Metaplanet, the Tokyo-listed firm that has made Bitcoin its primary treasury asset, says it is preparing to expand its Bitcoin strategy into the United States through a controlling stake in Nasdaq-listed Super League Enterprise. The proposed move would create a U.S.-focused Bitcoin treasury platform while allowing Metaplanet to continue raising capital in Japan.

According to Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich, the company plans to contribute 2,100 Bitcoin (BTC) and $2.5 million in cash to Super League. The receiving entity is expected to be renamed “Superplanet,” positioning it as the group’s U.S. Bitcoin treasury vehicle.

Key takeaways

• Metaplanet plans to inject 2,100 BTC (about just under 5% of its 43,000 BTC holdings) plus $2.5 million cash into Super League.
• The deal would create a separate U.S.-oriented treasury platform while Metaplanet continues capital formation efforts in Japan.
• Because the BTC comes from Metaplanet’s existing holdings, the transaction is described as not involving a new BTC purchase.
• Closing is expected in Q4 2026, subject to shareholder approval and other customary conditions.
• Super League’s stock reaction has been dramatic, with trading volume reported to jump nearly 95x after the announcement.

Metaplanet’s U.S. expansion via Superplanet

Gerovich said the arrangement is designed to provide two channels for funding the group’s broader Bitcoin treasury approach. Under the plan, Superplanet would target U.S. markets, while Metaplanet would keep pursuing fundraising in Japan.

The company also suggested that the U.S. structure could widen the strategic options available to the group. Metaplanet said Superplanet may pursue acquisitions in the U.S. Bitcoin treasury sector that could be harder for the Japanese parent company to execute.

Metaplanet’s stated transfer of 2,100 BTC amounts to just under 5% of its reported 43,000 BTC holdings. At the time of the announcement, the value was described as roughly $135 million based on prevailing Bitcoin pricing. Importantly, the BTC would be sourced from Metaplanet’s treasury rather than obtained through a fresh market purchase.

Timing, governance, and how capital could flow

Metaplanet said the transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, assuming customary closing conditions are met. Those conditions include approval from Super League shareholders.

While details of the exact financing mechanics were not fully specified in the company’s remarks, the core premise is straightforward: capital raised by either entity could be directed toward expanding the group’s Bitcoin treasury strategy. This matters for investors because it frames the acquisition not only as a corporate restructuring, but as a capital-allocation expansion—essentially building a second fundraising venue alongside Metaplanet’s existing Japanese operations.

For traders and shareholders, the key unknowns to watch will be how the U.S. vehicle ultimately raises funds, how it is governed relative to the Japanese parent, and what acquisition criteria it uses if Metaplanet’s stated goal of U.S. consolidation comes to fruition.

Super League’s market reaction highlights investor appetite

Super League Enterprise currently operates an immersive gaming, content, and advertising business. Following the announcement, its shares surged more than 50%, and trading activity spiked sharply.

Yahoo Finance data cited in the announcement indicates trading volume reached about 37.3 million shares versus roughly 393,000 shares previously—an increase of nearly 95-fold. Such a move often signals that investors are recalibrating expectations for the company’s future direction and capital strategy, particularly when a publicly traded business is linked to large-scale Bitcoin treasury plans.

Metaplanet’s move also underscores a broader theme in the corporate Bitcoin space: listed companies are increasingly competing not just on treasury size, but on access to capital. By shifting part of that effort into a U.S.-listed wrapper, the strategy may reduce geographic constraints and broaden investor participation.

Corporate Bitcoin treasuries face growing capital-management pressure

Metaplanet has positioned itself among the largest corporate Bitcoin holders. The company is described as the third-largest corporate Bitcoin holder, trailing Twenty One Capital by roughly 500 BTC. Twenty One Capital is a publicly traded Bitcoin treasury company backed by Tether, Bitfinex, and SoftBank, formed to accumulate Bitcoin and increase holdings on a per-share basis.

