A 50,000-letter campaign is pressing Brussels to rethink stablecoin rewards as EU central banks seek broader changes to MiCA’s stablecoin rules. More than 50,000 Europeans have urged the European Commission to loosen restrictions on stablecoin rewards as part of its review of the bloc’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework, according to crypto advocacy group Stand With Crypto EU. The campaign came as the Commission closed its MiCA review consultation on Wednesday, with Stand With Crypto EU pushing for regulated stablecoin providers to be allowed to offer incentives including cashback, loyalty benefits and fee reductions. The group said more than 50,000 supporters wrote to the Commission during the consultation, while more than 126,000 people have separately signed its petition calling…
State officials agreed to delay the 0.2% crypto tax for six months after lawsuits and industry pushback claimed the bill was rushed through the legislature. Crypto advocacy organizations behind a lawsuit opposing Illinois’ Digital Asset Tax reported that state officials agreed to delay implementation by six months. In a Thursday filing in the circuit court of Sangamon County, Illinois, the crypto and blockchain advocacy group Digital Chamber said that Illinois would postpone a 0.2% tax on digital assets from Jan. 1 to July 1, 2027. The organization sued Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and the Department of Revenue official David Harris in July, claiming the tax had been “slipped into the state’s budget” without debate or public feedback. “The Parties stipulate that continuing the Tax…
The agreement will allow the two state regulators to share supervisory information, streamline licensing reviews and coordinate examinations and enforcement actions involving digital asset firms. New York and Wyoming financial regulators have signed an agreement to coordinate oversight of crypto companies operating across both states, including licensing, examinations and potential enforcement actions. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), announced Thursday by the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) and the Wyoming Division of Banking, applies to firms already regulated in either state and those seeking approval in both jurisdictions. Under the agreement, the regulators will share analysis and historical examination data to streamline applications, coordinate examinat…
US bond yields fell sharply around Thursday’s Wall Street open as Bitcoin price action sought to preserve a local trend of higher lows. Bitcoin (BTC) pushed above $84,000 around Thursday’s Wall Street open as US bond yields retreated after setting more multidecade highs. Key points: Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD preserving a pattern of higher lows on hourly time frames, up 0.6% on the day.
The platform said it will compensate users affected by the hack, which stemmed from a bug that affected deposits and withdrawals. Cross-chain protocol NEAR Intents reported a security breach that resulted in the loss of $3.8 million in user funds. In a Thursday X post, the protocol said that the incident was the result of a “bug in the Omni deposit and withdrawal infrastructure interaction with NEAR Intents smart contract.” NEAR said that it would compensate users in full for the lost funds, and the “contract-side vulnerability has been patched” to prevent similar attacks. “The incident has been reported to law enforcement, and we are working with security and blockchain analytics partners to trace the funds and pursue recovery,” said the platform. “A detailed report will be shared publicl…
Crypto security losses reached $1.26 billion in Q3 across 247 incidents, with September alone accounting for roughly $769 million. Losses from crypto security incidents climbed to $1.26 billion in the third quarter of 2026, largely driven by the $387.5 million hack of crypto exchange Bitget. Losses rose 53.9% from $819.4 million in Q2, while the number of security incidents increased about 13% from 219 to 247, according to data from blockchain security company CertiK. The Bitget hack accounted for about 31% of Q3 losses, making it the quarter’s largest recorded incident under CertiK’s methodology. Liquid Network’s $319 million exploit on Sept. 6 ranked second, followed by Tectonic at $120 million and the $112.7 million Coldcard theft.
Highly liquid and settling 24/7, stablecoins can leave banks and countries at lightning speed. But whether stablecoins are a risk — or an opportunity — depends on your perspective. Anyone who’s ever sent a bank transfer overseas is familiar with the painful process of waiting for things like working hours, correspondent banks and settlement times. In many cases, it would be faster, cheaper and just more efficient to strap the physical cash to a homing pigeon, or slap it in an envelope and send it via DHL. Stablecoins can move money across borders around the clock, without waiting for the legacy system to fire up its steam engines.
