TL;DR The CFTC removed two internal guidelines, which could pave the way for clearer regulation of crypto derivatives such as perpetual contracts. Coinbase and Kraken are moving forward with strategic acquisitions to strengthen their position in the derivatives market, anticipating a possible regulatory shift. The legalization of perpetual contracts in the U.S.

Despite the recent regulatory thaw around digital assets, regulating digital assets remains a thorny problem. Here is a primer on the more common riddles currently facing developers of tokenized securities from Skadden's Daniel Michael, Michelle Gasaway and Greg Zaffino.

Crypto derivatives lost 5% of their volumes in March, while spot markets declined by 16.4%. Binance remained the leader with the biggest share of trading volumes among top crypto exchanges.

TL;DR The crypto market sees a strong rebound: Bitcoin surpasses $81,500, while Ethereum, XRP, and Solana also post solid gains. Some analysts warn of a possible “Dead Cat Bounce,” where institutions are selling while retail investors fall into the trap of buying.

Banks have always evolved to provide more effective systems to serve their customers. But while historically that evolution was relatively linear, as the financial world continues to digitize, banks are faced with a growing array of options to meet customer needs.

Altcoins have faced liquidity shocks and weak recovery signs amid Trump's tariff impact.

A plan to raise tax on cryptocurrency investments is evidently missing from the coalition agreement approved by the parties set to form the new German government. The suggested tax reform sought to remove a tax exemption for crypto investors and bump the levy on private capital gains to 30%.

Agora CEO and co-founder Nick van Eck is pretty realistic about where the space stands right now.

Opinion by: Roman Cyganov, founder and CEO of Antix In the fall of 2023, Hollywood writers took a stand against AI's encroachment on their craft. The fear: AI would churn out scripts and erode authentic storytelling.

Perpetual futures contracts, a dominant force in global cryptocurrency trading, may soon become available to U.S. investors as the regulatory landscape evolves under President Donald Trump's administration. What Happened: These high-risk instruments, central to offshore crypto activity, have long been inaccessible to US retail investors due to regulatory constraints.

On April 9, 2025, the US Senate confirmed Paul Atkins as the new Chair of the SEC with a majority 52–44 vote. This marked a new chapter for the crypto industry in the US.

The United States Senate confirmed Paul Atkins as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a 52-44 vote on April 9. The decision, supported entirely by Senate Republicans, initiates a departure from the enforcement-led regulatory approach under former Chair Gary Gensler.

The crypto industry has welcomed the confirmation of American businessman and former US Securities and Exchange Commissioner Paul Atkins as chair of the agency.Atkins' approval has taken months. He appeared before the Senate on March 27 to explain his intended approach to securities regulation in the United States, as well as his views on digital assets.

Standard Chartered and cryptocurrency exchange OKX are piloting a new program allowing institutions to use crypto assets and tokenized money market funds (MMFs) as collateral. Announced on April 10, the collateral mirroring program enables off-exchange collateral usage while enhancing security by placing custody with a globally systemically important bank, according to a joint statement from the companies.

Standard Chartered and cryptocurrency exchange OKX are piloting a new program allowing institutions to use crypto assets and tokenized money market funds (MMFs) as collateral. Announced on April 10, the collateral mirroring program enables off-exchange collateral usage while enhancing security by placing custody with a globally systemically important bank, according to a joint statement from the companies.

The SEC welcomes new leadership as its incoming chair vows to overhaul crypto regulation, signaling a powerful pivot toward innovation, clarity, and pro-growth digital asset policies. Incoming SEC Chair Set to Reshape Priorities as Crypto Takes Center Stage The U.S.

Major banks in South Korea have called for regulatory changes that would allow them to collaborate with crypto companies. Banking executives made the call in a meeting held at the Korea Federation of Banks office, where they hosted lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party's Political Affairs Committee.

As the crypto market continues to evolve at breakneck speed, bridging the gap between decentralized finance (DeFi) and traditional finance (TradFi) has become one of the industry's defining challenges—and opportunities. Sheraz Ahmed, Managing Partner at Storm Partners, has had a front-row seat to this transformation.

Cleve Mesidor, executive director of Blockchain Foundation, joins CNBC Crypto World to share her thoughts on crypto-related proposals in Congress and President Donald Trump's pro-crypto actions.

Karnika E. Yashwant, better known as Mr. KEY, has been elected into the Congress of Liberland, a microstate claiming unclaimed land between Croatia and Serbia.

A South Korean court has rejected Delio's second rehabilitation request, solidifying the bankrupt crypto lender's path toward liquidation as legal and financial challenges continue to mount. The post Korean Court Rejects Second Rehab Request for Bankrupt Crypto Lender Delio appeared first on Cryptonews.

Bitcoin Magazine Israel's New Study Shows 51% of Public is Interested in Adopting CBDC (Digital Shekel) – Is That So? Does the public really understand what the digital shekel is, and is willing to adopt it? This post Israel's New Study Shows 51% of Public is Interested in Adopting CBDC (Digital Shekel) – Is That So? first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Efrat Fenigson.

As the North American financial market gradually opened on Thursday, April 10, it was more evident that the United States investors are bullish on the wider crypto market in the long haul.

The cryptocurrency division of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has published a new article about stablecoins. It compares this asset class to messenger WhatsApp and the effect it has had on phone networks.

