Author: William Torsney

Russian legislators have drafted a new bill that would remove special financial regulation for cryptocurrencies and significantly broaden access for retail investors, the head of the State Duma’s financial markets committee said, in a move that could reshape how digital assets are treated in the country and influence wider crypto policy debates. Speaking to reporters, Anatoly Aksakov confirmed that the draft legislation has been prepared for the upcoming spring session of Parliament. The core aim is to take cryptocurrencies out of the strict regulatory framework that currently governs financial instruments, effectively treating them more like everyday digital commodities than tightly…

The world’s leading central bankers have issued an unusually direct joint statement backing Jerome H. Powell and the Federal Reserve System, framing the controversy surrounding his recent remarks as a test of central bank independence rather than a domestic US dispute. The declaration, released by the European Central Bank on Tuesday, underscores growing international concern about political pressure on monetary authorities. The statement follows Powell’s speech on 11 January, in which the Fed chair warned that legal actions against him risked undermining the Federal Reserve’s ability to set interest rates free from political intimidation. While Powell spoke in a US…

A British corporate front for sanctioned finance Two companies registered in the United Kingdom were used to move more than $1 billion in stablecoins on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), according to a detailed blockchain investigation published by TRM Labs. The findings matter well beyond the UK. They illustrate how global crypto infrastructure, even when anchored in a major financial jurisdiction, can be quietly repurposed to sustain the financial operations of a heavily sanctioned state actor, largely outside the reach of traditional controls. According to TRM Labs, the activity took place between 2023 and 2025 and relied…

Charles Hoskinson, founder of the Cardano blockchain, has issued a sharp warning over the future of US crypto regulation, arguing that political hesitation in Washington could derail long-awaited legislative clarity for digital assets. His comments underline growing industry frustration as Congress struggles to turn bipartisan momentum into law. Speaking this week, Charles Hoskinson said he does not expect the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act to pass in the current legislative window. In his view, failure to move quickly risks losing the opportunity altogether if political control of Congress shifts after the next US elections. Hoskinson went further, calling for the…

Europe risks losing control over its own money unless it commits to a strong digital euro, according to a new open letter signed by 70 European academics. The warning lands as political negotiations in Brussels intensify, with growing pressure to scale back the project’s ambition. Published this month and coordinated by the Sustainable Finance Lab, the letter argues that a diluted digital euro would fail to address one of Europe’s most pressing vulnerabilities, its dependence on non-European payment systems. In 13 euro area countries, the authors note, everyday digital payments rely entirely on international card schemes, with no domestic alternative.…

The European Central Bank is no longer talking about the digital euro primarily as a future payment option for consumers. In a keynote speech delivered in Denmark this week, ECB Executive Board member Philip R. Lane placed the digital euro squarely inside the foundations of Europe’s monetary system, alongside banking union, capital markets integration and common financial infrastructure. The shift in tone matters. Rather than focusing on wallets, apps or adoption incentives, Lane framed the digital euro as a response to deep structural changes reshaping the global economy, from geopolitics and digitalisation to artificial intelligence and financial fragmentation. In this…

The United Kingdom is moving closer to its most significant overhaul of crypto regulation to date, with the Financial Conduct Authority set to open a mandatory licensing gateway for crypto firms in September 2026. The gateway will determine which companies are allowed to operate under the UK’s future crypto regime and which will be forced to exit, scale back, or fundamentally restructure their business. According to the Financial Conduct Authority, the gateway will act as a controlled entry point into the new framework for regulated cryptoasset activities under the Financial Services and Markets Act. Firms that want to continue serving…

Privacy is rapidly becoming one of the most important strategic issues in crypto, moving beyond ideology and into hard economic competition. A recent analysis from a16z Crypto argues that privacy is evolving from a technical feature into a core source of competitive advantage for blockchain networks. For years, public blockchains prioritised transparency, making every transaction visible by default. While this supported auditability and trust, it also exposed sensitive financial data, from wallet balances to trading strategies. As crypto applications mature and attract institutions, enterprises, and real-world assets, that level of openness is increasingly seen as a liability. According to a16z,…

The United States is moving cautiously on digital money, and that restraint is becoming increasingly visible when set against Europe’s more assertive push for a digital euro. A recent briefing from the US Congressional Research Service offers a clear snapshot of how Washington currently views crypto, stablecoins and central bank digital currencies, and why the gap with Europe is widening. The document shows that the Federal Reserve has softened its approach to crypto. In 2025, it rolled back supervisory guidance that had effectively discouraged banks from engaging with crypto firms. At the same time, the Fed remains wary of opening…

Iute Group has announced plans to enter the Ukrainian banking market by acquiring a local banking licence, marking a significant step in its expansion across Eastern Europe. The move would see the fintech lender establish a fully digital bank in Ukraine, subject to regulatory approval. According to a disclosure by Iute Group, the group intends to acquire a licence currently held by a bridge bank managed by Ukraine’s Deposit Guarantee Fund. The transaction involves a limited transfer of low-risk assets and retail deposit liabilities from a bank under resolution, with a total volume of around €4 million. The planned acquisition…