Researchers in a Latin American stablecoin ecosystem report warned “fragility in the system is concentrated in its thinnest layer,” with just 16 of 494 companies focused primarily on wholesale liquidity, treasury and credit. Latin America’s stablecoin payment ecosystem may depend on a small group of underlying liquidity providers, potentially disrupting customers’ ability to cash out into local currency if a key provider loses banking access, according to Verda Ventures partner Amit Chu. In a newly published report from crypto venture companies Varys Capital and Verda Ventures, drawing on Verda’s Stablescape database, researchers analyzed 494 companies in the region, but found only 16 whose primary business is providing wholesale stablecoin-to-fiat liquidity, corporate treasury and credit,…
Dune found that tokenized markets show different trading patterns from traditional markets, with RWA value reaching $34.5 billion. Tokenized markets show different trading and investment patterns from traditional markets, according to a new Dune report comparing onchain and off-chain activity across equities, credit, commodities and cash-equivalent products. Dune found the difference pronounced in equities, where single stocks accounted for 81% of tokenized equity spot supply while exchange-traded funds (ETFs) made up 19%. Armand Khatri, head of ecosystem at Ondo Finance, said tokenization gives investors more control over asset selection by reducing their dependence on local intermediaries’ offerings.
Bitcoin erased its post-PCE gains as analysts cautioned that methodology changes complicated the lower-than-expected inflation reading. Bitcoin (BTC) held above $83,000 on Thursday after giving back gains following lower-than-expected US inflation data. Key points: Data from Coinbase showed BTC/USD flat on the day after a brief bout of volatility ahead of September’s monthly and third-quarter close.
EU regulators are reportedly examining Binance’s use of a MiCA exemption to serve customers as ESMA seeks stronger enforcement powers. European regulators are reportedly scrutinizing Binance’s use of a legal exemption to continue serving customers in the European Union without authorization under the bloc’s crypto rules. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and regulators in France, Germany and Greece are examining Binance’s use of reverse solicitation under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), the Financial Times reported on Thursday. Binance withdrew its Greek MiCA application in June and said it would seek authorization in another EU member state.
Chainalysis still faces an aiding-and-abetting claim over Celsius’ disputed $3.3 billion audit after a judge dismissed 15 other claims. A US federal judge has dismissed most claims brought against Chainalysis by Celsius Network’s litigation administrator, but allowed one to proceed. The surviving claim alleges Chainalysis helped Celsius insiders breach their fiduciary duties. US District Judge Margaret Garnett denied Chainalysis’ bid to dismiss the aiding-and-abetting claim in a ruling issued Tuesday. She found that the complaint sufficiently alleged that Chainalysis knew a 2020 Celsius press release contained false statements and helped disseminate them.
Bitcoin gained 42.71% in Q3, its best third-quarter performance since 2017, as US spot ETFs attracted $6.34 billion in net inflows. US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded about $6.34 billion in net inflows in the third quarter, marking their strongest quarter of 2026 as Bitcoin rebounded from the first half. The funds closed September with $2.65 billion in net inflows, down around 25% from $3.52 billion in August and following $172 million in July, according to SoSoValue data. The quarterly flows reversed about $5 billion in net outflows recorded in the second quarter. Bitcoin gained 42.71% in the third quarter, its strongest quarterly gain since Q4 2024 and its best third-quarter performance since 2017, according to CoinGlass.
