Crypto World
SEC Allows Broker-Dealers a 2% Haircut on Stablecoins
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s staff provided regulatory clarity last week on how broker-dealers can treat stablecoin holdings for net capital purposes, allowing a 2% haircut rather than applying a full 100% deduction. The guidance appeared as an official posting in the SEC’s “Frequently Asked Questions Relating to Crypto Asset Activities and Distributed Ledger Technology,” a living document used to address practical questions about handling crypto assets within traditional market infrastructure. The change comes after broker-dealers faced ambiguity about whether stablecoins—cryptocurrency tokens pegged to the US dollar—should count toward capital requirements. Commissioner Hester Peirce publicly welcomed the middle-ground approach, arguing a 100% haircut would be unduly punitive given the reserves backing these coins. The policy frames stablecoins more like cash-equivalents in balance sheets, a move that could unlock broader participation in tokenized securities and related crypto activities, without compromising the capital backbone of broker-dealers.
Key takeaways
- The SEC staff’s FAQ clarifies that broker-dealers may apply a 2% haircut to stablecoins when calculating net capital, reducing the capital impact compared with a full haircut.
- The guidance positions stablecoins closer to money-market-like instruments, linking their treatment to the reserves backing the tokens and their role in settlement rails.
- Illustratively, a broker-dealer holding $100 million in stablecoins could count $98 million toward net capital under the new guidance.
- Commissioner Peirce described the stance as measured, noting that a 100% haircut would be punitive relative to the underlying assets backing payment-stable coins.
- The development coincides with growing stablecoin traction in the United States, even as some officials question practical use cases and regulatory implications.
Tickers mentioned:
Sentiment: Neutral
Market context: The move reflects ongoing regulatory adjustments as stablecoins gain ground in US markets, spurred in part by recent legislation and ongoing debates about the role of crypto in mainstream finance.
Why it matters
The haircut clarification matters because it reduces the capital burden on broker-dealers that wish to hold and potentially utilize stablecoins in a broader set of activities, including trading and settlement of tokenized securities. By treating stablecoins more like cash equivalents, broker-dealers can allocate a portion of their stablecoin holdings toward capital requirements with a smaller drag on liquidity. That has implications for how these institutions manage risk, liquidity, and regulatory capital, potentially enabling more cost-effective participation in digital-asset markets.
From a risk-management perspective, the 2% haircut aligns with the notion that stablecoins mirror short-duration, high-quality reserve assets—the same logic used to justify the treatment of money market funds. The guidance thus reduces a prior barrier to using stablecoins for on-chain settlement and liquidity provisioning in tokenized markets. It also dovetails with industry commentary about stablecoins enabling more efficient cross-asset transactions and broader adoption of on-chain finance in mainstream trading desks.
“Stablecoins are essential to transacting on blockchain rails. Using stablecoins will make it feasible for broker-dealers to engage in a broader range of business activities relating to tokenized securities and other crypto assets.”
While the SEC clarification is a positive signal for market participants seeking clearer capital rules, it does not replace comprehensive regulatory rulemaking or policy debates. The guidance is a staff-level interpretation, not a formal amendment to net capital rules, meaning future adjustments could still occur as regulators evaluate risks, reserve adequacy, and systemic implications. Nevertheless, the response from industry observers has been to view the move as a meaningful step toward practical use-cases for stablecoins within regulated financial infrastructures.
Beyond the regulatory text, market dynamics around stablecoins have remained a focal point. Data tracked by RWA.XYZ shows a stablecoin market capitalization that has hovered in the high hundreds of billions, with fluctuations tied to sentiment, regulatory developments, and policy signals. The GENIUS stablecoin bill, signed into law in July 2025 by the US President, was widely seen as a landmark in digital-asset policy, spurring a surge in interest and activity around regulated stablecoin frameworks. The market cap climbed after the signing, reaching a reported peak above $300 billion in December 2025 and a current level around $295 billion. This trajectory illustrates how regulatory clarity and legislative actions can influence the adoption and liquidity of digital-asset primitives like stablecoins.
Yet not everyone in the policy community is sold on the immediate practical value of stablecoins. Neel Kashkari, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, has dismissed broad utility claims for crypto and stablecoins, at least in the sense of everyday financial transactions. In a public remarks sequence, he questioned what advantage stablecoins offer beyond existing payment rails, a stance that underscores the ongoing debate about the real-world use cases for digital assets in the U.S. financial system. The tension between regulation that enables innovation and skepticism about the utility of crypto assets as payment instruments continues to shape the regulatory narrative.
