BitcoinKE

Cronos says $120.4 million was affected in the Tectonic exploit, significantly more than the roughly $75 million initially estimated.
The blockchain network said it recovered $111.2 million, or about 92% of the affected funds, after validators rolled back nearly two hours of transaction history.
About $9.19 million, or 7.6% of the total, had left the Cronos network before it was halted and remains unrecovered.
The updated figure underscores the scale of the August 30 2026 exploit, which initially was estimated at $75 million.


CASE STUDY | Cronos Blockchain Halts After an Exploit on its Largest Lending Protocol





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Uzbekistan has launched a pilot project testing the use of the HUMO stablecoin for payments as the country expands its regulatory framework for digital assets.
The National Agency of Perspective Projects (NAPP) and the Central Bank will oversee the pilot which will test the
issuance,
circulation, and
redemption
of HUMO, with each token pegged 1:1 to the Uzbek Som.

STABLECOINS | Philippines Oldest Bank to Pilot Stablecoin Rail for Cross-Border Payments

HUMO will be backed by government securities and tested as a payment instrument for goods and services. More than 20 businesses are preparing to participate with banks and other companies also expected to join.
A separate area of the pilot will focus on integrating the banking, payment processing and blockchain infrastructure of project participants to enable settlements using the HUMO stable token.
HUMO Digital has been registered under Uzbekistan’s special regulatory regime for stablecoins while crypto infrastructure provider, Asterium, is participating as a project partner.
The pilot, which can run for up to 3 years, will also test the integration of banking, payment-processing, and blockchain infrastructure.
Upon completion of the project, the practical applicability of the model of a stable token backed by government securities will be assessed, the associated risks will be identified, and proposals will be developed to further improve approaches to regulating digital financial instruments in Uzbekistan.


STABLECOINS | South Korea’s Largest Bank Successfully Completes Local Stablecoin Pilot




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Switzerland has moved its Swiss Franc stablecoin project into a live testing phase bringing financial market operator, SIX, and payment app, TWINT, into the initiative.
Nine Swiss companies are now testing CHFD, a Swiss Franc-denominated stablecoin, in a controlled sandbox environment. The project is led by
UBS,
PostFinance,
Sygnum,
Raiffeisen,
Zürcher Kantonalbank,
BCV,
SIX,
TWINT and
Swiss Stablecoin AG.
The tests will examine whether programmable payments can reduce fraud on online marketplaces, improve access to event tickets, and make public-sector payments more efficient.
The project began in April 2026 with CHFD technically operating inside the sandbox since late June 2026. The testing phase is expected to run through the end of 2026 with participants assessing the potential benefits as well as the technical, operational, and regulatory requirements for a Swiss Franc stablecoin.
The move comes as banks and financial infrastructure providers globally increasingly explore stablecoins as a potential settlement and payments layer shifting the focus from crypto trading toward regulated financial infrastructure.


REGULATION | Here Are the 4 Firms Selected to Test Stablecoin Innovation in UK Regulatory Sandbox





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The Australian financial crime regulator, AUSTRAC, has cancelled, suspended or refused to renew the registrations of 45 remittance and virtual asset service providers over the past year tightening its oversight of businesses exposed to money-laundering and terrorism-financing risks.


AUSTRAC said the businesses were removed for reasons including
lacking the capacity to operate,
being dormant or inactive,
failing to provide designated services for extended periods,
insolvency,
holding inappropriate registrations, or
failing to notify the regulator of material changes.
The crackdown comes as Australia steps up scrutiny of high-risk payment channels.

REGULATION | The Latest Binance Penalty is ‘A Clear Warning to Entities Setting Up Shop in Australia,’ Says Regulator

“Businesses with cancelled registrations can no longer operate and where appropriate, we’ve referred individuals behind these businesses to law enforcement and regulatory partners locally and overseas,” said AUSTRAC CEO, Brendan Thomas.
“Financial crime operates across borders, and we work closely with our domestic and international partners to strengthen the financial system not just in Australia, but globally.”

According to the press release by AUSTRAC:
AUSTRAC’s focus on the payments, remittance and virtual asset sectors has continued through a range of regulatory actions in recent months, including the commencement of an investigation into Western Union and action to suspend Cryptolink’s crypto ATM network.

