The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has proposed a temporary pause on new registrations for payment-system operators while tightening how banks and other BSP-supervised institutions handle payment arrangements involving regulated virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The move, set out in a draft circular, is designed to give the regulator time to “holistically” review its approach to licensing and the taxonomy used for payment-system oversight.

Under the proposal, the BSP would suspend the acceptance and processing of applications from entities seeking to operate payment systems for 12 months. Applications already submitted before the suspension would still be assessed, but the BSP would not approve or deny them until the pause period ends—effectively freezing new licensing decisions in the segment while the framework is reviewed.

Key takeaways

• The BSP proposes a 12-month halt on accepting new payment-system operator (OPS) registration applications to complete a review of its licensing and taxonomy.
• Existing applications would continue to be evaluated, but BSP would delay approval or denial until the pause ends.
• Banks and BSP-supervised institutions that offer merchant acquisition services would have to route merchant relationships with regulated VASPs through direct arrangements with added risk controls.
• The stricter requirements would apply to VASPs licensed, registered, or authorized by the BSP, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), or another relevant authority.
• The draft would take effect 15 days after publication if finalized, and BSP is currently collecting feedback.

OPS registration pause aims at revising the regulator’s framework

In the draft circular, the BSP says it would suspend acceptance and processing of OPS applications as part of a “holistic review” of its taxonomy and licensing framework for payment systems. The regulator’s intent is not to immediately deny new entrants, but to slow the flow of new licensing activity while it revises how payment operators are categorized and supervised.

Importantly, the suspension would not wipe out pending work. Applications submitted before the pause would be allowed to continue through evaluation, but BSP would withhold any approval or denial until the 12-month review period concludes. The proposal also states that entities would not be allowed to start activities that require OPS registration unless the BSP grants authorization outside the standard process.

Merchant acquisition rules tighten for regulated crypto-related payments

Alongside the OPS pause, the BSP’s draft includes specific constraints for merchant acquisition services—functions commonly tied to how merchants are onboarded and how card or payment processing is enabled.

According to the draft, BSP-supervised institutions offering merchant acquisition services would need to handle regulated VASPs through direct merchant arrangements. Those relationships would be subject to enhanced due diligence and monitoring, as well as transaction and settlement limits and other risk-based controls.

For market participants, the practical impact is straightforward: even if a VASP is properly regulated, payment rails managed by BSP-supervised intermediaries would still face stricter oversight. The draft does not describe the exact level of transaction or settlement limits, but it explicitly requires risk-based measures as part of the direct arrangement model.

Which businesses are in scope—and why VASPs are grouped with higher-risk categories

The BSP draft is explicit that the requirement would apply to VASPs that are licensed, registered, or authorized by the BSP, the SEC, or another relevant authority. It frames VASPs as a type of regulated entity that will fall under the same kind of heightened scrutiny typically used for other higher-risk sectors.

In the proposal, VASPs are listed alongside categories that include gambling businesses, gaming providers, adult-oriented businesses, and money service businesses. While the draft does not equate all these industries in terms of risk, the grouping suggests the BSP intends to treat crypto-related payment arrangements with a risk-control mindset rather than relying solely on “regulated” status.

That matters for businesses seeking to expand merchant processing services to crypto platforms: the BSP’s draft indicates that compliance architecture—including enhanced due diligence and active monitoring—will be central to approvals and ongoing operations, not an afterthought.

Timeline and next steps for the draft circular

The BSP states that if the draft circular is finalized, it would take effect 15 days after publication. The central bank is currently accepting feedback, meaning the eventual final rule could reflect adjustments based on industry comments.

Cointelegraph reported that it reached out to the BSP for additional information but did not receive a response before publication.

Related coverage from Cointelegraph notes that the Philippines SEC has flagged certain platforms as unauthorized—highlighting that Philippine regulators are actively working to enforce permissions and oversight for crypto-related activity. Against that backdrop, the BSP’s payment-system proposal appears focused on strengthening payment integrity and controls, particularly where payments interface with regulated virtual asset firms.