The weekend chatter among industry observers and crypto-analysts highlighted the significance of the SEC’s clarification for market participants seeking to align risk controls with evolving capital requirements. The reaction on social platforms and among executives underscored that the guidance, while incremental, could unlock a more expansive role for stablecoins in large financial operations, particularly as broker-dealers explore new settlement mechanisms, collateral arrangements, and asset tokenization ventures. In a market where headlines can rapidly influence liquidity and pricing, even modest shifts in capital treatment can ripple through trading desks, liquidity pools, and balance sheet strategies across the traditional-crypto interface.
What to watch next
- Whether the SEC issues additional formal guidance or rules clarifying net capital treatment for other crypto assets beyond stablecoins.
- Broker-dealer adoption: how quickly institutions incorporate the 2% haircut guidance into internal risk models and capital planning.
- Regulatory dialogues around stablecoins’ reserve assets and disclosure standards, particularly in relation to the GENIUS framework and related legislation.
- Monitoring shifts in market liquidity and settlement activity as broker-dealers experiment with stablecoins for tokenized-securities trading and other crypto-asset workflows.
- Further public commentary from policymakers, including any updates on the perspectives of central banks regarding crypto-like payments and reserve structures.
Sources & verification
- SEC staff guidance: “Frequently Asked Questions Relating to Crypto Asset Activities and Distributed Ledger Technology.” https://www.sec.gov/rules-regulations/staff-guidance/trading-markets-frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-relating-crypto-asset-activities-distributed-ledger-technology
- SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce speech on stablecoins and capital requirements: https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/speeches-statements/peirce-stablecoin-021926-cutting-two-would-do
- SEC staff clarification page referenced in coverage: https://www.sec.gov/rules-regulations/staff-guidance/trading-markets-frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-relating-crypto-asset-activities-distributed-ledger-technology
- RWA.XYZ stablecoins data: https://app.rwa.xyz/stablecoins
- Trump signs GENIUS stablecoin bill into law: https://cointelegraph.com/news/donald-trump-stablecoin-law-signed
- Associated Press video of the GENIUS signing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHD1G9UkCAU
- Marc Baumann LinkedIn post on the SEC guidance impact: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/marcphilippeb_%F0%9D%97%9D%F0%9D%97%A8%F0%9D%97%A6%F0%9D%97%A7-%F0%9D%97%9C%F0%9D%97%A1-the-sec-just-quietly-put-activity-7431070237011165184-oEfq?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAACDbMEBdyjl2O5sxzEsy9aglmivyOPP2qs
SEC clarifies 2% haircut rule for broker-dealers’ stablecoins
The publication of the SEC staff’s Frequently Asked Questions on crypto asset activities and distributed ledger technology marks a notable point in the ongoing evolution of regulatory clarity around digital assets used in traditional financial infrastructure. By allowing broker-dealers to apply a modest 2% haircut to their stablecoin holdings when calculating net capital, the staff provides a practical path forward for integrating stablecoins into regulated markets without forcing sharp, punitive reductions in capital buffers. The guidance explicitly references the Reserve- and asset-backed nature of stablecoins and positions these tokens as potential collateral and settlement assets that can support a broader spectrum of financial activities within the broker-dealer ecosystem.
In explaining the rationale, Peirce’s remarks emphasize the importance of avoiding unnecessarily punitive treatment that could hinder innovation. While the agency’s statement stops short of broad policy changes, it offers a concrete interpretive framework that market participants can incorporate into risk management, liquidity planning, and product development. The 2% haircut aligns with the conceptual approach of treating stablecoins similarly to money market instruments, which typically occupy a lower tier of capital risk in traditional finance. This alignment could lower barriers to using stablecoins as a practical tool in rapid settlement and collateralization for tokenized assets, potentially accelerating the adoption of blockchain-enabled workflows in regulated environments.
