Category: Bitcoin News

Figure Launches On-Chain Platform for Direct Stock Lending

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Figure Technology Solutions, a blockchain-focused financial technology company, is pushing stock lending on-chain with a new system that allows investors to lend shares directly to one another without relying on traditional securities intermediaries. Bloomberg reported Wednesday that the company has launched the On-Chain Public Equity Network, known as OPEN, which allows companies to issue real equity directly on Figure’s Provenance blockchain. Unlike other tokenized stock offerings, which typically mirror existing shares through synthetic instruments, the equity issued on OPEN represents actual ownership. Those shares can be lent or pledged directly…

What the GENIUS Act Was Meant to Stop—and the Stablecoin Loophole Banks See

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Key takeaways The GENIUS Act was designed to keep stablecoins as payment tools rather than savings products. As a result, it bans issuers from paying interest or yield to stablecoin holders. Community banks argue that a loophole exists because exchanges and affiliated partners can still offer rewards on stablecoin balances, even if the issuer itself does not pay yield. Smaller banks are more concerned than large banks because they rely heavily on local deposits. Any outflow of deposits could directly reduce lending to small businesses and households. Banks also note…

Bitnomial Launches US-Regulated Aptos Futures

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Chicago-based crypto exchange Bitnomial has launched monthly futures contracts tied to the Layer-1 blockchain Aptos’ native token, marking the first APT derivatives product regulated under the US oversight. The contracts will be available to institutional clients through Bitnomial’s clearing members, with retail access expected in the coming weeks via the company’s Botanical platform. According to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph, the contracts feature monthly expirations and settle in either US dollars or Aptos’ native APT (APT) token, depending on the position. Monthly futures are standardized derivatives that allow traders to…

Crossmint Wins MiCA License for EU Stablecoin Services

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Crossmint has secured a Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) authorization from Spain’s securities regulator CNMV to operate as a crypto asset service provider (CASP), positioning it as a regulated stablecoin infrastructure provider across all 27 European Union member states.  Miguel Angel Zapatero, Crossmint general counsel, told Cointelegraph that the company was held to “the exact same standards” as traditional financial institutions, marking an end to any notion that MiCA offers a lighter regime for crypto businesses.  He said that MiCA created a “level playing field” and built confidence in…

Bitcoin ETFs Rollercoaster, TradFi ETFs 2026 “Abnormally High” $46B

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Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have had a volatile start to 2026, with sharp swings in investor demand even as money pours into traditional ETFs at an unusually fast pace. US-listed spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs pulled in $753 million on Tuesday in their second consecutive day of inflows after a four-day losing streak, according to Farside Investors data. Bitcoin ETFs have raked in a total of $660 million in net inflows so far in 2026 as demand for the funds continued to fluctuate. Bitcoin ETF flows, in USD million, Source: Farside…

Bitcoin Eyes $100,000 Target as Analysis Shrugs Off Risk-Asset Bear Threats

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Bitcoin (BTC) consolidated around $95,000 toward Wednesday’s Wall Street open as analysis dismissed macroeconomic threats. While geopolitical risks and US trade policy uncertainty remain in focus, traders appeared more influenced by liquidity conditions and relative asset performance, with Bitcoin lagging gold and equities before reclaiming $95,000. Key points: Bitcoin prepares its next move after a key daily close above the 2025 yearly open. Gold and stocks at all-time highs contrast the volatility risk from geopolitical tensions and the US Supreme Court tariff ruling. BTC price action faces multiple hurdles, with…

Bankinter Takes Stake In Bit2Me Alongside Tether And BBVA

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Spanish bank Bankinter has taken a minority stake in Spanish cryptocurrency exchange Bit2Me, joining stablecoin issuer Tether and other investors as traditional banks deepen their ties to the digital asset industry. The investment, announced Wednesday, makes Bankinter the latest large financial institution to back Bit2Me following the exchange’s 30 million euros ($34.9 million) funding round announced in August. That round included Tether and Spain’s BBVA, and was aimed at supporting Bit2Me’s expansion across Spain and the wider European Union. The scope of the investments is to “achieve technological and knowledge…

Visa Partners with BVNK on Stablecoin Payout Pilots

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Visa has chosen United Kingdom‑based stablecoin infrastructure provider BVNK to power new Visa Direct pilots, allowing some business customers to pre‑fund cross‑border payouts in stablecoins and deliver digital US dollars directly to recipients’ wallets in select markets. The partnership, announced Wednesday, builds on Visa’s earlier stablecoin experiments, including onchain settlement tests with USDC on networks like Ethereum and Solana. The move follows a strategic investment in BVNK in May 2025 through its Visa Ventures arm, as card schemes race to embed tokenized dollars into their treasury and payout rails. Citi Ventures…

Backpack Exchange Launches Unified Prediction Market Beta

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Backpack, a cryptocurrency exchange founded by former employees of Alameda Research and the defunct FTX, is entering prediction markets with an ambitious plan to unify balances from different types of trading. The exchange has launched private beta testing for its new platform, called the Unified Prediction Portfolio, Backpack CEO Armani Ferrante said in a post on X on Tuesday. “This isn’t yet another wrapper over Kalshi, Polymarket, or any other prediction market platform,” Ferrante wrote, describing the forthcoming market as a “native system with everything tokenized and risk profiled, together.”…

Galaxy Warns Senate Crypto Bill Expands Treasury Surveillance Powers

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Galaxy Digital warned that a draft crypto market structure bill released by the US Senate Banking Committee would hand the Treasury Department sweeping new surveillance and enforcement tools, describing it as the biggest expansion of financial oversight authority since the US Patriot Act. In a research note published Tuesday, Galaxy said the Senate proposal goes far beyond the House-passed CLARITY Act, particularly on illicit finance provisions. At the center of Galaxy’s warning is a new crypto-specific “special measures” authority. The authority would allow the Treasury to designate foreign jurisdictions, financial…