The article was updated with comments from Binance.

Binance has faced a potential setback in Europe after its application for a Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) licence in Greece has reportedly moved toward rejection, putting its ability to continue serving clients across the European Union at risk from July.

According to a June 16 Reuters report citing two people familiar with the matter, Binance’s MiCA application submitted to Greece’s Hellenic Capital Market Commission is expected to be turned down. Under the EU’s new MiCA framework, crypto firms must secure authorization by the end of June to continue operating across the bloc.

If the application is rejected, Reuters reported that Binance would not qualify to offer services to EU customers once the new regulatory deadline takes effect at the start of July.

A spokesperson for Binance told Reuters that the exchange has pursued MiCA authorization and worked with regulators for the past 18 months through what the company described as a comprehensive application process with Greece’s market regulator.

The spokesperson said Binance believes it has satisfied the requirements needed for authorization and understands that the Hellenic Capital Market Commission has completed its review and considers the application compliant with MiCA standards.

“HCMC has given no formal indication of the contrary,” the spokesperson told Reuters.

The Hellenic Capital Market Commission declined to comment on the application when contacted by Reuters, citing confidentiality requirements.

In a series of posts on X published after the Reuters report, Binance said it remains committed to its European users and will continue operating in compliance with applicable laws. The exchange said it has taken what it described as a “prudent approach” as the MiCA transition period comes to an end, adding that its priority is to minimize disruption and give customers enough time and clarity about any next steps.

Binance remains committed to its European users and will continue to operate in compliance with applicable law.

— Binance (@binance) June 16, 2026

Binance also said it had worked with regulators for the past 18 months and participated in the MiCA authorization process “in good faith.”

According to the company’s statement, its understanding is that the Greek regulator completed its review of the application and considered it compliant with MiCA requirements, while the filing was also reviewed at the European Securities and Markets Authority level.

Addressing the potential consequences of delays in the approval process, Binance argued that the issue extends beyond its own business. The company said any disruption to MiCA authorizations could reduce liquidity, limit competition and user choice, and encourage activity outside the European Union.

Binance added that it remains committed to Europe and is continuing to pursue what it called the “right path forward” under MiCA, promising further updates before June 30.

Europe licence decision comes amid ongoing regulatory scrutiny

Only a few months earlier, Binance had publicly highlighted Greece as its preferred regulatory base in Europe. 

During an event in February, Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said the country’s workforce and security profile gave it advantages over larger financial centers as the company evaluated where to establish its European regulatory headquarters.

At the time, Teng, who previously served as a regulator in Singapore and Abu Dhabi, said the final decision on Binance’s licensing status would rest with European authorities before the July deadline.

The reported setback in Europe follows other licensing challenges Binance has encountered in key jurisdictions. 

In January, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said neither Binance nor its local partner BlockShoals Technologies held the virtual asset service provider licence required to conduct certain crypto activities in the Philippines.

According to reporting by BitPinas, Philippine regulators clarified that participation in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s StratBox regulatory sandbox did not remove the need for separate authorization from the central bank. Binance had sought to re-enter the Philippine market through BlockShoals under that framework.

While the Philippine case involved a single national market, the reported MiCA decision carries implications across all EU member states because the licence would have allowed Binance to operate throughout the bloc under a unified regulatory regime.

For now, Binance maintains that it has met the necessary requirements, while Reuters reported that people familiar with the matter expect the application to be rejected before the June licensing deadline.

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act has secured a $150 million allocation for law enforcement efforts targeting cryptocurrency scams and other digital asset crimes, according to U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis.

In a post published on X on June 16, the Wyoming senator said the legislation would provide law enforcement agencies with funding to “track down scammers and bad actors in the digital asset space” as lawmakers continue debating the future of crypto regulation in the United States.

The Clarity Act delivers $150 million for law enforcement to track down scammers and bad actors in the digital asset space.

— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) June 16, 2026

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The funding provision forms part of the CLARITY Act, a market structure bill that seeks to establish clearer federal rules for digital assets while strengthening tools available to investigators pursuing crypto-related crimes.