Metaplanet’s most recent accumulation was last reported as occurring in early July, according to BitcoinTreasuries.NET.

Strategy is another prominent reference point in this market. Michael Saylor’s Strategy is still widely reported as the largest corporate Bitcoin holder, with more than 840,000 BTC. However, the article notes that Strategy has sold Bitcoin in recent months to fund dividends, share repurchases, and its U.S. dollar reserve. That detail highlights a central tension for corporate Bitcoin treasuries: maintaining Bitcoin exposure while also meeting the cash needs that come with being a public company.

Against that backdrop, Metaplanet’s planned U.S. expansion can be viewed as an attempt to strengthen the group’s capital toolkit. If Superplanet can raise funds efficiently in the United States, it may provide additional flexibility—whether for Bitcoin accumulation, strategic acquisitions, or supporting corporate liquidity demands—without relying solely on the Japanese market.

Investors should watch for two developments as this moves toward Q4 2026: the shareholder approval process at Super League, and how Superplanet’s planned fundraising and acquisition strategy will be structured in practice—especially given the ongoing trade-offs corporate Bitcoin holders face between Bitcoin accumulation and broader capital-management obligations.

SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci said on Aug. 18 that Bitcoin’s latest bear market may contain one encouraging signal: its decline has remained smaller than losses recorded during previous cycles.

Speaking with CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, Scaramucci called the downturn a “clear Bitcoin bear market.” However, he argued in the interview that the depth of the selloff could indicate a more resilient buyer base.

Scaramucci referred to a roughly 55% peak-to-trough decline. Bitcoin has since recovered to around $64,000, narrowing its current drawdown from the October 2025 record to approximately 49%.

Bitcoin’s current drawdown is smaller than earlier crashes

Bitcoin reached a record near $126,000 in October 2025. It later fell below $60,000 during the June 2026 liquidation wave, representing a decline of approximately 53% to 55%, depending on the exchange and intraday price used.

Scaramucci compared that move with losses of roughly 75% to 80% during previous Bitcoin bear markets. He argued that the smaller decline could mean “there’s a lot of net buyers” preparing for the next market phase.

That interpretation remains his opinion rather than a confirmed market signal. A smaller drawdown does not establish that Bitcoin has reached its final bottom or that buyers will prevent another decline.

Bitcoin’s current price near $64,000 leaves it approximately 49% below its record, according to current drawdown data. The difference between that reading and Scaramucci’s 55% figure reflects Bitcoin’s recovery from its sub-$60,000 lows.

As crypto.news reported, Bitcoin recently reclaimed the $64,000 level after buyers defended support around $62,750. Compressed volatility and leverage still leave the market exposed to abrupt movements.

Scaramucci says AI absorbed cryptocurrency capital

Scaramucci attributed Bitcoin’s subdued performance partly to capital moving toward artificial intelligence investments. AI-linked equities and investment products attracted strong demand while cryptocurrency markets faced liquidations and weaker institutional flows.

He also pointed to Bitcoin miners redirecting infrastructure toward AI computing. Several publicly traded miners have pursued data-center and high-performance computing contracts as Bitcoin mining economics weakened.

BlackRock reached a similar conclusion about competition for investment flows. The asset manager reported that AI-focused funds received more than $46 billion following Bitcoin’s October peak, while spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products recorded approximately $5 billion in net outflows.

As previously reported, BlackRock said the 50% pullback reflected deleveraging and weaker flows rather than a change in its longer-term investment case. BlackRock’s assessment and Scaramucci’s comments remain institutional views, not guarantees of recovery.

The four-year cycle remains central to his forecast

Scaramucci also linked the bear market to Bitcoin’s four-year issuance cycle. Bitcoin completed its latest halving in April 2024, reducing the block subsidy from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.

The next halving is expected in 2028, although the precise date depends on block production. Scaramucci estimated that the event was approximately 18 or 19 months away when he spoke.

