UpGate

Blog

  • Mastercard Taps Crypto Firms for AI Agent Payments

    Mastercard Taps Crypto Firms for AI Agent Payments

    Mastercard Unveils Agent Pay for Machines, Enabling Autonomous AI Transactions

    Mastercard announced Wednesday the debut of Agent Pay for Machines, a new payment platform designed to empower AI agents to conduct transactions autonomously using cards, bank accounts, and stablecoins.

    The platform is engineered to allow AI systems to independently purchase services and initiate payments, including handling numerous small, background transactions, according to Mastercard. This offering represents an extension of the company’s existing Agent Pay program, specifically facilitating payments between AI agents, software platforms, and connected devices.

    “Agent Pay for Machines will create the conditions for a superbloom of AI business models,” stated Jorn Lambert, Mastercard Chief Product Officer, in a press release. “Machine payments can make it possible for services to be bought and sold among agents at fundamentally different scales than payments today—very high volumes, very small values, very fast, and at extremely low latency.”

    Over 30 companies have already joined this initiative, including prominent names such as Coinbase, OKX, Polygon, RippleX, Aave Labs, Alchemy, Anchorage Digital, BVNK, MoonPay, Stripe, Cloudflare, and the Solana Foundation.

    This launch signifies Mastercard’s intensified focus on AI-driven commerce. The move aligns with a broader trend across the payments and cryptocurrency sectors, where companies like MoonPay, MetaMask, and Coinbase are actively exploring the potential of autonomous AI agents to execute services and complete transactions without direct human intervention.

    The announcement follows a series of strategic moves by Mastercard into the cryptocurrency market throughout the year. In March, the company introduced its Crypto Partner Program, collaborating with over 85 firms, including Binance, Ripple, and PayPal, to develop products integrating digital assets with Mastercard’s payment network. Later that month, Mastercard agreed to acquire stablecoin infrastructure firm BVNK for up to $1.8 billion, a deal aimed at bolstering its capabilities in digital asset payments and settlement.

    Mastercard has also significantly expanded its stablecoin operations in 2026. In March, the company joined Solana’s enterprise blockchain platform to support stablecoin settlement. Earlier this month, Mastercard broadened its program for settling transactions using regulated stablecoins, such as Circle’s USDC and Ripple’s RLUSD.

  • Myriad Integrates Chainlink for FIFA World Cup Prediction Markets

    Myriad Integrates Chainlink for FIFA World Cup Prediction Markets

    Myriad Taps Chainlink for 2026 World Cup Prediction Markets

    Prediction market platform Myriad has selected Chainlink as its exclusive oracle infrastructure provider for the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches, aiming to automate the resolution and settlement of its prediction markets.

    This strategic move builds upon Myriad’s existing integration with Chainlink’s Runtime Environment (CRE), which the platform currently utilizes for its cryptocurrency price markets. The CRE will now be responsible for managing market resolution and settlement for the global soccer tournament. The companies state this integration is designed to replace the more time-consuming, manual settlement processes prevalent on some other prediction platforms.

    “The World Cup is the biggest stage in sport, and it’s exactly the kind of moment Myriad was built for,” said Ilan Hazan, Myriad’s co-founder and COO. “Traders want outcomes they can trust, the moment the whistle blows.”

    Hazan further explained that the integration with Chainlink will facilitate near-instantaneous market settlement and user payouts, providing Myriad with the reliability needed to convert first-time users into long-term participants during the high-profile global sporting event.

    “By adopting Chainlink, Myriad enables its prediction markets for the 2026 FIFA World Cup to deliver users accurate resolutions, high-speed settlement, and instant payouts,” stated William Reilly, Head of Strategic Initiatives at Chainlink Labs. He added that the tamper-proof auditability offered by Chainlink’s blockchain-powered oracles will assist Myriad in reducing resolution disputes as it caters to soccer fans worldwide.

    Myriad is also hosting a $100,000 trading competition centered on World Cup markets. The top three traders will receive $20,000, $10,000, and $5,000 respectively, with an additional $10,000 in prizes to be distributed among other leaderboard participants. Top market makers will also benefit from a weekly pool of $5,000 in maker volume rewards throughout the competition, with the leaderboard resetting weekly.