What to watch as BSP reviews its payment licensing approach

For investors, payments providers, and regulated VASPs planning expansion, the immediate question is whether the final rules will further define the scope of merchant acquisition limits and the specific due-diligence standards expected for direct arrangements. The next watchpoint is the 12-month OPS application suspension: once the pause ends, BSP’s revised taxonomy and licensing framework could determine how quickly new payment-system entrants can obtain approvals and under what conditions.

The U.S. Treasury Department fully launched its government debt buyback program on Sep. 7, boosting market expectations regarding the near-term liquidity of Bitcoin and XRP.

The program has a weekly cap of $14.5 billion. According to the blockchain media outlet U.Today, the maximum execution volume for a single trading day could reach $16.5 billion.

Market attention is focused on Sep. 9. On that day, the U.S. Treasury plans to raise the per-operation cap for long-term Treasury buybacks from $2 billion to $4 billion, targeting securities with maturities of 10 to 30 years. The total value of bonds the Treasury plans to repurchase from the market in September is approximately $38.25 billion. During the same period, the Federal Reserve plans to invest up to $2.122 billion in short-term Treasury securities under its principal reinvestment program.

The cryptocurrency market is closely watching whether the capital flowing in through major banks and dealers will spur demand for risk assets. Authorities have described the multi-billion-dollar injection as a “routine” measure. However, traders believe that the funds injected through the Treasury’s repurchase of older bonds could serve as a potential catalyst for cryptocurrency prices to break out of their long-standing trading ranges.

As of early September, net inflows into US spot XRP ETFs have exceeded $1.66 billion. The market is closely watching whether US dollar liquidity can help XRP break through the key resistance level of $1.70 and subsequently advance toward the psychological $2 mark.

However, policy uncertainties remain; on Sep. 15, the U.S. Senate is set to hold a crucial vote on the Clarity Act. For XRP, this date is considered one of the most significant catalysts of the autumn. With market volatility remaining high, prices repeatedly trading sideways and trending downward, investors face major challenges, creating an urgent need for a new asset management strategy that supports XRP.

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• KuCoin launches KCUSD with a base APR of up to 4%.
• KCUSD offers daily returns on eligible stablecoin balances.
• KuCoin plans to expand KCUSD into collateral and trading utility.

KuCoin has launched KCUSD, a new Earn product designed to help stablecoin holders generate returns on otherwise idle balances.

The product will be available to eligible retail, high-net-worth, and institutional users, with subscriptions initially starting from as little as 1 USDT, USDC, or USDG.

KCUSD will offer a dynamic base annual percentage rate (APR) of up to 4%, with users able to earn returns simply by holding the asset.

KuCoin said there will be no subscription fee, while redemptions will be available in the same asset used for subscriptions.

Returns will be credited daily and automatically added to users’ KCUSD balances.

This structure allows returns to compound daily without requiring users to manually reinvest their earnings.

During the initial launch period, eligible users who participate with qualifying new funds may receive a promotional APR of up to 6%, according to the company.

Product targets idle stablecoin balances

KuCoin said stablecoins play a central role in digital asset market liquidity, but significant balances can remain idle in trading accounts.

Users may keep stablecoins available for margin requirements or time-sensitive trading opportunities, potentially leaving those assets without a yield.

The exchange said moving such balances into traditional staking or standalone Earn products can reduce their immediate trading utility.

The trade-off is particularly relevant for institutions, market makers, professional trading firms, and high-net-worth users that maintain large stablecoin balances for extended periods.

KCUSD initially addresses this issue through a hold-to-earn model, allowing users to generate returns while holding the product.

KuCoin also plans to expand KCUSD’s utility in the future by integrating it as collateral or margin.

The company said this planned functionality is intended to reduce the trade-off between earning returns and maintaining access to capital for trading activities.

KuCoin plans broader utility for KCUSD

KuCoin CEO BC Wong said the launch reflects the company’s view that digital asset infrastructure needs to focus not only on access and liquidity but also on how efficiently capital can be deployed.

“Our long-term view is that yield, liquidity and risk utility should not remain in separate silos,” Wong said.

