Cryptopolitan

Uniswap and Securitize Markets have announced a strategic partnership that has overseen the integration of BlackRock’s $2.4 billion USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) on UniswapX for trading, causing UNI to surge 30% in the last 24 hours.

Decentralized crypto exchange protocol Uniswap has joined forces with tokenization platform Securitize Markets to expand tokenization of real-world assets by bringing them onchain. The deal aims to bring BlackRock’s USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) shares on UniswapX, unlocking onchain trading of BUIDL. BUIDL has $2.4 billion in net assets under management as of February 11.

UNI surges 30% as Uniswap partners with Securitize to tokenize BUIDL 

Today, we are announcing a strategic integration in collaboration with @Securitize, to make @BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) available to trade via UniswapX through Securitize pic.twitter.com/eXfnLTUkVU

— Uniswap Labs 🦄 (@Uniswap) February 11, 2026

Uniswap published a press release on February 11 highlighting that BUIDL’s integration into UniswapX will unlock new liquidity options for BUIDL holders while bridging traditional finance with the decentralized economy. 

Uniswap’s native crypto asset, UNI, is up 30% over the last 24 hours, bringing its seven-day surge to 4.26%, according to data from CoinMarketCap. The crypto asset is trading at $3.86 after spiking to $4.37 on Wednesday.

Hayden Adams, Founder and CEO of Uniswap Labs, said the partnership aligns with Uniswap’s broader vision to “make exchanging value cheaper, faster, and more accessible.” Adams added that the integration will create “efficient markets, better liquidity, and faster settlement.” The deal stipulates that Securitize Markets will facilitate trading for BUIDL investors using the Uniswap RFQ framework. 

Carlos Domingo, CEO of Securitize, said the partnership’s main objective is to merge the trust and regulatory standards of traditional finance with the speed and openness of onchain activities. The publication emphasized that trading BUIDL is now available 24/7, 365 days a year, but access is limited to whitelisted investors for now. The partnership comes less than two weeks after Securitize reported 841% revenue growth over the previous nine months, ahead of its Nasdaq public listing.

Robert Mitchnick, Global Head of Digital Assets at BlackRock, said the alliance is a significant step toward integrating tokenized assets into decentralized finance. He added that BUIDL’s integration into UniswapX represents a significant 

Tokenization is set to expand in 2026 under Ethereum’s dominance

The news comes as tokenization of real-world assets continues to expand, with firms such as São Paulo-based cryptocurrency exchange Mercado Bitcoin predicting that tokenization will explode in 2026. BlackRock recently expanded BUIDL’s reach by launching the product on Aptos, Polygon, Optimism, Binance’s BNB Chain, and the Solana network. The global asset management firm also integrated with DeFi protocols such as Euler via wrapped fund versions.  

BlackRock recognized Ethereum’s dominance in its 2026 tokenization outlook, given its extensive use in creating decentralized applications and token infrastructure. According to a previous report by Cryptopolitan, BlackRock’s strategist Jay Jacobs said Ethereum is on track to benefit significantly as tokenization continues to gain steam. BlackRock’s 2026 thematic outlook labeled Ethereum as the “toll road” of tokenization, giving the network a near-monopoly in the sector.

According to onchain data, Ethereum accounts for nearly 61% of all tokenized assets worth over $200 billion. BNB Chain accounts for only 10%, while Solana claims third place with a market share of 4.52%. Other networks have also joined the tokenization bandwagon through strategic partnerships with traditional finance entities. Ripple has been making strides to expand tokenization on the XRP Ledger.

The company recently formed a strategic partnership with the UK-based $345 billion asset management firm Aviva to pursue the tokenization of traditional fund structures. Aviva Investors will leverage the XRP Ledger to issue and manage tokenized funds for its investors.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong also said tokenization expands access to global markets by minimizing entry barriers and enabling investors to create wealth regardless of location. He highlighted that capital markets overwhelmingly benefit the rich, a challenge that tokenization could potentially solve, according to the CEO.

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Google is now letting users buy products directly inside Search and Gemini AI.No more bouncing to other sites. You type a question, get an AI answer, and click “buy.”It’s all built to pull in money right from people using AI.

You can now shop from Walmart, Wayfair, and Etsy inside Gemini. And it’s not some vague test. Google told advertisers directly in a letter sent Wednesday that this thing is rolling.

It’s part of what Google calls AI Mode inside its search engine. Advertisers and stores can now place products directly inside those AI answers. The new system even includes Direct Offers, which let brands attach discounts right inside those responses.

So if you’re asking Gemini for “cheap office chairs,” it can show you a chair, the sale price, and a “buy now” button, all inside the chat.

Google adds Direct Offers, retail checkout, and partner integration

Vidhya Srinivasan, who runs ads and commerce at Google, said they’re not just putting ads into AI results. “We aren’t just bringing ads to AI experiences in Search; we are reinventing what an ad is.”

To pull that off, Google started working earlier this year with Shopify, Walmart, and Target to create a new system for AI-powered shopping. It covers checkout, payments, and digital identity.

That means if someone asks Gemini to find them a toaster, Gemini can now not just show one but help you buy it immediately using that same interface. You never leave the app.

Srinivasan said this “is helping to lay the foundation for a future where all commercial experiences can be seamless and agentic.” That means the company wants AI to act like your personal shopper; finding, deciding, and buying for you.

Inside Gemini, this goes even deeper. A feature called Personal Intelligence rolled out last month for paid users. It watches your emails, your photos, your history, all to build a better understanding of what you like and might want to buy. This is only live right now for the AI Pro and Ultra subscribers inside Gemini.

People can choose whether or not to turn it on. It’s opt-in, not forced. But it’s made to track preferences and tailor responses. For example, if you’ve searched for baby toys in the past and allowed Personal Intelligence to read your activity, it might suggest kids’ items first when you ask about gifts.

Google also has plans to open Personal Intelligence to free users. They’re testing it now inside AI Mode Search, and there’s code inside the latest Android Gemini app that hints at something called GL Intelligence. That’ll be for Gemini Live, which is their spoken voice assistant.

Even though Personal Intelligence inside Gemini Live isn’t fully active yet, Google is clearly building toward it. The rollout hasn’t hit all users. But the company is getting ready to embed this smart profile feature into every part of its AI platform.

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OpenAI’s ChatGPT platform has sparked a viral social media sensation, with Kenyans re-feeding their personal data, including selfies, weeks after Sam Altman’s Worldcoin deleted all biometric data collected from Kenyan citizens. 

To generate a caricature, ChatGPT relies on content actively provided by the user, such as uploaded images, prompts, and descriptive information. Data Commissioner Immaculate Kassait warned Kenyan citizens that this practice shares biometric data freely, training AI models like OpenAI’s without user compensation.

Kenyans freely give their biometrics to Altman’s bot

This trend follows Kenya’s battle to delete its data from Worldcoin. Worldcoin is a crypto-backed digital identity project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. It is designed to verify that users are real humans by scanning their irises with specialised hardware in exchange for a digital ID and crypto tokens.

Worldcoin’s operations in Kenya began in 2023 with the deployment of its signature “orb” devices, spherical scanners that captured iris and facial scans from participants. In exchange, users were offered 25 free Worldcoin tokens (Ksh 8,256 at the time) at the time. This incentive drew large crowds but also deep concern from privacy advocates and regulators.

Kenya’s regulatory pushback was swift. In August 2023, the government suspended the project amid fears the data could be misused or transferred outside the country without sufficient safeguards. 

