Key takeaways

• Hong Kong’s 2026-27 budget marks a shift from experimental digital bond projects to the direct integration of tokenized issuance and settlement into the city’s regulated financial market infrastructure.

• CMU OmniClear, a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, will build a digital asset platform to support tokenized bond issuance and settlement. This embeds digital securities within Hong Kong’s established clearing and post-trade framework.

• Hong Kong has issued multiple tokenized government bonds, including a HK$10 billion digital bond in 2025. Authorities plan to make such offerings a regular feature to deepen market participation and improve liquidity.

• Hong Kong is introducing stablecoin licensing, digital asset dealer and custodian regulations and compliance rules aligned with global tax transparency standards to support a fully regulated digital asset market.

For years, tokenized bonds were discussed as a future upgrade to capital markets. In Hong Kong, that transition is now moving into practice.

The city’s 2026-27 budget marks a pivotal turning point. Tokenization is no longer confined to isolated experiments but is being integrated into the heart of Hong Kong’s financial ecosystem. By embedding issuance and settlement directly into its post-trade systems, the city is moving beyond one-off digital deals to create a standardized, regulated environment.

This article explores how Hong Kong is integrating tokenized bonds into its financial infrastructure through a new digital platform developed by CMU OmniClear, a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), regular government issuances and supportive regulations. This development reflects a shift from experimental pilots to scalable, institutional-grade digital capital market systems.

Hong Kong’s advancing tokenized bond program

Hong Kong has already completed several rounds of tokenized government bond issuances. In Q4 2025, the government launched its third series, valued at HK$10 billion, approximately US$1.28 billion. Authorities have since confirmed that these tokenized bond offerings will continue on a regular basis.

The 2026-27 budget, however, marked a significant escalation.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan stated that CMU OmniClear Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of the HKMA, will develop a dedicated digital asset platform. The platform is designed to handle both the issuance and settlement of tokenized bonds.

Importantly, the system is being built with long-term expansion in mind. It will:

• Be progressively extended to support a wider range of digital assets beyond government bonds

• Establish interoperability with tokenization platforms in other regional jurisdictions

• Become fully integrated into Hong Kong’s broader post-trade financial ecosystem

This final aspect, deep integration into core market infrastructure, is what elevates tokenization from experimental pilots to a foundational element of the financial system.

CMU OmniClear: From experiment to core infrastructure

CMU OmniClear is far from a standalone startup or proof-of-concept project. It operates as an integral part of Hong Kong’s established clearing and settlement framework. Regulators have entrusted tokenized bond settlement to an entity directly linked to the HKMA. They have integrated digital securities into the same system that already processes conventional financial instruments.

This strategic move reshapes the tokenization story in three key ways:

• Standardization replaces experimentation: Rather than relying on custom-built, one-off digital bond structures, issuance and settlement can now follow uniform regulatory rules and proven operational protocols.

• Clear regulatory oversight: With supervision anchored directly under the central banking authority, legal and compliance uncertainty is significantly reduced.

• Built-in scalability: Core market infrastructure is designed to handle institutional-scale volumes, not just small-scale trials or limited pilots.

Tokenization is no longer an add-on or side project. It is becoming embedded in the core plumbing of Hong Kong’s financial system.

Did you know? The concept of tokenized bonds builds on the broader idea of tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs). Trillions of dollars’ worth of traditional financial assets, such as bonds, real estate and funds, could eventually move onto blockchain-based infrastructure.

Government issuance: Already scaling

Hong Kong’s tokenized bond program is already demonstrating meaningful scale. Rather than building infrastructure in anticipation of future demand, Hong Kong is responding to existing market interest.

The government’s third tokenized bond issuance, completed in late 2025, reached a record size of HK$10 billion, approximately US$1.28 billion to US$1.3 billion, marking the world’s largest digital bond offering to date. This followed earlier digital bond issuances that also attracted strong investor demand. Authorities have now pledged to make tokenized bond issuance a regular practice rather than relying on occasional pilots.

