Experts weighed in on how a recent policy change at the US Securities and Exchange Commission could affect retail crypto investors. The US Securities and Exchange Commission approved new listing standards for commodity-based trust shares last week, a policy shift that could shorten the path to launching spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs), but questions remain for some investors. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said the policy change, announced by the SEC on Sept. 17, would be a positive move toward a “wave of spot crypto ETP launches.” Eric Balchunas, another senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, suggested that the SEC had just cleared the regulatory tape for crypto ETFs “so long as they have futures on Coinbase,” hinting at the different regulations that applicants will face depending on the investment vehicle they plan to offer. Read more
Among the bets the characters made in the animated series included whether a fictional baby was a boy or a girl. The animated series South Park already kicked off its 27th season by ripping into cryptocurrencies and politics, and its most recent episode set its sights on prediction market apps. In its episode titled Conflict of Interest, which aired on Wednesday, the characters in South Park’s elementary school engaged in a debate over the merits of prediction markets and the role US regulators had in overseeing them. Among the bets they made on a Kalshi- or Polymarket-type app included guessing school lunches, the outcome of conflicts between Israel and Palestine and whether a fictional baby was a boy or a girl. Read more
Cloudflare said NET Dollar is aimed at powering instant payments for AI agents, creators and developers worldwide. Cloud infrastructure company Cloudflare has announced plans to move into the digital assets market with the launch of a US dollar-backed stablecoin. According to a Thursday announcement, the company is working on the NET dollar, its stablecoin intended to support instant transactions triggered by AI agents — autonomous software programs that can perform tasks such as booking travel, ordering goods or managing schedules. “Personal agents will be able to take instant, programmatic actions like paying for the cheapest flight, or ordering an item the moment it goes on sale,” Cloudflare said about its vision for the stablecoin. Read more