The American Bankers Association (ABA) has made cracking down on stablecoin yield a top priority for 2026, amid its ongoing debate with US lawmakers that it will hurt the banking industry’s competitiveness. The ABA said on Tuesday that one of several priorities it has this year is to “stop payment stablecoins from becoming deposit substitutes that slash community bank lending by prohibiting paying interest, yield or rewards regardless of the platform.” Stablecoin oversight topped a list of five priorities, which also included fighting financial fraud, stopping arbitrary interest rate caps,…
Tag: Bank
Iran‘s Central Bank Acquired $507M in USDt to Prop up Rial: Elliptic
The Central Bank of Iran reportedly stockpiled more than half a billion dollars worth of USDt amid escalating protests and crypto usage in the country. Blockchain analytics platform Elliptic reported that the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) acquired more than half a billion dollars worth of Tether’s USDt, with indications that the stablecoins were used to prop up the country’s fiat currency. In a Wednesday report, Elliptic said Iran’s central bank had about $507 million in USDt (USDT), the US dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by Tether. According to the platform, it…
Iran’s Central Bank Used $507M in USDT to Bypass Sanctions, Elliptic Reports
Key Notes The Central Bank of Iran built a dollar-linked reserve using USDT on TRON and Ethereum to avoid traditional banking restrictions. Funds initially flowed through Nobitex exchange before shifting to cross-chain bridges following a major hack in June 2025. The strategy mirrors Venezuela’s approach to managing dollar scarcity while leaving auditable traces on public blockchains. Iran’s central bank used at least half a billion dollars in USDT to ease a currency crisis and work around sanctions-driven limits on dollar access, according to a new Elliptic report. The blockchain analytics…
Coinbase CEO Corrects France Central Bank Chief on Bitcoin Issuance at Davos
Key Notes Armstrong stated Bitcoin is more independent than central banks because no country, company, or individual controls the decentralized protocol. Villeroy de Galhau said he trusts central banks with democratic mandates more than what he termed private issuers of Bitcoin. The Coinbase CEO called competition between Bitcoin and fiat currencies the greatest accountability mechanism on deficit spending. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong pushed back against the Governor of the Bank of France during a World Economic Forum panel on January 21 after the central banker expressed skepticism about Bitcoin BTC…
Coinbase CEO And Central Bank Governor Clash Over Trust At WEF
The long-running tension between central banks and Bitcoin resurfaced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where senior executives and policymakers debated regulation versus innovation in digital finance. Trust in money must come from regulated public institutions rather than private crypto issuers, French central bank Governor François Villeroy de Galhau said during a panel titled “Is Tokenization the Future?” on Wednesday. “The guarantee for trust is independence on the central bank side,” Galhau said, adding: “I trust more independent central banks with a democratic mandate than private issuers of Bitcoin.”…
India Proposes Linking BRICS Central Bank Digital Currencies: Report
Key Notes According to two sources, India’s central bank wants BRICS nations to unify their CBDCs. The goal is to reduce reliance on the United States dollar. President Donald Trump has previously threatened tariff sanctions, a move that could be revived if this proposal passes. Two sources have reported that India has published a proposal for countries under the BRICS bloc to link their Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). The central bank of the Asian giant strongly believes that this move will facilitate cross-border trade and tourism payments. Ultimately, this…
Binance Australia Restores Direct Bank and PayID Transfers for User
Crypto exchange Binance has reintroduced direct bank transfers in Australia two years after the exchange was abruptly “cut off” from the Australian banking system. As of last Friday, Binance Australia has relaunched direct fiat bank and PayID deposits and withdrawals to its Australian users. The rollout began with a small group of users last year, according to a statement on Monday shared with Cointelegraph. Binance Australia and New Zealand general manager Matt Poblocki said limited fiat access has created friction for local users trying to participate in the digital asset…
Crypto Bank Anchorage Digital Eyeing $400M Raise and IPO
Institutional crypto platform Anchorage Digital is looking to raise hundreds of millions of dollars of fresh capital as it eyes a potential Initial Public Offering. The raise would be in the $200 million to $400 million range, while a possible IPO is slated for sometime next year, according to a Bloomberg report on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter who asked to remain anonymous. Anchorage’s affiliate, Anchorage Digital Bank National Association, became the first federally chartered crypto bank in 2021 and is now well-positioned to lead stablecoin issuance and…
KBC Bank To Launch MiCA-Regulated Crypto Trading in Belgium
KBC, one of Belgium’s largest banks, is set to roll out Bitcoin and Ether trading to retail investors next month via its own custodial solution and investment platform. From Feb. 16, KBC customers will be able to buy and sell crypto assets through the online investment platform Bolero, the bank announced Thursday. “This will enable self-directed investors in Belgium to invest in cryptocurrencies within a secure and fully regulated environment, a first in Belgium,” KBC said. Launched in compliance with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), KBC’s crypto…
DZ Bank Secures MiCA License for Regulated Crypto Services
DZ Bank, one of Germany’s largest banking groups by assets, secured a license under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), clearing a key regulatory hurdle to operate crypto services within the jurisdiction. DZ Bank announced Wednesday that it had received approval from Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) to operate its crypto platform, “meinKrypto,” which is designed to provide crypto trading infrastructure to banks within Germany’s cooperative banking network. The platform will be made available to participating local banks in the coming months. Under the model, DZ Bank…