    Prediction markets allow users to trade shares tied to the outcomes of future events. The prices of these shares fluctuate between $0 and $1, reflecting the implied odds of each outcome. The sector has experienced rapid growth in the past two years, with platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi achieving multi-billion-dollar valuations.

    The World Cup markets follow a period of significant activity for Myriad. In March, the platform successfully closed a “milestone” seed funding round with notable investors including MoonPay Ventures, Auros, EVG, Verda Ventures, and Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee, alongside earlier backers such as ConsenSys and HashKey Capital. This fundraising effort came shortly after Myriad’s launch on BNB Chain, where it introduced automated markets focused on short timeframes, as part of its broader objective to “embed Myriad as a protocol.”

    Myriad is owned by Decrypt’s parent company, Dastan.

  • Paradigm, Hyperliquid Challenge GENIUS Act Stablecoin AML Rule

    Paradigm, Hyperliquid Challenge GENIUS Act Stablecoin AML Rule

    Crypto Industry Groups Warn Proposed Stablecoin Rules Could Harm DeFi

    Washington D.C. – Two prominent crypto industry groups have cautioned U.S. regulators that proposed anti-money laundering rules for stablecoin issuers could inadvertently push regulated dollar tokens away from permissionless decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems. The concern stems from proposals that would hold issuers responsible for secondary market activity.

    In a letter submitted Tuesday to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Paradigm and the Hyperliquid Policy Center challenged a proposed rule designed to implement the GENIUS Act’s anti-money laundering and sanctions requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers.

    “U.S.-regulated stablecoins power billions of dollars in daily trading, lending, and settlement,” the Hyperliquid Policy Center stated in a social media post accompanying the filing. “Our comment offers recommendations to preserve their critical role in onchain markets.”

    The industry groups warned that such an approach could create a “chilling effect,” discouraging issuers from deploying stablecoins on permissionless blockchains. This, they argued, could ultimately lead to “pulling U.S.-regulated stablecoins out of DeFi.”

    Paradigm and the Hyperliquid Policy Center advocate for a clear separation between primary issuance, where issuers have direct customer relationships, and secondary market activity. The latter involves stablecoins moving through wallets, DeFi applications, and validators beyond an issuer’s direct oversight.

    They contend that a wallet address merely holding or transferring a stablecoin should not be considered an issuer’s customer. Similarly, developers, protocol operators, and validators should be exempt from issuer-style obligations if they lack a direct relationship with the issuer.

    Applying issuer-level rules to secondary market transactions, the groups argued, would offer minimal benefit to regulators while potentially generating a significant volume of “noisy, false-positive-laden, low-value SARs” (suspicious activity reports).

    The core of the regulatory challenge lies in finding ways to police stablecoin usage without transforming nearly every market participant into a regulated intermediary.

    “Regulators are trying to make sure stablecoins do not become ‘a blind spot for sanctions enforcement and illicit finance’ as they grow as global payment rails,” Matthew Pinnock, COO at Altura DeFi, told Decrypt. He added that if stablecoins become central to dollar-based digital finance, regulators “need confidence that issuers can identify customers, block sanctioned actors, and cooperate with law enforcement.”

    However, Pinnock noted that achieving such confidence is difficult, as issuers often lose direct contact with users once stablecoins move into self-custodied wallets. He likened this to asking a bank to track “every cash transaction after money leaves an ATM.”

    Conversely, Siwon Huh, an analyst at crypto research firm Four Pillars, expressed concern that a broad carve-out for the secondary market could create enforcement gaps. Huh pointed to the “track record” of sanctioned entities, such as North Korea, in using dollar stablecoins as a “store of value and a means of moving money.” He warned that if issuers “bear no responsibility once a coin has been issued, their incentive to invest in blocking technology weakens.”

    Ambiguous rules could also pose significant risks for validators. The proposed regulations, if broadly interpreted, could encompass infrastructure operators on networks like Ethereum, Solana, and Hyperliquid, potentially prompting U.S.-based staking and infrastructure development to move offshore.