From a market perspective, the move arrives at a moment when the stablecoin sector has demonstrated resilience and growth, even as public officials debate the broader role of crypto assets in the financial system. The GENIUS law’s passage in mid-2025 and the subsequent market dynamics around stablecoins have illustrated both regulatory appetite for a clear framework and the continuing question of how these instruments will function alongside conventional payment rails. While some policymakers remain skeptical about the immediate utility of crypto-based payment methods—as reflected in cautious remarks by figures like the Federal Reserve’s Kashkari—the sector’s measured regulatory progress signals a potential for more defined, scalable usage in professional finance. As broker-dealers begin to implement and test the new haircut guidance, observers will watch for practical enrollment, risk controls, and any regulatory updates that accompany evolving supervision of digital assets.
Crypto World
The S&P 500 is officially coming to crypto with its first-ever 24/7 perpetual futures product
S&P Dow Jones Indices announced Wednesday that it is bringing the S&P 500 to the blockchain via the Hyperliquid platform, making it easier for investors to trade the most widely tracked equity index 24 hours a day.
The company said it licensed its flagship stock index to Trade[XYZ], which is launching the first officially approved S&P 500 perpetual contract on the Hyperliquid blockchain.
In simple terms, this means eligible non-U.S. investors can trade the S&P 500 onchain, around the clock, without using traditional stock exchanges.
Perpetual futures contracts, or “perps,” are derivative instruments without expiration dates that allow investors to place bets on an asset’s price without owning it, using funding rates, typically every few hours, to keep prices aligned with spot markets. Their infinite duration (perpetual futures contracts never expire, unlike traditional contracts), high-leverage options, and round-the-clock access have made them extremely popular in the crypto space and have generated billions in daily trading volume across exchanges.
For the S&P 500, it is the first time it has been turned into a perpetual product with official backing from S&P. It also uses the firm’s real-time index data, bringing a more traditional finance standard into crypto trading. This guarantees the accuracy of index trading while the traditional market remains closed.
S&P says the goal is to expand where and how its indexes can be used. “This collaboration expands access” to its benchmarks in digital markets, said S&P’s Chief Product Officer Cameron Drinkwater.
24//7 trading
The move opens the door for non-U.S. investors to get leveraged exposure to the S&P 500 through a blockchain-based platform.
For example, if big macro news hits on the weekend, when the market is closed, traders traditionally need to speculate on how the S&P 500 will move on Monday, when the market opens. However, with these new perpetual contracts, traders can place bets immediately and with accuracy as soon as news breaks. Recently, crypto traders were able to trade oil futures on decentralized exchange Hyperliquid on a weekend, when the first missile hit Iran, while traditional oil markets remained closed.
Trade[XYZ] runs on Hyperliquid, a decentralized network built for fast trading. The platform says its markets are always open, unlike stock exchanges that close after hours and on weekends. XYZ markets have exceeded $100 billion since October, with an annualized run rate of more than $600 billion.
The news seems to have helped HYPE, the native token of the Hyperliquid platform. The token is up 2.2% over the past 24 hours, 14.2% over the past 7 days, and 35.5% over the past month. Hyperliquid has recently become a crypto trader’s favorite platform for trading markets outside traditional finance.
Recently, Maelstrom CIO and BitMEX Co-Founder Arthur Hayes said traders are increasingly using Hyperliquid to access markets unavailable on traditional platforms, noting that the HYPE token could reach $150, citing the platform’s strong revenue, real trading activity, and disciplined token supply.
Trade[XYZ] said the S&P 500 is just the starting point as it looks to bring more traditional assets onchain. “The S&P 500 is a natural starting point. It represents the most widely tracked equity index on earth and has been the defining benchmark for global equities for decades,” said Collins Belton, chief operating officer and general counsel of Trade[XYZ]’s parent company.
The announcement builds on S&P DJI’s prior decentralized finance initiatives, including its recent launch of the S&P Digital Markets 50 index, the company said.
Read more: 2026 Marks the Inflection Point for 24/7 Capital Markets
The move follows the EF’s first deployment into the DeFi lending protocol in October, and is part of its updated treasury policy.
The Ethereum Foundation has deposited another 3,400 ETH — worth roughly $7.5 million at today’s prices, near $2,220 — into DeFi lending protocol Morpho, with 1,000 ETH allocated specifically to Morpho Vaults V2, according to a X post from the EF today, March 18.
The move follows an initial deployment in October 2025, when the EF put 2,400 ETH (~$5.3 million) and approximately $6 million in stablecoins into the protocol — bringing the Foundation’s total Morpho commitment to just under $19 million to date.