Crypto prices bounced back on Thursday as the mood in the financial market shifted from extreme fear to euphoria within hours.

We're thinking about stablecoin classification all wrong, Agora CEO Nick van Eck told me.

A new era for digital finance begins with the strategic alliance signed between OKX, one of the leading global cryptocurrency exchanges, and Standard Chartered, a globally systemic bank. The announcement of the launch of an innovative collateral mirroring program, carried out with the participation of leading players such as Brevan Howard and Franklin Templeton, aims to redefine the ways in which institutional clients manage capital in the context of digital activities.

As Islamic finance nears $12.5 billion, Shariah-compliant crypto projects aim to serve two billion Muslims — yet supply lags behind growing demand.

Police in Gwangju, South Korea, have uncovered an illegal gambling setup hidden behind what looked like a cryptocurrency mining office.

Chris Dixon, managing partner at venture firm a16z crypto, says blockchain-based stablecoins are transforming the global payments landscape in the same way WhatsApp upended costly international phone calls. What Happened: In a blog post published on Thursday, Dixon outlines how stablecoins are emerging as internet-native alternatives to legacy financial networks bogged down by fees, delays and multiple intermediaries.

Santiment, a company specializing in blockchain analysis, has just revealed that most altcoins are currently in a particularly favorable buying zone for investors.

MoonPay has announced the launch of MoonPay Labs, an accelerator designed to support pre-seed and seed-stage Web3 technical teams through capital, product support, and long-term growth strategies.

BPay Global has secured its first Payment Service Provider (PSP) license from the Central Bank of Bahrain.

Major South Korean banks are pushing for a change in the country's crypto policy, aiming to expand their ability to partner with multiple crypto exchanges. This proposed change, reported by local outlet MT, surfaced during an April 9 meeting organized by the Korea Federation of Banks alongside lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party.

Cryptocurrency has come a long way since its inception in 2009 with Bitcoin. From the initial skepticism surrounding its viability to today's global recognition, the crypto market is a powerhouse of innovation, promising massive growth and new opportunities.

Bybit recovers 7% of market share after a $1.4B hack by Lazarus Group, regaining investor confidence with new security measures and boosted liquidity.

From the moment it fired up the engines in January 2025, Soneium showed the entire world what happens when technological innovation meets an inclusive and cultural vision, particularly after the launch of the Mainnet. Born from the collaboration between Sony Group Corporation and Startale Group Pte. Ltd., through the laboratory Sony Block Solutions Labs, the new layer-2 on Ethereum has experienced a meteoric rise.

Crypto markets may be on course for recovery in Q2 2025 after Trump's global tariffs shackled volumes in the first quarter, Kaiko reported.

Austrian fintech unicorn Bitpanda has secured its third license under the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) framework, further expanding its regulatory footprint across the bloc.Bitpanda on April 10 announced receiving a new MiCA license from Austria's Financial Market Authority (FMA), its third after approvals from regulators in Germany and Malta. Its latest approval marks “another step toward building the most regulated crypto platform in Europe,” the exchange said in an announcement on X.

The SEC's new rules block unregulated foreign P2P crypto platforms, with violators facing up to 3 years in jail and a 300,000 baht fine.

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Paul Atkins, also known as "Crypto Paul," as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) following a 52-44 vote on April 9.

Tokenized gold trading volume surged to a two-year high this week, topping $1 billion as investors pivoted toward safe-haven assets amid global uncertainty triggered by US President Donald Trump's import tariffs.The weekly trading volume of tokenized gold surpassed the $1 billion mark for the first time since March 2023, when a US banking crisis saw the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the voluntary liquidation of Silvergate Bank. Signature Bank was also forced to close operations by New York regulators on March 12, two days after Silvergate's liquidation.

Stablecoins are reforming international money transfers, similar to how WhatsApp revolutionized international calls. A16z detailed how stablecoins are enabling free and instant cross-border payments without intermediaries and processing delays.

United Kingdom regulators are increasingly concerned about the impact of stablecoins and the broader crypto industry on the country's financial system and monetary stability.During Financial Policy Committee meetings held on April 4 and 8, regulators noted that while the current “interconnectedness of unbacked crypto asset markets with the real economy and financial sector is growing but remains relatively limited,” stablecoins and crypto markets have expanded significantly in the past year, drawing heightened regulatory attention. The UK, its central bank and its local regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, have been developing frameworks for stablecoins to ensure financial resilience.

Bitcoin price has soared back towards 82k as it bounces back from its five-month low of $74.5K. This surge comes after President Donald Trump's surprise decision to pause most tariffs for 90 days. While investors see this as a glimmer of hope, financial analyst and Whalewire founder Jacob King warns of an upcoming crash.

Binance has announced the upcoming launch of LDUSDT, a new reward-bearing margin asset designed for users of its Simple Earn USDT Flexible Products. This asset allows users to convert their subscribed USDT Flexible assets into margin assets for futures trading while simultaneously earning annual percentage rate (APR) rewards at the same prevailing rate.

Binance has launched a new reward-bearing token for margin trading, while the European Central Bank is renewing calls for a digital euro.

On Wednesday evening, the U.S. Senate confirmed Paul Atkins, President Donald Trump's pick to run the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkins is widely expected to embark on establishing a regulatory framework for crypto.