    “Where this can go too far is if the rules blur the line” between firms that manage customer relationships and those that merely provide infrastructure, Marcos Viriato, CEO and co-founder of Parfin, told Decrypt. He emphasized that overly broad obligations could make consistent application challenging, and that effective regulations should enhance compliance without introducing “unnecessary operational complexity.”

  • Alltoscan Burns Tokens to Reshape ATS Supply

    Alltoscan Burns Tokens to Reshape ATS Supply

    Alltoscan Unveils Token Burn Mechanism to Reshape ATS Supply Dynamics

    Delaware, USA – June 10, 2026 – Alltoscan, a provider of multi-blockchain explorer ecosystem infrastructure, has announced the official launch schedule for its new token burn mechanism, designed to systematically restructure its native tokenomics model.

    This deflationary protocol follows the company’s verified strategic roadmap, establishing a fixed schedule to gradually reduce the total available supply of its native utility token, ATS.

    Scheduled Phases and Supply Reduction Targets

    The native token of the Alltoscan ecosystem, ATS, currently has a maximum total supply of 100 million tokens. According to technical documentation released by the development team, the newly implemented protocol will automate consecutive burn events until the maximum supply reaches a fixed ceiling of exactly 30 million tokens.

    The initial phase of this protocol is scheduled to be executed between June 25th and June 30th, initiating the first major reduction phase toward the long-term 70% supply contraction target.

    Verification of the Buyback Mechanism and Circulating Supply Data

    In contrast to conventional ecosystem burn models that utilize locked or unreleased treasury reserves, the Alltoscan development team confirmed that this protocol directly targets active market supply. The assets designated for the permanent burn address consist entirely of ATS tokens accumulated via the company’s corporate revenue-funded buyback program, implemented since the token’s initial public listing.

    By removing active tokens directly from the open market rather than non-circulating smart contracts, the mechanism is engineered to directly alter the current supply-demand equilibrium across integrated global digital asset exchanges.

    Current Protocol Metrics and Infrastructure Valuations

    According to current market dashboard tracking data, Alltoscan’s structural financial metrics reflect the following baselines prior to the execution of the June protocol update:

    The reduction of the total token framework from 100 million to 30 million structurally modifies the underlying distribution metrics. Industry tracking models indicate that reducing total supply while holding baseline market capitalization constant alters the mathematical allocation per token unit. This adjustment comes as the protocol operates below its historical valuation peak of $2.5, recorded during previous infrastructure deployment phases.

    Historical Precedents in Decentralized Tokenomics

    The implementation of systematic supply adjustment protocols represents an established method within decentralized networks seeking to align long-term ecosystem balance.

    Alltoscan’s deployment relies on a programmatic corporate buyback framework tied directly to functional platform performance and operational utility revenues.

    About Alltoscan

    Alltoscan is a Web3 infrastructure provider specializing in multi-blockchain explorer solutions, designed to improve data transparency and cross-chain tracking efficiency across decentralized networks.

    Website: https://ats.alltoscan.com/

  • XRP Price Under Pressure? Researcher Explains Lack of Surge

    XRP Price Under Pressure? Researcher Explains Lack of Surge

    XRP Price Suppression Alleged by Apex Crypto Researcher

    Jesse, a researcher at Apex Crypto, has ignited debate within the cryptocurrency community by asserting that XRP’s price is being deliberately suppressed. His central piece of evidence is a 2021 Citibank document. Jesse points to an initial phrasing in the document, “Regulated Internet of Value,” which he claims was later altered to “Regulated Liability Network.” He argues this semantic shift was intended to obscure a direct connection to Ripple.

    The historical performance of XRP lends a degree of plausibility to Jesse’s theory. The digital asset surged to $3.84 during the 2018 bull market and reached $3.60 earlier in the current cycle. However, in the intervening decade, XRP largely traded sideways, failing to achieve the significant gains seen by Bitcoin.

    Given Ripple’s established institutional connections and the ambitious goals of its Interledger Protocol, XRP’s stagnant price trajectory raises questions. Citibank’s Tony McLaughlin has described the Regulated Liability Network as a shared ledger framework designed for tokenized bank deposits, a concept that bears a structural resemblance to Ripple’s long-term vision.

