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Blockchain Lending Platform Figure Hit By Data Breach – Details

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Figure Technology confirmed that some customer files were stolen after an employee was tricked, according to reports. The company says the intrusion happened when an internal account was used to download a limited batch of records. The breach did not stem from a flaw in its blockchain system, but from human error.

Reports say the stolen material was later posted online by a hacker collective that claimed responsibility. The group is said to have released about 2.5GB of data after alleging that ransom talks broke down. That public dump quickly drew attention across the crypto and fintech space.

Customer Names, Contact Details Among Items Exposed

Based on reports that reviewed samples of the leaked files, the exposed data includes full names, home addresses, dates of birth, and phone numbers. These are the kinds of details often used in identity fraud or targeted scams.

The exact number of affected customers has not been shared publicly. That missing figure leaves uncertainty about how large the fallout could be.

Security researchers warn that even when bank accounts or crypto wallets are untouched, personal data alone can create serious risk. Phishing calls, fake loan offers, and account takeover attempts often follow this type of leak.

Total crypto market cap at $2.34 trillion on the daily chart: TradingView

Figure Hit By Social Engineering Attack

According to coverage of the incident, attackers used a social engineering method to gain access to an employee’s credentials or active session. Instead of breaking through code, they relied on deception. Once inside, files were downloaded through that employee’s access rights.

The company said it detected suspicious activity and moved to block it. Outside forensic specialists were brought in to review system logs and determine what was accessed. A broader internal review is also under way.

Image: CybersecAsia

ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the breach on its leak site. The group has been linked to prior data exposures involving tech and finance firms. In this case, the data was made public after payment demands were reportedly rejected.

Figure said it will notify customers whose information was involved. Free credit monitoring services are being offered to those who receive formal notice. Impacted individuals are being advised to watch for unusual activity and unsolicited messages.

Funds And Core Services Secure

Reports note that lending operations and on-chain systems were not breached. The platform’s core financial infrastructure was not described as affected. Still, the exposure of personal records carries its own weight.

Financial companies remain frequent targets because they hold detailed customer files. A single employee account, if misused, can open a door wider than expected. That lesson has surfaced again here.

Regulators may seek further details in the coming weeks. Customers will be waiting for clearer numbers. The long-term cost, both financial and reputational, will depend on how widely the data spreads and how quickly protective steps are taken.

Featured image from Yahoo Finance, chart from TradingView

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South Korea’s biggest securities firm snaps up crypto exchange as stock market soars – DL News

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  • Mirae Asset has $418 billion in total assets under management.
  • Firm will pay $92 million for 92% stake in Korbit exchange.
  • South Korea’s stock market continues to boom.

South Korea’s biggest securities player has agreed a $92 million deal to take over Korbit, the country’s oldest crypto exchange.

The deal will see Mirae Asset, a firm with $418 billion in total assets under management, buy 92% of Korbit’s shares, subject to regulatory approval.

The goal of the takeover for Mirae is “securing digital asset-powered future growth engines,” the firm said in a statement, South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported.

Mirae Asset’s share price surged on news of the deal, rising by a total of over 15% over the past five days. Over the past six months, the company’s share prices have rocketed by 226%.

If the Financial Services Commission signs off on the deal, it will complete a tectonic shift in the South Korean crypto exchange market. All five of the country’s permit-holding exchanges began life as small IT startups.

But with South Korea’s largest big tech firm waiting for approval of its own merger with the market-leading Upbit exchange, and rumours of further sales continuing to circulate, traders may soon need to navigate a radically altered market landscape.

Custody plans

“This is the first time an institutional financial company will have a crypto exchange as a subsidiary,” an unnamed financial investment industry official told South Korean newspaper Maeil Kyungjae. “It is highly likely that this will lead to the development of various derivatives, such as securities tokens and crypto custody offerings.”

Mirae Asset will bypass rules that block financial firms from direct crypto industry takeovers by carrying out the deal via its Mirae Asset Consulting subsidiary.

The deal will see the securities firm take over the gaming firm Nexon’s controlling 61% share in Korbit, as well as the telecoms giant SK’s SK Planet subsidiary’s 31.5% share.

