News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily reports: U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein on October 15, 2026, declined to vacate the $5 million settlement agreement between crypto exchange Gemini and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), leaving the paid fine and permanent injunction in effect. Previously, the CFTC had stated that the original lawsuit should never have been brought.The dispute stemmed from Gemini's involvement in proposed Bitcoin futures contracts. The CFTC filed suit in June 2022, alleging that Gemini misled regulators regarding trading safeguards, customer financing, special fee arrangements, and activities that could potentially affect contract pricing; the two parties settled in January 2025, with Gemini neither admitting nor denying the allegations.In May 2026, following an internal review, the CFTC and Gemini jointly sought to vacate the settlement, citing issues with whistleblower credibility, evidence, and enforcement practices. The judge found that the relevant circumstances had existed prior to the settlement and that a change in enforcement priorities was insufficient to vacate a binding court order; the CFTC retains its enforcement discretion. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily reports: Prosecutors stated that in the case involving former NBA guard Malik Beasley allegedly manipulating his personal stats for betting purposes, 3 of the remaining 5 defendants plan to plead guilty, while 2 others have not yet accepted plea deals. The case involves conduct during Beasley's time playing for the Milwaukee Bucks.Malik Beasley's lawyer stated that he currently does not intend to plead guilty and is still reviewing evidence and possible defense arguments; former NBA player Ed Davis also attended the hearing. Co-defendant William Brown has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.Prosecutors allege that Beasley conspired with Davis to adjust his personal stats in 4 games to reduce his gambling debts, while other defendants used the related information to place bets worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. The trial is tentatively scheduled to begin on May 17, 2027. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Investor Bastion Trading has stated that it will not participate in SkyAI's proposed $201 million tender offer unless SkyAI addresses governance, disclosure, and pricing issues. Bastion Trading and its affiliates collectively hold approximately 9.99% of SkyAI's common stock. SkyAI plans to acquire up to 95% of its outstanding shares and eligible warrants at $3 per share.Bastion Trading is questioning the scale of SkyAI's sale of approximately 70% of its SOL treasury assets. SkyAI previously claimed to have sold about 1 million SOL, but subsequent regulatory filings showed it had only about 600,000 SOL remaining. Bastion Trading is demanding disclosure of the sale timing, average transaction prices, proceeds, transaction costs, and approval processes, as well as an independent review before the tender offer begins.Bastion Trading is also demanding the replacement of SkyAI board members, the establishment of an independent special committee to oversee the tender offer process, and a price increase to at least $3.50 per share. It is also calling for the removal of the $100 SOL price condition and the 50% minimum participation threshold, the exclusion of strategic advisor warrants, and a prohibition on insiders tendering their securities. (Bitcoin.com News)
U.S. cryptocurrency trading platform Binance US is seeking to raise up to $100 million in funding at a target valuation of approximately $1 billion. This valuation represents a decline of about 78% from its $4.5 billion valuation prior to its previous funding round in 2022.Binance US raised over $200 million in 2022, with investors including Foundation Capital, RRE Ventures, Circle Ventures, and VanEck. The platform is working to rebuild its market share by reducing fees, launching new products, and expanding its U.S. business coverage.Binance US plans to expand to all 50 U.S. states and apply for a derivatives license to explore perpetual futures, prediction markets, and other financial services. The platform restored USD deposits and withdrawals via ACH transfers in February 2025, and CEO Stephen Gregory assumed office in March 2026. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: The Brazilian Securities Commission (CVM) has issued Resolution No. 249, launching a tokenized securities pilot program to test the simulation of stock trading and securities issuance, operation, and management on blockchain networks. The project will be conducted in a controlled environment, using stocks and funds that are specially created simulated assets, with no real financial risk involved.The project will compare the advantages and disadvantages of public chains versus private chains for securities business, and assess risks including cybersecurity, smart contracts, interoperability, and network resilience. Blockchain networks participating in the pilot must encode market rules into smart contracts, ensure privacy in securities operations, and remain subject to regulatory audits.The CVM will also use AI tools to assist with market monitoring. Brazil's largest stock exchange, B3, is building a tokenization platform, planned for launch in 2027, which will use a proprietary stablecoin. Initially, it will not offer 24/7 trading and will integrate liquidity pools from both digital assets and traditional markets. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted in Chapter 3 of its October 2026 Global Financial Stability Report that, as of July 31, excluding repurchase agreements and stablecoins, the scale of tokenized real-world assets reached approximately $65.1 billion, including $30.4 billion in tokenized credit, $17.5 billion in money market funds, and $2.3 billion in tokenized equities.The report pointed out that automatic liquidation, instant settlement, continuous trading, and programmable collateral could accelerate forced liquidations and amplify financial shocks when markets come under stress. The cross-platform reuse of collateral could also increase leverage, causing risks to transmit more rapidly across different institutions and markets.The IMF identified legal certainty, regulatory clarity, blockchain network interoperability, and reliable settlement assets as four obstacles to the broader adoption of tokenized markets, and recommended adopting technology-neutral regulation, strengthening oversight, implementing circuit breakers, and preventing instability from automatic liquidation. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Russia's largest stock exchange, the Moscow Exchange, is conducting a pilot for crypto trading with professional participants and plans to launch regulated cryptocurrency trading services on December 1. Boris Blokhin, Managing Director of the exchange's securities market, said that relevant testing began a week ago.Boris Blokhin noted that the Moscow Exchange's existing license already covers cryptocurrency trading services, and no additional permits or licenses are required. Russia's relevant cryptocurrency market regulations took effect on September 1, allowing citizens to trade cryptocurrencies on domestic exchanges licensed by the Bank of Russia.Investors who do not qualify as accredited investors will face investment amount limits, and trading will be restricted to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT. Sberbank estimates that Russia's cryptocurrency trading volume will reach at least 4 trillion rubles in the first year, with only 20% completed through exchanges, while the remaining approximately 80% will still occur through unregulated channels. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily reports: Juan Curutchet, head of financial and foreign exchange institution supervision at the Central Bank of Argentina (BCRA), stated that it will not push for the integration of cryptocurrencies and digital assets into banking and payment channels in the next two years. The ban on crypto services by financial institutions introduced in 2022 will remain in effect.Juan Curutchet pointed out that Argentina's current economic fragility is insufficient to support the advancement of such measures. Whether the ban will be lifted in the future depends on economic conditions, and the relevant topic may be discussed during a second Milei term.Despite the ban remaining in place, Argentine banking groups are advancing institutional stablecoin projects through independent entities, aimed at programmable money, treasury management, payments triggered by on-chain events, and collateralized credit management.In the 12 months ending June 30, cryptocurrency transaction value in Argentina exceeded $88.5 billion, making it the second-largest crypto hub in Latin America. (Bitcoin.com News)
the State Tax Inspectorate of Lithuania has updated the user reporting procedures for crypto asset service providers. Through Order No. VA-63, it has clarified the reporting scope and operational standards, aligning the country's rules with the EU's DAC8 and the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF).The new rules require regulated crypto asset service providers and local crypto operators to enhance customer due diligence, collect user identity, transaction records, and tax residency information, and maintain records of customer identification numbers, transaction logs, and account balances. Entities that have already completed registration and reporting obligations in other EU member states may be exempt from duplicate reporting in Lithuania.Full operational reporting across the EU will begin on January 1, 2026, with data collected by platforms in 2026 to be automatically exchanged among member state tax authorities starting mid-2027. The new rules do not change Lithuania's virtual asset capital gains tax rate, but relevant institutions will need to update their client onboarding processes and back-end systems.Starting March 2, certain transactions involving electronic money tokens (EMTs) will require additional payment service authorization, including transferring EMTs on behalf of clients and operating custodial wallets that support third-party transfers; exchanges between EMTs and exchanges between EMTs and fiat currency are not automatically classified as payment services. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News — Global investment management firm Franklin Templeton is exploring regulatory exemptions to allow tokenized money market funds and ETFs to trade through blockchain-based trading venues. On October 9, the company met with staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Crypto Task Force regarding legal issues including pricing, fees, and asset pools.The agenda included whether investors can exchange blockchain fund shares for tokenized National Market System (NMS) stocks through blockchain trading venues, and whether liquidity providers can charge service fees. The related issues involve pricing rules under the Investment Company Act and whether exemptions are needed.Regarding tokenized ETFs, Franklin Templeton also discussed pairing them with tokenized stocks, approved payment stablecoins, or tokenized money market funds, as well as whether liquidity pools need to obtain Investment Company regulatory exemptions. Its preliminary disclosure on September 30 listed assets under management at $1.79 trillion.Franklin Templeton's blockchain fund recordkeeping business began with the Franklin Onchain U.S. Government Money Fund launched in 2021. The BENJI token represents shares of the fund, and transferring tokens simultaneously transfers the corresponding shares, with transactions recorded and share ownership tracked by the Benji Technology Platform. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Brazil's largest stock exchange, B3, is expected to launch a securities tokenization platform in the first half of 2027. The relevant tokenized securities will be interchangeable with traditional stocks and will share price and liquidity. The platform was originally scheduled to launch in the second half of 2026, but has now been adjusted to the first half of 2027.Humberto Costa, Director of Products and OTC Strategy at B3, stated that tokenized securities will be issued based on existing assets and will not be primarily issued on the blockchain, and trade settlement will still follow the current two-business-day settlement mechanism. Whether Brazilian Depositary Receipts and exchange-traded funds will be included in this infrastructure is still under evaluation.B3 also plans to launch its own stablecoin and will apply to the Central Bank of Brazil for authorization to conduct digital asset operations and custody business. Round-the-clock trading and instant settlement still require approval from Brazilian regulators or the establishment of a new regulatory framework. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: An armed robbery occurred at a luxury residence near Pattaya, Thailand, where three armed individuals broke into a gated community and took control of a Chinese national holding Turkish citizenship, forcing him to open a safe and hand over cash and 3 luxury watches.The attackers also forced the victim at gunpoint to transfer $820,000 worth of cryptocurrency to one of their wallets, which was immediately sold afterward. After escaping, the victim reported the incident to the police, who have not yet confirmed the nationalities of the three suspects.Police Region 2 has launched an investigation and identified the getaway vehicle through surveillance footage; the vehicle was later abandoned in a remote area. Police are tracking the sold digital assets to identify the relevant accounts and recover the funds. Chainalysis estimates that over $30 million in cryptocurrency has been stolen in such violent robberies in the first half of 2026. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Raheim Hamilton, co-founder of darknet marketplace Empire Market, was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison on October 5 in Chicago and fined $5 million. His plea agreement covers approximately 1,230 Bitcoin, 24.4 Ether, and 3 properties in Virginia.Empire Market operated from 2018 to 2020, facilitating over 4 million transactions between buyers and sellers, with transaction values exceeding $430 million. Investigators seized $75 million worth of digital assets, cash, and precious metals in the case.The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) stated that the platform required buyers and sellers to use only cryptocurrency for transactions and encouraged the use of mixing services and encrypted communications. Buyers could also rate sellers on how well they concealed drug packages, with drug sales involved in the case approaching $375 million. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Researcher Robin Linus has released the Bitcoin Poker protocol, expanding the unfinished poker interface that Satoshi Nakamoto left in Bitcoin's early code in 2008 into a runnable solution. The protocol supports two players in Texas Hold'em without a dealer, using Bitcoin's existing rules to handle gameplay and fund settlement.Bitcoin Poker generates card faces through secret information jointly provided by both parties, generating only the 9 cards needed per hand, and uses cryptographic commitments and zero-knowledge proofs to maintain fair dealing. The protocol can check for duplicate cards, and the probability of a randomly generated hand passing the check is approximately 48%, requiring an average of 2.08 attempts.The protocol pre-builds a transaction tree for possible game outcomes, with a reference configuration containing 56,132 logical nodes and approximately 8.4 MB of preparation data. Normal gameplay occurs off-chain, with transactions used only to handle disputes when cooperation breaks down.If one party refuses to continue, a timeout mechanism can settle the committed pot after a specified delay and return the departing party's unused balance, but cannot force players to reveal their cards. The design requires no modifications to Bitcoin's consensus rules, supports only two participants, and still requires independent security review. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: French Hill, Chairman of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, said he hopes to push for the approval of the CLARITY Act during Congress's lame-duck session after next month's midterm elections. He believes that permanent legislation is needed to ensure the United States maintains its lead in digital assets and blockchain technology.French Hill previously pushed for the FIT21 Act, and stated that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are defining digital assets and digital commodities under existing regulatory authority, but such policies are still insufficient to replace a legislative solution.Last month, the CLARITY Act failed to secure the required votes in the Senate's vote to end debate, with a tally of 49 in favor and 50 against.Analysts pointed out that agency regulatory rules are more easily modified or revoked by a new administration, making it difficult to provide the certainty that congressional legislation can offer. Law firm Troutman Pepper Locke said that future administrations could adjust rule interpretations and enforcement priorities. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: A report by the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI) has identified stablecoins, particularly USDT, as a key liquidity channel supporting Iran's shadow banking system. Licensed Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region face heightened sanctions compliance pressure and need to strengthen wallet attribution identification and counterparty assessment.Soham Jethani, a partner at law firm Septten, stated that merchants settling crypto assets into local fiat currency does not mean they can circumvent sanctions risk. Liability may arise from providing designated persons, funds, or economic resources, as well as handling assets within the transaction chain, and may materialize before the bank completes final settlement.Jethani noted that the name of a stablecoin or its denomination currency does not determine legal ownership; specific rights depend on contractual arrangements and the actual payment process. Globally circulating stablecoins may also bring secondary sanctions risk. Indirect or historical wallet associations do not automatically constitute a violation; determination requires consideration of the applicable regime, transaction participants, and specific facts.In regulated markets such as the UAE, licensed exchange wallets are continuously monitored, and relevant funds can be frozen before consumer settlement, while merchants must also complete KYC. Regulated VASPs handling deposits and withdrawals bear responsibility for counterparty and sanctions risk assessment and corresponding controls. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Prediction market platform Kalshi has won a partial preliminary injunction against the state of Illinois. On October 2, Judge Martha M. Pacold of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled that the state's sports betting licensing regime and related criminal provisions may be preempted by federal law and cannot currently be enforced against Kalshi.The ruling temporarily blocks Illinois from requiring Kalshi to hold a state license, which was originally intended to restrict traders to those aged 21 or older and physically located within the state, as well as to limit the sporting events that contracts could track. The court also declined to rule on Illinois's newly established prediction market fees.Pacold stated that contracts on championship winners may constitute swaps under the Commodity Exchange Act and should be traded on designated contract markets and subject to federal regulation. This determination differs from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' August conclusion that such contracts constitute gambling rather than swaps.This is Kalshi's first victory in federal court since July. Illinois's new budget law imposes a 1.75% fee on the first 5 million relevant transactions on exchanges, then 3.5% thereafter, plus a 15% gross revenue fee and a per-transaction fee of 25 or 50 cents; the court has asked the parties to submit supplemental briefs on the fee issue. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Polymarket has filed a lawsuit in a Dutch court seeking to overturn a ban imposed by the Dutch gambling regulator on its prediction market. The company argues that its event contracts are derivatives and should be regulated by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), rather than the Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA).On January 20, the KSA ordered Polymarket to cease providing services to Dutch users within four weeks or face weekly fines of €420,000, up to a maximum of €840,000. The KSA stated that inspectors had registered an account through a Dutch IP address, topped up €10 using a Dutch bank account, and purchased $1 worth of "Yes" shares in the "Next Dutch Prime Minister" market.Polymarket said it implemented IP blocking on February 18, but the KSA determined that the measure came one day after the deadline and decided to impose a €420,000 fine. On June 23, the KSA dismissed Polymarket's objection, noting that Dutch law prohibits betting on non-sporting events and that licensed operators are also not permitted to accept cryptocurrency payments. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily reports: US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins stated that the SEC will continue advancing regulation of cryptocurrencies and digital securities, and will introduce more rules to ensure the digital asset market stays in the United States.On October 2, Paul Atkins said the SEC's proposed crypto asset custody regulatory framework aims to update rules established in 1940 that only apply to traditional asset custody and safekeeping. The move comes after the US Senate failed to pass the CLARITY Act last month.He noted that the framework is part of the SEC's efforts to build a comprehensive crypto asset regulatory system starting in 2025, following earlier proposals including Regulation Crypto Assets and the Innovation Exemption, the latter of which would establish a 5-year sandbox allowing US equities to be traded on decentralized exchanges and with liquidity providers.John Reed Stark, former head of the SEC's Office of Internet Enforcement, believes the regulatory push exceeds the SEC's authority and bypasses congressional power. Paul Atkins stated that more regulatory proposals are coming and that he will continue to assist President Trump in promoting the US as the global capital of cryptocurrency. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily reports: Brazil's presidential election will be held on October 4, and the result could influence the country's crypto policy direction (Brazil ranks first globally in crypto adoption). Incumbent President Lula is facing off against former President's son Flavio Bolsonaro. If incumbent President Lula is re-elected, regulation and compliance requirements are expected to be strengthened, and the central bank has already tightened oversight of exchanges; he may also push for taxation of stablecoin transactions (previously shelved due to the election). If former President's son Flavio Bolsonaro wins, his crypto stance is unclear, and there is no record indicating he has ever mentioned cryptocurrency. However, he previously defended someone associated with the "Bitcoin Pharaoh" pyramid scheme. (Bitcoin.com News)