CRYPTO CRIME | Australia Suspends a Leading Crypto ATM Operator Over Compliance Failures

AUSTRAC has also launched an investigation into Western Union over concerns about its management of high-risk payment channels, customers and affiliates, while suspending crypto ATM operator, Cryptolink.

REGULATION | Australian Financial Regulator, AUSTRAC, Investigates Western Union Over Money-Laundering Controls

In one case, AUSTRAC worked with the National Anti-Scam Centre to cancel the registration of crypto business, GetCoins, after complaints and concerns over its ability to manage money-laundering risks. The regulator said the business was allegedly exploited by organised cryptocurrency investment scams.
Thomas said businesses whose registrations were cancelled could no longer operate and that, where appropriate, individuals behind them had been referred to law-enforcement and regulatory partners.

EXPERT OPINION | Crypto Regulation Focus Should Be on the Economic Function, Not the Delivery Technology – Australian Regulator

The actions highlight a broader shift toward tougher scrutiny of crypto and remittance businesses as regulators seek to prevent digital-asset and cross-border payment channels from being exploited for organised crime and financial fraud.

“Our message to industry is clear: understand and manage your risks and meet your reporting obligations, or you may not be able to continue operating,” Thomas said.

REGULATION | Australian Regulator Warns Unlicensed Crypto Firms Could Pay 10% of Annual Turnover for Non-Compliance




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French-listed bitcoin treasury firm, Capital B, said it bought 376 bitcoin for €25.3 million ($29.4 million), taking its total holdings to 3,521 BTC.
The purchase is the company’s largest bitcoin acquisition since September 2025 when it bought 551 BTC.
Capital B said the latest purchase was funded following about €30.1 million ($35 million) in capital raises, including a €28.7 million private placement backed by investors including Blockstream co-founder Adam Back and French asset manager TOBAM.
The company’s bitcoin holdings have now cost about €309.4 million ($359.3 million), giving it an average acquisition price of €87,878 ($102,058) per bitcoin.
Capital B’s latest BTC purchase puts it ahead of H100 Group, a Sweden-based bitcoin treasury firm, with 3, 506 Bitcoins.


In March 2026, H100 acquired two Nordic crypto companies, a deal that lifted its reserves to over 3,500 bitcoins nearly tripling its total holdings making it the largest publicly-listed treasury company in Europe at the time.
The transaction was structured as a bitcoin-for-bitcoin exchange, meaning ownership in the combined entity would be determined by contributed BTC rather than cash.

CASE STUDY | How This Health-Tech Wants to Become Europe’s Largest Bitcoin Treasury Firm

Prior to the acquisition, H100 was ranked number 44 on the Bitcoin treasury companies list worldwide and would go up to number 27 in the rankings after the acquisition.
The top 3 largest publicly traded Bitcoin holders in Europe as of this writing are:
Bitcoin Group SE – 3, 605 BTC
Capital B – 3, 521 BTC
H100 – 3, 506 BTC

CASE STUDY | The Financing Model that Fueled Rapid Expansion of Bitcoin Treasury Companies is Showing Signs of Strain




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South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has barred Africa Bitcoin Corporation (ABC) CEO and two senior executives from providing financial products or services or holding key positions at financial institutions for 20 years.
The regulator’s decision affects
CEO, Warren Wheatley,
Chief Investment Officer Akshay Karan and
Head of Media and Investor Relations, Tatum Wheatley.
The executives were removed from operational and decision-making responsibilities at ABC following the debarments.

MILESTONE | Altvest Becomes First Publicly-Listed Firm in Africa to Add Bitcoin to Treasury Reserves

The FSCA has not publicly disclosed the reasons for the decisions which were communicated privately to the executives.

Wheatley and Karan have been placed on precautionary leave while Tatum Wheatley’s consulting services to the group have been suspended.
The three executives intend to seek reconsideration of the FSCA decisions and their suspension through the Financial Services Tribunal, ABC said in a statement. They have also resigned as directors of Altvest Credit Opportunities Fund, a wholly owned ABC subsidiary.


ABC has appointed Executive Director and Bitcoin Strategy Head, Stafford Masie, as interim CEO. Masie, a technology entrepreneur and former Google South Africa country manager, will oversee the group’s executive arrangements relating to the fund.
ABC, formerly AltVest Capital, was the first listed African company to adopt Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset and currently holds 5.53 Bitcoin, valued at about 6.68 million Rand ($380,000), according to the latest known statistic.
ABC also provides financial services, growth capital, and loans to small and medium-sized businesses.


