Latest Crypto News | Bitcoin, Ethereum and Altcoin Updates

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has launched a public consultation on accepting stablecoins as tokenized collateral in regulated derivatives markets. Acting Chair Caroline Pham invites industry feedback until October 20 to shape non-cash margin guidance under its “Crypto Sprint” initiative. The proposal aligns with the SEC’s Project Crypto and recommendations from the President’s Working Group on Digital Assets. Major crypto firms such as Circle, Tether, Ripple, Coinbase, and Crypto.com support the plan, citing lower transaction costs, improved liquidity, and clearer valuation and custody rules for stablecoin collateral. Record inflows have pushed stablecoin market capitalization to $294 billion, led by Tether’s USDT ($173 billion) and Circle’s USDC ($73 billion). Bitcoin (BTC) trades near $112,800, down over 3% in the past week amid broader market swings. The CFTC says that using stablecoins for derivatives margin could modernize margin management and boost capital efficiency. Traders should watch for guidance changes that may streamline market access for licensed issuers and enhance institutional confidence in stablecoin use.

Cloudflare has launched Net Dollar, a USD-pegged stablecoin designed for AI agents and machine-to-machine payments. Backed 1:1 by U.S. dollar reserves in regulated accounts, Net Dollar goes live on Ethereum via Chainlink oracles and integrates with smart-contract platforms. Developers can embed real-time microtransactions for AI services, data feeds and dApps using Cloudflare Workers. The stablecoin supports seamless on-chain swaps with USDC and USDT and plans multi-chain expansion to Arbitrum and Optimism by Q4. Monthly reserve audits, low-latency transfers and programmable payments aim to bridge traditional finance and DeFi. Traders should watch Net Dollar adoption, liquidity pool growth and its competition with leading stablecoins for potential arbitrage and volume opportunities.

Kraken has closed a $500 million funding round at a $15 billion valuation, marking a strategic shift under co-CEO Arjun Sethi’s leadership as the cryptocurrency exchange positions itself for a potential IPO in 2026. The Series round—led by investment managers, venture capital firms and Tribe Capital—follows smaller past raises and coincides with enhanced financial disclosures, though Kraken has yet to file an SEC S-1. In Q2, Kraken reported $411 million in revenue and $80 million in post-EBITDA earnings. The platform processed around $1.9 billion in trading volume over 24 hours, ranking it among the top 15 global exchanges. Leadership changes have included the departure of the CTO and COO, while acquisitions such as the $1.5 billion NinjaTrader deal aim to broaden services. Amid rising IPO speculation—first reported by Fortune and later confirmed by insiders—the funding underscores Kraken’s push to join peers like Gemini and Circle, both of which went public in 2023. Supportive regulatory moves, including the GENIUS stablecoin bill and market-structure reforms, add to favourable conditions. Traders will watch if Kraken’s new capital sparks more crypto IPO filings and enhances market liquidity.

Crypto wealth has surged 45% year-on-year to $3.3 trillion, driven by a 40% rise in millionaires (241,700) and a 29% increase in digital asset billionaires (36). Bitcoin’s market dominance is clear: $2.1 trillion of total crypto wealth is in BTC, Bitcoin millionaires jumped 70% to 145,100, and Bitcoin billionaires rose 55% to 17. Global digital asset users grew 5% to 590 million, while Bitcoin holders climbed 7% to 295 million. The report highlights unprecedented institutional adoption and notes that crypto wealth and gold remain top alternative assets for high-net-worth investors. Experts warn that cryptocurrency’s borderless nature challenges traditional financial and tax systems.

Nine European banks have formed a Dutch entity to launch a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin in H2 2026. The consortium will apply for an e-money license from the Dutch Central Bank under the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation. The euro stablecoin aims to support instant, low-cost payments, 24/7 cross-border settlements and programmable transactions on blockchain. Member banks will offer secure wallets and plan to appoint a CEO after regulatory approval. Open to new partners, the project seeks to reduce reliance on USDT and USDC, bolster Europe’s digital sovereignty and capture a share of the $295 billion stablecoin market.