This steady approach delivers several key benefits:

• Builds investor comfort and familiarity with tokenized products

• Draws participation from conventional asset managers

• Reinforces that tokenization has strong official policy support, moving it beyond experimental status

Consistent and predictable issuance is essential to developing deeper, more liquid markets.

Beyond bonds: Building a digital asset ecosystem

Hong Kong’s ambitions extend well beyond tokenized bonds. The 2026-27 budget outlines additional regulatory steps to foster a broader digital asset ecosystem.

Stablecoin licensing regime

The HKMA is moving toward issuing its inaugural set of licenses for fiat-referenced stablecoins, with the first approvals expected in early 2026.

The licensing assessments emphasize:

• The strength and quality of asset reserves

• Robust risk management practices

• Effective anti-money laundering (AML) and compliance controls

• Well-defined, legitimate use cases

Stablecoins are not inherently tied to bond settlement. However, the introduction of regulated digital fiat equivalents could enable compliant and efficient settlement mechanisms for tokenized securities and other digital assets.

Did you know? The first blockchain bond issued by a multilateral institution was launched by the World Bank in 2018. Called “Bond-i” (Blockchain Operated New Debt Instrument), it used distributed ledger technology to manage bond issuance and settlement.

Licensing for digital asset dealers and custodians

Hong Kong is advancing its regulatory framework by introducing dedicated licensing regimes for key digital asset service providers.

The government plans to table legislation in 2026 establishing licensing requirements for:

• digital asset dealing platforms, including over-the-counter (OTC) brokers, block traders, and other intermediaries involved in buying, selling, or exchanging virtual assets

• custodian service providers focused on safeguarding private keys, segregating client assets, and ensuring strong security and operational controls

These measures will bring a broader range of participants under formal supervision. Dealers will face standards comparable to those applied to conventional securities firms, while custodians will be subject to stringent requirements for asset protection and key management.

By covering issuance, trading, custody, and reporting activities, the regime creates a fully supervised ecosystem for tokenized bond markets and other digital securities, enhancing investor protection and market integrity.

Alignment with global tax transparency standards

To reinforce its commitment to international compliance, Hong Kong is amending the Inland Revenue Ordinance to adopt the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF).

The implementation will apply to reporting by crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), starting in 2027. Information exchanges would begin in 2028, enabling the automatic exchange of tax-related data on crypto transactions with partner jurisdictions.

The move underscores a clear policy stance. Hong Kong’s tokenized and digital asset markets are being designed to be fully interoperable, transparent, and aligned with global standards. These are essential prerequisites for attracting and retaining institutional capital on a sustainable basis.

Did you know? Traditional bond settlement often takes two business days (T+2) in many markets. Tokenized bonds could potentially enable near-instant settlement, reducing counterparty risk and freeing up capital more quickly.

The liquidity layer: Building deeper regulated crypto markets

In early 2026, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued new guidance enabling licensed virtual asset brokers to provide margin financing for digital assets. Initially, the framework focused on Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) collateral, with safeguards for creditworthy clients. The SFC also published a high-level framework allowing licensed virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs) to offer leveraged perpetual contracts.

These developments significantly enhance market liquidity in a controlled manner while preserving strong investor protections and risk management standards. They form part of a multilayered strategy to:

• Broaden the scope of regulated digital asset markets

• Uphold institutional-grade guardrails and compliance

• More seamlessly bridge digital and traditional finance

Tokenized bonds are not standalone experiments. They sit within a comprehensive, integrated digital financial architecture designed for scale and sustainability.

How tokenized bond infrastructure operates in practice

Tokenized bond infrastructure combines several interconnected layers built on blockchain or distributed ledger technology:

• Issuance: The issuer originates the bond as a digital token directly on a permissioned or regulated ledger, embedding coupon terms, maturity and covenants into smart contracts or digital records.

• Primary allocation: Subscriptions and allocations occur through regulated intermediaries, such as banks, brokers or platforms, ensuring Know Your Customer (KYC) and AML compliance and orderly distribution to qualified investors.