BITCOIN | Altvest, Africa’s First Publicly-Listed Firm to Add Bitcoin to Treasury Reserve, Rebrands to ‘Africa Bitcoin Corporation’




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Nearly $10 million in crypto assets is at risk of becoming unrecoverable after Silicon Network, an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, began shutting down, highlighting the risks businesses and users face when deploying assets on smaller or less-established networks.
Silicon stopped accepting new bridge deposits on Sept. 2 and has given users until Dec. 31 2026 to withdraw their assets. After that, the network and its block explorer are expected to shut down, with assets left on the chain potentially impossible to recover.

In a statement, Silicon network said assets left on the chain will be unrecoverable:
“This network is a non-custodial service, meaning that the custody and withdrawal of assets are managed directly by each user. Once the service has been terminated, assets that have not been withdrawn cannot be recovered.”

Data from L2Beat showed about $9.75 million remained on Silicon, including roughly
$2.66 million in USDC,
$2.54 million in wrapped bitcoin,
$2.08 million in ether, and
$1.85 million in USDT.


The episode underscores a fundamental risk in the increasingly fragmented blockchain market:
Choosing a chain is not simply a question of transaction costs, speed or technical capability. It is also a bet on the network’s long-term viability, liquidity, infrastructure and ability to remain operational.

Assets issued or bridged onto a network can become difficult to move when liquidity dries up or the operators decide to shut the chain down. While assets bridged from Ethereum may have established routes back to the main network, tokens that depend on liquidity within the smaller chain can face a much more complicated exit.

CASE STUDY | How a Crypto Investor Lost $50 Million in a Single Transaction Due to Illiquidity in DeFi Markets

Silicon’s closure is particularly relevant as companies increasingly deploy stablecoins, tokenized assets, and financial applications across multiple layer-2 networks. A technically capable chain can still become a weak link if it lacks sufficient users, liquidity, infrastructure, or economic incentives to remain viable.
The Ethereum scaling market is already becoming concentrated around larger networks. Base and Arbitrum together hold about $24.7 billion, more than 80% of the roughly $30.5 billion locked across Ethereum networks tracked by L2Beat.

MILESTONE | Base Surpasses One Million Daily Active Addresses Outpacing the Next Several Ethereum Layer 2s Combined

For businesses building financial products on-chain, the lesson is clear:
Chain selection should be treated as a risk-management decision, not merely a technical one.

Liquidity depth,
bridge infrastructure,
validator and sequencer resilience,
developer activity,
exchange support,
governance,
exit mechanisms, and
the economic sustainability of the network
should all be assessed before significant assets or users are committed to a chain.
Silicon’s shutdown shows what can happen when that infrastructure disappears – the blockchain may stop being a technology choice and become an asset-recovery problem.
For users and institutions, diversification across established networks and maintaining credible exit routes may ultimately matter as much as the cost and speed of transactions.


REALITY CHECK | Millions of Crypto Tokens Are Vanishing as Liquidity Tightens, Say Analysts




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Liquid Network, a Bitcoin-based settlement network used by cryptocurrency exchanges, halted new transactions after about $320 million worth of bitcoin was withdrawn from its federation wallet in a security exploit.
Around 4,000 of the 4,200 bitcoin held in the wallet were taken by individuals describing themselves as ‘white-hat hackers’, according to Liquid Network.
The network, launched by Blockstream in 2018 and overseen by a federation of more than 80 exchanges, infrastructure firms, and asset managers said it was working to restore normal operations.
The incident did not involve a compromised private key. Instead, the funds were moved through SideSwap, an authorised platform used to facilitate transactions on Liquid.
Blockstream said the exploit was linked to a software bug in Elements, the open-source technology underpinning Liquid. SideSwap said it could not distinguish bitcoin created through the bug from legitimate funds and therefore treated the assets in the same way.
The incident highlights the security risks facing crypto infrastructure as exchanges increasingly rely on blockchain networks and settlement layers to move large amounts of digital assets.
Liquid has not said when transactions will resume or whether the withdrawn bitcoin will be returned.


