News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily reports: Polygon Labs has announced the completion of its acquisition of Coinme, a US-regulated crypto payment service provider, with plans to leverage stablecoin infrastructure to enter the payments market dominated by Visa and Stripe. Polygon Labs CEO Marc Boiron stated that the acquisition will help Polygon Labs own customer relationships and capture revenue that previously flowed to intermediaries; Polygon Labs has now become a payments-focused company that uses blockchain to move money. In January, Polygon Labs launched Open Money Stack to support stablecoin payments and cross-border transfers, and to charge fees for currency exchange and money transfers. Marc Boiron said the regulated payments business is expected to become profitable by 2027. Data shows that Visa's payment volume exceeded $12.3 trillion in fiscal year 2025, while Stripe's payment volume reached $1.9 trillion. Through the acquisition of Coinme, Polygon Labs will control more business processes in areas such as crypto asset, stablecoin, and fiat currency conversion, rather than handing customers over to third parties. Polygon Labs' unified payments platform is currently still in technical preview and not yet fully open; early users include Tazapay, Mesh, Toku, and Kira.
Odaily News: Stripe has announced a partnership with Plasma to develop a multi-currency stablecoin card that supports individuals and businesses in spending directly with the currencies already held in their accounts, in order to reduce currency conversion and foreign exchange costs. Plasma will serve as a design partner and integrate into Stripe's stablecoin card infrastructure, supporting USD, Brazilian Real, Euro, Mexican Peso, and Colombian Peso, with stablecoins including USDC, OUSD, and eligible stablecoins that comply with the GENIUS Act requirements. The service currently covers more than 30 countries and plans to expand to over 100 countries by 2027. It will also support cardholders in spending from multiple account balances, with the system automatically selecting the appropriate currency at the time of purchase.
Odaily News: Venture investor Alex Lazarow wrote that over the past two years, Stripe, Mastercard, and Circle respectively acquired U.S. stablecoin infrastructure company Bridge, UK stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK, and Singapore-based cross-border payment platform Tazapay, with the three deals totaling over $3 billion in value. Stripe announced in 2024 that it would acquire Bridge for slightly more than $1 billion; Mastercard's acquisition of BVNK was valued at up to $1.8 billion, including $1.5 billion in base consideration and $300 million in contingent consideration; Circle agreed to acquire Tazapay for $400 million in stock, with the deal expected to close in 2027. Bridge, BVNK, and Tazapay were founded between 2020 and 2022 and had raised approximately $200 million in cumulative funding. Growing stablecoin adoption, an increasingly clear regulatory framework, and rising demand for real-time cross-border payments are the main factors driving the related M&A activity. In 2025, stablecoin adjusted transaction volume grew 91% year-over-year to $10.9 trillion, approaching Visa's $14.2 trillion; real-world payment volume more than doubled to approximately $390 billion.
据 CoinDesk 报道，Cathie Wood 旗下资产管理公司 ARK Invest 宣布与代币化平台 Securitize 合作，将旗下 ARK Venture Fund（ARKVX）进行代币化，基金持仓涵盖 OpenAI、Anthropic、Stripe 及 Databricks 等头部私人科技公司。代币化利息将首先在以太坊上发行，后续可能扩展至其他链。 Securitize 将负责链上发行及投资者体验，并计划提供每日净资产值及链上二级市场交易功能。值得注意的是，代币化并不将底层资产直接上链，投资者持有的是基金权益的链上凭证。ARK 此前已对 Securitize 进行战略投资，双方将持续合作推动更多合规投资产品上链。
According to Fortune, stablecoin payment infrastructure company Latitude, founded by former employees of Stripe, Uber, Coinbase, and Meta, has announced the completion of a $35 million Series A funding round, led by Oak HC/FT, with participation from NEA, Coinbase, Lightspeed Faction, and OpenFX. Latitude aims to address the "last mile" challenge following cross-border stablecoin payments by providing enterprises with infrastructure that converts stablecoins into local currencies and facilitates fund disbursement through local payment methods such as bank accounts and mobile wallets. Its current clients span digital banks, payroll platforms, e-commerce marketplaces, and financial institutions. The company previously closed an $8 million seed round. The new capital will be used to scale its compliance, engineering, legal, and sales teams, while accelerating efforts to secure regulatory licenses in markets including Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Africa.