• Settlement and custody: True delivery-versus-payment (DvP) is achieved through integrated systems managed by recognized market infrastructure providers, including central securities depositories or clearing houses adapted for tokenization. Custody is handled by licensed providers with segregated assets and secure key management.

• Post-trade lifecycle: Ongoing events, such as coupon or interest payments, principal redemptions at maturity, and the handling of corporate actions, are automated through programmable logic. This reduces manual intervention, settlement risk and operational costs.

The critical distinction between early pilots and true infrastructure lies in repeatability, institutional integration, and scale. Mature infrastructure enables frequent, large-volume issuances while interfacing smoothly with existing clearing, settlement, custody and reporting systems. This creates the foundation for liquid, efficient secondary markets.

Why this matters for global markets

Hong Kong’s strategy reflects deliberate, long-term positioning in the changing financial sector.

By integrating tokenized bond issuance and settlement into infrastructure closely aligned with the central bank, and by fostering connectivity with regional platforms and counterparties, Hong Kong is working to:

• Solidify its status as Asia’s leading regulated digital asset and tokenized securities hub

• Channel meaningful cross-border institutional capital flows into and through the city

• Offer institutional investors a compliant, scalable and well-regulated tokenization ecosystem

Hong Kong is competing on regulated reliability, predictable rule-making and institutional-grade infrastructure. These factors matter significantly to large asset managers, banks and sovereign wealth funds.

Prevailing risks and challenges

Implementing ambitious infrastructure does not automatically eliminate structural challenges. Several significant hurdles remain:

• Achieving genuine interoperability across different tokenization platforms, protocols and ledgers

• Securing legal and regulatory harmonization with other major jurisdictions to enable smooth cross-border issuance, trading and settlement

• Keeping AML, KYC, sanctions and broader compliance frameworks aligned with the rapid pace of technological change

• Avoiding liquidity fragmentation, where trading volumes are split inefficiently across siloed digital systems, undermining market depth

Building the digital financial rails is only the first phase. Sustained market adoption, active secondary trading, broad institutional participation and organic liquidity growth will determine whether Hong Kong’s vision translates into lasting global relevance.

Exolix gains traction in 2026 as developers seek fast, reliable crypto exchange API solutions.

As the crypto ecosystem grows, infrastructure is now an essential part of every product, from crypto wallets and exchanges to fintech applications and web3 projects. Most products rely on APIs to support key functionalities such as price feeds, access to liquidity, and transaction execution. As such, finding the best crypto API is no longer a choice but a necessity.

However, the best crypto API remains a concern for many projects and teams. The best crypto API depends on a few key factors: ease of integration, reliability, and the speed at which the product can be deployed without having to build complex infrastructure from scratch.

Exolix is emerging as one of the best crypto exchange API providers in the market in 2026 by addressing the key requirements of the crypto ecosystem. It offers the best crypto API due to its fast deployment capabilities, which provide developers with the best way to integrate crypto swap functionalities into their products. As such, the Exolix crypto exchange API is the best choice for teams seeking the best crypto API for startups.

What Is Exolix API?

Exolix API is a crypto infrastructure product that enables developers to add instant exchange capabilities to their applications. Instead of developing complicated exchange systems or dealing with the intricacies of working with multiple liquidity providers, developers can integrate with Exolix and allow users to exchange cryptocurrencies within the interface.

This makes Exolix API one of the best crypto exchange APIs, especially for projects that wish to add crypto-to-crypto exchange capabilities to their applications.

The API is also lightweight and easy to implement. Some of the key functionalities that can be integrated using the API are as follows:

• execution of crypto swaps across various assets
• real-time calculation of the rate
• tracking of the status of transactions
• cross exchange support

This simplicity also makes Exolix one of the best crypto APIs for startups, as the teams involved in the development of the startups need to launch the projects as soon as possible without having to spend much time and resources on the development of the back end.