    Jesse’s argument posits a causal link: Citibank’s 2021 document, initially referencing the “Regulated Internet of Value,” directly echoed Ripple’s “Internet of Value” thesis and the Interledger Protocol. He contends that the subsequent re-branding to “Regulated Liability Network” served to distance the concept from Ripple.

    This narrative extends further. McLaughlin has publicly equated the Regulated Liability Network with the shared ledger concept. Concurrently, the Bank for International Settlements has explored a unified ledger architecture that could potentially supersede correspondent banking systems and eventually replace SWIFT as the primary mechanism for cross-border settlements.

    Jesse’s reasoning suggests that if XRP or a derivative of Ripple’s protocol were to underpin such an infrastructure, institutional players would actively avoid a highly volatile asset.

    However, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has publicly stated that XRP’s multi-billion dollar daily trading volume renders it too liquid for any single entity to manipulate. Ripple CTO David Schwartz has also noted that XRP’s price movements generally align with those of other large-cap altcoins.

    Notably, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s extensive investigation, preceding its 2020 enforcement action against Ripple, did not uncover any evidence of price manipulation by the company. Jesse’s case relies on his interpretation of institutional documents and circumstantial links, rather than concrete evidence of coordinated suppression, such as disclosed trading records or regulatory filings.

    While Jesse acknowledges that his hypothesis remains unproven, the crypto research community is increasingly scrutinizing the parallels between institutional settlement infrastructure and XRP’s decade of subdued price action.

  • XRP Price Surge Ahead? Binance Inflows Drop as Whales Hold

    XRP Price Surge Ahead? Binance Inflows Drop as Whales Hold

    XRP Whales Show Restraint Amidst Market Downturn, Hinting at Potential Rally

    While the broader cryptocurrency market navigates bearish conditions, a notable shift in behavior among XRP “whales” – large token holders – suggests a potential turning point for the sixth-largest digital asset. Latest on-chain data indicates that these significant investors are reducing their sales on exchanges, sparking speculation about their growing confidence in XRP’s future.

    An analysis by Pelinay, a researcher at CryptoQuant, points to a decrease in XRP sales by whales, combined with strengthening demand, as potential catalysts for a rally that could see XRP retest the $1.80 to $2.00 range.

    Pelinay’s findings, drawing on data from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, reveal a decline in transfers exceeding 1 million XRP starting in 2025 and continuing into the current year. Prior to this downturn, such large-volume transfers were frequently observed, signaling substantial inflows from whales and institutional investors. These inflows remained consistently high between 2021 and 2025, indicating Binance as a primary hub for these market participants.

    Following a peak in 2025, the influx of XRP exceeding 1 million tokens began to decelerate, reflecting a weakening selling pressure from major holders. This trend intensified after U.S. authorities approved spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs), suggesting a diminished inclination among whales to divest their holdings.

    Historical data analysis highlights a recurring pattern: sharp surges in inflows of both 100,000 to 1 million XRP and over 1 million XRP have historically preceded significant market downturns. This suggests that increased selling pressure from these investor cohorts has, in the past, contributed to substantial price drops for the asset.

    “At the far right of the chart, no such extraordinary surge is currently visible,” Pelinay stated, referencing the Binance XRP inflow chart. “As a result, on-chain data does not point to aggressive whale selling or widespread profit-taking at this stage.”

    Despite the reduced selling activity from whales since 2025, XRP’s price has still seen a retreat from the $3.00 region. At the time of reporting, XRP was trading around $1.10, marking a 10% weekly decline and a 5% drop in the past 24 hours. Pelinay attributed these price movements to leverage liquidations and the broader market weakness stemming from the current bear cycle.

    Ultimately, XRP’s upward trajectory hinges on a strengthening of demand and sustained low inflows into exchanges like Binance. This scenario would lead to a decrease in available supply as demand accelerates.

    “As long as there is no renewed surge in the 1M+ XRP inflow category, this constructive market structure may remain intact,” the analyst concluded.

  • Crypto Dips as War Intensifies, Mythos Launches

    Crypto Dips as War Intensifies, Mythos Launches

    GM!

    Crypto Falls Amidst War Escalation and Mythos Release

    Two major macroeconomic events on Tuesday impacted cryptocurrency and broader markets.