CLARITY Act combines market rules with enforcement measures

Alongside defining how digital assets should be regulated, the legislation contains several provisions intended to support criminal investigations and consumer protection efforts.

Under the proposal, cryptocurrency exchanges and stablecoin issuers would receive temporary authority to freeze suspicious transactions for up to 30 days. Law enforcement agencies could request an extension of that hold period to as much as 180 days through a written order.

Requirements contained in the bill would also bring digital asset businesses under Bank Secrecy Act obligations, requiring firms to maintain Anti-Money Laundering programs and submit Suspicious Activity Reports in a manner similar to traditional financial institutions.

Supporters of the legislation have argued that these measures would make it easier to trace illicit funds while providing agencies with legal mechanisms to respond more quickly to suspected fraud.

At the same time, the CLARITY Act seeks to address long-running disputes between federal regulators over digital asset oversight. 

For years, cryptocurrency companies have faced uncertainty as the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission have taken differing views on how various tokens should be classified.

Lawmakers backing the bill say the legislation would establish clear distinctions between digital commodities and securities while requiring exchanges to keep customer assets separate from company funds, a safeguard designed to reduce the risk of failures similar to the collapse of FTX.

Congress weighs new anti-crime initiatives

The law enforcement funding proposal arrives as lawmakers continue discussing additional measures focused on cryptocurrency-related crime.

Earlier this month, Representatives Lance Gooden and Josh Gottheimer introduced the Federal Cryptocurrency Theft Enforcement and Coordination Act, which would establish a dedicated cryptocurrency theft task force within the Department of Justice.

According to the proposal, the task force would coordinate investigations involving agencies including the DOJ, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Responsibilities would include tracing stolen digital assets, improving investigative techniques, supporting victims, and assisting state, local, and international authorities.

Momentum behind the CLARITY Act has continued to build in Congress after the legislation advanced out of the Senate Banking Committee in a 15-9 vote. 

With the congressional calendar tightening ahead of the election season, backers of the bill have argued that the United States needs a clear federal framework that addresses criminal activity while providing regulatory certainty for legitimate digital asset businesses.

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has urged the Treasury Department to keep state regulators in the stablecoin rulemaking process as it prepares final GENIUS Act rules.

In a June 16 letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the lawmakers said Section 4(c) of the GENIUS Act gives states a pathway to certify their own stablecoin regimes. The letter was led by Senator Cynthia Lummis and signed by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand, Bill Hagerty, Kevin Cramer, Pete Ricketts, Angela Alsobrooks, and Catherine Cortez Masto.

State pathway faces timing concerns

The senators said Congress wanted to preserve the dual banking system and the role of state banking agencies in supervising payment stablecoin issuers. They asked the Treasury to apply the law in a way that “preserves and promotes State participation.”

🇺🇸 Sen. Lummis and a bipartisan group of senators urged Treasury Sec. Bessent to clarify the state certification process for the GENIUS Act.

They warned that without “clear timelines and requirements,” the process could “effectively foreclose future participation” for states. pic.twitter.com/Km0sXnDQYk

— Bitcoin.com News (@BitcoinNews) June 16, 2026

Their main concern is the certification process. The lawmakers said Treasury’s proposed principles did not address clear timelines or procedural steps for state certification. They said that gap creates uncertainty for states working on laws or rules to match the federal framework.

Meanwhile, the letter asked the Treasury to issue written guidance explaining how states can apply, how reviews will work, and when certification decisions will be made. The senators said the process should not be read as a “one-time window” that blocks future applications.

The lawmakers said state legislatures move on different schedules, and some meet only every two years. They argued that states must be able to seek certification when their own frameworks are ready, not only during an early federal rulemaking stage.

GENIUS Act gives smaller issuers a state option

The GENIUS Act allows payment stablecoin issuers with no more than $10 billion in outstanding issuance to choose state regulation if the state regime is substantially similar to the federal framework. Treasury said in April that the proposal was its first regulation to implement the law’s state-level regime.