Despite its early dominance of the South Korean Bitcoin trading scene, Korbit’s market share has dwindled in recent years, falling to around 1%, far behind Upbit’s 60-70% share.

However, Mirae will aim to reverse this trend. Last year, the firm posted net profits of $1.1 billion, a 72% year-on-year rise. The company has since announced plans to reinvest its profits into “digital asset business growth.”

It will be buoyed by sky-high stock market performance and its own record-breaking earnings. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index, the index of all common shares on the Korea Exchange, reached an all-time high earlier this year.

Stocks surging

Analysts report that many Bitcoin traders have abandoned stagnant crypto markets in favour of the domestic stock market.

The data appears to back these claims up. In late January, Upbit’s daily trading volume dropped to $755 million, per CoinGecko data, down over 90% from mid-July 2025 peaks of around $10 billion.

President Lee Jae-myung has also prioritised a domestic stock market revival, making KOSPI growth the cornerstone of his economic policy.

Lee has bemoaned the popularity of overseas stock investment, real estate purchases, and “speculative” trading.

“There is a lot of money in South Korea, but where is it going?” he asked last year, during a meeting with Mirae chiefs and other securities firms.

The issue of deregulation for securities firms was also on the table at the same meeting, emboldening Mirae to make its Korbit move.

Tim Alper is a News Correspondent at DL News. Got a tip? Email him at tdalper@dlnews.com.

Russians spending $648 million on crypto every day, says finance ministry – DL News

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  • Russian crypto transactions worth $130 billion a year, says ministry.
  • Lawmakers to vote on crypto regulations in spring session.
  • Moscow Exchange says it wants “slice of crypto pie.”

Russians are conducting crypto deals worth a total of around $648 million per day, the country’s finance ministry says.

Cryptocurrency usage in Russia is “only continuing to grow,” Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov told media representatives this week, Russian media outlet RBC reported.

“We’ve repeatedly said that millions of citizens are involved in crypto trading,” Chebeskov said. “That represents trillions of rubles’ worth of [purchases] and savings. The annual transaction volume in Russia is over [$130 billion]. All of that is currently occurring in unregulated spaces. It’s outside the scope of our control.”

Moscow says it wants to fast-track regulations this year, aware that the size of its crypto derivatives and other blockchain-powered financial instruments has grown beyond the $13 billion mark.

Fast track

Vladimir Chistyukhin, First Deputy Chairman of the Russian central bank, told reporters that he expected lawmakers to approve new regulations for the crypto market during the State Duma’s upcoming spring session.

Both the government and the bank now back regulations, Chistyukhin said.

“[We] will provide a transition period for market participants to obtain the necessary licenses, develop the necessary internal documents to begin operations, and legalise this part of the [financial] markets.”

The law will focus mainly on exchanges and will impose a system of penalties for trading platforms that fail to obtain operating permits.

The ministry said it made its calculations using the anti-money laundering agency Rosfinmonitoring’s Transparent Blockchain platform.

Senior officials from the Moscow Exchange, Russia’s biggest stock market, said they also wanted to “compete for a slice” of the crypto “pie.”

The exchange and several of Russia’s biggest banks said they were ready to provide their customers with a range of crypto-related services once the legislation rolls out.

Crypto market movers

  • Bitcoin is down by almost 1% over the past 24 hours, currently trading at $68,991.
  • Ethereum is down 3% in the past 24 hours, and is priced at $1,999.

What we’re reading

Tim Alper is a News Correspondent at DL News. Got a tip? Email him at tdalper@dlnews.com.

Wall Street giant Apollo follows BlackRock in DeFi push with Morpho token deal

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Apollo Global Management (APO) is moving deeper into crypto, striking a deal that could make the $938 billion asset manager a major token holder in a decentralized lending platform.

The firm signed a cooperation agreement with the Morpho Association, the French non-profit organization behind the Morpho protocol, that allows Apollo and its affiliates to buy up 90 million tokens tokens over the next four years.