    A U.S. Army Apache helicopter went down near the Strait of Hormuz, an incident President Trump attributed to Iran, stating the U.S. “must respond.” Reports from the Associated Press and CBC indicate the military has already begun retaliatory strikes. Both crew members were rescued and are safe. The crash occurred a day after President Trump brokered a renewed Iran-Israel ceasefire and amidst ongoing U.S.-Iran talks. Axios reports the working theory is an Iranian drone of undetermined intent. The U.S. has initiated “defensive” retaliatory strikes.

    On the same afternoon, Anthropic released Claude Fable 5, the public version of its Mythos model, which had been kept under a restricted security program since April. The model scores 78% on a vulnerability-discovery benchmark and is specifically designed to identify software bugs, a capability that could be concerning for a market still reeling from recent hacks. Requests related to cybersecurity, biology, or chemistry are rerouted to the older Opus 4.8, a safeguard Anthropic states is activated in under 5% of sessions. The uncapped Mythos 5 remains accessible only to vetted firms.

    Cryptocurrency markets did not significantly react to these headlines but experienced a sell-off overnight ahead of this morning’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) print, which many anticipate will be high. The lack of a strong reaction to the Iran escalation is unsurprising, given market behavior in recent weeks. However, Mythos was expected to be a more significant development. Now, with users reporting that the model will not even review smart contracts and typically reverts to Opus 4.8, this highly anticipated Mythos release may prove to be inconsequential for the crypto sector. The CPI figures will be revealed shortly.

    Crypto Tax Bills Hit a Wall in the House

    A House Ways and Means Committee hearing intended to advance cryptocurrency tax reform instead exposed divisions within the committee.

    The committee considered seven discussion drafts, each addressing a distinct aspect of tax code related to digital assets. Key proposals included [details to follow]. Other drafts covered stablecoin transactions and the integration of digital assets into existing securities tax frameworks.

    However, political considerations intervened. Pro-crypto Democrats raised questions about exemptions for staking and mining, and party leadership suggested postponing the entire package until after the midterm elections. For an industry that has recently achieved notable legislative successes, this situation serves as a reminder that tax reform presents a more challenging battle. While the bills remain viable, their legislative timeline has now been extended.

    Morpho Raises $175M to Move Credit Markets Onchain

    Lending protocol Morpho has closed a $175 million funding round co-led by a16z crypto, Paradigm, and Ribbit Capital. The round also saw participation from a significant roster of strategic investors, including Apollo, VanEck, Circle Ventures, Ledger, SBI Group, and France’s Bpifrance.

    The deal values Morpho at up to $2 billion, positioning it as one of the largest funding rounds in the history of decentralized finance (DeFi).

    The Morpho protocol operates an open credit network that enables banks, fintech companies, and asset managers to establish their own on-chain lending markets, each with customizable risk parameters, without the need for extensive infrastructure development. The protocol currently holds over $11 billion in deposits and counts Coinbase, Kraken, Binance, Galaxy, Bitwise, and Anchorage among its users. Co-founder Paul Frambot, who initiated the project in Paris at the age of 20, originally built it on top of Aave and now promotes it as a platform for anyone to create their own Aave-like system.

    The newly acquired capital will be allocated towards technical development and deeper integrations with institutional clients, with the objective of making Morpho the default credit layer as more of the financial industry transitions to blockchain technology.

    The clear takeaway is that demand for institutional crypto products remains robust.

  • XRP Liquidations Fuel Sell-Off, Not Whales

    XRP Liquidations Fuel Sell-Off, Not Whales

    XRP Pullback Driven by Leverage, Not Whale Exodus, Analyst Suggests

    XRP’s recent price decline is more likely attributable to leveraged positions being liquidated and general market weakness, rather than a coordinated sell-off by major holders, according to Pelin Ay, a contributor to on-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant.

    Ay pointed to a decrease in XRP inflows to Binance, particularly in transfers involving millions of tokens, as evidence that selling pressure from large “whale” wallets has not intensified during the recent drawdown. She presented a CryptoQuant chart illustrating XRP Ledger exchange inflows to Binance, segmented by the value of transfers, alongside XRP’s dollar price. This data categorizes inflows into bands ranging from under 1,000 XRP to over 1 million XRP, allowing for differentiation between smaller retail deposits and transfers more characteristic of whales or institutional investors.