According to the post, the DeFi deployments are a direct expression of the EF’s refreshed treasury policy, first unveiled in June 2025, which codified a new “Defipunk” framework to guide on-chain capital allocation.
As The Defiant reported at the time, the policy signaled that DeFi was no longer a sideshow for the Foundation — it was putting its ETH where its mouth is, prioritizing permissionless, immutable, audited protocols aligned with cypherpunk values over passive ETH sales to cover operations.
The EF also elaborated on why it chose to deploy in Morpho, and in particular praised Morpho Vaults V2, which launched in September. The Foundation cited the product’s GPL-2.0 open-source license — a deliberate choice, it noted, that makes the codebase permanently able to be audited and forked.
Crucially, Vaults V2’s core contracts are immutable: no admin keys, no upgrade mechanisms, no emergency switches. “The true cypherpunk infrastructure doesn’t ask you to trust its builders, and it removes the need entirely,” the Foundation wrote in its X announcement.
According to DefiLlama, Morpho is currently the second-largest DeFi lending protocol behind Aave, with a total total value locked (TVL) of over $6.9 billion. The protocol has attracted significant institutional interest in recent months, including a deal for Apollo Global Management — which manages nearly $940 billion in assets — to acquire up to 9% of Morpho’s 1 billion total token supply over four years.
The EF framed the Morpho allocation as a question of ecosystem direction:
“What kind of DeFi ecosystem is Ethereum aiming to support, and how should it weigh short-term performance against long-term resilience and openness? Choices like licensing and architecture may seem small, but they shape which of these paths remain viable over time.”
The treasury move comes amid a busy stretch for the Foundation. Just last week, the EF published its 38-page EF Mandate, which sparked debate in the community over whether the Foundation risks taking a backseat at a critical moment for institutional adoption.
In February the EF also pledged to deepen its support for privacy-first, permissionless DeFi, forming a dedicated internal unit to support builders adhering to those principles. The Morpho deposit suggests the commitment is more than rhetorical.
This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.
Construction work continues at the Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve building in Washington, DC, on Dec. 30, 2025.
Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images
A hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation reading for February had traders contemplating the possibility that the Federal Reserve won’t be lowering interest rates at all this year.
Following a Bureau of Labor Statistics report that the producer price index posted its biggest gain in a year, futures markets took any realistic chance of a cut off the table until at least December.
Even then, odds of a reduction at the final Fed meeting of the year fell to about 60% as persistently higher inflation — brought on by tariffs, the Iran war and elevated services costs — will keep the central bank on hold. The PPI report came just hours before the Federal Open Market Committee was to release its latest interest rate decision.
The wholesale inflation reading “likely reinforces a hold decision by the Federal Reserve later today but tilts the risk toward a more hawkish tone in today’s FOMC” statement, said Eugenio Aleman, chief economist at Raymond James. “Even if rates are left unchanged and we see multiple dissents, the messaging may lean toward ‘higher for longer,’ especially with energy inflation set to re-enter the picture in coming months.”
Prior to the war that began Feb. 28, traders had been looking for interest rate cuts in both June and September, with an outside possibility of one more in December as the Fed sought to balance its dual mandate of stable prices and low unemployment.
But odds for a June cut have now slumped to just 18.4%, July is down to 31.5% and September to 43.6%, according to the CME’s FedWatch tool, which calculates probabilities using 30-day fed funds futures contracts.
Low conviction
Chances for a December reduction were at 60.5%, indicating that traders are leaning toward a cut, though with a relatively low level of conviction. Historically, the 60% level or above has been associated with Fed moves in either direction.
Futures are implying a 3.43% fed funds rate by the end of 2026, compared to the current level of 3.64%.
To be sure, trading in fed funds futures is volatile, and the Fed could be pushed back into an easing stance if the labor market weakens further. Fed Governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller have been advocating for immediate cuts, though the rest of the committee seems more inclined to hold rates where they are until the economic picture clears.
Correction: The Iran war began Feb. 28. A previous version misstated the country’s name.
SBI Holdings’ digital asset arm, SBI VC Trade, said it will launch a USDC lending service in Japan on Thursday, allowing retail users to lend stablecoins to the platform under fixed-term agreements in exchange for returns.