Another significant factor related to the API is the non-custodial nature of the API. This means that the users are in full control of the money during the exchange process, which is also in line with the current trend of moving towards more decentralized and user-friendly financial tools.

Why Exolix Is One of the Best Crypto API Providers in 2026

As the number of crypto infrastructure providers grows, the line between an excellent API and the best crypto API comes down to usability, reliability, and performance in the real world. Exolix, in 2026, stands out as an API that focuses on the practical needs of developers, ease of integration, execution, and support.

While some APIs are difficult to set up or require significant technical expertise, Exolix has been created to be simple to use, and this is just one reason it is often considered to be among the best crypto APIs, especially for startups and growing web3 products.

Easy API integration

One of the key advantages of Exolix is the ability of the developers to get started as quickly as possible. This is because the API is quite straightforward.

Developers can explore integration on the developers page.

The key advantages of integrating with Exolix are:

• Simple request and response structure
• Quick onboarding process
• No need to build exchange infrastructure
• Ability to integrate with xisting apps and wallets

This makes Exolix a strong contender for the best crypto exchange API, especially for development purposes.

24/7 Technical Support

Another key aspect in selecting the top API for crypto is reliable support. This is because, in the event of any problems related to swaps, rates, or integration, user experience is affected.

Exolix offers technical support around the clock, enabling teams to quickly address any problems, ensuring optimal performance.

This is especially useful for:

• Startups with small engineering teams
• Platforms with users in different time zones
• Platforms that need to be available 24/7

Integration and Revenue Opportunities

Exolix is constantly improving its API infrastructure to ensure ease of integration for wallets, apps, and crypto platforms to include non-custodial cross-chain swaps in their products. This API is flexible and simple to implement to ensure ease of integration for our partners.

Revenue Share Model

One of the main advantages of integrating with Exolix is our revenue share model. This model ensures our partners receive a share of revenue from swaps done on their platforms. This creates an additional revenue source for our partners.

This means our partners can:

• Monetize their current user base
• Create an additional revenue source
• Improve their products without adding operational overhead

Integration assistance for Developers

Apart from that, Exolix is also offering assistance during the integration process itself. This is going to help teams that may not have the best knowledge of the underlying crypto infrastructure.

The assistance that is going to be available during the integration process is as follows:

• Guidance on implementing the API
• Troubleshooting during the setup process
• Optimization hints for the best performance
• Assistance with edge cases during transactions

This is going to help Exolix become one of the best crypto APIs around.

Key use cases for Exolix API

The flexibility of Exolix makes it perfect for various crypto products. Whether it is developing a crypto wallet, exchange, or any other related application, the right crypto API can help to achieve new heights without adding complexity to the development process.

Exolix is all about simplicity and compatibility, and this is why it is used in various applications that demand timely development and user experience. This is why it is considered one of the best crypto APIs for startups.

Wallet Integration

Crypto wallets are one of the most common applications of the Exolix API. The swap feature is integrated into the user interface of the wallet, allowing the user to swap assets without exiting the application. This is a great way to retain the user and provide a richer experience.

Exchange and trading platforms

For projects that need instant swaps without the hassle of building their own trading engine, Exolix is available as a backend solution. This is the reason Exolix is considered one of the best crypto exchange APIs available today.

Web3 and DeFi applications

Decentralized applications may utilize Exolix, which offers the possibility of cross-chain swaps as well as the moving of assets between different chains.

Startup products and MVPs

For early-stage teams, the key is speed, and Exolix helps teams launch their products quickly by not requiring them to develop from scratch.

This makes Exolix an excellent choice among the best crypto APIs for startups, especially when developing:

• MVPs
• Early product tests
• Quick iteration cycles

With the ability to accommodate multiple use cases with a single integration, Exolix offers a scalable base for various types of crypto products at different stages of development.

FAQ

What is Exolix API?

Exolix API is a product that serves as a solution for building a cryptocurrency infrastructure that can facilitate instant cryptocurrency exchange. The API can be used by developers to add instant cryptocurrency exchange capabilities to their platforms.