    Whale Selling Pressure Eases as Binance Inflows Drop

    Historically, the largest transfer cohorts have played a significant role in Binance inflow activity, Ay noted. “Transfers exceeding 1 million XRP are dominant in the chart during certain periods,” she stated. “This shows that the majority of XRP inflows to Binance are coming from whale and institutional-scale addresses. In particular, the consistently high levels of these inflows between 2021-2025 reveal that major players are actively using Binance.”

    The crucial shift, in her view, occurred after XRP’s peak in 2025. The chart indicates a noticeable decline in the largest Binance inflow bands following a period when XRP approached the $3 mark. This suggests that large holders are no longer depositing tokens onto the exchange with the same intensity observed in earlier market phases.

    In exchange-flow analysis, increased inflows are often interpreted as a precursor to potential selling pressure, as assets moved to trading platforms can be sold, used as collateral, or repositioned. Ay argued that the current market structure does not mirror previous periods of aggressive distribution.

    “In the past, before major drops, there were usually sudden high spikes in the 100K–1M XRP and 1M+ XRP groups,” she wrote. “Currently, at the end of the chart, there is no such extraordinary inflow surge. Therefore, on-chain data currently reduces the likelihood of aggressive whale selling and mass profit-taking.”

    Leverage Liquidations Cited as Primary Driver

    This distinction is central to her analysis. If XRP were experiencing a typical whale-led sell-off, the chart would likely show a sharp increase in large deposits to Binance, especially from the 100,000-to-1-million XRP and 1-million-plus XRP bands. Instead, Ay observed the opposite: inflows have cooled while the price has weakened.

    “The chart suggests that the decline is largely due to leverage liquidations and overall market weakness,” she added. “Because in normal hard bear markets, much higher XRP inflows to exchanges are typically seen.”

    This does not imply that XRP is without downside risk. Rather, Ay’s interpretation is that the current sell-off lacks a key on-chain signature often associated with deeper capitulation: whales moving unusually large amounts of XRP to exchanges. The source of selling pressure is therefore significant. A liquidation-driven move can accelerate rapidly as leveraged positions are forced out, but it does not necessarily indicate that long-term holders are actively distributing their holdings into the market.

    Ay also linked the post-peak reduction in inflows to a weakening of spot supply pressure. “If Binance inflows continue to remain low, selling supply will decrease,” she stated. “With an increase in demand, it becomes easier for XRP to move back to the $1.8-2.0 region. Especially if sharp rises do not resume in the 1M+ XRP columns, this structure can be maintained.”

    The condition is important. Her argument hinges on large Binance inflows remaining subdued, particularly in the 1-million-plus XRP band. A renewed surge in these categories would undermine her analysis, suggesting that large wallets are once again moving substantial supply toward the exchange.

    At press time, XRP was trading at $1.1444.

  • Japan’s Top Banks to Launch Joint Stablecoin by March 2027

    Japan’s Top Banks to Launch Joint Stablecoin by March 2027

    Megabanks Form Council to Launch Joint Stablecoin by 2027

    Japan’s three largest banking institutions—MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation—have established a council with the goal of developing the operational frameworks necessary for the joint issuance of a stablecoin by March 2027.

    According to a statement released by the banks, the stablecoin will be issued under a trust agreement. The three megabanks will act as joint settlors, with a designated “trust bank or similar institution” serving as the trustee. The banks are aiming for a joint launch in fiscal year 2026, with an emphasis on exploring the potential for stablecoins to be utilized across a broad spectrum of applications.

    This initiative stems from a pilot project that commenced in late 2025. The project was designed to investigate the feasibility of regulatory and practical compliance when multiple banks collaborate on issuing a stablecoin, assessing whether such operations could be conducted legally and appropriately.

    The undertaking is part of the Financial Services Agency’s (FSA) Payment Innovation Project. This specialized program was introduced to accelerate the development of blockchain-based payment innovations, operating within the existing FinTech Proof-of-Concept Hub, which has been a platform for fintech experiments since 2017.