On Wednesday, the company said users will be able to lend Circle’s USDC (USDC) stablecoin to the platform and receive interest payments, with a maximum application of 5,000 USDC per offering. The product is structured as a loan to SBI VC Trade rather than a deposit, meaning users take direct counterparty risk. SBI said it may also re-lend the borrowed USDC as part of its operations.
The launch marks a further step in Japan’s stablecoin rollout, bringing a consumer-accessible USDC yield product to market through a licensed domestic platform.
SBI said the product is intended as an alternative to traditional US dollar deposits in Japan, though, unlike bank deposits, segregation protections do not cover user assets and may not be fully recoverable in the event of insolvency. Users are also unable to withdraw or transfer funds during the fixed lending term, limiting their ability to respond to market conditions.
SBI expands stablecoin footprint
The launch follows an initial announcement in November, when SBI VC Trade said it planned to launch a USDC lending product and was exploring exchange-traded fund (ETF) products, according to Reuters.
The development comes as SBI has been expanding its stablecoin strategy. SBI VC Trade began a full-scale USDC launch in Japan on March 26, 2025, after receiving regulatory approval earlier that month. Circle said the approval made USDC the first approved global dollar stablecoin for use in Japan.
Related: SBI Holdings targets majority stake in Singapore crypto exchange Coinhako
On Aug. 22, SBI announced the establishment of a joint venture with Circle, aiming to promote the use of USDC in Japan and create new use cases for the stablecoin in digital finance.
On Dec. 16, the company partnered with Startale to develop a regulated yen-denominated stablecoin aimed at tokenized assets and global settlement, with a planned launch in the second quarter of 2026.
Magazine: Metaplanet’s Japan Bitcoin bet, Bithumb ordered suspension: Asia Express
[PRESS RELEASE – Tel Aviv, Israel, March 18th, 2026]
Today, Playnance has officially launched GCOIN trading, marking a significant milestone in the expansion of its Web3 entertainment ecosystem. The token is now live on MEXC, with GCOIN/USDT trading opening on March 18, 2026, at 13:00 UTC following the project’s Token Generation Event earlier the same day.
The listing introduces GCOIN to the open market, unlocking broader access to the Playnance ecosystem and opening the door to a potentially enormous global user base. The launch follows strong early momentum, including high participation in MEXC’s Kickstarter campaign, where users competed for a share of a 50,000 USDT airdrop.
Ahead of the Token Generation Event, the GCOIN community demonstrated strong demand, with over 1 billion GCOIN locked in staking within hours of the staking program going live.
As the Exosystem’s native token, GCOIN powers transactions, rewards, and participation across a rapidly growing Web3 entertainment network. Beyond adoption metrics, GCOIN is designed to bridge Web2 and Web3 by offering seamless, Web2-like on-chain experiences that lower the barrier to entry for mainstream users. This approach is already enabling Playnance to onboard large volumes of new users, converting them into active participants within the ecosystem. The ecosystem already includes over 300,000 GCOIN holders, reflecting strong early adoption and continued expansion at scale.
The exchange debut represents a major step forward in accessibility, allowing global users to engage with the ecosystem through a liquid and scalable market environment. Deposits for GCOIN are already open on MEXC, with withdrawals scheduled to begin on March 19, providing users with full flexibility to trade and manage their holdings.
“Today marks a defining moment for Playnance,” said Pini Peter, CEO of Playnance. “We identified early the opportunity to bring real scale into Web3 entertainment, and we’re building one of the leading ecosystems to support it. With GCOIN now live, we’re opening the door to what comes next – a new wave of users, new models, and a much larger shift in how entertainment moves on-chain. This is just the beginning.”
Playnance has built its token model around ecosystem-driven rewards, linking value distribution directly to platform activity rather than relying on fixed emissions. The platform already supports more than 10,000 on-chain games and processes over 2 million on-chain transactions daily, reflecting strong user engagement and growing adoption across its network.
With GCOIN now live, Playnance is entering a new phase focused on accelerating growth, expanding its global reach, and driving deeper participation across its Web3 entertainment ecosystem.
About Playnance
Founded in 2020, Playnance is a Web3 infrastructure company developing live, non-custodial, on-chain products designed to onboard mainstream Web2 users into blockchain environments. The company develops consumer-facing platforms built on shared wallet systems and high-volume on-chain execution, currently processing approximately 2 million transactions per day. Playnance focuses on reducing friction between user experience and blockchain infrastructure by abstracting complexity while maintaining full on-chain transparency and non-custodial architecture.