Tether is in talks to raise $15–20 billion by selling roughly 3% of its equity at a $500 billion valuation. USDT’s market cap has topped $172 billion, securing over 60% of the stablecoin supply. The issuer reported a 99% profit margin and holds $162.5 billion in reserves. Proceeds will fund expansion into stablecoin issuance, distribution networks, AI applications, commodity trading, energy and media. Tether also plans to boost U.S. compliance under the GENIUS Act with the launch of USAT, a U.S.-focused stablecoin issued via Anchorage Digital. Former White House crypto advisor Bo Hines will serve as USAT’s CEO. Cantor Fitzgerald, a Federal Reserve primary dealer and Tether’s custodian, advises on the deal. This funding round aims to strengthen Tether’s governance, transparency and reserves auditing. For crypto traders, the equity raise and USAT debut signal Tether’s push for institutional backing and U.S. market legitimacy, potentially reinforcing USDT’s market position and supporting bullish momentum.

On September 22, the UXLINK hack exploited a multisignature wallet flaw to gain admin rights and siphon roughly $11 million in USDT, USDC, WBTC and ETH. The attacker converted funds to DAI on Ethereum, swapped Arbitrum USDT for ETH, and bridged assets on-chain. Next, about 1–2 billion UXLINK tokens were minted on Arbitrum, with nearly 490–542 million dumped across DEXs and CEXs, triggering a token crash from $0.30 to $0.09—a 70% plunge that erased over $70 million in market cap. Exchanges like Upbit froze $5–7 million in suspect deposits, but approximately 6,732 ETH (≈$28 million) remains in attacker wallets. In an ironic twist, the hacker fell victim to a phishing scheme (Inferno Drainer) and lost about 542 million UXLINK (~$48 million). UXLINK has engaged law enforcement and security firms, launched a token swap to restore trust, and warned users to avoid unauthorized tokens. The UXLINK hack underscores persistent multisig vulnerabilities and the need for rigorous smart contract audits and stronger DeFi security frameworks.

Circle has proposed reversible USDC transactions to meet TradFi refund standards and strengthen compliance frameworks. Reversible USDC transactions would allow transaction rollbacks under strict regulatory oversight, complementing existing freeze and blacklist controls. The move aims to boost institutional adoption by increasing trust among banks and asset managers and to better compete against Tether’s USDT, which leads the market with a $93 billion cap versus USDC’s $74 billion. The initiative ties into Circle’s development of the Arc blockchain for sub-second stablecoin settlement. However, the proposal has reignited debates over blockchain immutability and centralization in stablecoin governance. Traders should monitor regulatory feedback, governance votes, and Arc’s technical roadmap for potential impacts on USDC liquidity and market confidence.

In a landmark move, Kraken PAC donations total $2 million to U.S. crypto PACs ahead of the 2025 elections, with $1 million each to Freedom Fund and America First Digital PACs. These Kraken PAC donations defend digital asset rights, self-custody and permissionless finance as Congress debates new crypto regulation and market structure bills. Despite bipartisan progress such as the GENIUS Act, enforcement actions and unclear rules fuel uncertainty in the U.S. crypto market. Kraken aims to influence policy, support pro-crypto candidates and resist restrictive legislation. Traders should monitor regulatory shifts, election outcomes and political financing trends, as growing crypto PAC influence could sway market sentiment and asset prices.