    Japan significantly clarified its regulatory landscape for stablecoins in 2023, enacting amendments to the Payment Services Act. These changes established a licensing regime for the issuance and distribution of fiat-pegged stablecoins. Under the new legislation, only licensed banks, registered money transfer agents, and trust companies are permitted to issue approved stablecoins. This regulatory clarity has since paved the way for several yen-backed stablecoin initiatives.

    JPYC Inc. announced the launch of the nation’s first legally recognized yen-denominated stablecoin, JPYC, in October 2025. Following this, SBI Holdings and Startale Group unveiled JPYSC in February 2026, a yen stablecoin backed by a trust bank and intended for institutional and cross-border use cases. More recently, in May 2026, the Japan Blockchain Foundation announced its intention to issue a yen-pegged stablecoin, EJPY, on the Japan Open Chain and Ethereum networks.

    The collaborative strategy adopted by the megabanks aligns with a surge in institutional stablecoin activity in Japan since regulatory clarity was achieved in 2023. In March 2025, USDC became the first dollar-pegged stablecoin to receive approval in Japan, issued by the cryptocurrency exchange SBI. Several months later, Ripple and SBI Holdings announced plans to introduce the RLUSD dollar-pegged stablecoin within the Japanese market.

  • Europe Gains Crypto Ban Power; Russia Imposes USDT/USDC Fees

    Europe Gains Crypto Ban Power; Russia Imposes USDT/USDC Fees

    EU Unveils Sweeping Sanctions, Empowering Crypto Sector Bans on Nations

    Brussels, Belgium – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced the European Union’s 21st sanctions package against Russia, introducing a significant and unprecedented legal tool: the authority to prohibit all crypto-asset services operating from any foreign country found to be facilitating Russia’s evasion of sanctions.

    The announcement came on the same day that Russia’s Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov, speaking at the SPIEF 2026 forum, declared the imposition of punitive fees of up to 3% on stablecoins linked to Western entities, including Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC).

    This simultaneous policy shift marks an official fracturing of the global crypto market, a development that analysts have been anticipating for two years.

    The June 9 sanctions package represents a doctrinal escalation rather than an incremental tightening of existing measures. For the first time, the EU is proposing a mechanism that targets entire jurisdictions, not just individual entities. Previous sanctions packages have focused on naming specific exchanges, wallets, and individuals.

    The 21st package grants Brussels the power to designate an entire country’s crypto sector as off-limits if that nation is identified as hosting platforms that enable Russian entities to circumvent sanctions.

    President von der Leyen articulated the significance of this new tool, stating, “For the first time, we will introduce the possibility of a full third-country ban for crypto-asset services. It will act as a strong deterrent for the countries hosting platforms that help Russia evade our sanctions.”

    The enforcement process involves the European Commission identifying a foreign jurisdiction – with countries such as Turkey, the UAE, Kazakhstan, and Hong Kong reportedly under scrutiny as key intermediary hubs for Russian crypto flows. If the Commission determines that a jurisdiction is materially enabling sanctions evasion, it can then impose a blanket ban on all crypto-asset service activities connecting that country to EU-regulated markets. Consequently, any exchange, liquidity provider, or settlement layer interacting with that jurisdiction would be cut off from European counterparties.

    The 21st package also expands transaction bans to an additional 20 non-EU entities, including banks, crypto platforms, and oil traders, and adds 31 Russian banks to the existing transaction ban list.

    This action follows the 20th sanctions package, adopted on April 23 and effective May 24, which already prohibited all Russia-based crypto asset service providers as a category and explicitly banned dealings with the state-backed RUBx stablecoin and the digital ruble.

    Western crypto firms, already grappling with escalating compliance demands across multiple jurisdictions, now face a new layer of risk: third-country exposure. This is a challenge that current compliance manuals do not adequately address.

    Chainalysis, which previously described the 20th package as a “paradigm shift” from entity-level pressure to targeting the “evasion architecture itself,” now faces an even more complex analytical task. The 21st package necessitates that Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) assess entire settlement ecosystems and jurisdictional exposure, moving beyond simply screening named individuals against sanctions lists.

    The rationale behind the emerging stablecoin ban architecture in Brussels is underscored by data indicating that the total value received by illicit crypto addresses reached $154 billion in 2025, with Russia-linked flows constituting a significant portion of this total.