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Despite reduced miner selling, Bitcoin demand is yet to respond.
Bitcoin was mostly stable on Wednesday at $74,000 before it started to lose value gradually, dipping below $72,000 minutes ago.
And while supply pressure has eased significantly, demand remains muted as data revealed that “the rules of the game have quietly changed.”
Direction Still Unclear
In its latest report, CryptoQuant stated that Bitcoin’s supply-side activity has entered a subdued phase, while demand has yet to respond similarly. The MVRV Ratio, which compares market value to realized value, currently stands at 1.3, placing it just above the accumulation zone and indicating a minimal speculative premium.
This level means that Bitcoin is trading close to its aggregate cost basis, and reflects a reset phase rather than confirming either a market bottom or a recovery trend. On the supply side, miner behavior provides additional context. During the sharp price decline in early February, miner outflows climbed to almost 28,000 BTC, as selling pressure rose.
However, as prices stabilized and began to recover, outflows declined significantly, reaching almost 6,800 BTC by mid-March. Interestingly, this was the lowest level observed in the measured period.
Additionally, the Puell Multiple, currently around 0.69, further aligned with this trend, demonstrating that miners are operating within a post-halving normalization range without signs of financial stress or excessive profit-taking, and without urgency to increase supply in the market.
Beyond Old Patterns
Despite this muted supply activity, other structural factors remain relevant. For instance, SoSoValue recorded a steady 7-day non-stop inflow from spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds. CryptoQuant also pointed to increasing adoption of Bitcoin as a reserve asset by institutional treasuries, and its gradual acceptance at the nation-state level, which may have contributed to elevating the cycle’s price floor compared to previous market cycles.
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It is also important to note that the MVRV Ratio has not fallen below 1.0, a level which is historically associated with deeper corrections. This deviation implies that traditional cycle patterns, including revisits to lower valuation zones, may not occur in the same manner.
“For that reason, on-chain accumulation patterns, institutional flows, and miner behavior all warrant closer attention than usual, because the signals may look familiar while the rules of the game have quietly changed.”
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The wall between Wall Street and crypto is coming down under Trump Administration.
Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould has reportedly greenlighted major crypto firms including Ripple and Crypto.com to pursue national banking charters. He is actively encouraging payment technology companies to enter the federal banking system.
On top of that, Gould is moving to rescind Biden-era guidance that forced banks to seek supervisory approval before touching digital assets. The Chokepoint 2.0 era is effectively over.
For traders this is not just regulatory housekeeping. Access to Federal Reserve payment rails and the ability to hold direct deposits is the single biggest bottleneck keeping institutional capital out of crypto.
That bottleneck is being removed.
- Jonathan Gould is actively inviting crypto firms like Ripple and Crypto.com to apply for national banking charters.
- The move rescinds 2021 guidance requiring “supervisory nonobjection,” streamlining custody and stablecoin operations.
- Traditional banks are pushing back, arguing these new entrants will bypass strict capital requirements while accessing Fed payment rails.
What the Trump Administration’s Banking Crypto Push Actually Involves
The OCC’s old approach was simple. Want to touch crypto? Get written permission first. That nonobjection requirement acted as a pocket veto, killing bank-crypto partnerships before they started.
Gould is flipping the default. Permissible unless prohibited. Firms like Ripple can now build banks directly, bypass third-party intermediaries, and settle transactions through the Federal Reserve via FedNow or Fedwire. Lower costs. Faster settlement. No middleman.
The policy aligns with the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets, which mandates a stablecoin integration report by July 2025. The OCC is not waiting for legislation. It is using existing authority to front-run the process.
—
BREAKING: Banks just REVEALED where crypto's REAL ENDGAME is! 
Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia Bank, says the REAL PRIZE isn't today's $313 BILLION in Stablecoins — it's the $5.7 TRILLION in U.S Demand Deposits that are about to be turned into "Tokenized Bank Deposits" 
pic.twitter.com/W4gCOUZIRy
ChartNerd 
(@ChartNerdTA) March 15, 2026
The timing is driven by two things. Political capital and competitive panic.
The crypto industry spent over $250 million electing pro-innovation candidates in 2024. With up to 278 pro-crypto members now in Congress, the political will to obstruct has evaporated. Agencies are racing to align.