Why is Exolix considered one of the best crypto APIs?

Exolix API is regarded as one of the best free crypto APIs because it is simple, has a quick onboarding process, and is reliable. The API has a feature that allows users to make cross-chain swaps, has clear documentation, and is available 24/7. These features make it a feasible choice for both new and old cryptocurrency products.

Is Exolix suitable for startups?

Yes, Exolix is an excellent choice in the list of the top-rated APIs in the cryptocurrency industry. It is an excellent choice for startups that want to launch their project without the need to build their exchange infrastructure. This way, the startup can save time and money while still providing the feature of cryptocurrency swaps. 

Does Exolix API require complex integration?

No, one of the biggest advantages of using Exolix is that it is easy to integrate. The API is easy to use and has a simple structure. Moreover, there is support available during the integration process. A developer can easily start using the API with the documentation provided on the official website. 

What can you build with Exolix API?

The Exolix API is an excellent choice for developers who want to create different cryptocurrency-related products such as wallets, exchange interfaces, and Web 3 applications. It is also used to add instant swap functionality, which makes it one of the top-rated cryptocurrency exchange API solutions.

Nearly half of all bitcoin BTC$67,498.29 in circulation is now worth less than it was bought for, according to data from the Bitcoin Impact Index, which jumped sharply last week as stress returned across all segments of the market.

The index, which measures financial stress for bitcoin user cohorts based on onchain behavior, ETF and derivatives activity and liquidity flows, surged 13 points to 57.4 during the week ended March 28, its steepest climb since January, CEX.IO noted in a recent report.

That level, from a range of up to 100, lands it squarely in what’s seen as the “high impact” zone that historically signals the kinds of broad selloffs that led to double-digit price drops in 2018, 2022 and earlier this year.

Long-term holders, wallets that have held BTC for more than six months, were selling at a profit just a week ago, when the cryptocurrency was trading above $70,000. Now, over 4.6 million BTC from these wallets, or roughly 30% of their total holdings, are underwater, the report notes. Their realized losses last week were the worst since 2023.

“This kind of divergence between price action and on-chain conviction has historically been a warning sign,” the firm wrote. “For instance, similar moves occurred in mid-2018 and mid-2022 before price drops by over 25%.”

Short-term holders aren’t faring any better. The report found that 47% of the total bitcoin supply is currently held at a loss, levels not seen since the market’s most stressed stretch in February.

At the same time, capital flows that had supported the market earlier this month have pulled back. Daily stablecoin net flows, which had averaged inflows of $250 million, flipped to outflows of $292 million. ETFs and miners also moved from accumulation to selling, the firm wrote.

So far, one key support remains intact: Onchain data shows holders are not rushing to deposit BTC on exchanges en masse, a behavior often seen in full capitulations.

XRP price fell 15% over the past two weeks as its price action remained below a descending trendline that has been acting as key dynamic resistance.

According to data from crypto.news, XRP (XRP) price has fallen 15.6% from its monthly high of $1.60 reached on March 17 to $1.35 at press time. Zooming out the charts, the losses mount up to over 40% from its year-to-date high of $2.39.

XRP price fell amid geopolitical and macroeconomic concerns that have plagued the entire crypto market since the beginning of this year. These include U.S. tariff hikes on the EU and Canada and the subsequent war between the U.S. and Iran in the Middle East that has led crude oil prices to soar to multi-year highs, sparking concerns of rising inflation and driving investors away from risk assets.

Lower expectations of any interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve have also dampened the mood for speculative assets.

Now, XRP price stands at risk of more downside, especially as the broader crypto market remains under pressure.

On the weekly chart, XRP price has respected a descending trendline that had been acting as a key dynamic resistance since mid July 2025. Every time the bulls managed to push XRP price towards the resistance level, it experienced a sharp drop as bears regained control of the market.

A look at technical indicators also seems to suggest a similar bearish outlook for its price. Notably, the Supertrend has flipped red while the Aroon Down at 42.86% remains far above the Aroon Up at 14.29%. Both indicators point toward a continuation of the current downward trend.