In  May last year, the High Court ruled that the company behind Worldcoin violated the Data Protection Act of 2019 by collecting sensitive personal data without proper consent and without conducting a mandatory Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA).

Last month, Cryptopolitan reported that the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) confirmed that all iris scans and other biometric identifiers gathered during Worldcoin’s 2023 enrolment exercise had been erased from the project’s systems.

However, with the new AI caricatures is obtaining the very data that was deleted. During the process of creating it, ChatGPT requests a clear selfie, good lighting, a visible face, and no heavy filters.

“I need your actual face […] once I have it, I can exaggerate the right features, sharpen the attitude, and dial the realism just right,” the bot states.

To Ms Kassait, the AI caricatures trend is part of a phenomenon called surveillance capitalism. According to Harvard, it is a new form of capitalism that converts human behaviour into data for tracking, analysis, and monetisation. 

“What you have just done is share your biometrics. In the future, somebody doing analytics can actually tell every single thing about you. You clicked, you didn’t ask what the purpose is,” she added. To that end, she encouraged users to carefully read the platform’s terms before sharing. 

OpenAI expands Ad model as financial pressures mount

The caricature trend emerges as AI companies face financial pressures. OpenAI recently introduced advertising in ChatGPT responses and launched a cheaper $8 monthly Go tier to increase revenue. 

OpenAI has approximately $13 billion in revenue and around $1.4 trillion in compute commitments. The AI company announced a string of partnerships in recent months. Among them, Nvidia said it would commit $100 billion to support OpenAI as it builds and deploys at least 10 gigawatts of Nvidia systems.

More recently, OpenAI announced a $10 billion deal with chipmaker Cerebras to deploy 750 megawatts of Cerebras’ AI chips. It also has other agreements with AMD and Broadcom.

Meanwhile, Anthropic and OpenAI are publicly clashing over their business strategies, especially the role of advertising in AI products. Anthropic paid for high-profile Super Bowl ads mocking OpenAI’s move to start showing ads in ChatGPT, using the tagline “Ads are coming to AI. But not to Claude.”

Anthropic has committed $50 billion to building data centers in the US, but it will also spend money buying computers from players like Microsoft and Google. According to Anthropic, unlike OpenAI, it’s doing more with less.

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Memecoin trading is sending a bear market signal, based on the performance of legacy memes. Despite the rise in small-scale token launches, meme tokens crashed in the past year. 

The memecoin market showed the first indications of a shift in sentiment, and may be considered a sign that crypto is in the depths of a bear market. Memes usually measure exuberance and the inflow of mainstream retail money. However, there are significant outflows from legacy memes, including the original Dogecoin (DOGE). 

Dogecoin was expected to become a mainstream asset, especially after the major boost from Elon Musk. However, after years of trading, DOGE unraveled and slid to $0.08, as its narrative strength weakened. 

Some of the legacy meme coins and tokens have been mostly abandoned from social media narratives. According to Alphractal data, FLOKI dominates 39.7% of meme trading, BONK holds 32.2%, and DOGE stands at 30%. The trading profile of those meme tokens is very different from the Solana meme complex, where small-scale tokens survive for days or even hours, with extremely low volumes as traders constantly chase new additions. 

Memecoin index erases bull market gains

The memecoin index by Market Vector erased over 74% of its value since January 2025. The index contains leading meme tokens like DOGE, SHIB, PEPE, MAGA, BONK, and the more recently added Pudgy Penguins (PENGU), a representative of the Solana ecosystem. 

The Market Vector memecoin index slid by over 74% since January 2025. | Source: Market Vector

In the past year, the index rapidly unraveled, signaling no enthusiasm for an altcoin market. Memes were widely popular during the 2021 bull market, but incurred the deepest losses during the 2023 bear market. 

Meme tokens were used to replace other altcoins, which came under scrutiny for potentially being used as unregistered securities. Memes did not make claims to intrinsic value and avoided investigation, which affected other types of tokens. 

Meme activity is also seen as an indicator of market reawakening, as well as the beginnings of a bear market. Memes usually reach their peak before altcoins and signal a shift in sentiment. Memes are also an early signal for a general market weakness and lack of positive sentiment. Fewer whales and retail investors want to lock funds for months, awaiting a meme recovery for older tokens. 

Memecoin activity shifts to Solana

The reason for the slow performance of legacy meme projects is the shift to the Solana ecosystem. 

Over 81% of meme tokens are on Solana, though most of the assets have a minimal market capitalization. Unlike long-term projects like BONK, the new waves of memes track new social media trends more closely. 

Solana took up over 81% of meme tokens, though most assets are short-lived and with low liquidity. | Source: Dune Analytics

New tokens also do not try to form communities or wait for expansion, instead relying on rapid trading and often leading to rug pulls. 

New token activity has not been affected by the bear market, as retail has switched to the trenches to avoid getting caught in a downward spiral in BTC and other larger tokens.

 

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China-linked Wingtech has lost its court fight to take back control of Nexperia, the Dutch semiconductor company caught in a long and messy power struggle.

The Amsterdam appeals court rejected Wingtech’s request and kept earlier emergency measures in place, extending a crisis that has already disrupted chip flows to parts of Europe’s car industry.

The judges confirmed that Nexperia’s Chinese chief executive, Zhang Xuezheng, will stay suspended. Control remains with EU-based directors while a formal investigation begins.

In a press release, the court said it “finds that there are valid reasons to doubt the sound policy and conduct of business at Nexperia and orders an investigation.” The decision means outside investigators will now review how Nexperia has been run.

Court upholds suspension and orders six-month probe into Nexperia

The Dutch government stepped in last September and temporarily seized control of Nexperia, which is based in Nijmegen.

Officials said Zhang’s actions created a threat to Europe’s security of supply. His shares were transferred to a trust. He kept the economic benefits but lost voting control.

On Wednesday, the Enterprise Chamber said it found “indications of negligent conduct involving a conflict of interest.”

The court said there were signs that a director, facing possible sanctions, changed the company’s strategy without consulting other board members.

It said agreements with the Ministry of Economic Affairs were not followed, the authority of European officials was reduced, and their resignations were announced. The court will appoint two investigators who will work for about six months. The investigation will also review the conduct of the Dutch management of Nexperia, which was one of Wingtech’s main requests.

Since the intervention, the European and Chinese parts of Nexperia have stopped working together. That breakdown caused chip shortages that affected the car sector.

The Hamburg plant halted shipments of silicon wafers to China for final assembly, stating it was not being paid. Customers responded by buying wafers from the European side and sending them to China themselves for assembly to bypass the internal conflict.

Lawyers trade accusations as US sanctions tighten pressure

During a January hearing, lawyers for Nexperia alleged that Zhang was transferring equipment to China and using company assets to support Wing Systems, another business he owns. They argued that Wingtech was “doing everything it can to destabilise” the company.

They also claimed it had “pressured virtually all of Nexperia’s business partners not to do business with it” and had urged the Chinese government to impose export restrictions that would harm Nexperia, referencing the Dutch economy minister’s defense statement.

Zhang denied those claims in court, saying European executives mismanaged the company. He stated that he strengthened production in China to build a resilient supply chain against geopolitical shocks.

The dispute also intersects with US trade policy. In late 2024, the United States placed Wingtech on its “entity” list.

That required US companies to obtain licenses before trading with it. In September, the US Commerce Department said the restrictions would extend to Nexperia as a subsidiary.

Court documents showed that US officials warned the Dutch government that removing Zhang was necessary to avoid the listing.