He said another reduction in newly issued Bitcoin could tighten supply and support prices. Based on that view, he expects Bitcoin to “move back up over 100,000,” though he warned that the market could continue grinding sideways beforehand.

The forecast has no stated deadline. Halvings reduce new issuance, but prices also depend on investor demand, leverage, interest rates, exchange-traded product flows and broader economic conditions.

Historical signals do not promise a quick recovery

VanEck’s latest cycle research provides a more cautious near-term view. Eight of its 12 Bitcoin capitulation signals were active on Aug. 12, while every tracked signal had entered capitulation territory during the preceding three months.

As crypto.news reported in its coverage of the potential accumulation phase, VanEck estimated that a cycle transition could occur between September and November.

However, its historical tests found that similar capitulation clusters did not outperform Bitcoin’s normal baseline over the following three or six months. Outperformance appeared only over a one-year period, based on a small and heavily overlapping sample.

Bitcoin’s next test remains whether buyers can establish support above the $64,000 to $65,000 region. U.S. spot exchange-traded product flows, leverage and upcoming economic data may shape the shorter-term direction.

Scaramucci’s argument therefore rests on relative resilience rather than evidence that the bear market has ended. The current decline has been shallower than earlier collapses, but Bitcoin remains almost 50% below its record.

Bitcoin.com has partnered with Universal Digital Intl. Limited to add UAE-regulated USDU to its self-custodial wallet, giving users access to a dollar-backed stablecoin with monthly reserve attestations.

Bitcoin.com said USDU will be supported across its web and mobile wallet as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, allowing users to hold, send, and receive the stablecoin while keeping control of their private keys.

The integration brings USDU into a wallet used by millions of users globally and will also allow the token to be used for designated Bitcoin.com services. Bitcoin.com and Universal plan to work on USDU payments between users and merchants across the platform, while swap and buy-and-sell functions are expected once third-party providers add support.

USDU is issued by Universal Digital Intl. Limited, an Abu Dhabi Global Market-based company regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority for issuing Fiat-Referenced Tokens to professional clients. Universal is also registered with the Central Bank of the UAE as a Foreign Payment Token issuer under the Payment Token Services Regulation.

Each USDU is backed 1:1 by liquid U.S. dollar reserves held with regulated UAE banks, according to Universal. A third-party accounting firm independently attests the reserves each month, with the reports published by the issuer for public review.

USDU brings regulated dollar reserves into self-custody

Under the integration, Bitcoin.com Wallet users will retain their own private keys instead of handing custody of USDU to the wallet provider.

Self-custody means the user controls the keys required to move assets, while custodial platforms hold those keys on their customers’ behalf. A July self-custody explainer detailed how the model removes dependence on an exchange or another custodian but leaves users responsible for protecting their keys and recovery credentials.

Bitcoin.com CEO Corbin Fraser said the reserve structure was an important part of choosing USDU for the wallet.

“People shouldn’t need to be forensic accountants to know what backs the stablecoin they hold,” Fraser said. “USDU’s registration with the UAE central bank and monthly attested 1:1 reserves mean users can verify the backing instead of trusting a logo.”

The wallet will also carry educational material covering fiat-backed stablecoins, reserve attestations and regulated issuance through Bitcoin.com’s Learn-to-Earn content and a dedicated stablecoin education series.

Alongside holding and transfers, users will be able to receive USDU from supported jurisdictions for uses including saving, invoicing and moving funds between wallets or applications. Bitcoin.com said availability will depend on local rules, while additional functionality will depend on support from outside service providers.

Universal Senior Executive Officer Juha Viitala said combining USDU with a self-custodial wallet would allow users to maintain control of their assets while accessing information on the stablecoin’s reserve backing.

“Good standards only matter if people can actually use them,” Viitala said, adding that users will have access to details about USDU’s regulatory status, dollar reserves and independent attestations.