Chainlink has integrated its Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) and full suite of oracle services—including Data Streams, data feeds, Proof of Reserve, and NAVLink—into the Canton Network, enabling the oracle provider to operate as a super validator handling transaction ordering, confirmation, and cross-domain consensus. Canton Network, a permissionless blockchain backed by Microsoft, Goldman Sachs, BNP Paribas, Cboe Global Markets, Digital Asset and Paxos, supports over $6 trillion in on-chain assets and processes $280 billion in daily repo trades. By joining the Chainlink Scale program, Chainlink offsets oracle operating costs and provides secure, cost-efficient oracles for smart contracts and cross-chain operations. Digital Asset’s CEO Yuval Rooz says the integration strengthens governance and network resilience, and Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov expects the partnership to unlock large-scale TradFi and DeFi real-world use cases. Traders should note this development as it expands tokenized assets, stablecoins, digital identity and payment solutions on an institutional blockchain, potentially boosting on-chain adoption and oracle demand.

Tether is in talks with major investors to raise $500 million in equity funding. The capital raise will bolster USDT reserves and support a long-term USDT market cap target of $500 billion. Currently, USDT circulation sits near $110 billion, maintaining its position as the leading stablecoin, ahead of rivals like USDC. The funding aims to improve transparency and strengthen the equity-to-liability ratio. Tether plans to use the fresh capital to expand product offerings amid growing demand for stablecoins across DeFi platforms and institutional trading desks. Market watchers view the move as a sign of confidence in Tether’s stability and a potential step toward a future IPO or debt issuance. For crypto traders, this funding underscores USDT’s liquidity backing and reinforces its market dominance without affecting the stablecoin peg.

Strive Inc and Semler Scientific have merged in an all-stock deal to form a leading Bitcoin treasury. Under the agreement, each Semler share will convert into 21.05 Strive Class A shares, valuing the deal at a 210% premium. Simultaneously, Strive bought 5,816 BTC for $675 million, raising its Bitcoin holdings from 70 to 5,886 coins. The combined company will control over 10,900 BTC, ranking it among the top 15 public Bitcoin treasuries. This move signals accelerating corporate Bitcoin adoption and growing institutional demand for digital asset treasuries. Industry experts predict the deal may spark further consolidation in a market facing compressed net asset values, favouring firms with sustainable, long-term strategies.

At the All-In Summit 2025, Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko warned of a 50/50 chance of a Bitcoin quantum risk within five years. He highlighted that Shor’s algorithm on powerful quantum machines could crack Bitcoin’s ECDSA secp256k1 keys, expose private keys, and precipitate wallet drains. Yakovenko urged developers to plan migration to post-quantum cryptography by adopting quantum-resistant signature schemes before tech giants deploy quantum-safe stacks. Despite downplaying the immediacy of the Bitcoin quantum risk, Blockstream’s Adam Back and Bitcoin Core’s Peter Todd emphasize that a hard fork for quantum-resistant signatures would be technically straightforward. However, legacy addresses, holding 25–30% of BTC supply with exposed public keys, remain especially vulnerable during transaction windows. Implementing quantum-resistant upgrades requires broad consensus and a complex hard fork. As quantum computing advances rapidly, preparing a post-quantum migration strategy is critical to safeguard network security and protect billions in BTC from future quantum threats.

BitGo IPO is set to debut on the NYSE under ticker BTGO after reporting a strong H1 2025 performance. The crypto custodian posted revenue of $4.19 billion, a 275% year-on-year increase, and net profit of $12.6 million. Active users grew 18% to 1.15 million. Goldman Sachs and Citigroup lead the underwriters. The S-1 filing outlines a dual-class share structure that secures CEO Mike Belshe’s control post-IPO. The BitGo IPO marks one of the most anticipated crypto listings this fall. BitGo highlighted stablecoin partnerships, including USD 1 issuance with World Liberty Financial. It also secured a BaFin license to offer regulated services across the EU. IPO proceeds will fund technology development, acquisitions, and stock-based compensation. The listing follows recent market entries by Circle, Bullish, and Figure.