KuCoin described KCUSD as an infrastructure layer that could connect liquidity, asset productivity and risk management across its ecosystem. The product is expected to begin with yield generation before progressively expanding toward collateral and trading utility.

The company said the development reflects a broader shift in digital finance, with stablecoins increasingly being positioned as productive capital rather than solely as settlement assets or reserves.

Bitcoin posted its first weekly close above $80,000 in roughly four months, landing just after markets refocused on a fresh batch of U.S. inflation releases ahead of the Federal Reserve’s Sept. 16 meeting. The move comes as investors balance softer inflation prints against renewed pressure from a stronger labor market and ongoing policy uncertainty.

At the same time, analysts say BTC’s bounce still lacks the spot-market participation needed to decisively break out of the $80,000 area. On-chain and derivatives data point to a rally that has leaned heavily on futures positioning—an imbalance that typically increases the odds of volatility if macro conditions turn.

Key takeaways

• Bitcoin achieved its first weekly close above $80,000 since early May, according to TradingView data.
• U.S. CPI and PPI prints are due this week ahead of the Sept. 16 Fed decision; CME’s FedWatch Tool shows 0.25% hike odds at 58.4%.
• Japan’s record yen interventions coincide with a reported $79.57 billion drop in foreign reserves, raising questions about ongoing U.S. Treasury sales.
• CryptoQuant argues recent upside volatility was driven more by derivatives open interest than by spot/on-chain accumulation.
• Bitcoin’s weekly supertrend indicator turned “buy” for the first time since late 2025, echoing a pattern seen during the early-2023 recovery.

Inflation week before the Fed: what markets are betting on

Inflation data returned to the center of crypto sentiment after earlier employment news pushed risk assets lower. This week, the August Producer Price Index (PPI) is scheduled for release on Thursday, followed by August CPI on Friday.

Prior CPI figures offered a mixed backdrop: the August CPI print “matched market expectations” at 0.1% month-on-month and 3.4% year-on-year, following softer-than-anticipated June results. Even so, Fed leadership has continued to stress that recent improvement may not yet justify changing course. Speaking at the Jackson Hole economic symposium in late August, Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh said lower headline measures did not, by themselves, establish that underlying inflation trends were meaningfully improving.

That distinction matters for traders because the Fed’s policy reaction function depends heavily on “trend” inflation rather than isolated prints. In response to Warsh’s remarks and the broader data flow, markets shifted toward a higher probability of rate hikes for the Sept. 16 meeting.

According to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, the consensus currently favors a 0.25% rate hike, with odds at 58.4%. This hawkish tilt intensified after last week’s nonfarm payrolls report, which came in “far stronger than expected” and included upward revisions to earlier figures. The U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs in August versus a prior estimate of 56,000.

A stronger labor market generally reduces pressure on the Fed to loosen policy—especially when core inflation remains above the Fed’s 2% objective. While some officials have discussed support for pausing rate hikes, the market is still focused on how PPI and CPI could reshape expectations in the days before the meeting.

Mosaic Asset Company suggested that the jobs report could still carry an equity-friendly angle through corporate earnings, but also warned that seasonality may complicate matters. It noted that September is traditionally equities’ weakest month and that volatility may rise into the Q4 period, with U.S. midterm elections adding another potential catalyst for turbulence.

Japan’s intervention record keeps yen and liquidity in focus

Beyond U.S. inflation, traders are also tracking Japan’s yen dynamics. Japan’s Ministry of Finance reported that foreign reserves fell by $79.57 billion from the end of July amid record currency intervention. The yen strengthened to around 155 per dollar and held that level during Monday’s Asia session.

Bloomberg previously reported that Japan may have relied heavily on selling U.S. Treasuries to fund these operations. That approach could have second-order effects for U.S. bond markets and for how long Japan can sustain intervention without drawing Washington’s response.

The concern extends to the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) position. If yen weakness returns and further intervention becomes necessary, critics argue it could become harder for both the ministry and the BOJ to act within their constraints.