The purchases may take place through open-market buys, over-the-counter transactions and other arrangements, and are subject to ownership caps and transfer restrictions. Galaxy Digital UK acted as exclusive financial adviser to Morpho, according to the document.

Beyond the token purchases, Apollo and Morpho said they will work together to support lending markets built on Morpho’s protocol. Morpho provides infrastructure for onchain lending markets and curator-managed vaults that allocate assets across them. The protocol is governed by holders of the MORPHO token. The 90 million token stake would translate to 9% of the protocol’s governance token’s total supply.

The agreement adds to Apollo’s expanding blockchain footprint. Last year, the firm made a “seven-figure” investment in blockchain project , which focuses on bringing traditional financial products onchain. Apollo’s credit strategies have already been tokenized via third parties. Tokenization specialist Securitize issues ACRED, a token that gives exposure to the Apollo Diversified Credit Fund, while Anemoy offers ACRDX, which tracks Apollo’s global private and public credit strategies.

The move comes as other asset managers test decentralized finance rails. Earlier this week, BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, said it will make shares of its tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, BUIDL, tradable on decentralized exchange Uniswap and purchased an undisclosed amount of the protocol’s governance token UNI .

Colbari.com Reviews Crypto CFD Scams

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In this article, Colbari.com reviews the growing concern around crypto CFD scams and how traders can protect themselves from fraudulent platforms. 

The cryptocurrency market has attracted millions of traders worldwide, but it has also become a breeding ground for scam operations targeting inexperienced investors.

Colbari.com: Understanding Crypto CFD Scams

Colbari reviews show that crypto CFD scams typically operate by promising unrealistic returns on cryptocurrency investments through Contracts for Difference. These fraudulent platforms lure traders with sophisticated websites, fake testimonials, and aggressive marketing campaigns. 

The scam usually follows a pattern where initial small investments seem to generate profits, encouraging traders to deposit larger amounts. However, when traders attempt to withdraw their funds, they face endless delays, hidden fees, or complete loss of access to their accounts.

Scammers often use high-pressure sales tactics, claiming limited-time opportunities or exclusive deals that require immediate action. They may also impersonate legitimate trading platforms or create websites that closely resemble established brokers to gain trust.

Colbari.com: Red Flags to Watch For

Colbari.com emphasizes that traders should be aware of several warning signs that indicate a potential scam. Companies that lack proper licensing from financial authorities pose significant risks. 

Any broker promising fixed returns or no-risk trading should raise immediate concerns, as CFD trading inherently involves market volatility and potential losses.

Other red flags include difficulty withdrawing funds, lack of transparent fee structures, and pressure to deposit more money to access your existing balance. Scam platforms often have poor customer service, with representatives who become unresponsive after deposits are made. 

Colbari.com recommends that suspicious platforms may also request unusual payment methods or personal information beyond what legitimate brokers require.

Additionally, be cautious of platforms with no physical address, those that offer bonuses that seem too good to be true, or brokers that guarantee profits regardless of market conditions.

Colbari.com: How Traders Fall Victim

Colbari.com reviews indicate that many traders, particularly those new to CFD trading, fall victim to scams due to lack of experience and research. The promise of quick profits in the cryptocurrency market can cloud judgment, especially when faced with persuasive marketing materials and fake success stories. 

Scammers exploit the fear of missing out, creating urgency that prevents potential victims from conducting proper due diligence.

Some traders in regions like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other parts of the world may be less familiar with regulatory standards, making them more vulnerable to fraudulent schemes. The complexity of CFD trading can also confuse newcomers, allowing scam operators to hide their true intentions behind technical jargon and complicated terms.

Colbari.com: Protecting Yourself from Scams

Colbari.com emphasizes that the most effective protection against scams is education and verification. Before depositing funds with any platform, traders should verify the broker’s regulatory status with relevant financial authorities. 

Legitimate brokers are transparent about their licensing, company information, and regulatory compliance.

Colbari.com recommends that traders should research reviews from multiple independent sources, not just testimonials on the broker’s website. Testing a platform with a small deposit before committing larger amounts can help identify potential issues. 

Reading all terms and conditions carefully, especially regarding withdrawals and fees, is essential.

