A pro-business Russian lawmaker has welcomed the central bank’s remarkable U-turn on crypto regulation as Moscow prepares to let retail investors buy Bitcoin and other high-cap tokens. Anton Gorelkin, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma’s IT committee, noted that the Central Bank had been advocating a “ban on cryptocurrencies for four years,” Russia’s Parliamentary Gazette reported. “The central bank is now demonstrating a more balanced position,” Gorelkin said. “The bank’s stance remains unchan ...

Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority, known as OJK, has formally published a whitelist of 29 licensed crypto and digital financial asset trading platforms, officially noting a public record of companies that are legally allowed to operate in the country. The move is part of a broader regulatory effort to tighten oversight, strengthen consumer protection, and bring order to one of Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing crypto markets. Who Made the Cut? A list of crypto platforms that made the OJK Whitelist ...

The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to 0.75% on December 19, marking the highest borrowing costs in three decades and triggering immediate speculation about implications for global crypto markets. Bitcoin climbed 2.5% to approach $88,000 following the decision, which came as policymakers balanced inflation concerns against mounting fiscal pressures from Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s $117 billion stimulus package. Source: TradingView The central bank voted unanimously to lift short-term rates from ...

Bybit, the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume traded, said it has returned to the U.K. two years after stricter rules around the promotion and marketing of crypto services forced it out. The company, which boasts some 80 million users worldwide, restarted U.K. services including spot trading on 100 currency pairs on Thursday, the company said . The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has been vigilant in regulating advertising and marketing of crypto services to British residents. Rules it i ...

Regulatory Landscape & Market Structure - US Senate delays the Clarity Act, postponing the crypto market structure bill until 2026 [1] - Key issues remain unresolved, including regulations for top government officials profiting from crypto ventures and the extent of decentralized finance regulation [4][5] - Senate Banking Committee anticipates a markup on bipartisan digital asset market structure legislation in early 2026 [7] - Binance secures first global license under ADGM framework, separating trading, custody, settlement, and off-exchange activities [18][19] Market Trends & Investment - Despite Bitcoin's price remaining relatively stable year-to-date, fundamentals have drastically changed [7] - Traditional finance is increasingly embracing crypto, with banks like JP Morgan engaging in various crypto-related activities [9][10] - XRP ETF inflows have surpassed $1 billion since launching in November, demonstrating positive net inflows for over 30 consecutive days [14] - Solana ETFs have the highest net inflows of all crypto ETFs, exceeding $63 million in the last 7 days [15] - Investors are rotating profits from Ether and Bitcoin ETFs into Solana and XRP [16] Company Initiatives - Coinbase is expanding its platform to offer stocks, becoming an "Everything Exchange" with multiple asset classes [20][22]

The shares of Coinbase Global (Nasdaq: COIN), the largest U.S. crypto trading exchange, surged after the company received a nod from Indian authorities to acquire a minority stake in an Indian exchange. Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam founded Coinbase in 2012 and turned it into a public company in 2021. The company, which operates crypto exchange platforms in more than 100 countries across the world, made it to the S&P 500 index in May this year. Related: Coinbase to re-enter India after nearly two year ...

Bitcoin bouncing today along with the equity markets though hopes for progress on crypto regulation hitting a roadblock this week as a key hearing gets punted into the new year. Emily Wilkins joins us. She has that story.Emily. >> Hey David. Well, yeah.Look, banking CEOs, crypto groups, they've been flooding Capitol Hill in recent weeks as senators are trying to come closer to an agreement on when to classify crypto as a security and when to classify it as a commodity and how to prevent crypto for being use ...

The Financial Stability Oversight Council has removed crypto from its list of systemic financial threats in its 2025 annual report. This is a dramatic regulatory shift attributable to the transformation happening under the Trump administration. The 86-page document, approved December 11, eliminates the dire warnings about digital assets that dominated previous years, instead emphasizing responsible growth and regulatory clarity for the sector. The FSOC’s latest assessment contrasts sharply with its 2024 ...

LONDON, Dec 16 (Reuters) - British regulator the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched a wide-ranging consultation on a range of proposed ​rules for the crypto industry on Tuesday, a day ‌after the government said the industry would be regulated from October 2027. The FCA ‌set out its proposals alongside research that shows that the proportion of UK adults holding crypto has fallen by a third, from 12% to 8% in the past year. Watchdogs globally are playing catch-up ⁠on rules for the ‌crypto industr ...

Core Insights - The U.S. banking system has opened its doors to major players in the crypto industry, with the OCC conditionally approving five firms, including Ripple and Circle, to operate as national trust banks [1][2][3] Group 1: Regulatory Developments - The OCC's decision signals a move towards integrating parts of the crypto sector into the traditional financial framework [2] - Five crypto firms received conditional approval to establish or convert into national trust banks, joining approximately 60 other national trust banks already overseen by the OCC [3][4] - The approval builds on a precedent set in 2021 when Anchorage Digital became the first crypto-focused firm to receive a national trust charter [5] Group 2: Operational Scope - The approved firms are not allowed to take deposits or issue loans but can custody assets, process payments, and provide fiduciary services under federal supervision [4] - All five firms must meet capital, governance, compliance, and risk-management conditions before becoming fully operational [4] Group 3: Industry Reactions - The OCC's move is seen as a regulatory win for crypto companies, providing long-awaited regulatory clarity [6] - Ripple's inclusion could strengthen its institutional footprint over time, particularly for its dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, which is now under federal and state supervision [7][9] - Traditional banking groups expressed concerns, warning about unresolved questions regarding regulatory consistency and oversight [9]