CASE STUDY | Bitcoin Payment Infrastructure Hit by Exploit Targeting Lightning Nodes




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Demand for dollar-backed stablecoins can put downward pressure on local currencies when global exchanges allow investors to buy the tokens directly with fiat, according to a Bank of Korea study.
The study examined what happened after Binance introduced direct trading between local currencies, including the Brazilian real and Turkish lira, and dollar-pegged stablecoins such as USDT and USDC.
The researchers found that stablecoin premiums fell by 0.33 to 0.38 percentage points after Binance introduced fiat-stablecoin pairs while stronger demand for the tokens was associated with depreciation in local currencies against the dollar.

Brazil provided a clear example.

Investors can buy dollar stablecoins on Binance directly with Brazilian Reais, meaning rising demand can translate into actual dollar purchases. The study found that the Real depreciated 0.12% as stablecoin demand increased.

EXPERT ANALYSIS | ‘In Emerging Markets, High Penetration of USD-Linked Stablecoins in Particular, Weaken Monetary Transmission,’ Warns Moody’s Ratings

The mechanism is different in South Korea where investors cannot directly buy stablecoins with Won on Binance. Domestic traders largely exchange existing stablecoin holdings among themselves meaning increased demand is reflected in stablecoin prices rather than directly in the foreign exchange market.
That could change if South Korea allows greater participation by corporations and foreign investors in domestic crypto exchanges, the study said. Such changes could narrow price differences between domestic and overseas stablecoins while strengthening the link between crypto markets and foreign exchange rates.

“If the market structure changes, with wider participation by corporations and foreigners in domestic virtual asset exchanges, the link between the stablecoin market and the foreign exchange market could strengthen,” said Kim Ji-hyun, a manager on the Bank of Korea’s international finance research team.

STABLECOINS | Africa Sees Highest Stablecoin Conversion Spreads, January 2026 Data Shows

The researchers recommended that digital asset regulatory reforms be pursued alongside efforts to internationalize the Won and improve the structure of South Korea’s foreign exchange market.
The findings add to growing concerns among central banks about the potential impact of dollar-backed stablecoins on monetary policy and currency stability as their use expands globally.


STABLECOINS | South Africa’s Stablecoin Experience Offers a Policy Lesson for Emerging Markets, Says IMF




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Prediction market operator, Kalshi, recorded 15.4 million U.S. website visits in July 2026, up about 1,520% from fewer than 1 million visits in August 2025, according to Similarweb data.
U.S. users accounted for nearly 80% of Kalshi’s total traffic, up from 72.8% a year earlier.
Kalshi’s trading activity has also accelerated sharply. Monthly trading volume reached about $40 billion in August 2026, up roughly 4,500% from $874 million a year earlier.

MARKET ANALYSIS | This Prediction Markets Valuation Hits $40 Billion Leveraging Compliance Over Competitors

Overall, the prediction markets industry saw monthly notional volume rise to $50.7 billion from ~$2 billion YoY. Kalshi accounted for ~80% of the total with sports contracts accouting for 83% o Kalshi’s trading volume in July 2026.
In terms of jurisdictions:
Canada generated ~450K visits in July 2026, up from ~50K YoY
U.K traffic was ~300K, up from 31K


The surge comes as Kalshi faces growing legal challenges over whether its sports contracts should be regulated by the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission or under state gambling laws.


REGULATION | Leading Prediction Markets Platform Losses Court Case Handing Power to States




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Global bond markets are coming under renewed pressure as rising government debt, persistent inflation, and increased borrowing by companies push yields higher and challenge investors’ appetite for long-term debt.
Government bond yields have climbed sharply across major economies, with
Japan’s 10-year yield reaching 3% for the first time since 1996, while
U.S., British, German and French borrowing costs have also moved to multi-year or multi-decade highs.
The moves reflect growing concern that governments are borrowing heavily at a time when investors are demanding higher returns to compensate for inflation and fiscal risks.
The United States is at the centre of those concerns, with federal debt exceeding $40 trillion.

MILESTONE | U.S National Debt Surpasses $40 Trillion for First Time

At the same time, a surge in corporate borrowing to finance artificial intelligence infrastructure is adding to the supply of debt competing for investor capital.

AI | Another Crypto Mining Firm Shifts Focus to AI Infrastructure with a $6 Billion Deal

Global corporate bond issuance has reached a record $4.9 trillion so far in 2026, up 14% from the same period last year, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters.
Five major U.S. technology companies
Alphabet (Google),
Amazon,
Meta,
Microsoft, and
Oracle
have issued about $220 billion in debt this year as they finance data centres and AI-related investments, more than twice last year’s total.