Never share sensitive personal information beyond what is legally required for account verification. Be skeptical of unsolicited contact from brokers, especially those promising exceptional returns. If something feels wrong or too good to be true, it probably is.

Colbari.com: A Legitimate Platform for CFD Trading

While scam platforms continue to target unsuspecting traders, Colbari.com reviews emphasize that legitimate brokers do exist in the market. Colbari.com operates as a trading platform offering CFD trading across multiple asset classes including cryptocurrencies, forex, commodities, indices, and stocks.

This website is operated by Valor Capital (PTY) Ltd, a South African investment firm, authorized and regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority of South Africa with Financial Service Provider license number 51822 to provide intermediary services. 

This regulatory oversight provides traders with a layer of protection and accountability that scam platforms cannot offer.

Regulated companies must adhere to strict financial standards, maintain segregated client accounts, and provide transparent reporting of their operations. This regulatory framework helps ensure that traders’ funds are handled appropriately and that the platform operates with integrity.

Colbari.com: Taking Action Against Scams

Colbari.com recommends that if you suspect you have encountered a scam, documenting all communications, transactions, and account activity is crucial. Report the suspected fraud to your local financial regulatory authority and consider seeking legal consultation. 

Many countries, including those in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait have consumer protection agencies that handle investment fraud cases.

Sharing your experience on legitimate review platforms can help warn other traders and prevent them from falling victim to the same scam. 

While recovering funds from scam operators can be challenging, some traders have successfully reclaimed their money through legal action and regulatory intervention.

Conclusion

Colbari.com reviews highlight that the cryptocurrency CFD market offers legitimate opportunities for traders, but it also attracts fraudulent operators seeking to exploit inexperienced investors. 

By understanding the common tactics used by scam platforms, recognizing red flags, and conducting thorough research before investing, traders can significantly reduce their risk of falling victim to fraud. 

Colbari.com emphasizes that traders should always prioritize working with brokers that are operated by regulated companies, who maintain transparency and comply with financial regulations. Your financial security depends on making informed decisions and exercising caution in an industry where scams unfortunately remain prevalent.

 







OpenClaw Creator Gets Big Offers to Acquire AI Sensation—Will It Stay Open Source?

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In brief

  • The creator of open-source AI agent platform OpenClawd said that he’s received acquisition offers from Meta and OpenAI.
  • Peter Steinberger said he would only agree to a deal if the project can remain open source.
  • He expects that AI agents can eliminate 80% of current apps, due to their versatility.

Peter Steinberger built the most important open-source AI agent in no time. Now Meta and OpenAI are circling with acquisition offers, he said last week, while crypto scammers turned his rebrand into a 24-hour nightmare that almost made him quit.

OpenClaw (formerly Clawdbot)—the self-modifying AI assistant that sparked MoltBook’s viral chaos and an entire ecosystem of autonomous agents doing increasingly weird and amazing stuff on the internet—hit 180,000 GitHub stars in record time.

The Austrian developer who “vibe coded” it into existence said he’s now choosing between billion-dollar corporate buyouts and staying true to the open-source ethos that made it explode.

“My conditions are that the project stays open source,” Steinberger told Lex Fridman in a three-hour interview for his podcast. “Maybe it’s gonna be a model like Chrome and Chromium. I think this is too important to just give to a company and make it theirs.”

Both Mark Zuckerberg and Sam Altman have made concrete offers, Steinberger said. Zuckerberg reached out via WhatsApp, and they spent 10 minutes arguing about whether Claude Opus or GPT Codex was better. Altman’s pitch came with something more tangible: A promise of computational power tied to the Cerebras deal that could dramatically speed up agent performance.

The project is currently hemorrhaging $10,000 to $20,000 monthly, he said. Steinberger routes all sponsorship money to dependencies rather than pocketing it. “Right now I lose money on this,” he said matter-of-factly, like someone who sold his previous company PSPDFKit and genuinely doesn’t care about the cash.

What he does care about is the name-change saga that nearly killed the whole thing. When Anthropic sent a trademark complaint over “Clawdbot” being too close to “Claude,” Steinberger renamed it to MoltBot.

