Kazakhstan’s digital minister says lifting crypto restrictions and expanding regulations could turn the country into Central Asia’s top blockchain hub. Kazakhstan has the potential to become a leading crypto hub in Central Asia if regulatory restrictions are eased, according to Kanysh Tuleushin, the country’s first vice minister of digital development, innovation and aerospace industry. In a recent op-ed for the Kazakhstanskaya Pravda newspaper, Tuleushin said digital mining and smart policy shifts could position Kazakhstan as a regional leader in blockchain innovation. “If all restrictions were lifted and digital asset trading was allowed across Kazakhstan, the impact could be significant,” he wrote. Read more
Romania's industrial production decreased by 4.2% in the first quarter of 2025 in unadjusted data compared to the same period of 2024 due to drops in manufacturing (-4.7%), the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply (-1.9%) and mining and quarrying (-1.5%), data from the country's statistical office INS showed on Wednesday (May 13).
Over 80% of investors are betting on the approval of a Solana and Litecoin ETF in 2025, despite the latest delay from the SEC. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has pushed back its decision on a proposed spot Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF), with the cryptocurrency industry now looking to the deadlines for the Polkadot and XRP-based ETFs in June. The SEC pushed its decision on listing Grayscale’s spot Solana (SOL) Trust ETF on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to October 2025, according to a May 13 filing by the securities regulator. The decision came the week after the SEC delayed its ruling on Canary Capital’s Litecoin (LTC) ETF, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart wrote in a May 5 X post. Read more
SIPEX Company (stock symbol: SPX), one of the largest distributors of building materials and finishes in Romania, reported a turnover of RON66.5 million for the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, down 4% against the same period of 2024, as per the company's financial report for Q1/2025.