News linked to both this project and an event.
Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan stated that privacy is becoming a core infrastructure direction for the next phase of the crypto industry. Recently, three institutional-grade blockchains focused on stablecoins and asset tokenization—Arc, Canton, and Tempo—have accumulated over $1 billion in total funding, indicating a rapidly growing demand from institutions for "privacy-friendly on-chain financial systems."Among them, stablecoin issuer Circle contributed $222 million in funding for Arc, giving it a valuation of approximately $3 billion; Digital Asset’s Canton blockchain is reportedly seeking $300 million in funding at a $2 billion valuation; and Tempo, backed by Stripe and Paradigm, has previously completed $500 million in funding at a valuation of $5 billion.Hougan noted that this funding wave reflects three major trends: the gradual clarification of the U.S. regulatory framework, increased institutional demand for on-chain privacy, and intensified competition among new blockchain networks supported by large enterprises. Current public blockchains still face structural trade-offs between speed, cost, security, and privacy. However, scenarios involving stablecoins and RWA tokenization require systems that simultaneously offer high performance, compliance, and privacy, making “verifiable privacy” a critical prerequisite for institutional adoption of on-chain finance.Hougan further stated that, for enterprises, “all transactions being publicly broadcast” is not an advantage but a potential flaw. In the future, users and institutions may find it increasingly difficult to accept a fully transparent on-chain financial environment. He believes that privacy capabilities could become the “killer app” driving the crypto industry into its next phase of mainstream adoption. Additionally, following the passage of the U.S. Genius Act in 2025, regulatory certainty has significantly increased, providing a clearer policy foundation for institutional funds to enter the crypto infrastructure space. (CoinDesk)
Genius Group, a Nasdaq-listed bitcoin treasury company, has disclosed a strategic investment of $5 million in digital bank Jewel Bank, acquiring a 9.9% equity stake in the company. It is reported that Jewel Bank is developing a U.S. dollar stablecoin, JUSD, planned to be backed by a 1:1 reserve of cash and U.S. Treasury bonds, with a target launch in the second half of 2026. The bank will also launch a real-time settlement system and offer white-label banking and stablecoin infrastructure services for enterprises. Following this investment, Genius Group will enter the regulated digital banking and stablecoin issuance sector. (Globenewswire)
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.