Gate has launched Gate Layer, a high-speed Layer 2 network built on Optimism’s OP Stack and secured by GateChain. Gate Layer delivers over 5,700 TPS and one-second block times, cutting transaction costs and boosting throughput. The network debuts three flagship tools: Perp for perpetual trading with centralized-exchange liquidity, Gate Fun for no-code token launches, and Meme Go for real-time memecoin tracking. GT tokenomics have been overhauled: GT becomes the exclusive gas token on Gate Layer, embedding it at the core of the ecosystem. A dual deflation model—scheduled buybacks plus on-chain burns—has already removed 180 million GT (60% of supply). A new staking mechanism lets users lock GT to stabilise gas fees, support network security, and earn rewards. GateChain node updates now allow consensus nodes to set flexible commission rates, streamlining deployment, delegation and reward sharing. Together, these upgrades position Gate Layer to capture more on-chain activity, drive GT demand and offer traders faster, cheaper transactions within a unified Layer 2 ecosystem.

A U.S. District Court judge has denied Tron founder Justin Sun’s request for a temporary restraining order to block Bloomberg from disclosing his crypto holdings. Bloomberg had verified Sun’s portfolio—60 billion TRX, 17 000 BTC, 224 000 ETH and 700 million USDT—for its Billionaires Index and planned to publish the figures. Sun argued publishing unverified data would increase hacking and security risks, but the court found no confidentiality agreement and noted Sun had previously disclosed his BTC holdings. The ruling allows Bloomberg to proceed and underscores growing transparency in major crypto holdings. The case adds to Sun’s ongoing U.S. legal battles, including an SEC lawsuit over unregistered securities and a token freeze dispute with WLFI.

Tether is raising $15–20 billion through a 3% equity sale, valuing the issuer of the USDT stablecoin at about $500 billion. Advised by Cantor Fitzgerald, the round is in early stages with data‐room access open to investors and aims to close by year‐end. In Q2, Tether posted $4.9 billion in profits and profit margins near 99%. Demand for the stablecoin is surging amid market volatility. As a private company, Tether plans to bolster reserves, transparency, and governance to reassure institutional investors. It is also prepping a U.S. re‐entry with the USA₮ launch and the hiring of former White House crypto official Bo Hines ahead of the GENIUS Act. With over $120 billion in USDT circulation, this fundraise could reinforce Tether’s market dominance, draw tighter regulatory scrutiny on reserve composition and systemic risk, and accelerate global institutional adoption of stablecoins.

FTX Recovery Trust has filed a $1.15 billion clawback lawsuit against Genesis Digital Assets in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The complaint alleges that former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried used commingled customer funds via Alameda Research and direct transfers at inflated valuations to inject over $1 billion into GDA. Specifically, Alameda bought more than $500 million in preferred shares, while $550.9 million was funneled to co-founders Rashit Makhat and Marco Krohn. The suit cites Genesis’s operations in Kazakhstan amid an energy crisis and unreliable financial statements as warning signs of fraud. This action follows a $175 million settlement with Genesis Global Trading and forms part of efforts to return over $6 billion to creditors. Creditors have received distributions since February, but disputes continue over valuation dates versus current Bitcoin prices, which have jumped from $20,000 to over $90,000.

California gubernatorial hopeful Ian Calderon has pledged to add Bitcoin to the state’s balance sheet and pilot crypto payments in public programs. The plan treats Bitcoin as a treasury asset to diversify reserves and modernize state finance. Implementation would require new legislation, accounting standards for digital assets, secure custody protocols and phased pilot trials, including stablecoin fee payments under existing AB 1180 and unclaimed asset rules from AB 1052. Calderon’s record includes authoring AB 2658 to create the California Blockchain Working Group and partnering with the Satoshi Action Fund to explore legal tender status. Supporters call it a forward-looking fiscal strategy to drive investment and lower costs, while critics warn of accounting complexities and regulatory hurdles. If elected, targeted pilots will test Bitcoin’s practical benefits, marking a shift toward mainstream crypto adoption in government finance.