USDU already operates under the UAE payment token framework

Universal launched USDU in January as the first U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin registered with the Central Bank of the UAE as a Foreign Payment Token.

At the time, crypto.news previously reported that Universal had received authorization to issue the token under the UAE framework, with dollar reserves held at regulated banks including Emirates NBD, Mashreq and Mbank. Universal also partnered with Aquanow to distribute USDU into the country’s regulated digital asset market.

USDU’s permitted use in the UAE is narrower than a general-purpose domestic payment stablecoin. Under its current registration, USDU can be used as a means of payment for purchases of digital assets and digital asset derivatives in the country, according to Universal.

The token cannot be used for general payment purposes in mainland UAE, meaning the registration does not permit USDU to function as an unrestricted substitute for the dirham in domestic retail payments.

Universal is separately regulated by the FSRA within ADGM to issue a Fiat-Referenced Token to professional clients. The two regulatory positions cover different parts of its operations, with the CBUAE registration governing its status as a Foreign Payment Token and the FSRA authorization covering issuance within the financial free zone.

USDU’s Ethereum smart contract has also undergone an independent audit by CertiK, according to the companies, while distribution is handled by Aquanow, a virtual asset service provider licensed by Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority.

USDU has also been linked with a dirham stablecoin

The Bitcoin.com agreement follows another distribution step for USDU earlier this year.

In May, AE Coin and Universal introduced a conversion rail connecting the dollar-backed USDU with AE Coin, a UAE dirham-backed stablecoin. The system was developed with support from Al Maryah Community Bank for institutional settlement, treasury operations and cross-border transactions.

Initial access to that framework was offered through regulated digital asset service providers Aquanow and Changer.ae. The companies said the system would allow eligible institutions to move between dollar and dirham-denominated payment tokens within the UAE’s regulated framework.

USDU’s role in the arrangement relies on its Foreign Payment Token status, while AE Coin operates as a locally approved dirham-backed stablecoin. Universal said at the time that the conversion infrastructure could later be used for additional services including trade finance and multi-currency settlement.

The UAE’s payment rules distinguish between foreign currency-backed tokens such as USDU and domestic payment arrangements denominated in dirhams. In May, Crypto.com also received a Stored Value Facilities license from the Central Bank, with its planned Dubai government payment service structured to settle transactions in UAE dirhams or approved dirham-backed stablecoins.

Bitcoin.com plans USDU payments and trading features

Bitcoin.com’s first stage will focus on custody and transfers through its wallet, with users able to store USDU on Ethereum and send the token directly to other supported addresses.

Payments will form another part of the rollout. Bitcoin.com said it will accept USDU for designated services and work toward allowing payments between users and merchants across its products, although the company did not provide a timetable for the additional payment functions.

Trading features will depend on integrations from third-party providers. Swaps and fiat buy-and-sell services are expected to follow when providers begin supporting USDU, and access will continue to vary depending on the user’s jurisdiction.

Universal said the underlying dollar reserves remain held 1:1 in liquid form with regulated UAE banks and are subject to monthly independent attestations. The issuer publishes the attestation reports for users to review directly.

Binance published its 45th Proof of Reserves report using user balances recorded on Aug. 1, 2026. The snapshot showed customer Bitcoin holdings rising for another month, while Ethereum and Tether balances declined.

Users held approximately 657,000 BTC, up 2.55% from the July 1 snapshot. The increase amounted to 16,349 BTC, according to figures published through Binance’s reserve dashboard.

Ethereum balances moved in the opposite direction. Users held about 3.98 million ETH, down 2.57%, or 105,154 ETH. USDT balances also fell 2.57% to approximately 32.9 billion tokens, a decline of roughly 870 million USDT.

Binance user Bitcoin balances rose for a third month

The August snapshot continued a recent increase in customer Bitcoin balances. Binance users added 25,838 BTC during May and another 7,715 BTC during June.