Odaily News The digital euro, issued by the European Central Bank (ECB) and representing public money, is still in the development stage; EURR, on the other hand, is a stablecoin issued by a private institution designed to maintain a value of 1 euro. Both are aimed at meeting the demand for instant fund transfers within digital platforms.Fintech company Revolut has begun a phased rollout of its euro stablecoin EURR to eligible users in Denmark, Poland, and Portugal, with plans to expand to the European Economic Area in the future. EURR is deployed on the Ethereum network and can be used for on-chain transfers between fiat currencies, crypto assets, external wallets, and supported blockchain networks.EURR is issued by Bridge Building, a Stripe-owned company, rather than directly by Revolut. Piero Cipollone, a member of the ECB's Executive Board, stated that the digital euro will offer the highest level of privacy supported by current technology, with offline payments visible only to the payer and payee, while in online transactions, participating banks will still have access to information required for anti-money laundering compliance. (Forbes Digital Assets)
As reported by Fortune, Grayscale CEO Peter Mintzberg authored an article stating that Bitcoin rallied nearly 20% last week, recording its strongest three-day gains since 2023 as the crypto winter slowly thaws. However, he cautioned that market participants remain overly focused on short-term price fluctuations, overlooking the long-term structural growth of digital assets. Mintzberg highlighted two key drivers: first, sustained expansion in institutional demand. In 2025, the daily average capital inflow into spot Bitcoin ETPs exceeded $500 million, roughly 12 times the daily new supply from miners. Additionally, a 2026 EY survey revealed that 73% of institutional investors plan to increase their digital asset allocations. Second, accelerated enterprise blockchain adoption. In 2025, approximately 60% of Fortune 500 executives stated that their companies are actively advancing blockchain initiatives, with major players like Fidelity, Visa, and Stripe all positioning themselves in the stablecoin sector. He also noted the complementary nature of AI and public chain technologies, adding that emerging demands such as machine-native micro-payments and cross-border instant settlements will further drive real-world blockchain adoption. As regulatory frameworks grow increasingly clear, digital assets are rapidly integrating into the mainstream financial ecosystem.
According to CoinDesk, Visa is seeking new stablecoin settlement and OTC trading partners to replace BVNK, which was previously acquired by Mastercard. Relevant product request documents indicate that Visa expects partners to hold cryptocurrency exchange licenses in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Singapore, and to support multiple stablecoin conversion and settlement services, including handling settlement for the Open USD stablecoin project promoted by Stripe, Visa, and Mastercard.
Odaily News - Thrive Capital, the venture capital firm founded by Joshua Kushner, has purchased approximately $215 million worth of Amazon shares, further expanding its investment footprint in public market companies.According to regulatory filings, this investment gives Thrive Capital exposure to Amazon's growth opportunities in artificial intelligence, including agentic AI shopping tools and AI computing infrastructure services for enterprise customers.Earlier this month, Amazon's market capitalization surpassed $3 trillion for the first time, making it the fifth company globally to reach this milestone. The market continues to focus on its development potential in generative AI, cloud computing, and AI-driven e-commerce.Thrive Capital has previously been known for investing in early-stage tech companies, with a portfolio that includes SpaceX, Stripe, and OpenAI. In recent years, the firm has increasingly added positions in publicly listed companies, including Figma, StubHub, and Oscar Health.Earlier this year, Thrive also disclosed to investors that it had purchased approximately $100 million worth of Shopify stock, citing AI technology as a driver of a new wave of growth in the e-commerce sector.This investment signals that Thrive Capital is further transitioning from a traditional venture capital model toward becoming an "investor in core assets of the AI era," sharing in the growth dividends of AI infrastructure and application ecosystems by taking positions in major tech companies. (Bloomberg)
Odaily News: Payment company Stripe did not sign long-term supplier contracts with third-party stablecoin APIs. Instead, after Bridge achieved $5 billion in annualized cross-border transaction volume, Stripe acquired it outright for $1.1 billion and integrated stablecoin infrastructure into its global checkout layer. Fintech platform Robinhood did not expand internationally through external trading venues. Instead, it acquired cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp for $200 million, obtaining more than 50 global regulatory licenses and institutional liquidity. From 2012 to 2018, early B2B fintech startups paid traditional banks for proof-of-concept pilot fees. From 1996 to 2001, telecom infrastructure startups raised over $50 billion to lay dark fiber. (Bitcoin.com News)
According to Cointelegraph, Bridge Building, the Luxembourg entity of Stripe's stablecoin infrastructure company Bridge, has officially joined the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) registry. Previously, on July 2, Bridge obtained Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorization under the MiCA framework and an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license issued by the Luxembourg Financial Sector Supervisory Commission (CSSF). Bridge Head of Product Mai Leduc Blount stated that the aforementioned approvals will allow EU enterprises to build stablecoin and payment products within a compliant framework. According to the latest update from the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), Bridge's inclusion brings the total number of authorized Electronic Money Token (EMT) issuers in the EU to 42; during the same period, three institutions from Germany newly received CASP authorization, raising the total number of authorized CASPs in the EU to 324.