Bullish Europe has become the first exchange to list USDCV, a MiCA-regulated stablecoin issued by Societe Generale Forge and custodied by BNY Mellon. USDCV qualifies as an e-money token under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation and holds an electronic money institution licence from French authorities. It is designed for remittances, foreign exchange, payments and value storage. The launch follows the earlier EURCV euro stablecoin and expands regulated access to digital assets across the EU under BaFin oversight. Bullish Europe aims to enhance trading liquidity and settlement options for institutional and retail clients. The move aligns with a broader push for native European stablecoins, including EURAU on Ethereum and Paxos’s USDG. EU officials, led by ECB president Christine Lagarde, have warned of risks from unregulated tokens and stressed unified regulation. Traders expect that MiCA approval of USDCV will boost market confidence and liquidity, supporting wider crypto adoption in Europe.

In a first-half 2026 rollout, Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade platform will introduce direct crypto trading of Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL) through a partnership with institutional-grade custodian Zerohash. Following Zerohash’s $1 billion valuation after a $104 million funding round, the startup will build custody, settlement and (pending regulatory approval) wallet infrastructure for E*Trade’s 5.2 million customers. The integration allows users to trade digital assets alongside traditional stocks and bonds in a single interface, aligning with recent supportive U.S. legislation and rising Wall Street interest. Aimed at cutting complexity and ensuring compliance for retail and institutional investors, the service competes with discount brokers like Robinhood. Traders should note the H1 2026 launch timeline, potential expansion to additional coins and evolving regulatory developments, with the partnership expected to boost crypto trading volumes and market liquidity.

Forward Industries will tokenize NASDAQ-listed Ford common shares on Solana via Superstate’s regulated Opening Bell platform. This stock tokenization enables shareholders to bridge shares between brokerage accounts and on-chain wallets for 24/7 trading, near-instant settlement, and global liquidity. Tokenized Ford shares will be eligible as collateral on Solana DeFi lending protocols Drift, Kamino and Jupiter Lend. The initiative follows a $1.65 billion PIPE financing backed by Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto and Multicoin Capital, which built a 17.11 million SOL (~$4 billion) reserve. Pending regulatory approval, this stock tokenization marks a milestone for real-world asset integration and reinforces Solana’s role as a future capital markets hub.

London-based Fnality has secured $136 million in a Series C funding round led by Bank of America, Citi and WisdomTree, with participation from KBC, Temasek, Tradeweb and existing backers such as Goldman Sachs, Santander, Barclays and UBS. The fresh capital will accelerate the expansion of its blockchain settlement network, extending its GBP-denominated Fnality Payment System to USD and EUR markets pending regulatory approvals. Fnality’s platform uses distributed ledger technology to provide 24/7 payment rails, real-time delivery-versus-payment (DvP) of tokenized assets backed 1:1 by central bank money. This landmark Series C funding underlines the market’s belief in blockchain settlement as a core infrastructure for tokenization. By streamlining institutional repos, tokenized securities settlement and cross-currency payments, the network reduces settlement risk, boosts liquidity and enhances digital asset interoperability. This Series C funding milestone underscores growing institutional confidence in blockchain settlement infrastructure and may drive wider adoption of tokenization in traditional finance and DeFi.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has publicly endorsed Coinbase’s Base as a leading Layer-2 scaling solution. At a recent conference, he highlighted Base’s use of the Optimism OP Stack, full EVM compatibility, and on-chain data availability through Merkle proofs. Buterin praised its low fees, fast finality, and robust security model, and noted its clear roadmap toward decentralization, interoperability, and decentralized governance. He said these design choices reflect Ethereum’s ethos of openness and modularity. His endorsement is expected to boost developer interest, drive user adoption, and increase transaction volumes, reinforcing positive sentiment for Ethereum Layer-2 solutions in crypto markets.

