Politics, Legal & Regulation

February 21, 2026 @ 1:22 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In a recent appearance on Fox Business’s “Mornings with Maria,” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expressed relatively high confidence that landmark U.S. cryptocurrency legislation known as the CLARITY Act could clear Congress as early as April 2026. Garlinghouse placed the probability at approximately 80 percent, underscoring… Read More

February 21, 2026 @ 11:24 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has imposed a £3,779,300 fine on Bank of Ireland UK (BOIUK), the UK subsidiary of Bank of Ireland, for a significant delay in rolling out Confirmation of Payee (CoP), a key anti-fraud measure in the UK’s payment ecosystem. Confirmation of… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 1:46 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

As part of the ongoing effort focused on integrating digital assets into the traditional banking system, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is advancing rules that would expand the scope of national trust bank charters. This move, highlighted in recent regulatory updates,… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 12:58 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has hit multiple “influencers” (or finfluencers) with financial penalties due to unauthorised promotion of FOREX trading, according to a statement from the regulator. While everyone should understand that you should ignore influencers who seek to provide investing advice, especially… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 11:38 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In a revelation that underscores the fusion of artificial intelligence with geopolitics, the Pentagon reportedly employed Anthropic’s Claude AI model during its military operation to apprehend former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife last month. According to The Wall Street Journal, the action—codenamed Operation… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 10:16 am By JD Alois  |  

Yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Division of Trading and Markets, updated an FAQ on “crypto asset activities.” The SEC is working through changing rules to accommodate digital assets and the ongoing transition to tokenization and more. After four years of active subversion during… Read More

February 20, 2026 @ 8:42 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The financial services sector is experiencing a significant surge in efforts to obtain U.S. bank charters under President Donald Trump‘s administration. Industry players, particularly fintech companies and other financial firms, are moving quickly to capitalize on what many perceive as a more accommodating regulatory environment… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 11:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Peter Van Valkenburgh, Executive Director of Coin Center, highlighted a decisive shift in congressional debates over digital asset market structure. After months of negotiations on technical matters—including how to classify tokens, handle yield on stablecoins, and divide oversight between federal agencies—the discussion in the Senate… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 8:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Committee on Financial Services has updated its forthcoming hearings for the coming weeks, and several are of interest to the Fintech sector. Top of the list is a hearing entitled, “Tokenization and the Future of Securities: Modernizing Our Capital Markets.” As capital markets… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 1:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

Below is the list of members of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Innovation Advisory Committee. Most of the committee members are CEOs. As all financial services go digital, and digital assets represent the future of securities and more, the CFTC is at a key… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 12:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tokenized money, either stablecoins or central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), are on the forefront of the digital asset sector. Stablecoins were initially the go-to digital asset for crypto traders seeking to exit a holding and hold value in something safe. Today, stablecoins are growing rapidly,… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 9:38 am By JD Alois  |  

Disclosure is at the heart of the US securities regulatory regime. Providing salient information to investors is key to ensuring decisions are based on recent, accurate data. Yet, over the years, the number of rules and compliance requirements has expanded, adding high cost to the… Read More

February 19, 2026 @ 1:56 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has approved a virtual asset trading platform license for Victory Fintech Company Limited, operating under the brand VDX. This decision marks the first new addition to the SFC’s roster of licensed crypto platforms since June of the previous… Read More

February 18, 2026 @ 3:29 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Elliptic indicated in a blog post that as part of an ongoing effort to further solidify the US’s position as a global enabler of web3 and digital assets, lawmakers and the White House are working urgently to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act—widely known… Read More

February 18, 2026 @ 12:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong joined Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno on CNBC today, as both appeared at the World Liberty Forum at Mar-a-Lago. Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) is the first crypto exchange to go public and one of the largest marketplaces of its kind. Moreno, at one point, was… Read More

February 17, 2026 @ 4:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Digital assets firm Circle has formally responded to the Bank of England‘s consultation on establishing a regulatory framework for systemic sterling-denominated stablecoins. This move underscores the UK’s efforts to balance financial stability with the promotion of various payment solutions. The debate over payment stablecoins, or… Read More

February 17, 2026 @ 2:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

A battle line has been drawn between states that want to maintain control over wagering and betting and prediction markets that offer event-driven markets for a wide range of binary outcomes. Earlier today, CFTC Chairman Mike Selig threw down the gauntlet, declaring that the Commission is ready… Read More

February 17, 2026 @ 10:53 am By JD Alois  |  

A wealth confiscation tax has never been widely successful anywhere it has ever been attempted. Yet, some policymakers and pundits continue to support the concept of taxing unrealized gains and wealth thresholds. As the Laffer Curve explained decades ago, excessive taxation will have the opposite… Read More

February 17, 2026 @ 10:06 am By JD Alois  |  

The Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is supporting the fast emerging prediction markets. Following an onslaught of state-based lawsuits, CFTC Chairman Mike Selig has issued a statement defending these marketplaces and filed a friend-of-the-court brief advocating federal oversight rather than piecemeal state regulation. Chairman Selig… Read More

February 17, 2026 @ 8:04 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Digital assets platform OKX announced a regulatory milestone: it has obtained a Payment Institution (PI) license in Malta. This authorization strengthens the company’s foothold across the European Union and enables fully compliant stablecoin-based payment services just ahead of critical EU rules taking effect in March… Read More