Odaily News: Bridge, Stripe's stablecoin infrastructure company, has joined the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) register through its Luxembourg entity Bridge Building, after receiving regulatory approval from Luxembourg. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) update on Wednesday shows that with Bridge's inclusion, the number of MiCA-authorized electronic money token (EMT) issuers in the EU register has increased to 42. Bridge announced on July 2 that it had obtained the MiCA Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorization and Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license from the Luxembourg Financial Industry Supervisory Commission. Bridge product lead Mai Leduc Blount stated that the approvals allow EU companies to build stablecoin and payment products within a regulated framework. The same ESMA update also added three new German CASP entries, including Volksbank Die Gestalterbank, VBU Volksbank im Unterland, and VR-Bank Erding, bringing the total number of authorized CASPs in the EU register to 324. Asset-referenced token (ART) authorizations remained unchanged, with no ART issuers currently listed.
Mizuho analysts stated that if the U.S. crypto market structure bill, the "Clarity Act," is passed, while it may generally benefit the digital asset industry, the long-term impact on Circle could be negative. The reason is that regulatory clarity will attract more large institutions into the stablecoin market, further accelerating stablecoin commodification and eroding the revenue potential of Circle's USDC.Mizuho believes that the primary pressure Circle faces in the near term comes from Open USD. This stablecoin project is backed by a coalition of over 140 financial, technology, and crypto companies, with members including Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, and Coinbase. Unlike Circle's model, which retains approximately 38% of USDC reserve yields, Open USD employs a "pass-through" model, distributing nearly all reserve yields to distribution partners while retaining only a small management fee.Analysts also noted that Coinbase, as the largest distributor of USDC, also supports Open USD. This could give Coinbase stronger bargaining power when renegotiating its revenue-sharing agreement with Circle in the future. The distribution agreement between the two parties could be up for renegotiation as early as next month.
Ansem posted on platform X, stating that the current market remains in a stage with high growth potential. Bitcoin (BTC) and Solana (SOL) still have considerable room to rise from their all-time highs, with SOL down approximately 75% from its peak and BTC down about 50%. Compared to previous cycles, this cycle has more mature user experiences and infrastructure, including improved mobile trading experiences, lower barriers for wallet onboarding, and enhanced cross-chain capabilities, making it easier for new users without prior crypto experience to enter the market.Ansem pointed out that a growing number of high-quality developers are aligning incentives through a "token plus equity" model, offering investors exposure to a wider range of industry sectors. Meanwhile, institutional interest in Real World Assets (RWA), attention to the regulatory framework related to the US CLARITY Act, and the entry of major tech-finance companies like Stripe and Robinhood into the crypto space are all boosting market confidence. The wealth effect generated by AI stock performance in recent years, coupled with the wealth-building cases of Meme coins in previous crypto cycles, are reinforcing the market's perception of high-yield trading opportunities. While some earlier Meme coins grew from zero to tens of billions of dollars in market capitalization, the circulating market cap of current popular Meme projects like $ANSEM is still under $100 million, attracting speculative capital.This cycle features dual market drivers: institutional narratives and high-risk speculative opportunities. On one hand, mature financial applications like perpetual contracts and RWA will attract more professional capital; on the other hand, trading in Meme coins and low-market-cap tokens will continue to attract significant retail participation.Ansem stated that with more teams launching user-friendly mobile crypto applications that lower the barrier to entry, this cycle could become the one with the largest scale of retail participation in crypto history.
: In an interview this week, Circle President Heath Tarbert responded to questions about the stock price falling from $260 to $62, stating that the company is focusing on long-term development. If it can fulfill its mission of building a full-stack internet platform infrastructure, the stock price will ultimately reflect that value in the long run. Addressing the new competition posed by the Open USD Alliance, which consists of 140 companies including Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, and Google, Heath Tarbert noted that USDC, as a stablecoin natively supporting 34 blockchains, has built a network effect with a circulating supply of $73 billion that is extremely difficult to replicate. Discussing the difference in market position compared to Tether, he stated that USDC is the world's largest regulated stablecoin and boasts the highest real transaction volume.