That threshold leaves the state option aimed mainly at smaller issuers. The report said Tether’s USDt, USDC, and USDS were above $10 billion, while many smaller stablecoins could fall under state supervision if their regulators win certification under the final new federal process.

Rulemaking moves into final stage

Treasury opened public comments on the proposed state-level principles in April. The agency said comments were due within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register, placing the deadline in early June.

The senators’ letter arrived after the comment window closed, as Treasury prepares a final rule. They asked the department to confirm that certification remains available on an ongoing basis, rather than only during the first year of implementation.

The request also comes as Treasury works on separate GENIUS Act rules for illicit finance controls. That proposal would treat permitted payment stablecoin issuers as financial institutions for Bank Secrecy Act purposes and require sanctions compliance programs.

As previously reported by crypto.news, New York DFS has proposed stablecoin rule updates to align its framework with the GENIUS Act. The state said eligible issuers could stay under DFS supervision if New York receives federal certification.

Moreover, as crypto.news reported earlier, Hyperliquid and Paradigm also asked the Treasury to narrow proposed AML and sanctions duties for stablecoin issuers. State Street has also launched a stablecoin reserve money market fund designed for the GENIUS Act framework, while the FDIC faces GAO pressure over blockchain risk coordination.

Blockchain payments company Ripple has acquired an equity stake in African fintech giant Flutterwave, deepening its push into one of the world’s fastest-growing cross-border payments markets.

Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga Agboola said the undisclosed investment values the company at $3.3 billion, according to Bloomberg. The deal gives Ripple exposure to Africa’s fast-expanding payments ecosystem while providing Flutterwave with additional resources to scale its financial infrastructure.

The investment makes Ripple a shareholder rather than an owner or commercial partner. Flutterwave operates in 35 African countries and has recently expanded its digital asset offerings by integrating stablecoin payment services.

As part of the deal, Flutterwave will integrate Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin, Ripple Payments and the XRP Ledger to make cross-border transactions faster and more cost-effective.

Source: Flutterwave

The deal is the latest step in Ripple’s broader strategy to expand its blockchain-based payments network across Africa, where demand for faster and lower-cost international transfers continues to grow. Last October, Ripple partnered with South Africa’s Absa Bank to provide digital asset custody solutions to institutional clients.

Related: Bybit Pay enters South Africa through MoneyBadger integration

Stablecoins gain traction in Africa’s remittance market

Africa has emerged as a key growth market for digital asset payments, driven largely by the continent’s sizable remittance flows and demand for lower-cost cross-border transfers.

A September 2025 Chainalysis report found that crypto adoption in sub-Saharan Africa climbed 52% over 12 months, with more than $205 billion in onchain transactions recorded. At the time, the region ranked as the world’s third-fastest-growing crypto market.

Onchain volumes in sub-Saharan Africa have surged since 2022. Source: Chainalysis

Stablecoins have played a central role in that growth, offering a dollar-denominated alternative that can make international payments faster and less expensive. The opportunity has attracted other major issuers, including USDC issuer Circle, which recently partnered with African fintech Sasai to expand USDC-based payment services across the region with a focus on remittances.

The World Bank estimates that sending a typical $200 remittance to sub-Saharan Africa costs recipients between $13 and $17 in fees, compared with as little as $0.50 for transfers using USDt (USDT) on Tron or as little as $2 for transfers using USDC on Ethereum.

Related: Africrypt founders back in South Africa years after platform collapse: Report

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Ripple has acquired an equity stake in African fintech company Flutterwave in a deal that has valued the payments firm at $3.3 billion, adding another regional payments network to Ripple’s growing global infrastructure strategy.

According to Bloomberg, Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga Agboola said Ripple participated as an equity investor, providing the company with fresh capital while becoming a strategic shareholder. Agboola declined to disclose the size of Ripple’s investment or the percentage ownership the company received through the transaction.

Speaking to Bloomberg, Agboola said Ripple’s involvement is limited to an equity position rather than a commercial partnership. He added that the structure allows Ripple to benefit from Flutterwave’s future growth as the company continues expanding its payments business across Africa.