The offshore threat is the other pressure point. Stablecoin liquidity has been bleeding to jurisdictions with clearer rules. The EU’s MiCA framework is moving fast. The OCC is trying to onshore that liquidity before Europe captures it permanently.
The administration is not being subtle about any of this. The wall is coming down fast.
The $3 Trillion Opportunity — and the Risk Banks Face
The stakes for traditional banks are existential.
Crypto firms with national charters are no longer just clients. They become direct competitors for deposits. Five major regional banks already saw this coming and launched the Cari Network, a private blockchain payment rail, specifically to defend their settlement market share.
The prize everyone is fighting over is a projected $3 trillion stablecoin market by 2030. Banks that cannot custody crypto or settle stablecoin payments directly will lose the fastest growing segment of the payments industry to fintech challengers. That is not a small loss.
The risk for crypto is the flipside of the same coin. A regulatory backlash is possible. The banking lobby is already arguing that crypto banks will not face the same capital requirements as traditional lenders. If Congress moves to level the playing field too aggressively, the utility of these new charters gets strangled before it can be realized.
The green light is on. But the road still has obstacles.
Discover: The best new crypto in the world
The post Trump Administration Official Pushes Crypto Into US Banking System appeared first on Cryptonews.
The payments-focused L1 launches with a slew of fintech and TradFi partners, while MPP is aimed at enabling agentic commerce.
Payments-focused blockchain Tempo, developed by Stripe and Paradigm, announced the launch of its mainnet today, March 18. Also today, Stripe and Tempo revealed a new open standard for AI agent payments, Machine Payments Protocol (MPP), per a separate X post.
Today’s mainnet launch opens public RPC endpoints to developers. The headline addition is the MPP, an open, rail-agnostic standard for autonomous agent-to-service payments. MPP introduces a “sessions” primitive that lets agents authorize a spending limit upfront and stream micropayments continuously without an on-chain transaction per interaction.
Stripe, Visa, and Lightspark have already extended MPP to support cards, wallets, and Bitcoin Lightning payments respectively. A payments directory launching alongside mainnet lists over 100 compatible services.
Unveiled by Stripe and crypto VC Paradigm last September, Tempo was purpose-built as settlement infrastructure for high-volume stablecoin payments — emphasizing predictable low fees, instant finality, and throughput suited to commercial-scale workloads. The project launched its public testnet in December, as The Defiant reported at the time.
Tempo’s backers are pitching the chain as infrastructure for both emerging agentic commerce and more traditional payment flows including cross-border remittances, global payouts, and tokenized deposits. Partners named include Anthropic, OpenAI, DoorDash, Mastercard, Nubank, Revolut, Shopify, and Standard Chartered.
The project hasn’t been without skeptics in the crypto-native community — crypto and web3 researchers have raised questions about the trade-offs of corporate-backed chains like Tempo, particularly around decentralization and permissioning.
Tempo’s mainnet launch arrives amid growing institutional momentum around stablecoin infrastructure, including Klarna’s recent debut of its own stablecoin as it pushes deeper into on-chain payments.
This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.
Tempo, the payments-focused blockchain developed by payments giant Stripe and crypto investment firm Paradigm, launched its mainnet on Wednesday, bringing its stablecoin payment system out of testing and into live use.
The network is built to process large numbers of transactions quickly and at low cost. It aims to make sending money with stablecoins — digital tokens tied to currencies like the U.S. dollar — feel as simple as using a card or bank transfer, but faster and available at all times.
The launch follows a public testnet that began in December, when companies including Mastercard, UBS, Klarna and Visa started experimenting with sending payments on the network. That phase allowed developers to test how stablecoins could handle everyday financial activity, such as payouts and cross-border transfers.
Alongside the mainnet launch, Tempo introduced the Machine Payments Protocol, a system co-developed with Stripe that lets software programs make payments on their own. This allows applications or artificial intelligence (AI) tools to pay for services such as data or computing power without human approval at each step.
Tempo is also targeting more familiar uses, such as sending money across borders or paying large groups of workers at once. These processes often take days and involve multiple intermediaries.
The launch comes as global payments processing firms increasingly see blockchain rails and stablecoins as a key piece of plumbing for cross-border finances. Mastercard said this week it will acquire stablecoin infrastructure startup BVNK for $1.8 billion to embed digital dollars into its payment network. That deal followed Stripe’s buying of stablecoin startup Bridge and crypto wallet firm Privy.