After the ruling, Nexperia said its underlying business remains healthy and resilient and that it is focused on stabilising its supply chain and meeting customer demand worldwide.

Wingtech said it regretted the decision but remained confident that a full and impartial inquiry would show its actions were appropriate.

It added that the ruling prolongs significant uncertainty for a business already under strain since October 2025 and said it had not been presented with evidence justifying what it described as extraordinary measures.

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The crypto market is a fluid environment, and the pace of change is not always loud. At times, the action is quiet as players position themselves for the next big move. While Solana (SOL) is still a dominant player, its gains cannot be compared with those of earlier-stage projects. As a result, there is a renewed interest in the best crypto to invest in, with Mutuum Finance (MUTM) currently being touted as a 1,150% growth opportunity that is pulling investors away from Solana and other big cryptos. 

Solana in Consolidation

Solana (SOL) has seen a significant downturn in the past few months, with the price currently 62% off the highs as the asset’s momentum remains subdued. As the asset stabilizes, there has been a significant outflow of 1.07 million coins from exchanges, accompanied by a further $11.9 million ETF outflow. While the asset was recently trading through the $98 to $100 range, the current level of support is the $78 level. While the asset is still recovering from the loss of the range, a breakout will require a push through the $120 level on the weekly charts. As the asset struggles, there is strong interest in Mutuum Finance as the best crypto to invest in for 2026.

MUTM V1 Protocol Rollout and Passive Income Mechanics

The recent launch of the Mutuum Finance V1 Protocol represents an important milestone, moving from the development phase to live testing. The protocol is live on the Sepolia testnet, allowing users to interact with the lending and liquidity features. This phase will help the team fine-tune the performance and security of the protocol, while also providing early supporters with hands-on experience of the protocol.

Among the key features investors will interact with are the mtTokens. These are yield-bearing assets that users receive after providing assets to liquidity pools. These tokens appreciate as the borrowers start making interest payments. For example, if a user supplies $10,000 to the liquidity pool, which earns 5.5% APY, the user will earn $550 in the first year. As the borrowing demand increases and interest soars, e.g., to 10%, the user will earn $1,000 or more, providing them with a scalable and reliable source of passive income. 

Other features that are available during the testnet include debt tokens and a liquidator bot. The testnet supports ETH, LINK, USDT, and WBTC tokens. The testnet allows users to interact with the protocol without putting their assets on the line, while still realizing the potential of the protocol before mainnet launch. 

Why Mutuum Finance (MUTM) Stands Out

Mutuum Finance (MUTM) represents a strong investment opportunity. Currently, the token is available in Phase 7 of the presale, priced at $0.04. This allows the initial supporters to gain exposure to the protocol before the exchange listing. Token market expectations suggest that the exchange listing will result in the token reaching $0.50, fueled by the presale’s continued success, the live testnet, and the multiple income streams available to the user. This means that an investor who puts $500 into the project during the current presale stage will see their investment grow 1,150% to become $6,250 shortly after the token’s debut. There are nearly 19,000 participants in the presale, having successfully raised more than $20.4 million, showing the high confidence in MUTM as the next big crypto in the market.

Multichain Expansion

The long-term strategy of Mutuum Finance also includes the deployment of the protocol in a multichain environment. This will allow the platform to increase the scope of its lending ecosystem to a wider variety of blockchains. This will encourage new users to the platform, increasing the scope of the MUTM token in the ecosystem.

For instance, an investor who invests $1,200 today receives 30,000 MUTM. If the token increases in value to $0.09 after launch, the investor’s 30,000 MUTM will be worth $2,700. When the platform extends to a multichain environment and the token increases in value to $1, boosted by a wider market reach and adoption, the same units of the token will be worth $30,000. This shows the potential of the token to increase in value and the benefits of the multichain strategy for the platform.

As the Solana price retraces, investors are looking towards new projects with better growth potential. Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is becoming the new hot token with the potential for 1,150% growth based on the live platform and mtToken passive income. The token is a great opportunity for investors to get in on the best crypto to invest in at a price of $0.04. With the platform raising over $20.5 million in funding and high adoption rates in the community, the token is becoming the next big crypto in the market, cementing itself as a must-watch next big crypto for 2026.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://mutuum.com/ 

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance 

Hong Kong’s financial watchdog has issued regulatory frameworks and guidance that will let licensed brokers lend money for cryptocurrency purchases and permit professional traders to access advanced digital asset products, marking a significant step in the city’s push to become a major crypto hub.

The Securities and Futures Commission announced the changes on Wednesday. The new regulations will permit authorized brokerage firms to provide financing for virtual assets to certain customers, while also creating a legal framework for perpetual contracts, a popular type of crypto derivative.

Margin lending is limited to Bitcoin and Ether

These changes are part of what officials call the “ASPIRe” program. The letters stand for Access, Safeguards, Products, Infrastructure, and Relationships. Regulators say the current stage aims to build a market suitable for institutional players, moving past earlier efforts that centered mainly on protecting everyday consumers.

The margin lending rules allow brokers to offer financing to securities margin customers who have solid credit histories. To manage the risks that come with cryptocurrency’s price swings, only Bitcoin and Ether can be used as collateral in the beginning.

The lending framework borrows heavily from existing rules for securities margin accounts. Brokers will need to follow specific requirements in three main areas:

Collateral Quality: Assets must be easy to sell and properly valued.

Prudent Haircuts: Large discounts must be applied to crypto collateral values to cushion against price drops.

Concentration Limits: Firms must avoid excessive exposure to individual customers or specific assets.

The regulator designed these crypto-specific requirements to fit within the current financial system’s oversight structure. Officials say the goal is to enable borrowing that serves a market purpose while avoiding threats to overall financial stability.

Professional investors gain access to perpetual contracts

The approval of a framework for leveraged perpetual contracts represents perhaps the biggest change. These financial products track asset prices continuously and never expire. Until now, they have been mostly available through offshore platforms operating without regulatory oversight.

By creating local rules for these instruments, the watchdog hopes to bring high-volume trading back home.

Only professional investors can access these products. The regulator chose what it calls a principles-based approach for the contracts. This puts responsibility on platforms to give clear information to users and run strong internal systems for managing risk, including tools that automatically close out losing positions.

To help build trading activity in this new market, the regulator will permit affiliates of licensed trading platforms to serve as market makers. To avoid problems where the platform benefits unfairly at customer expense, these units must operate independently and follow strict conflict-of-interest rules.

The strategy shows a clear preference for depth over breadth. Rather than allowing many different tokens, the focus stays on the two main assets, Bitcoin and Ether.

The decision to allow affiliated market makers stands out. In traditional finance, outside firms usually provide liquidity. In digital markets, exchanges often fill this role themselves. By formalizing this through independent units, regulators are essentially taking a common crypto industry practice and adding professional standards to ensure tighter price spreads and better price discovery occur without compromising fairness.

This shift also directly challenges overseas platforms. By legitimizing perpetual contracts, which rank among the most heavily traded crypto instruments, Hong Kong is pulling back capital that previously went to unregulated venues.

This could create a cycle where regulatory safety draws in institutional money, which in turn helps reduce the volatility that originally made regulators cautious.

The new measures arrive alongside other important developments in the region’s financial technology sector:

Stablecoin Licensing: The Monetary Authority is expected to issue its first stablecoin licenses in March, providing the settlement infrastructure needed for efficient margin operations.

Regulatory Clarity: Officials plan to submit a draft law covering crypto advisory services later in 2026.

