Regulatory uncertainty drove crypto innovation offshore, but new bipartisan leadership and clear frameworks can restore America’s financial dominance. Opinion by: Senator Tim Scott and Senator Cynthia Lummis The US Congress recently took a major step toward reclaiming the United States’ leadership in financial innovation. We passed, and President Trump signed, the bipartisan GENIUS Act passed — a landmark bill that establishes the first-ever federal framework for payment stablecoins. It’s a milestone for consumer protection, national security and American competitiveness — and proof that principled leadership can still deliver real results. Read more
By securing a national trust charter, USDC’s issuer, Circle, plans to directly manage its $62-bilion reserves. Circle, the fintech firm behind USDC, has filed an application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish America’s first digital currency bank, a national trust institution that would bring stablecoins fully into the federally regulated financial system. The proposed entity, First National Digital Currency Bank, wouldn’t operate like a traditional consumer bank. It wouldn’t offer deposits or loans. Instead, it would focus on Circle USDC trust bank functions: safeguarding USDC (USDC) reserves, managing cash and short-term Treasury holdings and offering digital asset custody services to institutional clients. Read more
MiCA’s licensing clarity helped Europe capture crypto flows as US retail activity declined despite a crypto-friendly Trump administration. Europe is pulling ahead in the global crypto race under its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework, outpacing even President Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly America. According to Konstantins Vasilenko, co-founder and chief business development officer at Paybis, trading volumes from EU customers jumped 70% quarter-on-quarter in Q1 2025, right after the MiCA regulation took effect. During the same period, Paybis activity in the US started trending in the opposite direction. Vasilenko told Cointelegraph that while US retail activity was declining, European users have been placing larger, more deliberate trades. Read more