Politics, Legal & Regulation

February 23, 2026 @ 2:41 pm By JD Alois  |  

The biggest hurdle to the CLARITY Act‘s approval in the Senate appears to be the issue of stablecoin holders generating yield. The bugaboo here is legacy banks, which tend to hold deposits and pay little to no yield to their customers. As these same banks… Read More

February 23, 2026 @ 1:18 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has scheduled a Private Markets Roundtable to discuss the retailization of private markets. Currently, non-accredited investors may participate in the private securities markets largely via Reg A and Reg CF. While there are certain situations in which a non-accredited individual… Read More

February 23, 2026 @ 9:56 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has updated Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations (C&DIs) that impact Regulation A (Reg A). The update occurred last week (February 17, 2026) and is part of the SEC’s periodic process. These C&DIs serve as an interpretive resource for exempt securities… Read More

February 23, 2026 @ 9:17 am By Michael Wong  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Corporation Finance issued revised staff interpretations on Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF), offering new guidance on how issuers can switch intermediary platforms, calculate fundraising caps, and comply with filing obligations for longer-running offerings. Reg CF was part of the… Read More

February 23, 2026 @ 2:25 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In a detailed analysis released on February 21, 2026, blockchain analytics firm Elliptic has shed new light on how several cryptocurrency platforms with deep ties to Russia continue to facilitate the circumvention of Western sanctions. These services enable Russian entities to convert rubles into digital… Read More

February 22, 2026 @ 3:45 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

A San Francisco federal judge has granted a significant victory to Evolve Bank & Trust by dismissing a fraud lawsuit brought against it by fintech company Yotta Technology, at least in federal court. The ruling, issued on February 18, 2026, by Judge Trina L. Thompson… Read More

February 22, 2026 @ 1:14 am By Omar Faridi  |  

A recent development that has raised fresh concerns about integrity within Malaysia’s law enforcement. Authorities have taken 12 police officers into custody over allegations of orchestrating a brazen extortion scheme targeting Chinese nationals and their cryptocurrency holdings. The case, which unfolded in the affluent state… Read More

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