If you’re an EU-based crypto trader and you use Binance, you may need to look for a new exchange shortly. In a blog post on Wednesday, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange said that it had withdrawn its application for a Greek license to operate in the EU. Those Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) licenses become mandatory for exchanges to continue to do business after July 1. “Binance is not leaving Europe,” Gillian Lynch, the company’s head of Europe and the United Kingdom, told Reuters. “We may just have a different pathway to being authorised. If it is not Greece, I’m looking at other alternatives.” It has said it intends to pursue…
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Mastercard Adds Stablecoin Settlement Support
Circle, Ripple, SoFi, and PayPal stablecoins are among those supported
Mastercard today announced plans to make it easier to settle transactions by expanding its intraday, weekend, and holiday settlement capabilities via regulated stablecoins. Settlement with fiat currency is also supported. The goal is to offer greater flexibility for card issuer banks and merchant acquirer financial institutions, which have to manage settlement timing and liquidity without disrupting existing processes. Mastercard said these upgrades are particularly relevant to settlements where stablecoins bring big benefits, including cross-border payments, corporate treasury management, and liquidity needs outside of traditional banking hours. Mastercard will support settlement using Circle’s USDC, Ripple’s RLUSD, SoFi’s SoFiUSD, and three Paxos-issued stablecoins: USDG, USDP, and PayPal’s PYUSD. These stablecoin payments will…
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Bitget Launches Reality RWA Platform in Tokenization Move
Reality will offer tokenized stocks and ETFs
Cryptocurrency exchange Bitget today announced the launch of Reality, a platform focused on tokenizing real-world assets (RWA), expanding its move into tokenization. Reality will begin by offering tokenized U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETF). Bitget called the launch a “key step” in its Universal Exchange (UEX) roadmap, which seeks to combine access to crypto, on-chain markets, and traditional assets like commodities, foreign exchange, and precious metals such as gold in a single platform. Reality will issue rTokens, onchain representations of publicly traded equities, Bitget said in a blog post. Each rToken will be backed 1:1 by real shares held by a FINRA-registered, SIPC-protected U.S. broker-dealer. While rTokens are not actual…
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CFTC, DoJ Sue Arizona Over Kalshi Charges
Agencies seek to block criminal charges against prediction market
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Department of Justice have asked a federal court to block Arizona’s indictment of prediction market Kalshi on criminal charges for offering sports gambling without a license. The agency’s move comes days after a New Jersey federal appellate court decision forbidding the state from pressing civil charges against Kalshi after finding that the CFTC has exclusive jurisdiction over prediction market activity on federally regulated exchanges. “Arizona’s decision to weaponize preempted state criminal law against companies that comply with a comprehensive federal regime sets a dangerous precedent,” said CFTC Chairman Michael Selig, in a statement. “The CFTC is committed to vigorously defending its exclusive authority…