AI | AI Agents Should Be Treated as ‘Untrusted’ Systems, Say Google and Meta Researchers

Higher yields translate into higher borrowing costs across the economy, affecting governments, companies, and consumers through more expensive mortgages, loans, and corporate financing.

The pressure also complicates central-bank policy.

Rising energy prices and geopolitical tensions are adding to inflation risks while higher government borrowing costs make it harder for policymakers to support economies without worsening fiscal pressures.

GEOPOLITICS | U.S Attemps to Trade Oil Futures Would Be a ‘Biblical Disaster,’ Says Oil Industry Giant

For emerging markets, the risks can be greater. Higher yields in major economies can draw capital away from developing countries, increase the cost of dollar-denominated debt and put pressure on currencies already vulnerable to external shocks.
The bond-market moves therefore represent more than a shift in investor preferences. They signal a broader reassessment of the cost of government borrowing after years of exceptionally low interest rates and abundant liquidity.
With debt levels remaining high and governments facing growing spending demands, investors may increasingly demand higher yields before financing additional borrowing — putting fiscal discipline back at the centre of global markets.

DOLLARISATION | China Reportedly Urges Domestic Banks to Limit and Reduce Exposure to U.S Treasuries



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Southeast Asia’s blockchain sector has raised $680 million in equity funding so far in 2026, more than double the $319 million raised during all of 2025, as investors increasingly concentrate capital in established crypto companies and financial services, according to Tracxn data.
The rebound, however, is being driven by fewer deals. Just 25 funding rounds have been completed in 2026, down from 46 in 2025 and far below the 206 rounds recorded in 2022.
A $400 million Series D round for Crypto.com accounts for almost 60% of the 2026 total.
Other major deals include:
Edena Capital’s $100 million Series D and
Startale’s $50 million Series A.
Together, the three rounds represent about 81% of regional funding.

FUNDING | Leading Crypto Brokerage Infrastructure Provider Raises Over $100 Million to Expand On-Chain Stocks

Crypto financial services have attracted $498 million across 19 rounds, up 48.4% year-on-year.
Tokenization platforms followed with $114 million, while
decentralized application development platforms raised $77 million.

CASE STUDY | This Latest Funding Round Signals Where DeFi’s Next Growth Story May Come From

Funding remains below the region’s
$2.2 billion peak in 2022. It fell to
$386 million in 2023 before recovering to
$804 million in 2025
according to Tracxn.
The sector’s funding pipeline also shows increasing concentration. Of 3,957 blockchain companies tracked by Tracxn,
1,323 have received equity funding, but only
167 have reached Series A or later.
Just 50 have reached Series B,
14 Series C, and
4 Series D or beyond.

INSIGHTS | What This Funding Round, Led by the World’s Largest Exchange, Signals

Singapore remains the dominant funding hub accounting for 82.5% of the region’s $6.2 billion in cumulative blockchain funding and hosting 2,285 companies tracked by Tracxn. Jakarta follows with about 3% of regional funding.
The region has recorded
43 acquisitions and
4 IPOs, while producing
6 blockchain unicorns, including Sygnum, Bitkub, Sky Mavis, and Amber Group.
The figures point to a recovery in Southeast Asia’s crypto investment market but not a return to the broad-based funding boom of 2022. Instead, capital is increasingly flowing toward financial infrastructure, tokenization, and companies that have already reached scale.


CASE STUDY | This Asian Deal Signals Upcoming Market Demand at Scale for Stablecoin Infrastructure




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Hargreaves Lansdown, Britain’s largest retail investment platform, has begun offering eligible clients access to Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded notes (ETNs), marking a significant shift for a firm that previously warned investors about cryptocurrency risks.
The platform has listed 9 crypto ETNs from issuers including
BlackRock’s iShares,
WisdomTree,
21Shares,
Invesco,
CoinShares and
Bitwise,
with fees ranging from zero to 0.35%.

CRYPTO MARKETS | August Was the Strongest Month for Bitcoin ETFs in 2026 So Far
A crypto ETN can give investors Bitcoin price exposure through a traditional securities account without requiring them to manage wallets or hold Bitcoin themselves. But the structure can vary significantly by jurisdiction, including whether the product is actually backed by the underlying crypto.
In other words,
an ETF generally gives you ownership of a pool of assets;
an ETN gives you a debt claim on an issuer whose value is tied to an underlying asset or index.