Then crypto scammers struck. In the five seconds between pressing “rename” on two browser windows, bots sniped his accounts. They served malware from his GitHub. They hijacked his NPM packages. His Twitter mentions became unusable spam.

“I was close to crying,” Steinberger admitted. “Everything’s fucked.”

He almost deleted the project entirely. The second rebrand to OpenClaw required Manhattan Project-level secrecy, decoy names, and coordinating account changes across platforms simultaneously to avoid another crypto-scammer feeding frenzy. The attacks were so sophisticated that Steinberger called it “the worst form of online harassment I’ve experienced.”

Steinberger is also a fan of what Andrej Karpathy calls “agentic engineering”—a rejection of the term “vibe coding,” which he considers a slur.

“I do agentic engineering, and then maybe after 3:00 am, I switch to vibe coding, and then I have regrets the next day,” he explained. He runs four to 10 agents simultaneously, racked up 6,600 commits in January alone, and built most of the codebase by talking to AI rather than typing. “These hands are too precious for writing now,” he said.

Steinberger predicts that OpenClaw-style agents will kill 80% of apps.

“Every app is just a very slow API now, if they want it or not,” he told Fridman.

Why pay for MyFitnessPal when your agent already knows your location, sleep patterns, and stress levels? Why open Uber Eats when your assistant can order food, schedule meetings, and manage your calendar proactively?

Steinberger’s program has opened the gates to tech world giants. He told Fridman that he also held conversations with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. The dev is now weighing starting his own company with VC backing, but fears it would distract from building. He’s considered just continuing to bleed cash and ignore the offers.

“I can’t go wrong,” he said.

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Her Divorce Was Ugly. Crypto Became a Lifeline

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In brief

  • Karin found herself “unbanked” amid a contentious divorce.
  • She said crypto helped her establish financial independence.
  • Her story has been promoted by a Ripple-linked nonprofit.

People can pay mortgages in many ways, but as a self-described victim of financial abuse once learned in Fort Worth, Texas, a wad of cash carried into a local bank isn’t always a good option.

And that’s regardless of how many payments have been missed or if foreclosure is a risk, a mother named Karin told Decrypt. She asked that her last name not be published due to ongoing legal matters related to her former husband and their four children.

There are anti-money laundering laws to consider when trying to deposit so much money at once, Karin recalled the teller saying. And to her surprise, there was another problem: She hadn’t been listed as an account owner for at least 10 years. Ultimately, she was turned away.

“I was unbanked, which is kind of scary because I’m a middle-class housewife in America,” she said. “It’s kind of like you’re this invisible person.”

As her decades-old marriage gave way to a contentious divorce, Karin said that crypto helped her become financially independent. She felt empowered by a self-custodial wallet, confident that no one else could access what was on it.

At one point during her divorce, court documents show that Karin gained a judge’s approval to use profits from crypto trading to pay for her kids’ tuition expenses. For her, maintaining a familiar environment was important. But that wasn’t until she risked being held in contempt.

Karin said that she was ordered to liquidate Bitcoin and Ethereum that she had squirreled away from an account at a centralized exchange, so it could be divided fairly. But she refused, arguing the funds were a lifeline. Eventually, the opposing counsel and the judge came around to the idea that anyone could verify if the crypto was moved using a block explorer, Karin said. 

Karin had to teach her own attorneys, the opposing counsel, and the judge how to use a blockchain explorer to verify that funds hadn’t moved.

“I remember thinking, ‘At least I have something,’” she said. “The fact that there were private keys, and only I had the keys, gave me that ability to be so bold and stand up for myself.”

Karin said her marriage paralleled traditional gender roles, in which her husband was primarily responsible for managing credit cards and bank accounts. As that relationship frayed, she found herself in dire straits with little to fall back on.

When she left her former husband, her credit cards were maxed out—leaving her with only $56 in available credit. Traditional identity-linked systems like car rentals and hotels refused her because she lacked a valid credit card. Meanwhile, she had others “front” the costs with their credit cards, promising to pay them back directly in stablecoins.