Operating in 35 African countries, Flutterwave has become one of the continent’s largest financial technology companies by building payment infrastructure for businesses, merchants, and consumers. The investment comes as demand for faster and lower-cost international transfers continues to rise across African markets.

Ripple expands payment infrastructure across emerging markets

Beyond Africa, Ripple has been adding new payment and settlement networks across several regions during the past month.

Earlier this month, Ripple expanded the availability of its U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin RLUSD in Türkiye through partnerships with BiLira, Bitexen, and Bitlo. According to Ripple, the rollout provides Turkish institutional users with access to its regulated stablecoin for digital asset transactions and settlement.

In Latin America, Ripple recently integrated Bitso’s Mexican peso-backed stablecoin MXNB into the XRP Ledger and its Payments on Decentralized Exchange infrastructure. According to Ripple, MXNB and RLUSD will support enterprise payment flows between the U.S. and Mexico by providing regulated settlement assets for cross-border transactions.

Recent product launches have also extended beyond traditional payments. As reported by crypto.news on June 13, Ripple introduced the XRPL AI Starter Kit, a developer toolkit that enables artificial intelligence agents to use XRP and RLUSD for autonomous payments on the x402 machine-payment network. Ripple said the tools allow software agents to create wallets, track balances, and complete transactions with limited human involvement.

Institutions seek simpler access to digital asset rails

At the same time, Ripple has been positioning itself as an infrastructure provider for banks and financial institutions entering digital assets.

According to Ripple’s UK and Europe Managing Director Cassie Craddock, many financial institutions already recognize the value of blockchain-based financial services but continue to look for easier ways to access them. Writing earlier this week, Craddock said banks increasingly want support across custody, liquidity, settlement, and compliance rather than building each component internally.

Ripple has also expanded its physical presence in the Middle East and Africa. As previously reported by crypto.news, the company recently opened a larger regional headquarters at the Dubai International Financial Centre after receiving approval from the Dubai Financial Services Authority to offer regulated international payment services within the DIFC.

The regulator has also approved RLUSD for use by regulated entities operating in the financial hub. 

State Street Investment Management has launched a money market fund designed for stablecoin issuers, offering a vehicle for holding reserve assets under the framework established by the GENIUS Act. 

The fund is structured as a Rule 2a-7 government money market fund and will invest in assets commonly used to back stablecoins, including US government securities and repurchase agreements. The fund’s initial investors include State Street Bank and Anchorage Digital, a federally chartered crypto bank.

State Street said the product was designed to comply with reserve requirements established under the GENIUS Act, which was signed into law on July 18, 2025, creating the first federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins in the United States.

The launch follows the introduction of the State Street Galaxy Onchain Liquidity Sweep Fund (SWEEP), a tokenized liquidity product developed with Galaxy Digital that enables onchain cash management using stablecoins.

State Street Investment Management, the asset management arm of State Street Corporation, oversees more than $5 trillion in assets and is one of the world’s largest investment managers.

Related: Bitwise completes takeover of Superstate’s $259M crypto carry fund

Asset managers compete for stablecoin reserve assets

State Street’s launch comes as financial firms rush to develop products aimed at managing assets that back stablecoins following the passage of the GENIUS Act.

In May, JPMorgan filed to launch JLTXX, a tokenized money market fund intended to hold assets backing stablecoins while complying with requirements established under the GENIUS Act. The fund would invest in US Treasury bills and overnight repurchase agreements, assets commonly used to back dollar-pegged stablecoins.

The filing came weeks after Morgan Stanley launched its Stablecoin Reserves Portfolio, a money market fund that allows stablecoin issuers to hold reserve assets while earning interest.

In June, Coinbase disclosed an investment in the ProShares GENIUS Money Market ETF, a Treasury-focused fund that invests in assets eligible to back payment stablecoins under the law. The exchange said the investment aligned with its expanding stablecoin and cash management businesses.