The move follows Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority lifting its 4-year ban on retail access to qualifying crypto ETNs in October 2025.
Hargreaves Lansdown, which serves more than 2 million clients and oversees over $200 billion, is limiting access to investors who meet additional eligibility and risk-assessment requirements.
The reversal highlights how crypto is increasingly moving from specialist exchanges into mainstream wealth-management platforms even as traditional firms continue to classify the products as high risk.


INSTITUTIONAL | Why Wall Street is Lowering the Barrier to Entry for Crypto ETFs




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Pons, a token-launch app operating on Robinhood Chain, generated about $5.95 million in fees in 24 hours, surpassing the fees generated by the blockchain itself, as speculative trading surged.
Nearly 25,000 tokens were launched through Pons on Sept. 2 2026 while trading volume reached about $544 million, according to DefiLlama data.
Robinhood Chain itself collected roughly $4 million in fees over the same period – about one-fifth of its total fees since launching in July 2026.


The figures highlight an unexpected dynamic for a network launched with tokenized stocks and real-world assets as flagship products:
Memecoins are currently driving a significant share of its activity and revenue.

For Robinhood, the bigger opportunity may be transaction volume rather than the value of the tokens being traded. Every trade running through the chain generates activity that can translate into fees while also creating revenue for Arbitrum through its infrastructure arrangement.
The question now is whether the memecoin frenzy can evolve into sustained on-chain activity or whether Robinhood Chain’s early growth is being driven primarily by speculative trading.


CASE STUDY | Robinhood Could Become Arbitrum’s Biggest Revenue Engine




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OpenReserve, a blockchain financial institution backed by investors including
Andreessen Horowitz,
Jump Capital,
Coinbase Ventures, and
Wintermute Ventures
among others, has received preliminary approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national bank.

REGULATION | The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) Clears National Banks to Act as Intermediaries in Crypto Transactions

The Salt Lake City, Utah company plans to build banking services around blockchain infrastructure, including
on-chain settlement,
treasury management,
digital asset services,
foreign correspondent banking,
stablecoins, and
tokenized deposits
through a full-service banking-as-a-service platform.

REGULATION | Minnesota State Signs Law Permitting Banks, Credit Unions to Offer Crypto Custody Services

According to the OCC:
“The Bank plans to form a wholly-owned stablecoin subsidiary to engage in issuance, custody, conversion, and payment of U.S. dollar-denominated reserve-backed stablecoins. An application for the subsidiary has not yet been filed.”

The proposed Bank, through its subsidiary, will offer, in a nonfiduciary capacity, custody services for digital assets (e.g., hosting wallets, custodying cryptocurrencies). The OCC has previously concluded that providing custody services, including cryptocurrency custody services, is a permissible activity for a national bank as part of or incidental to the business of banking under 12 USC 24 (Seventh).
The proposed Bank will receive digital assets as fees after it deducts its fees from the trade, staking reward, or transfer amount for customer transactions.

Staking Now Generating 60% of Revenue for Ethereum Treasury Firms, Says EverStake

In addition, the Bank will also hold an amount of digital assets on its balance sheet it expects are needed to pay transaction fees for on-chain transactions (commonly referred to as “gas fees”). The OCC has confirmed that national banks may hold, as principal, amounts of digital assets on balance sheet necessary to pay network fees for which the bank anticipates a reasonably foreseeable need.
The approval is conditional and OpenReserve must meet regulatory requirements, including securing deposit insurance, before it can begin full banking operations.
The move comes as crypto firms increasingly seek direct access to the U.S. banking system, potentially moving on-chain financial services from partnerships with traditional banks into regulated banking infrastructure.


REGULATION | U.S. Banking Lobby Weighs Lawsuit Against OCC Over Crypto Trust Charters




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The investigation began with a relatively simple trail: cryptocurrency sent to a Hamas-linked donation address.
It ultimately grew into a wider investigation spanning wallets, exchanges, blockchain bridges, financial intermediaries and the online infrastructure used to solicit donations.
Between March 2025 and August 2026, U.S. authorities seized more than $560,000 in cryptocurrency linked to Hamas fundraising campaigns and disrupted parts of the group’s digital fundraising infrastructure, according to the U.S. Justice Department and blockchain analytics firm, Chainalysis.
The case provides a detailed example of how blockchain investigations can evolve over time with information from one seizure helping investigators identify previously unknown parts of a financial network.