Karin acknowledged that crypto has become male-dominated over time, but she argued that it can serve as a vital tool for marginalized groups precisely because the technology “doesn’t judge” based on gender or age. She recalled receiving advice from pseudonymous personas that she met through Crypto Twitter, who seemed sympathetic to her situation.

“It wasn’t about all the riches you see right on Twitter and on TV,” she said. “It was literally safety and stability for my kids.”

Enabling women to hold digital assets directly, and be treated as the sole beneficiary of funds, has shown an ability to affect longstanding social dynamics for marginalized groups, according to Paul Wong, director of special projects at the Stellar Development Fund, or SDF.

That was the case with an aid distribution system in Ukraine, which SDF developed in collaboration with a United Nations agency dedicated to refugees, he told Decrypt in December.

“That risk of physical threat is much lower,” Wong said. “When you distribute universal basic income to a woman, it’s not going to some joint account where, historically, a man has used it for purposes other than the family.”

Karin has worked with the National Cryptocurrency Association, or NCA, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Americans understand and use crypto. Ripple, the XRP-linked fintech, founded the organization and funded it with a two-year $50 million grant.

Instead of promoting a get-rich-quick mentality often ascribed to crypto, the organization seeks to capture how a variety of Americans use crypto in a practical way.

“The thing that really makes my skin crawl is any jargon that suggests that this is an industry and a technology only for crypto bros,” NCA President and Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stu Alderoty told Decrypt. “There is a lot—anything from FOMO to ‘Wen Lambo?'”

The NCA has sought to portray practical crypto users, from artists to cattle ranchers. They’ve categorized Karin as a trader, but she may yet still add another description.

Over 20 years ago, Karin’s ex-husband gave her an ultimatum to choose between marriage and law school; she chose marriage. Following her experience with the legal system, Karin said she has been accepted to law school and is starting this fall.

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Hong Kong is trying to build up its crypto regulations: State of Crypto

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Consensus Hong Kong wrapped up with a bang as policymakers announced new initiatives to grow the digital assets sector.

You’re reading State of Crypto, a CoinDesk newsletter looking at the intersection of cryptocurrency and government. Click here to sign up for future editions.

The narrative

Policymakers at Consensus Hong Kong announced a slew of initiatives aimed at strengthening the local digital asset ecosystem.

Why it matters

Philosophically speaking, the question of why we still care about this industry remains top of mind. Consensus showed that despite the sometimes ridiculous projects and unachievable hype cycles, companies still have a genuine use for the technology.

Breaking it down

Hong Kong’s regulators are trying to encourage growth in the local digital asset ecosystem, unveiling a framework for perpetual contracts and saying that stablecoin licenses will be announced in the coming month.

“That certainty of direction gives a lot of companies confidence to invest in Hong Kong and to build further,” said Jason Atkins, the chief commercial officer of crypto trading firm Auros.

While the Special Administrative Region of China is not yet close to approving all applicants and activities, the fact that regulators like the Securities & Futures Commission and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority are willing to engage and adapt their approaches to digital assets is still significant, he told CoinDesk. They’re asking companies what they need to do to encourage investment, he said.

“We’ve gone into the SFC a few times, spoken with the HKMA on think tanks and panels and groups where they literally are just trying to understand how our businesses operate and what we need to invest even more into the city, which is really positive,” he said.

The regulators have been positively engaged, trying to discern what companies need from them to operate in the region. This includes asking whether certain regulations need to be adjusted to address market needs, he said.

“So they think about ways they can loosen those or lighten them up for certain types of investor classes,” he said.

This fits with a broader trend of more traditional institutions wanting to get into crypto — or at least blockchain.

Multiple panelists, representing companies like Franklin Templeton and Swift, said they were using or exploring blockchain technology to streamline their operations. It’s reminiscent of the 2018 “blockchain, not Bitcoin” era, but these entities are actually executing, rather than just announcing pilots.

That an increasing number of traditional entities are moving into blockchain may be the story of 2026, said Edge & Node CEO Rodrigo Coelho.

Companies are “rushing to figure this out,” he told CoinDesk. “Companies are seeking out consulting and expertise.”