As crypto.news previously reported, customer Bitcoin holdings had already increased in July even as ETH and USDT moved lower. The latest 16,349 BTC increase was more than twice the amount added during the previous reporting period.

The three monthly reports show users adding nearly 50,000 BTC between the May and August snapshots. However, that change does not establish that customers bought the same amount through Binance’s markets.

Reserve balances can rise through deposits from other exchanges, transfers from private wallets, purchases or movements between Binance products. The report does not separate those activities or identify the reasons behind individual balance changes.

Ethereum and USDT holdings extended their declines

Ethereum balances fell for a second consecutive snapshot after rising sharply in the June report. Users held approximately 4.14 million ETH on June 1 before the total declined to around 4.08 million ETH in July and 3.98 million ETH in August.

The latest decrease of 105,154 ETH was larger than the 58,591 ETH reduction recorded one month earlier. The figures could reflect withdrawals, sales, transfers to staking services or movements into other assets. Binance’s snapshot does not determine which explanation applies.

USDT balances followed a similar pattern. Customer holdings stood near 34.3 billion USDT in June and about 33.7 billion USDT in July. The latest report placed the total near 32.9 billion USDT.

That represents three consecutive monthly reports showing lower USDT balances. Still, the decline does not prove that users converted stablecoins into Bitcoin. Funds could have moved into other stablecoins, external wallets or different trading venues.

A comparable balance pattern has appeared elsewhere. In related coverage, Bybit and OKX reported rising Bitcoin balances alongside lower USDT holdings in their recent snapshots.

Binance reports reserves above customer liabilities

Binance reported reserve ratios of 100.25% for both BTC and ETH. A 100.25% ratio means the exchange reported holding approximately 1.0025 units in its reserve wallets for every unit attributed to users at the snapshot time.

USDT had a higher reported ratio of 103.62%. That ratio would place Binance’s corresponding USDT assets above the 32.9 billion tokens assigned to customers.

Binance says its Proof of Reserves system covers user assets on a 1:1 basis, with additional reserves. It uses Merkle trees and zero-knowledge proofs so customers can verify that their account balances were included without viewing other users’ information.

Customers can download the relevant verification data and compare their records with the published Merkle root. Binance also publishes wallet addresses associated with the assets included in its system.

No distinct BTC, ETH or USDT market movement could be reliably attributed to the reserve publication. The report measures customer and exchange balances rather than trading performance or directional demand.

Proof of reserves remains a limited snapshot

Proof of reserves helps determine whether disclosed on-chain assets cover the user liabilities included in a report. It does not provide a continuous record because asset and customer balances can change immediately after the snapshot.

It also does not independently assess every corporate liability, internal control, loan or off-chain obligation. The process therefore differs from a full financial audit covering an organization’s wider balance sheet and operations.

A crypto.news guide explaining how reserve verification works and where it falls short notes that useful disclosures should include assets, customer liabilities, frequent updates and user-verifiable evidence.

Binance has not announced a fixed date for its 46th report. Its recent monthly schedule suggests the next snapshot could use balances recorded around Sept. 1, although the exchange has not confirmed that timing.

The next publication will show whether customer BTC balances continued rising and whether the declines in ETH and USDT holdings persisted. Any interpretation should remain limited to reported account balances rather than assumed buying or withdrawal behavior.

The euro and British pound are trading cautiously against the US dollar as markets await the release of the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting. At its July meeting, the Fed left interest rates unchanged and reiterated that future decisions would depend on incoming economic data.

Investors will pay particular attention to how FOMC members assessed inflation risks, labour-market conditions and the outlook for interest rates. Following softer inflation data and signs of a cooling labour market, a more dovish tone in the minutes could strengthen expectations of monetary easing and weigh on the dollar. Conversely, a continued emphasis on inflation risks and a restrictive policy stance could provide additional support for the US currency.