A Bitcoin Policy Institute paper says MSCI’s proposed “non-operating company” rule could remove Strategy and Metaplanet from its indexes and may have roots in an earlier crypto treasury review. A Bitcoin policy think tank has questioned how MSCI developed its latest proposal to tighten the rules governing its market indexes, after the benchmark provider identified companies including Strategy and Metaplanet for potential treatment as “non-operating businesses” and exclusion from its indexes. MSCI first proposed excluding digital asset treasury companies from its global indexes in 2025, but shelved the plan in January after pushback and said it would instead review “non-operating companies” more broadly. On Aug. 3, it returned with a wider proposal that could still remove Strategy and Meta…
The $388 million Bitget breach and $320 million Liquid Network exploit accounted for most of September’s losses, though more than $270 million from the latter was later returned. Crypto suffered its worst month of the year for hacks and exploits in September, with two blockchain security firms estimating losses at more than $766 million. PeckShield counted 55 major incidents resulting in $766.5 million in stolen funds, while CertiK recorded 97 incidents and estimated losses at $768.4 million. Both firms showed the losses were a significant increase from August. The month included the $388 million Bitget hack and a $320 million hack of the Liquid Network. More than $270 million was later returned, according to reports. The incidents rank among the largest crypto thefts of the year.
The classification could assist the CFTC’s claim that it has exclusive federal jurisdiction over event contracts offered on regulated prediction markets. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is seeking to clarify the definition of a “swap” amid a jurisdictional fight with state gambling regulators over prediction markets. An Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs docket shows the agency has submitted a proposed rule to expand the definition of “swap” to include event contracts, along with an interim final rule that would exclude casino-style gambling products. Both are under review. The classification matters because the CFTC has argued that federal law gives it exclusive authority over swaps traded on its regulated exchanges, such as those offered by Polymarket and Kalshi.…
MetaMask said it is investigating the threat internally and said it has found no immediate threat to its wallets. MetaMask has announced it is responding to a security incident affecting part of its infrastructure and is exiting affected staking validators as a precaution. In an update on Wednesday, MetaMask said it was addressing the ongoing threat internally and was working with external partners and security advisors. It did not share what the security issue was but said it has not identified any immediate threat to MetaMask wallets. Source: MetaMask
The bank also expects Ethena’s ENA token to rise roughly sevenfold to $2 by the end of 2028 as USDe scales and token buybacks increase. British multinational bank Standard Chartered expects Ethena’s USDe stablecoin supply to grow eightfold to $40 billion by the end of 2028 as the protocol expands its sources of yield beyond crypto markets. In a Wednesday research report shared with Cointelegraph, the bank initiated coverage of Ethena’s ENA token with a year-end 2028 price target of $2, roughly seven times the $0.28 price cited in the report. Standard Chartered also expects USDe to slightly outpace overall stablecoin market growth over the period. Its forecasts imply ENA would also outperform Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) through 2028. Standard Chartered sees BTC reaching $300,000 and ETH $…
The organization’s endorsements in the House and Senate came as many polls showed Democrats favored to regain control of both chambers in 2027. Update (Sept. 30, 10:55 pm UTC): This article has been updated to include a response from Stand With Crypto. Stand With Crypto, the industry-aligned organization Coinbase launched in 2023 to promote what it called “clear, common-sense regulations for the crypto industry,” has announced several picks for the next session of the US Congress. On Wednesday, Bloomberg first reported that Stand With Crypto said it would be supporting candidates running for Senate seats in 2026, including Republican Jon Husted in Ohio, Republican Ashley Hinson in Iowa and Democrat Chris Pappas in New Hampshire. Husted is defending his Senate seat against Democrat Sherrod…
Base’s Cobalt lets traders set transaction conditions while giving issuers tools for compliance checks, stock splits and forced token transfers. Base activated its Cobalt upgrade Wednesday, adding conditional transactions and new issuer controls for tokenized assets as the Ethereum layer-2 network deepens its push into onchain finance. Cobalt, Base’s third major upgrade, expands its B20 token standard by allowing issuers to apply several compliance checks to the same asset. For example, an issuer could require recipients to pass identity checks, qualify as accredited investors and not appear on a sanctions list. Issuers can also schedule adjustments for corporate actions such as stock splits. The update changes the number of shares displayed in wallets and apps without minting or burning…