Shawn Chan, of Singapore Gulf Bank, described these types of rails as being superior for transferring value.

While international regulatory hurdles need to be worked out, he estimated that companies will increasingly adopt blockchain tooling within the next decade.

This week

  • Congress and federal regulators are not holding any hearings tied to crypto this week.

If you’ve got thoughts or questions on what I should discuss next week or any other feedback you’d like to share, feel free to email me at [email protected] or find me on Bluesky @nikhileshde.bsky.social.

You can also join the group conversation on Telegram.

See ya’ll next week!

Zand and Ripple Partner to Power UAE Digital Economy with Stablecoin Innovations

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Zand, the UAE’s AI and blockchain-powered digital bank, has entered into a strategic partnership with Ripple to advance the region’s digital economy through new stablecoin and blockchain solutions.

The collaboration will focus on innovative initiatives powered by Zand’s AED stablecoin (AEDZ) and Ripple’s USD stablecoin (RLUSD).

Bridging currencies on-chain
Michael Chan, CEO of Zand

Building on an earlier payments collaboration, the two entities will explore several key initiatives. These include enabling support for RLUSD within Zand’s regulated digital asset custody services and investigating the potential for direct liquidity solutions between AEDZ and RLUSD.

Crucially, the partnership will also explore the issuance of AEDZ on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), leveraging the public blockchain’s compliance and risk controls.

Michael Chan, CEO of Zand, commented on the strategic potential of the move: “We believe that leveraging stablecoins, blockchain technology, and tokenization, can unlock powerful new use cases as traditional finance moves on-chain. Our partnership with Ripple represents a significant step forward in the growth of the digital asset ecosystem, and has the potential to revolutionize how both governments and businesses engage with trusted blockchain solutions in the UAE.”

Stablecoin specifics

The partnership aligns with the UAE’s broader Digital Economy Strategy, which aims to double the digital economy’s contribution to non-oil GDP by 2032. Stablecoin technologies are viewed as integral to this goal, with market projections suggesting the global stablecoin market could grow to $4trillion in the coming years.

Reece Merrick, managing director, Middle East and Africa at Ripple, added: “Our expanded partnership with Zand underscores our commitment to the UAE’s pioneering digital economy… We look forward to driving the adoption of stablecoins and tokenized assets in the region, creating a robust foundation for the next generation of financial services.”

Zand, which is licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE, positions itself as a bridge between traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), serving corporate, institutional, and wealth clients.

Both companies noted that future initiatives arising from this partnership remain subject to applicable regulatory approvals.

Founders admit blockchain transparency is the only defense

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Prediction markets are increasingly being framed not as gambling platforms but as vehicles for monetizing information, though founders acknowledged the line can blur depending on user intent at Consensus Hong Kong 2026.

Ding X, founder of Predict.fun, argued that prediction markets more closely resemble insurance underwriting or poker than roulette. “It’s more information trading and trying to hedge risk, rather than gambling,” he said, distinguishing skill-based forecasting from games where long-term odds guarantee losses.

Farokh Sarmad, co-founder of DASTAN, agreed that speculation exists but described the sector as “a multi-trillion dollar asset class in the making.” In his view, prediction markets are simply “financializing information,” allowing participants to monetize insight rather than leaving value solely with media companies or bookmakers.

Jared Dillinger, CEO of New Prontera Group and a former professional athlete, said the classification depends largely on how platforms are built and used. “It just depends on the eyes of the beholder,” he said, adding that prediction markets function as “an information asset class,” even if some users approach them like bets.

The more pressing challenge is insider trading. High-profile examples—from leaked entertainment setlists to geopolitical developments—have underscored the risk of information asymmetry.

“Insider information is not okay,” Sarmad said, noting that blockchain transparency can make suspicious wallets visible. Still, Dillinger acknowledged enforcement limits. “There’s always going to be some loopholes that people will find.”

As trading volumes rise and regulators take notice, founders agreed that surveillance tools, clearer disclosure norms and stronger platform governance will determine whether prediction markets mature into a recognized financial category—or remain viewed as speculative betting.