Global Compliance: To guarantee tax reporting and international cooperation, the territory is attempting to conform to the OECD’s Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework.

Stablecoin integration, professional derivatives access, and margin lending approvals all work together to provide a comprehensive digital asset market that functions with the dependability of a conventional stock exchange.

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Cloudflare’s stock jumped 12% this week after the company beat expectations and gave a strong forecast. Traders were already watching for signs that AI demand would boost its business. The earnings call confirmed it. Every major number came in above estimates. That’s what set this whole thing off.

Revenue hit $615 million, up 34% from last year. Profit came in at 28 cents per share, higher than the 27 cents analysts had guessed. That part’s straightforward. But the reason people are piling into Cloudflare goes deeper than just those numbers.

Analysts raise targets as AI fuels Cloudflare’s growth

CEO Matthew Prince told analysts on Tuesday that a big change is happening. He said more people are building AI tools that run tasks for users. These systems rely on fast and secure networks, which is exactly what Cloudflare offers. Matt said:-

“If AI agents are the new users of the internet, Cloudflare is the platform they run on and the network they pass through. This creates a virtuous flywheel.”

The company raised its guidance too. For the first quarter, Cloudflare expects revenue between $620 million and $621 million, higher than the expected $614 million.

For the full year, the company projects between $2.79 billion and $2.80 billion, above the previous estimate of $2.74 billion.

Another reason for the spike is what happened with Moltbot. That’s an open-source AI assistant built on Anthropic’s Claude model. When it blew up last month, Cloudflare’s platform handled it.

That gave it real proof of how well it supports AI agents. The company quickly rolled out Moltworker, its own product designed to run Moltbot safely.

The interest in edge computing is also growing fast. AI needs to be run close to the user. It needs to scale up and down without delays. Cloudflare already built the tools for that. RBC Capital Markets said:-

“The continued proliferation of AI agents benefits Cloudflare and its Workers platform as AI agents require low-latency, secure inferencing that often scales up and scales down and is close to the user or ‘edge’ of the network.”

Matthew also said they ended 2025 with 4.5 million active human developers. That’s a massive group using Cloudflare to build and deploy tools.

Wall Street took notice.TD Cowen kept its Buy rating and raised its target to $265, saying Cloudflare is growing thanks to AI. The stock was at $199.04 when they made that call. But not everyone sees the same upside.

InvestingPro data shows the stock is already trading above Fair Value. Price targets range from $120 to $300.

KeyBanc held its Overweight rating with a $300 target, saying Cloudflare beat Q4 expectations by $24 million. Citizens stayed at Market Outperform and set their target at $270, citing stronger sales and Matthew’s leadership.

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Hyperliquid Strategies (PURR) has purchased an additional 5 million HYPE tokens on Wednesday at an average price of about $25.9. The firm’s purchase was worth $129.5 million.

The digital asset treasury (DAT) revealed that its latest purchase pushed its total holdings to roughly 17.6 million HYPE tokens. Hyperliquid also disclosed that it still retains about $125 million in deployable capital, excluding reserves. 

Hyperliquid purchases HYPE despite continued market volatility

Hyperliquid’s decision to retain $125 million in cash suggests that the company is managing risk and also preserving liquidity. The initiative allows the DAT to operate and pursue opportunities without being overexposed to HYPE. The firm added that the deployable capital is supported by a $1 billion Equity Line of Credit (ELOC) facility.

Hyperliquid’s purchase comes as the HYPE token has been dropping for the past few weeks. At the time of publication, the asset is trading at around $29, down nearly 2.4% in the past 24 hours. HYPE has also plummeted 12% over the past 7 days but gained more than 24.5% over the past 30 days.

“We are encouraged by our early execution since going public. We are establishing HSI as the leading public vehicle for capital-efficient HYPE exposure amid Hyperliquid’s accelerating dominance in on-chain finance.”

–David Schamis, CEO of Hyperliquid Strategies.

As of the end of 2025, Hyperliquid had established a balance sheet of 12.5 million HYPE tokens. The firm’s holdings also had $300 million in cash contributed by investors. 

Schamis also stated that the firm’s robust balance sheet, emerging staking yields, disciplined capital deployment, and capital allocation allow it to deliver long-term shareholder value despite unrealized mark-to-market losses caused by crypto volatility. He acknowledged that the firm remains highly optimistic about its trajectory, including builder codes, RWA tokenization, and sustained growth and fee generation.

Hyperliquid also reported that its perpetual decentralized exchange generated more than $800 million in annual fees last year. The firm also processed billions in daily trading volumes.

The DAT acknowledged that its builder code adoption by major platforms, including MetaMask, Phantom, Rabby, and Rainbow, helped drive its ecosystem growth. The firm noted that the builder code enabled permissionless front-end integrations and generated tens of millions in fees.

Hyperliquid also championed its expansion in RWA perps via HIP-3. The firm launched more than 100 perps for equities, commodities, FX, pre-IPO, and more last year.

Hyperliquid relaunches its website to enhance transparency 

Hyperliquid’s assets at year-end reached $616.7 million, with nearly $290 million in cash. The company also had $327.6 million in HYPE tokens based on the asset’s price of $25.48 per token at the time.

The DAT had roughly $590 million in stockholders’ equity and no debt at the end of 2025. The firm also generated $900,000 in interest income and $500,000 in staking revenue from its HYPE holdings. 

Hyperliquid reported a net loss of $317.9 million for the H2 of 2025, driven by $262.4 million in unrealized losses on HYPE tokens due to market volatility. The firm also had a one-time $35.6 million IPR&D write-off tied to the acquisition of Sonnet BioTerapeutics Holdings. 

Hyperliquid is also relaunching its website today, which will include a dedicated section tracking the firm’s Adjusted Net Asset Value. The firm stated that it will update the new section regularly to enhance transparency for its stockholders. The DAT also plans to use its website to disclose information that may be considered non-public and to comply with obligations under Regulation FD. 

On-chain data revealed that Hyperliquid hit $2.6 trillion in notional trading volume earlier in the month. The firm also surpassed Coinbase, which had $1.4 trillion in assets under management.

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Japan’s Financial Services Agency recently released a new framework policy draft that will set new mandatory cybersecurity standards for cryptocurrency exchanges. This marks a turning point from individualized, asset-focused security to defense protocols for the complete ecosystem (per exchange) as cyberattacks continue to escalate across the digital asset sector.

The policy guidelines were announced on February 10, 2026, introducing mandatory Cybersecurity Self-Assessments (CSSA) for all registered crypto exchanges operating in Japan. 

The FSA will accept public comments until March 11, giving key players like exchanges and security experts three weeks to provide feedback before the regulations are finalized for implementation in Japan’s 2026 fiscal year (beginning April 1).

Cold wallets no longer sufficient as indirect attacks increase

The FSA observed an increase in sophisticated indirect attacks in recent times. As the situation worsens, the use of cold wallets alone may not be able to guarantee safe asset management, thus signaling a shift in the evolution of Japan’s regulatory philosophy. 

While offline cold wallets protect assets from direct remote hacking, the agency acknowledged that modern threat actors have adapted to this by targeting the human and operational infrastructure supporting digital asset management.

Other analysts noted that the CSSA framework will require exchanges to systematically evaluate different aspects of their security domains, be it technical infrastructure (such as wallet security and network architecture), human and operational risks (including employee training and phishing protocols), third party vendor management, and data integrity protections, which have to be compliant with Japan’s Personal Information Protection Act.