Hence, XRP price may visit the February 2 low of $1.12, a sharp drop below which could extend losses to the $1 mark. On the contrary, if XRP price manages a breakout above $1.40, it could pave the way for a recovery toward $1.50.

Bitcoin price has fallen over 30% from its yearly high, largely impacted by geopolitical and economic concerns that deteriorated investor appetite for risk assets.

After rallying nearly 12% to a yearly high of $97,538 on Jan. 15, the bellwether crypto has fallen by nearly 31% to $67,525 at the time of writing. This came amid several geopolitical and macroeconomic concerns that have largely risen due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff drama that has extended into the beginning of this year, followed by the start of a war in the Middle East against Iran that has led to repercussions in energy and financial markets across the globe.

The hawkish stance the Federal Reserve has maintained as a result has also not helped the situation.

According to analysts at Bernstein, the resulting volatility has left stocks tied to crypto markets, including exchanges, brokerages, and tokenization platforms such as Coinbase, Robinhood, and Figure, down nearly 60% from their recent highs. This represents a big discount considering that these businesses have continued to expand their operations despite the turbulence.

In their Monday note to clients, they predicted that the current market weakness will extend until the release of first-quarter earnings reports, at which point a market bottom could potentially form. Such a prediction suggests that Bitcoin could likely continue to see more downside at least until April ends.

On the daily chart, Bitcoin (BTC) price has lost the support of a key descending trendline where bulls have often previously found footing.

Technical indicators such as the MACD and RSI show that bears still have the advantage in the current setup. The MACD lines have formed a bearish crossover and were trending downwards while the RSI line was moving within a descending channel, both signs that selling pressure remains dominant.

For now, $65,000 could serve as the key psychological support which bulls would seek to defend. If Bitcoin falls sharply below this key level, bears could aim to drag it all the way down to its yearly low around $60,000 once again.

On the contrary, if BTC price rebounds above $69,000, which aligns with the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level, it could signal a shift in momentum.

Bullish outlook on crypto-linked stocks despite downturn

While the recent report projected trimmed price targets for crypto-linked stocks, Bernstein analysts maintained “outperform” ratings for Coinbase, Robinhood, and Figure as they attributed the recent weakness to macro pressure and deteriorating market sentiment rather than fundamental business failures.

This means that following the expected weak quarter, they expect these companies to come out stronger in the long term, likely as Bitcoin retraces back to its former highs once all the drama from the ongoing U.S.-Iran war settles down.

Stripe’s billion-dollar stablecoin subsidiary Bridge Ventures Inc. has apparently been listed on documents as having sold 12 Mitsubishi trucks to a company in Venezuela with ties to the family of former president Hugo Chávez.

The stablecoin company, which Stripe acquired for $1.1 billion, appears, along with its exact street address, suite number, city, state, and zip code, on a shipment slip that sent trucks through a New Jersey port to a company in Venezuela.

At the time of the shipment, Venezuela was under broad US sanctions that covered many companies connected to the Chávez regime’s state-owned oil company PdVSA, and entities acting on its behalf.

Bridge categorically denies any involvement with the shipment. “Whatever this is about, it has nothing to do with us: Bridge had no involvement in this shipment or any associated payment activity,” a spokesperson told reporter Jason Mikula.

“The only explanation we can think of is some clerical error or confusion around a common name like Bridge.”

However, the platform’s character-by-character name isn’t particularly common, while the address on both bills of lading match US Patent and Trademark Office filings and third-party business registries like Bloomberg.

Mikula tweeted and published an article about his skepticism that a third party used Bridge’s name without its authorization.

Thundernet, a Hugo Chávez family connection

The buyer on both truck shipments from “Bridge Ventures Inc.” was Thundernet, C.A., an internet provider based in Barinas, Venezuela.

Thundernet belongs to Grupo Nemer, a conglomerate of dozens of companies across Venezuela, Panama, and the US with close ties to Chávez’s regime.

