Lawmakers question double standards as key communications tied to crypto enforcement vanish House Republicans have opened an investigation into the loss of text messages from former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler, raising concerns over transparency and potential double standards during his leadership from 2021 to 2025. In a letter sent to current SEC Chair Paul Atkins, House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill said the panel is working with the agency’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) to examine its findings from early September. The report revealed that an automated IT policy wiped Gensler’s government-issued phone, erasing messages…
Author: Blockto Team
Chainlink has announced one of the first tangible products from its pilot collaboration with Swift and UBS Asset Management, marking a major step in bridging traditional finance (TradFi) with blockchain-based infrastructure. How the Integration Works The new system connects Swift’s global financial messaging network with the Chainlink Runtime Environment (CRE), enabling banks and asset managers to execute fund transactions onchain while still using their existing messaging rails. This integration builds directly on Project Guardian — a 2024 initiative involving Chainlink, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and UBS Tokenize. The pilot proved that tokenized fund subscriptions and redemptions could be…
Robinhood, the popular U.S. trading platform, is preparing to expand its fast-growing prediction markets business into the United Kingdom and Europe. Following strong adoption in the United States, the company is now in early talks with the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to determine how these products could be structured overseas. Growing Demand for Prediction Markets Launched earlier this year, Robinhood’s Prediction Markets Hub allows users to trade event-based contracts tied to real-world outcomes, including interest rate moves, elections, and sports results. The platform has seen rapid adoption. According to CEO Vlad Tenev, more than 4 billion event contracts have…
Ripple Labs’ Chief Technology Officer, David Schwartz, has announced he will step down from his day-to-day responsibilities after more than 13 years at the blockchain company. Widely recognized as one of the original architects of the XRP Ledger (XRPL), Schwartz will transition into a new role while maintaining close ties to the Ripple and XRP community. Schwartz, who joined Ripple in 2011 as a cryptographer, played a central role in designing the XRP Ledger. He became Ripple’s CTO in 2018 and has since been one of the most influential voices in the cryptocurrency space. In a public statement on X,…
Former commissioner returns to private sector amid reported tensions with crypto leaders The Trump administration has withdrawn its nomination of Brian Quintenz to chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), marking a surprising turn in U.S. financial regulation. Quintenz, a former CFTC commissioner and crypto policy lead at venture capital firm a16z, confirmed that he will now return to the private sector. “Being nominated to chair the CFTC and going through the confirmation process was the honor of my life,” Quintenz said in a statement, adding that he was “grateful to the president” and the Senate Agriculture Committee for their…
Republic to expand global investor access to Web3 giant’s private shares through Solana blockchain Republic has announced plans to tokenize equity in Hong Kong-based Web3 investment powerhouse Animoca Brands, with the tokens set to launch on Solana. The move is designed to open new channels for global investors to gain exposure to Animoca, which is privately held but widely recognized for its role in Web3 and metaverse investments. According to Republic, the tokenized equity will be minted on the Solana blockchain and distributed directly to investor wallets. Once issued, the shares will be tradable on Republic’s infrastructure, creating a secondary…
LayerZero integration expands wrapped Bitcoin liquidity to nearly 15,000 decentralized apps Decentralized finance protocol Build on Bitcoin (BOB) has launched a new gateway enabling direct transfers of native Bitcoin across 11 major blockchains. The system connects Bitcoin to LayerZero’s wrapped BTC standard, wBTC.OFT, offering users one-click access to nearly 15,000 decentralized applications without complex bridging. Breaking down the BOB Gateway The BOB Gateway links native Bitcoin to BitGo’s wrapped Bitcoin asset through LayerZero’s omnichain fungible token (OFT) framework. Supported chains include Ethereum, Avalanche, Base, Optimism, Sei, and others, creating one of the broadest cross-chain BTC integrations to date. Until now,…
Collaboration focuses on EURC and USDC under Europe’s MiCA framework Circle, the issuer of USDC, has entered into a strategic partnership with Deutsche Börse Group to accelerate the adoption of regulated stablecoins in Europe. The move is aimed at bringing Circle’s euro-pegged EURC and dollar-backed USDC into mainstream financial infrastructure, beginning with trading on Deutsche Börse’s 3DX platform. Circle’s MiCA compliance as a foundation The collaboration is being enabled by the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), which came into effect in late 2024. Circle became the first global stablecoin issuer to achieve full compliance with MiCA, a milestone…
Analysts warn of further downside if $2.60 level fails to hold NEAR Protocol (NEAR) dropped 4% in the last 24 hours, trading near the $2.63 mark against Tether (USDT). The decline comes as the token approaches a critical support zone, raising concerns about whether bulls can defend the current range or if a deeper correction is ahead. The $2.60 support region highlighted on the four-hour chart has emerged as a key battleground for traders. A sustained break below this level could expose NEAR to further downside, potentially pushing prices toward the $2.35–$2.40 demand zone. On the upside, resistance remains firm…
A decentralized approach to artificial intelligence powered by blockchain IoTeX has announced the launch of its Real-World AI Foundry, a decentralized platform designed to compete with centralized AI models. The initiative rewards users for contributing live data, enabling intelligent systems to be built on blockchain infrastructure instead of relying on closed, corporate-controlled networks. Traditional AI development is dominated by closed ecosystems managed by large corporations, where data is locked away and user participation is limited. IoTeX’s AI Foundry aims to flip this model by creating a system where data contributors, developers, and users are directly rewarded for fueling AI growth.…