Tempo also seeks to establish a foothold in agentic finance, an emerging trend in which AI agents use blockchains to pay for certain services that require micro payments.
Read more: Visa is ready for AI agents. So is Coinbase. They’re building very different internets
Crypto World
Nvidia (NVDA) Stock Dips as Jensen Huang Declares OpenClaw the Next Major AI Breakthrough
Key Takeaways
- At Nvidia’s GTC conference in California, CEO Jensen Huang declared OpenClaw is “definitely the next ChatGPT” in a televised interview.
- OpenClaw operates as an open-source platform for autonomous AI agents that execute tasks and make independent decisions without constant user guidance.
- The company unveiled NemoClaw, an enterprise-focused version of OpenClaw integrated with Nvidia’s proprietary software infrastructure and enhanced security features.
- Hong Kong-traded Chinese technology firms associated with OpenClaw experienced significant gains Wednesday, including MiniMax Group surging 14% and Zhipu advancing 11%.
- Shares of Nvidia (NVDA) declined 0.26% when the coverage was published.
During a Tuesday evening “Mad Money” segment with Jim Cramer at Nvidia’s GTC conference in California, Jensen Huang generated significant buzz by declaring OpenClaw is “definitely the next ChatGPT.”
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Tuesday pointed to a fast-rising AI project called OpenClaw as a major step forward in how people interact with artificial intelligence.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says OpenClaw could be the next ChatGPT as AI shifts from answering questions to taking… pic.twitter.com/nSE0Azq1F4
— CNBC International (@CNBCi) March 18, 2026
The Nvidia chief executive characterized OpenClaw as “the largest, most popular, the most successful open-sourced project in the history of humanity.” Such forceful language immediately captured investor attention.
OpenClaw represents an open-source platform for autonomous AI agents. Rather than simply responding to queries like conventional chatbots, it independently executes tasks, renders judgments, and implements actions.
Huang offered a straightforward value proposition: “In one line of code, you can create for yourself your own agent. Then after that, just ask the agent to do whatever you want.”
He illustrated the concept using kitchen design. An OpenClaw-powered agent could analyze photographs, master design software, experiment with various configurations, and enhance its own creations — all functioning autonomously after initial deployment.
“Every carpenter can now be an architect. Every plumber will become an architect,” Huang proclaimed.
NemoClaw Enterprise Solution Debuts
One day prior to the interview on Monday, Nvidia revealed NemoClaw — the company’s enterprise-optimized interpretation of OpenClaw. This offering integrates Nvidia’s proprietary software infrastructure with the open-source foundation.
NemoClaw targets business environments by delivering AI agents with enhanced security, scalability, and deployment readiness. The platform incorporates data privacy safeguards, monitoring capabilities, and enterprise-standard security frameworks.
This strategic initiative establishes Nvidia as more than a semiconductor manufacturer — it positions the firm as a comprehensive AI infrastructure provider.
Autonomous AI agents have generated apprehension regarding security vulnerabilities and governance challenges. NemoClaw represents Nvidia’s solution to these concerns, providing safety mechanisms for organizations planning large-scale agent deployment.
Chinese Technology Stocks Surge
Huang’s endorsement sparked a Wednesday rally among Chinese equities linked to OpenClaw technology.
MiniMax Group, which previously introduced its proprietary AI agent, jumped as high as 14% during Hong Kong trading. Knowledge Atlas Technology, operating as Zhipu, advanced as much as 11%.
Shanghai-listed cloud infrastructure provider UCloud Technology similarly registered positive movement.
These price increases followed immediately after Huang’s remarks gained widespread circulation, demonstrating the substantial influence his statements currently command in financial markets.
Nvidia shares traded marginally lower at publication time, with NVDA declining 0.26%, equivalent to $0.48, when the interview became publicly available.
The GTC conference remains a critical venue for Nvidia to reveal strategic partnerships and future product initiatives.
Nvidia acknowledged its partnership with OpenClaw’s development team as part of Monday’s NemoClaw launch disclosure.
The post Nvidia (NVDA) Stock Dips as Jensen Huang Declares OpenClaw the Next Major AI Breakthrough appeared first on Blockonomi.
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