This shift comes as a result of several high-profile breaches in 2024 that exposed these vulnerabilities. The guidelines in particular focus on attacks that bypass technological defenses by compromising employees through phishing campaigns or infiltrating service providers and contractors who maintain access to exchange systems.

Three-pillar framework demands industry-wide participation

The successful implementation of this new policy rests on three pillars that combine to create a multi-layer defense system. They include self-help, mutual help, and public help, and these pillars will address different aspects while working together to strengthen the industry’s security system.

The “self-help” pillar places primary responsibility on individual exchanges to secure their own operations. It will start in the fiscal year 2026 (April 1) and will require all registered cryptocurrency exchanges to conduct the mandatory assessments mentioned earlier.

The “mutual assistance” pillar uses collective intelligence backed by industry collaboration. The FSA will help strengthen the security committee functions of the Japan Virtual and Crypto Assets Exchange Association (JVCEA), while encouraging exchanges to actively participate in information sharing so that threats, attack patterns, and defensive strategies can be communicated better across the sector. 

As such, if one exchange identifies a new social engineering strategy or another vulnerability, that intelligence will become available to protect other operators before they experience something similar.

Finally, the “public help” pillar will see the FSA continuing the international joint blockchain research on emerging threats that it began in the fiscal year 2025, as well as involving the entire crypto exchange sector in the “Delta Wall,” a joint cybersecurity exercise for financial organizations, within three years of the policy’s adoption. 

What’s next for exchanges operating in Japan?

During the 2026 fiscal year, the FSA plans to conduct real penetration tests on specific operators and may hire ethical hackers to attempt intrusions into live exchange systems. 

These authorized attacks will identify vulnerabilities before malicious hackers can exploit them, with findings shared confidentially to help affected exchanges patch any weaknesses. This will help provide an objective measure of monitoring that may have been overlooked during self-assessments.

The three-pillar structure creates accountability at every level, with exchanges bearing primary responsibility for their own security (self-help), the industry sharing collective intelligence and raising standards (mutual help), and governmental oversight, testing and support (public help). 

The FSA believes this will herald a stronger, more adaptive ecosystem capable of defending itself against current threats and future ones.

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French artificial intelligence firm Mistral has unveiled a €1.2 billion investment in AI infrastructure in Sweden, marking one of the continent’s most ambitious moves yet to secure AI data centres, compute capacity, and digital sovereignty.

The investment comes as European governments and technology firms race to reduce dependence on US-based cloud and AI providers, against a backdrop of growing geopolitical and technological rivalry.

Building AI infrastructure to secure sovereignty

Mistral stated that the money would be used to build large-scale AI data centers, advanced computational power, and AI capabilities hosted locally in Europe. Arthur Mensch, the company’s CEO, referred to this investment as a strategic rather than symbolic move.

“This is a concrete first step towards creating independent capabilities in Europe around AI,” stated Mensch.

“With a complete vertical offering that has processed and stored data locally, we contribute to European strategic autonomy as well as competitiveness.”

– Mensch

He added that the planned project will “provide infrastructure for a European AI cloud that can serve industries, public agencies, and research organisations at a massive scale.”

Recently, Lenovo said it is aiming to partner with Mistral AI and other providers rather than build its own large language models (LLMs) as part of its plan to repeat its 2025 success this year.

Through partnerships with leading AI companies, Lenovo is saving itself from having to navigate complex global regulations while still providing regions with the needed AI solutions.

Lenovo ended 2025 as a leader in the PC industry, shipping 71 million units. However, increased memory and storage prices could pose a challenge in 2026.

Why Mistral is choosing Sweden to scale compute power

Mistral, a France-based AI company, has chosen to build one of its new, large-scale data centers in Sweden because of its inexpensive energy supply, cooler climate, and reliable digital infrastructure, all important considerations when deploying energy-intensive AI systems.

Mistral will work with EcoDataCenter, a Swedish company, to build these centers.

This new data center is set to open in 2027 and will provide Mistral with a location to train and operate its next generation of AI models. The Swedish data center will be Mistral’s first investment in infrastructure outside of France.

Nordic countries are becoming increasingly popular for companies seeking to build AI infrastructure. In July of this year, OpenAI announced it would build a data center in Norway as part of its Stargate initiative.

Mistral, established in 2023, initially developed large language models. It subsequently branched out into infrastructure when it introduced Mistral Compute in June, which provides GPUs as well as API-driven and fully-managed products from a platform-as-a-service perspective.

The company secured €1.7 billion in September at an estimated valuation of €11.7 billion, receiving investments from Nvidia, Microsoft, and ASML, among others.

Even with additional funding totalling approximately $2.9 billion raised by Mistral, the company is significantly smaller than its many competitors in the US. OpenAI plans to raise up to $100 billion for future initiatives, while Anthropic intends to raise $10 billion.

As Director of Innovation at Mistral, Mensch emphasises that the response from Europe requires “scale and speed,” adding, “this is about building the capability of Europe to control its own technology future.”

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Solana (SOL) has been at the center of some of the strongest growth within the cryptocurrency market over recent periods. However, with momentum on this asset now appearing to slow, there is a sense that investors are looking to understand where the next big wave of growth is likely to be. Mutuum Finance (MUTM) is being viewed as the next big crypto, given the decentralized finance approach, value accrual, and overall utility within the cryptocurrency market. With these factors now in place, MUTM is being viewed as the crypto to buy now.

Solana (SOL) Cooling Phase, Momentum on Pause

Solana (SOL) is currently in a cooling phase, with price action trending lower on the 4-hour chart. The fact that there has been some movement on this asset, from the recent low at $67.5, suggests that there is some corrective action in place. However, it also demonstrates that selling pressure on this asset is not easing, at least not at present. With momentum on this asset on pause, Mutuum Finance offers a high upside.

Earn Interest While Unlocking Capital

One of the main features of the platform is the use of mtTokens. These are interest-generating tokens that are created after a user has deposited their assets into a P2C Lending Pool. The tokens have the ability to grow in value based on the interest that the underlying assets are able to generate. If a user were to deposit $10,000 worth of USDC into a pool that earns a 10% APY, the user would receive 10,000 mtUSDC. Over the course of a year, the user’s tokens would grow to 11,000 mtUSDC, which equates to a $1,000 gain. In addition to the user’s ability to generate interest, the tokens also have the ability to be transferred and used to borrow or stake other assets within the DeFi market. These features make MUTM a strong crypto to buy now for investors seeking utility and growth.

Mutuum Finance: High Growth Potential of the Early-Stage DeFi Project

For the investor looking to capitalize on high-growth potential, the investment opportunity presented by Mutuum Finance (MUTM) has strong potential. With the token priced at $0.04 in Phase 7 of presale, the price will rise to $0.045 in Phase 8. From a price of $0.01 in Phase 1, the earliest backers have already gained a 300% return on their investment. 

For the investor looking to get in today, strong upside remains before MUTM enters the open market at $0.06. Take the example of an investor who puts a small $500 into the presale today. This position will grow by $250 by the time of launch, amounting to $750. Mutuum Finance has already shown a lot of promise, with the presale attracting over 18,980 investors who have collectively raised over $20 million. This demonstrates that the market sees MUTM as the next big crypto and a must-consider crypto to buy now.

Multichain Deployment: Expanding Revenue and Rewards

Mutuum Finance plans a multichain strategy to improve the tokenomics of the protocol. The protocol is designed to operate on more than one blockchain network, which enables it to earn revenue from different blockchain networks. If the protocol earns $350,000 in fees on the Ethereum network over a given period, and expands to two more networks that bring in $175,000 in fees each, the total amount of fees reaches $750,000. The protocol could then commit 30% of this to its buy-back and redistribution mechanism. This initiative buys back MUTM tokens from the market and gives them to stakers as staking dividends. As such, $225,000 would be directed to these stakeholders, on top of their lending yields. This creates a cycle of value for users while increasing the utility for the MUTM token.

