Visa is testing private stablecoin settlement on Canton with Brale, exploring whether institutions can use blockchain without exposing sensitive transaction data. Visa is testing whether privacy-enabled blockchain networks can support institutional stablecoin settlement without exposing sensitive transaction data, in a proof of concept with stablecoin infrastructure company Brale and the Canton Network, a permissioned ledger backed by major Wall Street firms. The project, announced Thursday, uses SBC, a US dollar-backed stablecoin issued by Brale, to simulate institutional payment flows on Canton as Visa evaluates whether SBC could become another stablecoin option in its settlement program. The initiative extends Visa’s earlier experiments using stablecoins for settlement on public blockchains, which began in 2021 with USDC settlement on Ethereum but now target banks and market infrastructure providers that want onchain efficiency without broadcasting counterparties, positions or flows on a public ledger. Rea...
Romanians are increasingly orienting their financial decisions toward protecting their existing resources, in a social and economic climate marked by uncertainty and financial prudence, preferring low-risk, highly liquid instruments over speculative investments.
Residents of Gaza, south Lebanon, northern Israel and Kuwait were all under fire this week despite United States-arranged ceasefires supposedly in force in their regions. Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza and Lebanon, with Israeli forces still actively deployed in both places. Hezbollah rockets struck northern Israel, and Iranian attacks hit Kuwait’s international airport. The continued violence prompted US President Donald Trump to comment on Wednesday that ceasefires in the Middle East involved “shooting in a more moderate manner” rather than a total halt in fighting. Three truces his administration has negotiated were meant to have stopped the warfare. But while major fighting has greatly reduced, munitions are still falling and people still dying. This is how the ceasefires — and ongoing fighting — are playing out: What’s happening with the ceasefire in Gaza? The US brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 10, 2025, ending major warfare. The ceasefire deal involved a halt to all fighting, Hamas ...