For example, Hugo Chávez’s youngest brother, Adelis, previously owned the Barinas-based Zamora Futbol Club. The club is now run by Omar Jose Nemer Irched, the eldest son of Grupo Nemer head, Syrian-born Atef Salami Nemer Hirchedd.

That soccer club’s sponsor switched from PdVSA to Thundernet.

In addition, investigative outlet Armando.info reported in 2021 that Nemer Hirchedd maintained a close relationship with another Chávez sibling, Adan Chávez Frías.

Adan served as governor of Barinas and Venezuela’s ambassador to Cuba, a relationship that allegedly helped Grupo Nemer take over operations of a bankrupt state agriculture company.

An exact name match and a denial from Bridge

According to Mikula, the shipping documents compound an already dubious compliance record.

In January 2026, he revealed Stripe’s connection via the Bridge stablecoin platform to Venezuelan crypto exchange Kontigo, rumored to have links to ousted President Nicolas Maduro’s son.

Maduro served as president of Venezuela since 2013, succeeding Chávez.

Moreover, as recently as November 2025, Bridge and Stripe executives were praising Venezuela as a stablecoin showcase.

Bridge subsequently reclassified Venezuela from “controlled” to “prohibited” in its sanctions compliance document.

The timing aligned neatly with the Kontigo fallout and Bridge’s pursuit of a national trust bank charter from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which conditionally approved its application, after Bridge’s downward revision of Venezuela, in February 2026.

Lido DAO proposed spending up to 10,000 stETH to buy its own governance token at what it calls a historically depressed valuation. That works out to roughly $20 million at current ether prices near $2,000.

The problem is where to spend it.

Onchain LDO liquidity sits at about $90,000 of depth at plus-or-minus 2%, according to the proposal posted by the Lido Ecosystem Operations team over the weekend. The market depth measure means a transaction of that value could move the token’s price by as much as 2%.

A single 1,000 stETH batch executed onchain would blow through available liquidity multiple times over, meaning Ethereum’s largest liquid staking protocol has to go offchain to buy its own token at scale.

The proposal authorizes the Lido Growth Committee to route trades through centralized exchanges including Binance, OKX, Bybit, Gate and Bitget, each of which currently offers more than $100,000 in depth. It also permits the committee to engage market-maker partners on behalf of the Lido Ecosystem Foundation to facilitate execution.

Valuing governance

LDO hit an all-time low of $0.27 on March 7 and currently trades near $0.30, according to CoinGecko data, with a market capitalization of roughly $258 million.

The token is down more than 95% from its 2021 peak of $7.30. At current prices, the proposed buyback could use up roughly 65 million tokens, or about 8% of the circulating supply.

The DAO’s case rests on a gap between token performance and protocol fundamentals. The LDO-to-ETH ratio sits at approximately 0.00016, a 70% discount to levels that held for most of the past two years.

Net protocol rewards, in contrast, have dropped only about 20% over the same period, while costs improved 13% year-over-year and the protocol’s effective take rate rose to 6.11% from 5%. Lido still holds the largest share of staked ether at around 23%, per DefiLlama.

“This is not a routine fluctuation,” the proposal states. “It represents one of the most significant dislocations between LDO’s market price and its underlying protocol fundamentals in the token’s history.”

Execution would proceed in 1,000 stETH batches, each requiring a separate Easy Track motion — a governance mechanism for routine or approved operations — with a three-day objection period. The Growth Committee retains discretion over timing and pace to avoid signaling exact moves to the market, a necessary precaution given that the proposal is public. Slippage is capped at 3% below the reference price.

The deeper question the proposal surfaces is one facing DeFi governance tokens broadly. LDO’s 95% drawdown from peak is extreme, but it is not an outlier in the category. A protocol that dominates its sector, generates consistent fees, and holds billions in TVL is trading at a $258 million market cap because the market has broadly repriced what a governance token is worth when it controls a fee switch but distributes nothing.