Stablechain, a high-throughput, EVM-compatible blockchain backed by Bitfinex, has integrated PayPal USD (PYUSD) with funding from PayPal Ventures. The integration embeds PYUSD directly on the Stable network. Stablechain uses USDT as its native gas token to process thousands of transactions per second with sub-second finality and gas-free peer-to-peer payments. The move aims to expand PYUSD’s on-chain utility, drive cross-border transactions and remittances, and boost financial inclusion in emerging markets. David Weber, head of the PYUSD ecosystem, said the partnership extends PayPal’s digital dollar use cases. Sam Kazemian, CTO of Stable, highlighted new opportunities for merchant payments and decentralized finance applications. Industry analysts expect the integration to strengthen stablecoin payments infrastructure, increase PYUSD adoption, and set a new standard for crypto-powered financial services.

Grayscale has amended its S-1 registration to convert its Grayscale Dogecoin Trust into a spot Dogecoin ETF, set to trade as GDOG on NYSE Arca. The Dogecoin ETF will track DOGE via the CoinDesk DOGE Reference Rate, sourcing prices from Kraken, Gemini, Coinbase and Bitstamp, with Coinbase serving as custodian and prime broker. Shares will be created and redeemed in 10,000-share baskets. The move follows successful conversions of Grayscale’s Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) trusts and leverages the SEC’s accelerated ETF approval process. Recent launches—Grayscale’s GDLC and Osprey’s DOJE—drew over $39m on debut, underscoring strong institutional demand. DOGE has climbed 8% from $0.26 to $0.28 in three days, driven by whale accumulation, with $0.28 now viewed as critical support. If approved, the spot Dogecoin ETF could open regulated DOGE exposure to retail and institutional investors, potentially boosting liquidity and market stability.

BitMine Immersion Technologies completed a strategic ETH accumulation by adding 264,378 ETH on a price dip, raising its total Ethereum holdings to 2.416 million coins (over 2% of supply). To fund continued ETH accumulation, the firm launched a $365 million equity offering at $70 per share, with warrants for 10.4 million shares exercisable at $87.50. If all warrants are exercised, total proceeds could reach $1.28 billion. The move boosts the company’s on-chain treasury to $11.4 billion in assets, including 192 BTC and cash. ETH tumbled over 6% below $4,200 on September 22, extending its decline to over 15% from its all-time high. Following the announcement, BMNR shares fell about 5% in pre-market trading. CEO Tom Lee said strong institutional demand underscores the appeal of public-market ETH exposure and will support long-term ETH accumulation.

Between Jan–Aug 2025, South Korea’s FIU and Customs Service flagged a record 36,684 suspicious crypto transfers, exceeding the combined total for 2023–24. These suspicious crypto transfers mostly involved “hwanchigi” schemes using stablecoins—primarily USDT—to convert illicit funds on overseas platforms and bypass capital controls. Since 2021, authorities have referred ₩9.56 trillion ($7.1 billion) in crypto-related crime to prosecutors, with roughly $6.4 billion tied to hwanchigi. In May, investigators uncovered over 6,000 USDT transactions transferring ₩57.1 billion ($42 million) between South Korea and Russia. Lawmakers urge tighter exchange compliance, enhanced FIU–KCS cooperation and stronger international coordination, signaling potential stablecoin regulation amid rising crypto money laundering risks.

Flora Growth has unveiled a $401 million treasury plan to back Zero Gravity, a decentralized AI blockchain platform. The funding comprises $35 million in cash and $366 million in digital assets, mainly 0G tokens. Under this treasury plan, the Nasdaq-listed firm will also hold SOL tokens and rebrand as ZeroStack while retaining its FLGC ticker. Under this treasury plan, the private placement is led by Solana treasury firm DeFi Development Corp., with Hexstone Capital, Jardine Matheson’s Southeast Asia unit and Carlsberg SE Asia among investors. Zero Gravity’s infrastructure supports training up to 1.07 trillion-parameter models with claimed 357× efficiency gains. Incoming CEO Daniel Reis-Faria said the initiative offers institutions transparent, privacy-first AI exposure. The deal, which boosted Flora Growth’s share price by 5%, is expected to close on September 26, pending shareholder approval.