For sterling, today’s UK inflation figures will provide an additional catalyst. The data will be closely assessed for clues about the Bank of England’s next policy steps. Persistent price pressures could reduce the scope for further monetary easing and support the pound, while a more pronounced slowdown in inflation could reinforce expectations of lower interest rates.

With few major domestic catalysts for the euro, EUR/USD is likely to remain particularly sensitive to movements in the US dollar. As a result, the FOMC minutes could become a key driver of the pair’s next move.

EUR/USD

EUR/USD tested the June highs near 1.1600 yesterday. From a technical perspective, the pair could extend its advance towards 1.1660–1.1680 if the previous session’s high is successfully turned into a support level.

Failure to establish a firm foothold above the current levels, however, could trigger a corrective move and bring the pair back towards the 1.1500 support area.

Key events for EUR/USD:

• today at 12:30 (GMT+3): German 10-year Bund auction;
• today at 17:30 (GMT+3): US crude oil inventories;
• today at 21:00 (GMT+3): release of the FOMC minutes.

GBP/USD

GBP/USD buyers have managed to push the pair above the important 1.3500 resistance level over the past few sessions. If the pair can maintain its position above this threshold, the next upside targets could be found around 1.3600–1.3640.

A decisive move back below 1.3500, on the other hand, could signal the start of a bearish correction towards the 1.3430–1.3470 area.

Key events for GBP/USD:

• today at 09:00 (GMT+3): UK Consumer Price Index (CPI);
• today at 11:30 (GMT+3): UK house price index;
• tomorrow at 15:30 (GMT+3): US Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index.

EUR/USD and GBP/USD are both holding close to important technical levels, leaving the next directional move dependent on fresh fundamental signals. UK inflation will be the first major catalyst for sterling, while the FOMC minutes represent the main event for both currency pairs.

A more dovish message from the Federal Reserve could put renewed pressure on the dollar and support further gains in the euro and pound. Conversely, a persistently hawkish stance could strengthen the US currency and trigger corrective declines in both EUR/USD and GBP/USD.

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Interstice Digital has launched a non-custodial cross-chain swap engine with FalconX that connects the Canton Network with Ethereum, Solana, and Robinhood Chain while using FalconX to supply liquidity.

Interstice Digital said in an Aug. 18 announcement that the engine lets users swap assets across the four networks without the company taking custody of funds or executing transactions on their behalf. The company also said the product has been named a Featured App on Canton.

The system is designed to give users a route between tokenized assets issued or traded through Canton and liquidity available on public blockchain networks. FalconX, which provides digital asset prime brokerage services to institutional investors, is supplying liquidity for the engine.

Interstice Digital links Canton with three public-chain markets

Under the new setup, Interstice is connecting Canton’s institution-focused infrastructure with Ethereum, Solana and Robinhood Chain, three networks that provide access to different parts of the digital asset market.

Interstice described Canton as a public, permissionless blockchain built for capital markets, with privacy and permissioning controls intended for regulated transactions. The network is used by financial institutions working with tokenized securities, collateral, and blockchain-based settlement.

For the public-chain side of the connection, Interstice cited the scale of the networks involved. The company said Robinhood has 28 million funded accounts and $369 billion in total platform assets, while Robinhood Chain reached 100 million transactions faster than any other EVM network.

Solana recorded 167 million monthly active addresses in April 2026 and handled $650 billion of stablecoin transaction volume in February, according to figures cited by Interstice. The company described Ethereum as the industry’s deepest developer ecosystem and noted that Robinhood Chain uses Ethereum technology as its base.

“We built the cross-chain swap engine to help connect Solana, Ethereum, and Robinhood Chain to the growing Canton ecosystem where over $9T in tokenized RWA flow monthly,” Interstice Digital CEO Janine Yorio said.

Interstice did not disclose which assets are supported at launch or provide transaction-volume figures for the engine. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Everyrealm and is backed by investors including a16z Crypto, Coinbase Ventures, Galaxy and Brevan Howard.