Lido’s answer is to treat the dislocation as a buying opportunity. Whether that works depends on whether the market ever decides governance tokens deserve to trade on fundamentals at all.

Opinion by: Ashna Vaghela, chief customer officer at Mercuryo, and Vi Powils, CEO at World of Women.

For decades, the financial industry has treated creativity as a high-risk hobby. If you’re a woman building a global brand from a laptop, there is a risk that your bank doesn’t see a CEO. Rather, it sees someone with a non-standard income stream, without collateral, who might have to stop or pause working, to have children. Our global economy champions the middleman while the actual source of value can be treated as an afterthought.

For many women, particularly in emerging markets, creating online is not supplemental income; it is primary income and often the most borderless economic opportunity available to them.

That barrier runs deeper in emerging markets. A creator in Lagos can build a following of millions, only to find that the banking systems turn cross-border payments into a months-long exercise in fees and delays. When you control the flow of capital, you control who gets to stay in business. Women have spent years asking for a seat at the table where the legs were already broken.

The intersection of the creator economy and crypto payment infrastructure offers the first genuine path to financial freedom that doesn’t require anyone’s permission. As we move toward a world where code does the work that banks used to gatekeep, and that shift matters more for women than almost anyone else.

The invisible tax on identity

Legacy finance has failed women and creators in tandem. Venture capital still directs a tiny fraction of its capital to female founders with only 2.3% of venture capital funding having gone to female-founded companies in 2024. Credit scoring still penalizes uneven income, which is the reality for most independent artists. These systems were designed for a 9-to-5 world that is no longer the default way of being.

Layered on top of that is the platform toll. Some take up to 50 percent of earnings before a single cent reaches a creator’s wallet. You’re renting your audience from a landlord who can evict you whenever the terms do not suit them. 

Programmable revenue and the end of Net-90

In the old world, a creator sells their work and can wait months to get paid. Smart contracts change this entirely. Revenue splits happen at the point of sale. If an artist collaborates with a developer, the payment doesn’t pool in a corporate account, it moves directly to their respective wallets the moment a transaction clears.

Related: Blockchain restores women’s power in AI

The code becomes the escrow. There’s no chasing invoices, no waiting on platforms to release what you’ve already earned. Hardcoded royalties mean creators benefit from the long-term value of their work regardless of where it’s resold. 

While an imperfect system, the structure of onchain royalties is intended to help artists capture value over time, rather than relying solely on single transactions. OpenSea made royalty enforcement optional, which most marketplaces have now followed. This is what we mean by participatory capitalism: a model where the growth of the whole, lifts the people who actually built it. For many artists, especially women building global audiences, this shift is more than technical, it enables consistent revenue without depending on a platform’s schedule or policies.

Infrastructure as the foundation of family

Infrastructure sounds dry until you realise it’s the difference between asking for permission and having power. Community is a multiplier, but infrastructure is the engine. For the millions of women entering the creator economy, crypto rails offer a global passport that doesn’t check for borders or bias.

The community talks a lot about community in Web3, but what is really being described is something closer to family. A community is a group you associate with. A family shows up when things get hard. Stablecoins have become that bridge for creators in regions with volatile currencies, letting them hold the value of their work without needing a bank’s approval. 

When you lower friction at both ends of a transaction, the creativity in the middle takes off. There is already seeing a generation of entrepreneurs who don’t need an invitation to the boardroom because they own the system it sits on. Reliable payment rails make the difference between being able to monetize globally and being restricted to local, slow, or costly banking systems, a gap that disproportionately affects women creators in emerging markets.

Moving toward ownership

Inclusion is not a gift. Ownership is holding the deed, not being handed a seat. The shift to Web3 payment infrastructure moves us toward that deed. This moment is about refusing to let legacy systems set the value of creative communities. The infrastructure is ready. The only thing left is for the creators to lead.

Let us stop waiting for the system to change. Let us continue to the payment rails that replace it. 

Opinion by: Ashna Vaghela, chief customer officer at Mercuryo, and Vi Powils, CEO of World of Women.