As Solana’s popularity fades, investors are turning their attention to other promising projects in the crypto market, such as Mutuum Finance (MUTM). This is because MUTM is the next big crypto with its active DeFi lending protocol, interest-earning mtTokens, and its multichain strategy. Currently priced at just $0.04 in its presale, which is already 300% above its presale opening price, and backed by more than $20 million in funding, MUTM is the crypto to buy now as the next crypto boom approaches.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://mutuum.com/ 

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance 

Decentralized exchange Uniswap has won a significant procedural victory in the early stages of claims brought by entities affiliated with rival project Bancor. The ruling, issued by a federal judge in New York, could shape future disputes over software patents.

The lawsuit, filed in May 2025 by Bprotocol Foundation and LocalCoin Ltd., alleged that Uniswap’s decentralized exchange used patented mechanisms, specifically the constant product automated market maker (CPAMM) model, without authorization. Bancor argues that its model was covered by its patent and sought damages for infringement.

Following this announcement, sources cited a written opinion made public on Tuesday, February 10, which noted that John Koeltl, a Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, approved the defendant’s motion to drop the case earlier raised by Bprotocol Foundation and LocalCoin Ltd. against Universal Navigation Inc. and the Uniswap Foundation.

According to the judge’s memorandum opinion, the patents at issue “claim abstract ideas” and thus do not qualify for patent protection under US law. Necessary elements, such as an “inventive concept” that would elevate them into patentable subject matter, were not present, the court found.

Uniswap wins the first round in court against the Bancor patent lawsuit

In Uniswap’s case, reports noted that the court found the patents merely cover the abstract idea of cryptocurrency exchange rate calculations. Their finding implied that these patents failed to meet the US Supreme Court’s two-step framework for patent eligibility.

While this ruling represents a legal victory for Uniswap, it is worth noting that this decision remains subject to further appeal. In the meantime, reports mentioned that the case was dismissed without prejudice, giving the plaintiffs 21 days to file a revised complaint. Upon expiration of this period, the dismissal will be considered final. 

On the other hand, Hayden Adams, the CEO of Uniswap, shared a brief post on X just after the court’s ruling, stating, “A lawyer just told me we won.” Given that a final judgment has not yet been issued, reporters reached out to Bprotocol Foundation and Uniswap for comments on the matter. However, they declined to respond to the request.

Even so, sources cited an earlier statement in which Bancor alleged that Uniswap had breached patents related to a constant-product automated market maker system used in decentralized exchanges. The argument centered on whether Uniswap’s protocol improperly used patented technology to automate token pricing and manage liquidity pools.

Still, Koeltl maintained his argument that “the patents dealt with the abstract idea of calculating currency exchange rates to carry out transactions.” He further elaborated that, “currency exchange is a basic economic practice. Figuring out pricing information is considered abstract based on established Federal Circuit rules.”

Judge Koeltl warns against applying an abstract idea to blockchain technology

Koeltl rejected the argument that implementing a pricing formula on blockchain technology makes the patents eligible for protection. According to him, the patents use established blockchain and smart contract technology to address economic issues predictably.

To further elaborate on his argument, the New York federal judge noted that simply applying an abstract idea in a certain technical setting is ineligible for a patent. 

Moreover, the court ruled that the abstract idea lacked a sufficient inventive concept to render the abstract idea patent-eligible. Besides patent eligibility concerns, the court determined that the updated complaint failed to adequately allege direct infringement.

Meanwhile, the memorandum highlighted that the plaintiffs failed to show how Uniswap’s public code included the reserve ratio constant specified in the patents.

Reports noted that the judge also found no merit in the claims of induced or willful infringement, concluding that the complaint failed to convincingly demonstrate that the defendants were aware of the patents prior to the lawsuit.

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Ripple has announced a partnership with Aviva Investors to tokenize fund structures on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). The partnership positions Ripple’s XRPL to benefit from institutional capital as Ripple expands its ties with the $345 billion asset management firm.  

U.S.-based technology firm Ripple and global asset management firm Aviva Investors have entered into a partnership to tokenize fund structures. The two entities aim to collaborate throughout 2026 and beyond to develop tokenization solutions for traditional fund structures. As of 2025, Aviva Investors has $345 billion in net assets under management.

Aviva Investors and Ripple partner to pursue tokenization solutions

In a press release dated February 11, Ripple announced that it will support Aviva Investors in the initiative as part of the FinTech company’s broader vision to bring traditional financial assets with real utility to its native, decentralized, open-source blockchain, the XRP Ledger.

The publication detailed that the partnership is the first of its kind for both Ripple and Aviva Investors. The aim of the partnership deal aligns with Aviva investors who seek to integrate tokenized solutions into their existing product offering. 

Aviva Investors will leverage the XRP Ledger to issue and manage tokenized funds, according to the announcement. The asset management firm seeks to leverage XRPL’s fast, secure, and low-cost blockchain transactions to power tokenization. The announcement also highlighted the lack of mining activity on the XRP Ledger and described it as advantageous for settling transactions, thereby supporting energy efficiency.

The announcement also noted that the XRPL network offers compliance capabilities that will pave the way for institutional operations under a regulated environment. Jill Barber, Chief Distribution Officer at Aviva Investors, said that the firm believes tokenization has many benefits in the world of investing, “including improvements in terms of both time and cost efficiency.” 

The official highlighted Aviva Investors’ strong commitment to innovation and to adopting technological advancements that benefit the company’s operations. He added that tokenization will be hugely beneficial to the asset management firm’s clientele.

Nigel Khakoo, Vice President, Trading and Markets, at Ripple, said that tokenization is undergoing a transformation from experimentation to large-scale production.

He added that “Institutions like Aviva Investors are now focused on how to deploy regulated financial assets at scale.” According to the official, tokenised fund structures will deliver significant technological efficiencies to the investment sector over the next decade.

Ripple backs Auction house Billiton Diamond and the Ctrl Alt deal

Ripple’s footprints in the tokenization world can also be traced in the UAE. Auction house Billiton Diamond and UK-based tokenization service provider Ctrl Alt announced a partnership to tokenize about $280 million in diamonds. The assets are backed by approved inventory partners working with Billiton and are held in the United Arab Emirates. 

Ripple’s Senior Executive Officer, Reece Merrick, announced on X that Ripple will support the partnership by providing the infrastructure needed to transfer physical commodities onchain.

According to an official statement by the two partnering entities, Ctrl Alt will be responsible for the tokenization process, including onchain asset minting. He also added that the initiative represents Ripple technology’s capabilities to bridge the gap between the digital economy and physical assets.

The partnership also comes at a time when tokenized assets have been named the fastest-growing frontier in the crypto industry following a wide-scale institutional influx. A previous Cryptopolitan report noted that tokenized assets now rank among the rapidly evolving sectors that have gained institutional attention in recent times.

                          The report noted that large corporations such as BlackRock and JPMorgan have rolled out blockchain-based versions of traditional investment products and payment systems.

The value of real-world assets on the blockchain network surged by 232% year over year in 2025. The year saw several entities transition from small pilots to tokenizing financial assets, including Treasuries, corporate bonds, private credit, and commodities. The report cited stablecoin’s growth in the sector, represented by a sudden increase in market capitalization from $216 billion to $306.4 billion.