FalconX supplies liquidity without Interstice holding user assets

FalconX’s role centers on liquidity for swaps routed through the engine. Interstice said its non-custodial structure means it does not hold customer assets or act as the party executing transactions for users.

FalconX Head of Trading Strategy Hassan Bassiri said institutional demand for digital assets is increasing and argued that firms will need infrastructure capable of moving capital between different ecosystems.

“The cross-chain swap engine we’ve developed with Interstice Digital is exactly the kind of infrastructure this market needs,” Bassiri said, after describing cross-ecosystem capital movement as an important requirement for institutional firms.

Canton is also being used for live and trial transactions involving government securities, stablecoins and institutional collateral.

Earlier in August, four Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group companies launched a proof of concept to test Japanese government bond repo transactions on Canton, as crypto.news reported on Aug. 13. MUFG, Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking and MUFG Bank are working with Digital Asset and Progmat on the project.

The participants plan to test automated processing and real-time settlement available around the clock. The trial forms part of Japan’s Financial Services Agency-backed Payment Innovation Project and includes work on whether blockchain infrastructure can improve funding and capital use in repo markets.

An earlier Japanese trial involving Japan Securities Clearing Corporation, Mizuho Financial Group, Nomura Holdings and Digital Asset tested whether rights linked to Japanese government bonds and updates to book-entry records could be handled through Canton while remaining within Japan’s existing legal framework.

Canton has expanded tokenized settlement activity

Canton has also been used in transactions involving tokenized U.S. government securities. In July, Tradeweb said it executed an onchain U.S. Treasury trade in which Franklin Templeton transferred a tokenized Treasury security to Virtu Financial in exchange for tokenized cash.

Tradeweb provided execution and price discovery, while Canton synchronized settlement between the two assets in real time, according to the companies involved. Tradeweb described the transaction as the first real-time purchase and sale of a tokenized U.S. Treasury settled against USDCx, a USDC-backed stablecoin issued on Canton.

Societe Generale, Digital Asset and Blockdaemon also participated in the transaction. Societe Generale has separately deployed euro- and dollar-denominated stablecoins on Canton for uses including tokenized collateral, repo financing and institutional settlement.

Payment companies are testing the network as well. Visa tested private stablecoin settlement using Brale’s SBC token on Canton in June and has since included Canton among the blockchains supported by its stablecoin settlement program. A July report on Visa’s program said the settlement pilot supported nine blockchains and had reached a $7 billion annualized run rate by March.

Visa joined Canton as a Super Validator in March before adding the network to its stablecoin settlement work. The company received approval for its validator application that month and later added Canton to its stablecoin settlement pilot.

Digital Asset has raised capital for Canton expansion

Institutional funding has accompanied the increase in activity around the network. Digital Asset, the company behind Canton, raised $355 million in June in a round led by Andreessen Horowitz’s a16z crypto fund.

A16z crypto contributed $100 million to the round, while other participants included Citadel Securities, Apollo, BNP Paribas, CME Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, HSBC, Optiver and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. Digital Asset said the capital would support partnerships, acquisitions and expansion of the Canton ecosystem.

The funding followed a $135 million strategic round involving Goldman Sachs, Citadel Securities, DTCC, BNP Paribas and Tradeweb Markets. Digital Asset has positioned Canton for financial applications that require transaction privacy while allowing different institutions and applications to coordinate settlement.

Canton’s use in government-bond markets has continued in Asia. The MUFG repo proof of concept is examining Japanese government bonds in short-term financing transactions, while a separate Progmat working group has been studying tokenized JGBs, stablecoin settlement, T+0 processing and 24-hour access.

S&P Dow Jones Indices and Kaiko have also placed the iBoxx U.S. Treasuries index on Canton through smart-contract infrastructure, according to the Aug. 13 MUFG report. The index project sits alongside other Canton-based work involving tokenized Treasury products and institutional collateral.