The stablecoin market has grown to approximately $315 billion from about $260 billion when the GENIUS Act was signed into law, according to DefiLlama data. State Street cited projections from Citi estimating global stablecoin issuance could reach between $1.9 trillion and $4 trillion by 2030.

Source: DefiLlama

The market for stablecoin reserve assets has expanded alongside stablecoin adoption. According to Tether’s March 2026 reserves report, the company held approximately $191.8 billion in assets backing USDT (USDT), with US Treasury bills accounting for the majority of its cash-equivalent reserves. 

Magazine: Bitcoin, the ‘canary in the coal mine,’ XRP transaction demand falls 91.5%: Market Moves

As Solana and XRP trends dominate discussion, investors are also watching low-priced tokens like Little Pepe for higher-risk potential gains.

Right now, crypto Twitter is arguing about whether Solana will hit $250 before the year ends or whether XRP finally breaks free from its $1–$2 jail cell. Both are legitimate conversations, and both coins have real catalysts.  

But there’s a third name worth the attention, one sitting under $1 that nobody’s really talking about at this scale yet: Little Pepe (LILPEPE). If the numbers play out anywhere close to analysts’ projections, a 5,346% return would make both SOL and XRP look almost boring by comparison. Let’s break it all down.

Solana eyes $250: Is it realistic?

Solana is trading around $64–$65 with a $37B market cap, far below its $293 all-time high. Standard Chartered projects $250 by year-end, citing the SEC’s digital commodity ruling as the key catalyst for a nearly 4x move. The Alpenglow upgrade, Firedancer client, and $1B+ in ETF inflows since late 2025 are the structural pillars. Bull case targets $250–$445. A few things need to go right, but the setup is real.

XRP targets $5: What would have to happen

XRP trades at $1.13–$1.14 with a ~$70B market cap, well off its January 2026 high of $2.40. Bitwise’s bullish case puts XRP at $4.94 by year-end, with a max scenario clearing $6.53. The catalyst stack is multi-layered: spot ETF demand, the Market Structure Bill, and Ripple’s OCC-approved banking license. The on-chain activity is quite impressive, with 1.67 million transactions per day and $481 million in total. The price forecast for 2026 could range anywhere between $1.20 to $2.40, depending on regulatory clarity.

While Solana eyes $250 and XRP targets $5: Meet the wildcard under $1

This is where the narrative shifts. While Solana and XRP are playing the slow-and-steady institutional game, Little Pepe is doing something entirely different, and it’s turning heads. LILPEPE is currently in Stage 13 of its 19-stage presale, selling tokens at just $0.0022. The presale has now raised $28,254,751 of its $28,775,000 target, with over 17 billion tokens sold. Stage 13 is 98.63% filled at the time of writing. 

That kind of velocity in a presale doesn’t happen by accident. Early investors from Stage 1 are already sitting on 120% gains over their entry price. Even investors joining now at Stage 13 still have a 36.36% gain locked in before the token even hits exchanges, since the confirmed launch price is $0.0030. 

What actually makes LILPEPE different

LILPEPE isn’t another rug waiting to happen. It’s a real Layer 2 blockchain with zero tax, near-zero fees, and sniper bot resistance at the protocol level. A native Meme Launchpad creates continuous LILPEPE gas demand beyond launch hype.  It has been CertiK audited: 95.49%. Listed on CMC and CoinGecko pre-launch. Anonymous veterans with top-tier meme-coin track records are quietly backing it. Two CEX listings confirmed, with the world’s largest exchange reportedly in the pipeline.

The 5,346% case: Can it actually happen?

Let’s be real for a second. A 5,346% return would take LILPEPE from $0.0022 to roughly $0.12–$0.12+, which would still keep its market cap well below many established meme coins.  For context, DOGE, SHIB, and PEPE have all reached multi-billion-dollar valuations. At a $300 million market cap post-listing, a level that Dogecoin, SHIB, and Pepe Coin each eclipsed by multiples, each LILPEPE token could represent a meaningful gain over current presale pricing based on the 100 billion total token supply.