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Ault Capital Group launched the public testnet of the Ault Blockchain, inviting engagement and feedback from contributors. 

The project does not currently have plans for a public token sale; the AULT token will be distributed through a protocol-controlled emissions schedule.

The initial protocol security audit precedes further validator onboarding, ecosystem testing and mainnet launch. 

Ault Capital Group announced today that it will launch the public testnet of its Layer 1 network Ault Blockchain, which it is pushing as an institutional-grade onchain infrastructure for trading and settlements. 

The mainnet launch adds to the buzz around its token rollout model, which differs from the standard route where projects hold public token sales. Instead, the AULT token will be distributed exclusively through a protocol-controlled emissions schedule.

Ault Blockchain pushes out testnet 

The testnet launch is the first time the public will be able to test core network functionality, validator performance, and infrastructure design in an environment that simulates live conditions.

Project documentation shows that Ault will be looking out for community engagement and feedback. 

While much of the testnet rollout is according to industry standard, the launch model is different from typical models as the Ault Blockchain will not conduct a public token sale. Instead, it will distribute the AULT token exclusively through a protocol-controlled emissions schedule. 

After the launch, the core team plans to shift its focus to the roadmap, with milestones such as spot trading on decentralized exchanges, lending services, perps trading, and other advanced workloads on the radar. 

Ault Blockchain’s testnet launch comes after the completion of an initial protocol security audit and precedes further validator onboarding and ecosystem testing. Ault Blockchain’s mainnet launch is expected to be on ice until additional testing milestones are met. 

At genesis, the chain will launch with its core protocol modules, EVM compatibility, an initial validator set, and onchain governance in place, ready to stake a claim at the evolving institutional finance sector.

What is the Ault Blockchain? 

The Ault Blockchain is being developed by Ault Capital Group, a subsidiary of Hyperscale Data, Inc., and has been in the development phase since around the middle of 2025. 

The network is a finance-first, institutional-grade Layer-1 blockchain designed to support trading, settlement, and data-driven workloads. It operates on the Cosmos SDK with full Ethereum Virtual Machine compatibility, and enables unmodified Ethereum smart contracts while providing fast finality and native cross-chain interoperability. 

With real-world financial and analytics applications expected to launch from day one, Ault Blockchain is tipped to be optimized for next-generation onchain finance.

Milton “Todd” Ault III, founder and executive chairman of Ault Capital Group, is proud of what they have built. “Ault Blockchain was built the opposite way most networks are built.

The network is governed onchain by Ault DAO, a decentralized governance body created by and overseen by Ault DAO, LLC, a Wyoming DAO LLC.  The DAO manages protocol parameters, validator participation, and network upgrades based on the network’s long-term objectives.

Danske Bank has announced the launch of Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded product (ETP) investment services for its online and mobile banking customers. This move has put an end to an eight-year “ban” on crypto-related services.

“The ETPs give exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum in an easy and simple manner without investors having to have a digital wallet to store the cryptocurrencies, thus avoiding the inconvenience and risks that may entail,” the bank shared in the release. 

Kerstin Lysholm, Head of Investment Products and Services at the bank, stated that this move is a response to growing customer demand. She noted that the crypto market has become “better regulated” in the past few years, especially with the implementation of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). 

“As cryptocurrencies have become a more common asset class, we are receiving an increasing number of enquiries from customers wanting the option of investing in cryptocurrencies as part of their investment portfolio,” she said.

Danske Bank says it does not recommend crypto as an asset class

Danske Bank had previously taken an unaccommodating stance towards crypto. In 2018, the financial institution refused to offer or support any kind of crypto trading through its platforms. 

In that year’s report, the bank noted that, “Overall, we are negative towards cryptocurrencies and we strongly recommend that our customers avoid investing in cryptocurrencies.”  It later renewed its internal ban on crypto in 2021.

Despite the launch of the ETPs, Danske Bank continues to emphasize that it does not recommend cryptocurrencies as an asset class. It classifies them as “speculative investments” rather than long-term investment options. Therefore, the bank declared that it doesn’t offer advisory services for cryptocurrencies.

Lysholm also noted that Danske offers products only to customers who have passed an “appropriateness test,” which ensures that they understand attendant risks. 

In its investments, the bank has exposed itself to crypto firms. Danske Bank disclosed that it has increased its holdings by 13,840 shares of Strategy (MSTR) stock. Currently, Danske Bank holds 132,746 shares of MicroStrategy stock, with a portfolio value of $17.6 million. 

According to data from Triple-A, there were 70,605 crypto owners in Denmark as of 2024, representing approximately 1.2% of the total population. Chainalysis’ Geography of Crypto 2025 report ranked Denmark 84th out of 151 countries for crypto adoption, measured by on-chain value received by centralized and decentralized platforms.

Denmark to tax unrealized crypto Gains in 2026

At present, Denmark’s tax regime for crypto traders is relatively unattractive. Crypto profits are added to an individual’s total income and then taxed at the marginal rate.

Two years ago, the Danish Tax Law Council released a comprehensive report recommending a shift toward “inventory taxation” or mark-to-market rules for crypto assets. This would treat cryptocurrencies similarly to stocks and bonds while imposing an annual tax of up to 42% on gains realized or unrealized on the total portfolio value. 

The Danish regulators aimed to close perceived loopholes in current rules that tax only realized gains from sales, trades, or disposals as personal income. The changes were supposed to be enacted in 2026, applying broadly to holdings dating back to Bitcoin’s early days.

As of February 2026, the proposal has not yet been passed into law. Sources from the Danish Tax Agency and the Ministry of Taxation confirmed that the 2024 recommendations have yet to be fully debated. 

Meanwhile, critics highlight risks like liquidity challenges. If these implications are taken into account, investors are likely to sell assets to cover taxes on paper profits and potential capital flight. The government has signaled intent to introduce related legislation, but no final bill has materialized, leaving Denmark’s crypto tax regime focused on realized events for now. 

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The operations of Polish crypto trading platforms and service providers will not be legal next summer, according to Poland’s main financial authority.

The watchdog, which expects to be empowered with oversight in this space, is raising the alarm over the lack of the necessary legislation.

Industry watchers say the regulatory body is trying the increase pressure on the Polish president, who vetoed it once, to let it pass this time.

Poland may lose domestic crypto platforms on July 1, KNF claims

Poland’s Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) has issued a statement pointing out that Polish crypto companies will not be able to operate legally after July 1, 2026.

The warning comes amid political battles over the fate of legislation designed to regulate the country’s market for digital assets, arguably the largest in Eastern Europe, in accordance with the latest EU rules.

A controversial bill, proposed by the government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, was vetoed late last year by the newly elected President Karol Nawrocki.

Since then, the draft law was passed again by the two houses of parliament in Warsaw, the Sejm and the Senate, with insignificant changes, and the head of state is likely to stop it for a second time.

Meanwhile, the KNF is beginning to pressure Nawrocki, insisting that without the law, the activities of domestic crypto firms will become illegal, the Bitcoin.pl portal and Business Insider Poland reported.

The agency highlighted that each EU member state is required to designate a competent national authority that will be responsible for the supervisory duties described in the Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework.

Noting that the relevant Polish law hasn’t entered into force yet, in a press release on Tuesday, the regulator emphasized that no public body has been tasked yet with overseeing entities involved in the trading of cryptocurrencies, issuers of asset-backed tokens, and crypto service providers.

