naming Anchorage Digital Bank as the fund’s custodian in place of Coinbase. Anchorage is the first crypto-native bank to receive a federal banking charter in the U.S. and has recently expanded rapidly into stablecoin services, wealth management, and token lifecycle management—becoming the first institution in the U.S. to support TRON. If approved, the ETF will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker “GHYP”; staking functionality remains subject to regulatory approval.