Polymarket data currently prices in a BOJ September rate increase, reflecting the idea that policy makers may need to tighten to defend the currency. With benchmark rates already at the highest level since 1995 at 1.0%, Polymarket is showing 98% odds of a 0.25% hike.

For crypto, these FX and rates headlines can matter because BTC and broader risk markets are sensitive to changes in USD/JPY, particularly where yen-carry trades and global liquidity conditions are concerned.

Derivatives surge without clear spot confirmation

Even as BTC reclaimed a key weekly milestone, analysts argue the underlying demand signal is still incomplete. CryptoQuant pointed out that the recent upside volatility was paired with sharp increases in derivatives open interest, suggesting that derivatives traders drove a large share of the move rather than spot buyers.

In one example, CryptoQuant reported that aggregate open interest rose from $25.2 billion to $27.53 billion in a single session—an increase of about $2.3 billion (+9.24%). On an hourly basis around 09:00 UTC, price action and open interest began expanding almost simultaneously, which CryptoQuant interpreted as evidence of new position-building.

At the same time, CryptoQuant said realized cap did not keep pace with the open interest jump. In its view, the rally had some spot/on-chain participation, but the dominant driver was futures leverage—creating a market structure that can unwind quickly if funding conditions change.

This imbalance shows up in how spot demand is tracking. CryptoQuant cautioned that spot demand remains negative and that it has been diverging from futures demand on a 30-day rolling basis. The platform also highlighted that spot BTC outflows increased further even after the rebound—its interpretation being that the rally did not yet translate into persistent spot accumulation.

Previous Cointelegraph coverage also flagged similar concerns, describing how apparent demand had turned negative as BTC’s dormant supply growth outpaced new issuance. For traders, the practical implication is that a sustainable breakout typically requires stronger spot absorption—conditions that remain uncertain as long as derivatives lead.

Liquidity walls around $80,000 and a bullish-but-testable trend signal

BTC’s weekly close above $80,000 marks a notable technical shift, but the $80,000 zone is not yet acting as reliable support. Sell-side liquidity continues to cluster just above the level, keeping price pinned within a narrower trading range.

CoinGlass data shows liquidity concentrated around $80,560, forming what the analysis describes as a thick wall of resistance. This helps explain why BTC has been unable to hold above $80,000 consistently despite the bullish weekly close.

Looking higher, on-chain-focused commentary from Glassnode previously identified additional dense liquidity bands—especially a band between $83,000 and $86,000. In its newsletter, Glassnode wrote that an upward impulse consumed some short orders but stopped short of the densest cluster of short liquidation “fuel” in that upper zone. Below spot, it said the move left intact a separate long liquidation band between $60,000 and $63,000, framing the current consolidation as a market trapped between boundaries.

Chart-watchers are also watching for a potential resolution direction. Jesse Olson, developer of the Markets Sniper trading suite, suggested BTC/USD could be repeating a bullish chart fractal from August 2023, with $76,000 described as a potential local reversal point.

Supertrend flips green: why the weekly indicator stands out

One of the clearest trend signals cited in the market commentary is BTC’s weekly supertrend indicator. Sunday’s weekly close flipped the indicator to green for the first time since November 2025, producing a “buy” signal.

The supertrend method uses average true range (ATR) and a multiplier to calculate a trendline, then issues a buy or sell signal based on how price interacts with that level. Weekly signals are closely watched by Bitcoin traders because, as the analysis notes, a weekly close above the supertrend line has not occurred during a bear market. The last time supertrend switched from red to green was in mid-January 2023, when BTC’s bear-market bottom at $15,600 was already about two months behind it.

That historical context is part of why some traders view this as more than a short-term signal. It also aligns with other indicators analysts cited recently, including BTC’s earlier weekly reclaim of its 50-week exponential moving average—an event described as historically important for long-term trend reversals after a prolonged downtrend.

What to watch next is whether the market’s key catalysts—U.S. CPI/PPI ahead of Sept. 16, and ongoing yen-liquidity developments tied to Japan’s intervention path—translate into stronger spot participation. If derivatives remain the primary driver while spot demand stays weak, the $80,000 breakout signal may stay vulnerable despite bullish trend indicators.