According to Reuters, the PayPal board believes the $53 billion acquisition offer ($60.50 per share) jointly proposed by Stripe and private equity firm Advent International undervalues the company, and has concerns regarding regulatory approval risks and financing certainty; it has not yet formally responded to the proposal. The PayPal board believes that if management successfully executes the existing transformation strategy, the company's future potential value will far exceed the current offer. Meanwhile, the acquirers have obtained approximately $50 billion in financing support from JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley, with Stripe and Advent contributing a combined $17 billion in equity. Reportedly, if the parties encounter antitrust hurdles, they may consider divesting assets such as PayPal's Braintree to Advent. Despite differences, Stripe and Advent are still regarded as the most serious potential buyers at present, and negotiations are expected to continue for some time. PayPal will release its quarterly earnings report on July 28, and the market will closely monitor the growth of its core checkout business.
According to Visa's official website, Visa and Artemis jointly released a report that deeply analyzes the current status and trends of AI agent payments based on real-time on-chain data. The report indicates that AI agent payments are divided into two categories: one is "macro commerce" where agents replace users to complete tasks like booking tickets and subscriptions, similar to traditional e-commerce payments; the other is "micro commerce" such as high-frequency, low-value API calls between software, where single transaction amounts are typically less than 1 cent. On-chain data shows that the open protocol x402, incubated by Coinbase and Cloudflare and now hosted by the Linux Foundation, has processed approximately 109 million transactions since launching in May 2025, with an adjusted transaction volume of about $15 million, mainly active on the Base, Solana, and Polygon chains; the Machine Payment Protocol (MPP), jointly built by Stripe and Tempo with Visa's contribution, launched in mid-March 2026 and completed approximately 115,000 transactions within weeks, with a settlement amount of about $25,000. The report notes that blockchain settlement costs have dropped to extremely low levels, making small payments in the 1-cent to 1-dollar range economically feasible for the first time, but agent payments still face significant challenges at the legal and regulatory level regarding trust, liability attribution, and dispute resolution. Visa stated that its goal is to build a unified foundation that simultaneously supports card-native trust authorization and machine-native settlement
According to CNBC, Swedish payment giant Klarna has submitted an application to U.S. federal and state regulators to establish an FDIC-insured bank subsidiary "Klarna Bank USA" in Utah, enabling Klarna to conduct loans, deposits, and broader financial services through its own banking system. Klarna launched the stablecoin KlarnaUSD at the end of last year and is reportedly collaborating with Privy, a wallet infrastructure platform under Stripe, to co-develop a crypto wallet aimed at mainstream users.
according to market sources, several financial and crypto institutions, including Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, BlackRock, and Coinbase, are planning to jointly launch a new stablecoin named "OUSD".The report states that the stablecoin project is expected to adopt a multi-party collaboration model and share related revenue mechanisms among the participating institutions. However, the specific structure, launch timeline, and regulatory arrangements have not yet been publicly disclosed.If the news is confirmed, it would mark a further deep integration between traditional payment giants and Wall Street asset management institutions in the stablecoin sector. The parties involved have not yet officially confirmed the reports.
Odaily Planet Daily reported that renowned startup accelerator Y Combinator stated that in the future, all of its portfolio companies may utilize crypto technology, particularly infrastructure like stablecoins, and this will not be limited to crypto or fintech startups.YC has previously invested in early-stage companies such as Airbnb, DoorDash, Coinbase, Stripe, Reddit, OpenAI, and Kalshi. Its latest statement primarily urges the U.S. Congress to pass the crypto market structure bill, the "Clarity Act."YC believes that for the crypto industry to enter a new phase, it must achieve deeper integration with traditional financial institutions such as banks and brokerages. The Clarity Act is expected to provide the regulatory foundation for this integration. The bill aims to clarify whether digital assets are securities or commodities, establish a registration pathway with the CFTC, and stipulate that customer assets belong to the customers in the event of bankruptcy.However, the prospects for the bill remain uncertain. Supporters argue that it has a bipartisan foundation, while opponents point out limited support from Democrats, the approaching midterm elections, and ethical controversies arising from Trump's direct association with the crypto industry. These factors could all increase legislative resistance.