Bottom line

Solana eyeing $250 is a real thesis with institutional backing. XRP targeting $5 has a clear, if uncertain, catalyst path through ETF approvals and Ripple’s banking push. Both are worth watching. But for those looking for the biggest potential surprise of 2026, the kind of asymmetric play that early PEPE or SHIB holders talk about years later, this cheap crypto under $1, LILPEPE, deserves a serious look right now. With Stage 13 nearly sold out, a confirmed listing price of $0.0030, a purpose-built meme Layer 2 chain, and a team with a track record of building top-performing memecoins, the pieces are in place. The window for a 5,346%+ return doesn’t stay open forever.

For more information about Little Pepe, visit the official website, X, and Telegram, read the whitepaper, and join the 777k giveaway.

Key takeaways:

• Hyperliquid defies the crypto bear market with $3 billion HYPE open interest, a 32% growth in a week.
• Hyperliquid’s TradFi innovation, like SpaceX pre-IPO trading, signals that the path to $80 HYPE price looks well-supported.

Hyperliquid’s native token HYPE rallied 44% over five days, hitting a $76.90 all-time high on Tuesday. Despite the pullback to $73, open interest on HYPE futures reached the $3 billion mark, signaling growing institutional demand. 

With Hyperliquid decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes showing no signs of weakness amid the cryptocurrency bear market, traders question the odds of further HYPE gains above $80.

HYPE futures aggregate open interest, USD. Source: CoinGlass

The aggregate open interest on HYPE futures rose 32% from one week earlier. Hyperliquid DEX held a 53% market share in perpetual trading volumes, followed by Binance at 14%, Bybit at 9% and Bitget at 8% according to DefiLlama data. While demand for HYPE futures has undoubtedly picked up, it’s worth exploring whether the recent price rally was fueled by excess leverage.

HYPE perpetual futures annualized funding rate. Source: Laevitas

The funding rate on HYPE perpetual futures has remained below the neutral 6% threshold for the past week, signaling weak demand for bullish leverage. Given that HYPE futures open interest increased during the period, short sellers appear to be doubling down despite the losses. It is possible that core contributors with tokens currently locked have partially hedged their positions.

HYPE excitement faces valuation concerns and dilution risk 

HYPE circulating supply stood at 253.41 million on Tuesday, while the maximum supply reached 953.92 million according to CoinMarketCap data. Thus, regardless of how quickly current holders face dilution, the project’s fully diluted value (FDV) stands at $71.3 billion. For comparison, the market capitalization of the highly profitable financial company Aon Plc (AON US) stood at $70 billion.

Hyperliquid perpetuals ranking by open interest, USD. Source: Hyperliquid

Hyperliquid has successfully dodged the cryptocurrency bear market thanks to the launch of traditional finance (TradFi) perpetuals, including those on S&P 500 (S&P500), Nasdaq 100 (XYZ100), crude oil (WTIOIL), SpaceX (SPCX), Micron (MU), gold (GOLD), silver (SILVER) and Google (GOOGL). Open interest in TradFi contracts has exceeded $2.9 billion, vastly surpassing Bitcoin’s $2 billion.

Hyperliquid weekly DEX and perpetual volumes, USD. Source: DefiLlama

Considering that aggregate decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes have fallen 57% over the past six months, Hyperliquid stands out as a positive outlier with $9.6 billion in activity. In perpetual contracts trading, no other protocol comes close to Hyperliquid’s 38% market share. Pre-IPO trading of SpaceX shares further highlights the exchange’s constant innovation and broader appeal.

Related: NYSE parent ICE pushes ‘level playing field’ for 24/7 onchain perps

Source: X/EricSRosengren

Hyperliquid’s successful run was highlighted by former Boston Federal Reserve Chair Eric Rosengren, along with an extremely bullish report from Citrini Research, a financial analysis firm. Moreover, HYPE exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have gathered $208 million since launch, signaling strong institutional interest. 

Overall, a surge to $80 for HYPE doesn’t seem out of reach considering Hyperliquid’s revenue generation and growth potential in Real World Assets (RWA) trading.