AI | Chainalysis Adds AI Agents to its Investigations ToolKit for Conducting Sophisticated On-Chain Analysis

From One Wallet to a Wider Network
The investigation’s first major seizure, in March 2025, involved about $200,000 in stablecoins that had been donated to Hamas.
Investigators traced the funds from a donation address to an operational wallet and then followed their movement through the network.
One of the key discoveries was a recurring “gas wallet” used to pay transaction fees for numerous addresses linked by investigators to Hamas’ military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades.
That connection helped investigators move beyond individual wallet addresses and begin mapping a broader network of related cryptocurrency accounts.
The investigation continued as authorities followed the original funds through additional wallets and accounts. Investigators identified accounts believed to be connected to an over-the-counter cryptocurrency broker in Lebanon and another account showing patterns consistent with money-mule activity.

United States has Seized ~1$ Billion in Iranian Crypto Assets, Says Treasury Secretary

The Network Adapts
The investigation also demonstrated how cryptocurrency fundraising networks can change their tactics after being identified.
By late 2025, Hamas had begun using blockchain bridges to move assets between networks and had shifted toward single-use donation wallets, according to an FBI affidavit cited by Chainalysis.
The changes were designed to make the movement of funds harder to follow.
But investigators were still able to identify recurring infrastructure. Gas wallets, donation wallets, and consolidation wallets continued to appear, while funds also moved through cryptocurrency exchanges and over-the-counter services.
This gave investigators another way to connect seemingly unrelated transactions.

REGULATION | U.S. Sanctions 2 Crypto Exchanges for Facilitating Iran Transactions

From Financial Transactions to Online Infrastructure
The investigation eventually moved beyond tracking money.
In July and August 2026, U.S. authorities targeted websites, domains and servers allegedly used by Hamas to solicit cryptocurrency donations and communicate with supporters.
The FBI seized domains and servers associated with the al-Qassam Brigades’ main website, according to the Justice Department. Investigators were also able to intercept intended cryptocurrency donations and gather information about people attempting to contribute funds.
What started as an investigation into individual cryptocurrency transactions had therefore expanded into an effort to disrupt the infrastructure supporting the fundraising operation.

POLITICS | United States Seizes ~$500 Million in Crypto Linked to Iran

The Larger Lesson from the Case
The most significant feature of the investigation was not the size of the seizure, but how the investigation developed.
Earlier blockchain evidence became a starting point for subsequent investigations. Addresses that initially appeared isolated could be connected through transaction histories, shared funding infrastructure and the services used to move the assets.
Even when wallet addresses and techniques changed, the historical transaction record remained available.
That allowed investigators to return to earlier activity, identify new connections and build a progressively larger picture of the network.

The case illustrates a fundamental characteristic of public blockchains:
Transactions may be pseudonymous, but they are not invisible.

For investigators, the permanent record can turn a single cryptocurrency transfer into the first piece of a much larger financial map.


REALITY CHECK | TRM Labs vs Chainalysis – Who is Better at Blockchain Forensics?




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Polymarket has opened perpetual futures trading to the public offering international users leverage of up to 20 times on crypto, stocks, commodities and indices. The contracts have no expiry and allow traders to take long or short positions.

INTRODUCING | Polymarket Expands Beyond Prediction Markets with 20x Leveraged Perps Outside the U.S

The irony is hard to miss:
Polymarket is willing to offer 20x leverage to users globally, but U.S. traders are blocked from the same product. Its documentation explicitly bars order placement from the United States, reflecting the different regulatory treatment of leveraged derivatives.

The move puts Polymarket in direct competition with offshore derivatives exchanges such as Hyperliquid while U.S. users are directed to its separate U.S. platform. Meanwhile, rival Kalshi has already launched perpetual futures for U.S. traders under Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight.

Leading Prediction Markets Platforms Moving into Mainstream Derivatives Trading

The regulatory paradox here lies in the fact that the product is deemed too problematic to offer American traders can be marketed at 20x leverage to eligible customers elsewhere.

That gap highlights one of the central tensions in crypto derivatives:
The same leverage can be viewed as a high-risk product abroad and a regulated financial product at home, depending largely on jurisdiction.