According to the KNF, domestic platforms will no longer be able to legally provide crypto-related services after July 1, 2026, until they obtain proper authorization under MiCA. And as the deadline cannot be extended, the only option will be to establish their operations abroad.

KNF stirs another controversy over crypto regulation in Poland

What the financial watchdog seems to be suggesting is that Polish crypto firms find another European jurisdiction to relocate, if Nawrocki rejects the adoption of Tusk’s law again.

“Of course, they have an alternative: they can register in another EU country, obtain a license there, and then continue operating in Poland without any worries,” Bitcoin.pl remarked.

While, in reality, little will change for the companies that choose to do so, the implications for the nation’s budget will be far greater as they will stop paying taxes in Poland, the article added.

In fact, what may force Polish platforms to leave is the legislation itself. Representatives of the industry have long warned it may kill local crypto business, as a result of rules and charges that go far beyond the requirements of MiCA.

In his motives for the veto, the president listed his own concerns, including that the crypto bill threatens the freedoms of Poles, their property, and even the stability of the state. The Tusk cabinet countered with a probe and accusations of attending to Russian interests.

The only meaningful change in the latest version of the Crypto-Asset Market Act over the vetoed one is the reduction of a “supervisory fee” payable to the KNF, from 0.4% to 0.1% of the revenue of platforms such as token issuers.

In January, the European Commission issued warnings to a dozen member states, including Poland, for failing to fully implement the EU’s crypto tax reporting rules, while flagging Hungary for potential non-compliance with MiCA.

Meanwhile, other nations, such as the Baltic states, for example, are already competing to become leading MiCA gateways on the Old Continent.

These include Estonia, where Polish crypto exchange Zondacrypto already opened an office and is applying for a license, and Latvia, which is luring Polish crypto firms as well, as reported by Cryptopolitan.

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Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, announced its partnership with Franklin Templeton, a leading global investment management firm.

This collaboration has led to the establishment of a new institutional off-exchange collateral initiative, which seeks to improve security and streamline efficiency in digital markets.

The announcement comes as Bitcoin hovers around $67,000. One analyst suggested that the cryptocurrency is hitting a low point after a recent devaluation. Currently, Bitcoin is trading at $66,888.58, down 3.31% over the past 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Ethereum has also shown a similar trend, trading at $1,947.95 after a 3.65% decline over the past 24 hours. Analysts have attributed this trend to the wider market declines, with Bitcoin setting the pace.

Analysts view Binance and Franklin Templeton’s partnership as a game-changer 

Regarding the new service launched under the partnership between Binance and Franklin Templeton, sources noted that it is a game-changer for the ecosystem, as it allows qualified clients to effectively use shares from Franklin Templeton’s Benji Technology Platform on Binance as off-exchange collateral.

These sources also disclosed that these transactions will take place using Ceffu, the exclusive institutional custody partner of the Binance exchange. Moreover, reports confirmed that this initiative solves a long-standing issue for institutional traders by allowing them to use traditional, regulated money market fund assets that generate yield without requiring exchange custody, citing a press release. 

Meanwhile, it is worth noting that Benji’s issued share value is visible on Binance’s trading platform. At the same time, tokenized assets are held in secure, regulated, off-exchange custody.

In a statement, both companies assured that this setup mitigates counterparty risk, enabling institutional investors to generate returns and streamline trading operations free from custodial, liquidity, or regulatory constraints.

Following this assertion, Catherine Chen, Head of VIP & Institutional at Binance, weighed in on the matter. She noted that, “Working with Franklin Templeton to provide tokenized real-world assets for off-exchange collateral settlement is a natural progression in our goal to connect digital assets with traditional finance.”

Franklin Templeton solidifies its position as a leader in the ecosystem 

While institutional investors express excitement about the news that institutions can now use Benji-issued tokenized money market funds as off-exchange collateral, it is worth noting that, towards the end of last year, the Canton Network publicly announced that the Benji Technology platform was now operational on its network.

This development strengthened the asset manager’s footprint in regulated digital markets. It also facilitated enhanced access to tokenized investment products for institutional investors.

The move linked Franklin Templeton’s blockchain setup to Canton’s Global Collateral Network, a system that bridges traditional finance with on-chain markets.

In an email announcement, the company alleged that this integration provides institutions and market makers with a new, compliant, and private source of liquidity and collateral.

“Our main goal is to connect with institutions based on their current situation and, just as importantly, their future direction,” said Roger Bayston, who leads digital assets at Franklin Templeton. He added, “Working with the Canton Network allows clients to enjoy both interoperability and privacy while still ensuring transparency and security.” 

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A February 2026 report on the staffing cuts happening at the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chicago enforcement office has led to the affected lawyers suggesting that criminals now have free rein, as there are “no cops on the beat.” 

In the past, the Chicago division was seen as the agency’s peak or flagship enforcement unit, known for handling complex cases that included many major crypto fraud actions and civil suits against the recently emboldened Sam Bankman-Fried. 

The Chicago division has been gutted

As of February 11, 2026, the CFTC’s Chicago enforcement office, which once had about 20 enforcement lawyers, has none. According to reports, some were laid off and some retired, and there were also alleged reductions in force, which some former staff described as targeted or retaliatory. 

There were also those who left. It went on like this over time until the numbers dwindled to a lone lawyer holding down the fort. However, that last lawyer has also resigned as of February 11, leaving the unit with only supportive staff at most. 

This occurred amid broader CFTC staff reductions triggered by leadership shifts. Reports also claim there has been over 20% reduction agency-wide recently. 

Exiting lawyer drops ominous open season for fraud warning 

The staff reductions at the CFTC have been deliberate, and now that Chicago, described as the “spiritual home of the futures markets,” has taken such damage, former staff believe trouble could be brewing. 

“To wipe out the enforcement staff in a place like Chicago sends a very bad signal to market participants about whether the government is watching what they’re doing and whether or not they have to abide by the law,” one said. 

Another ousted lawyer reportedly said to Nick Devor, a gambling & prediction markets reporter for Barron: “If I was a different person, I would launch a crypto scam right now, because there’s no cops on the beat.”

This directly condemns the state of things at the Chicago unit. There is now an enforcement vacuum in a unit that has played critical roles in past major crypto settlements, even as the CFTC’s responsibilities potentially grow under the ever-evolving US policy. 

The fact that enforcement output and cases have dropped or been resolved by the Trump SEC and CFTC already caused some people to worry that crimes have gone up. 

However, now that the gutting of the CFTC’s Chicago enforcement unit has come to light, even if they had not, the ousted lawyers think bad actors will understand the opportunity this presents, and crime will become even more rampant. 

What this means for sectors overseen by the CFTC in Chicago 

As of February 2026, the CFTC oversees several sectors, including futures contracts and options, swaps, commodity derivatives, digital assets classified as commodities and prediction markets. 

The current state of the CFTC may be good for innovation, as people feel more confident to experiment. However, reduced enforcement muscle potentially creates blind spots for detecting fraud or market abuse in growing sectors like crypto and prediction markets. 

It is no secret that the CFTC’s responsibilities could grow even more after the dust settles on US policy, but if it is understaffed, it becomes possible that bad actors could have free run. That is why the ousted staff of the Chicago Unit foresee crime going up. 

It has also not gone over many heads that this staffing crisis the CFTC is facing is happening at a time when “prediction markets are threatening to turn the entire world into a casino.” 

Less enforcement muscle means the CFTC has less oversight concerning what is happening in the prediction markets sector, at a time when regulations meant to protect and curb excesses are in the process of being formulated.

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