REGULATION | France Gambling Regulator Labels Polymarket Illegal, Orders Internet Service Providers to Block Access




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ArbitrumDAO recorded $6.19 million in income in the first half of 2026, with protocol revenue margins above 97%, according to the Arbitrum Foundation.
But the bigger signal came in July 2026.
Robinhood Chain generated $360,000 in licensing fees for Arbitrum, equivalent to about 35% of the DAO’s income that month, in the first full month after Robinhood’s Arbitrum-based Layer 2 went live.
Under Arbitrum’s Expansion Program, external chains that use its technology and settle outside Arbitrum One and Nova return 10% of net protocol revenue to the Arbitrum ecosystem.
That could make Robinhood Chain an increasingly important revenue engine for Arbitrum as activity grows.
Robinhood Chain processed $1.43 billion in decentralized exchange volume over 24 hours in the latest data compared with $193 million on Arbitrum One.

The shift is significant:
Arbitrum is increasingly monetizing the chains built on its technology, rather than relying solely on transaction fees from Arbitrum One.


CASE STUDY | Robinhood Could Become Arbitrum’s Biggest Revenue Engine



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SoFi and crypto exchange, Kraken, are deepening their ties connecting traditional banking infrastructure with digital-asset markets in a deal that highlights the growing convergence between the two sectors.
Kraken parent, Payward, will join SoFi’s Exchange Network (SEN) giving its institutional clients access to 24/7 U.S. dollar settlement. Kraken will also list SoFiUSD, SoFi’s bank-issued dollar stablecoin.

#SoFi Launches the #SoFiUSD Stablecoin@SoFi Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: $SOFI), the one-stop shop for digital financial services, has announced the launch of SoFiUSD, a fully reserved U.S. dollar #stablecoin issued by SoFi Bank, N.A. #SoFiUSD will enable SoFi to serve as a… pic.twitter.com/bdaIo7NzLf
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) December 19, 2025
In return, SoFi will tap Kraken Prime for additional crypto liquidity for trades made by its customers.

“Millions of people will buy their first cryptoasset inside the app they already use for their paycheck, and the infrastructure behind that experience should connect them to deep, liquid markets built to operate at scale,” said Payward co-CEO, David Ripley.

CASE STUDY | This Asian Deal Signals Upcoming Market Demand at Scale for Stablecoin Infrastructure

The deal reflects a broader shift:
Crypto exchanges are moving into stocks, derivatives, payments and banking, while banks and fintechs are increasingly adopting crypto trading, stablecoins and blockchain settlement.

“The financial system should not shut down when markets stay open,” said SoFi CEO, Anthony Noto.

The companies said the relationship could expand into payments, treasury management, lending, and other digital-asset services.

INTRODUCING | SoFi Becomes First U.S National Bank to Offer a Stablecoin Directly to Retail Customers on a Public Blockchain



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Ghana has established a five-agency committee to coordinate oversight of the country’s growing virtual asset sector as regulators work toward fully implementing a new crypto law by 2027.
The Virtual Assets Coordinating Committee brings together
the Bank of Ghana,
Securities and Exchange Commission,
Finance Ministry,
Cyber Security Authority, and
the Financial Intelligence Centre.
Bank of Ghana Governor, Johnson Pandit Asiama, who chairs the committee, said regulators were developing operational guidelines and running policy sandboxes ahead of full implementation of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025.
The committee will focus on
regulatory coordination,
information sharing, and
risks including money laundering, terrorist financing,
cybersecurity,
consumer protection, and
financial stability.

REGULATION | Bank of Ghana Says Crypto Still Risky Even With New Regulations

Ghana’s parliament passed the virtual asset legislation in December 2025 creating a framework under which virtual asset businesses must be licensed or registered by the relevant regulator. The law divides responsibilities between the central bank and securities regulator depending on the activity.

REGULATION | Ghana Passes the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill Officially Legalizing Cryptocurrencies

The SEC began a 12-month regulatory sandbox in 2026 with participants testing services ranging from exchanges and brokerage to asset tokenization and trading platforms. The regulator said the sandbox would help shape activity-specific licensing rules.

REGULATION | Ghana Expands Crypto Regulatory Sandbox to 20 Firms

The move puts Ghana closer to a formal licensing regime for crypto businesses but the key milestone remains the publication of the operational rules and the transition from sandbox testing to full licensing.


PRESS RELEASE | Bank of Ghana Warns Against Public Advertising of Cryptocurrencies and Stablecoin Products





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