Author: NBTC

CHICAGO, May 15, 2025 – CME Group, the world’s leading derivatives marketplace, announced today a groundbreaking expansion of its cryptocurrency trading hours. The company revealed plans to introduce 24-hour trading for its crypto futures and options products starting May 29, pending regulatory approval. This strategic move fundamentally transforms institutional access to cryptocurrency markets and represents a significant milestone in digital asset maturation. CME Group’s Crypto Futures Expansion Details CME Group confirmed the 24-hour trading schedule through its official X account. The expanded trading window will cover Bitcoin futures, Micro Bitcoin futures, Ethereum futures, and related options contracts. Consequently, institutional investors…

Key Takeaways Traditional finance institutions are currently outperforming the crypto industry in execution. The lack of distribution has been a significant barrier to crypto’s mainstream adoption. The evolution of financial narratives in crypto is shifting towards institutional adoption and stablecoins. Ethereum’s scaling challenges have led to the rise of Layer 2 solutions. Ethereum’s narrative should focus on market kinetics and maintaining a net positive stance. The ‘infinite garden’ concept is considered overly simplistic and idealistic. Human behavior is complex and doesn’t always follow rational incentives. Agentic AI on-chain is predicted to be a major innovation in the crypto space. Expecting…

Nexo has expanded its private client division, scaling services for high-net-worth individuals and family offices as demand for tailored crypto strategies accelerates. The move follows a 136 percent increase in Nexo Private clients since 2025, reflecting a broader shift among wealthy investors toward more active digital asset management. The expansion comes as crypto’s integration into traditional portfolios deepens. Spot Bitcoin ETFs, including products from BlackRock and Fidelity, attracted more than $30 billion in inflows during their first year, reinforcing crypto’s role as a portfolio diversifier. Industry surveys suggest up to 74 percent of high-net-worth individuals are either invested in or…

Finance Canada has confirmed that Bill C-15 has received Royal Assent. This paves the way for a federal framework to regulate stablecoins and brings the asset class under closer oversight by the Bank of Canada. The move marks a shift toward treating stablecoins as part of the country’s financial infrastructure. Regulators aim to support digital payments while maintaining consumer protection and financial stability. Central bank to oversee stablecoin issuers Under the proposed framework, issuers of fiat-backed stablecoins will be required to register with the Bank of Canada and comply with ongoing supervisory requirements. The framework applies to both domestic and…

Decibel, a fully onchain trading engine built on the Aptos network, is aiming to show that high-speed performance does not have to come at the cost of control and transparency. On February 27, 2026, the Aptos ecosystem reached a major milestone with the launch of Decibel on its mainnet. As the first fully decentralized perpetual exchange built natively on Aptos, Decibel is designed to address a major gap in the market. It is not just another trading platform. Decibel brings spot, perpetuals (perps), and margin trading together into a single onchain system. By building on Aptos, the platform combines the…

Lorenzo Valente, Director of Digital Asset Research at ARK Invest, stated that Elon Musk’s decision to include Benji Taylor as Lead Designer for the X platform could provide important signals about the company’s future strategic direction. According to Valente, Taylor’s background points to much more than just a typical fintech user experience (UX) development role. Taylor previously rose to prominence as the founder of Family, a self-custody-focused cryptocurrency wallet project that was later acquired by Aave. During that time, he held a product management role, and in 2024, he joined the Base team as Head of Design. Valente argues that…

The U.S. Department of Justice will be helmed by Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, President Donald Trump announced Thursday, after removing Attorney General Pam Bondi from the position. Blanche represented Trump in his criminal case in New York prior to Trump’s reelection as U.S. President in 2024. Trump named him deputy attorney general after retaking office. As deputy attorney general, Blanche ordered the disbanding of the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, which was formed in 2022 under former President Joe Biden, and signed a four-page memo ordering prosecutors not to pursue regulatory violation cases in the crypto industry. The…

The Central Bank of Nigeria has launched a pilot supervisory program for Virtual Asset Service Providers and selected a first cohort of six entities, with KuCoin standing out as the only global crypto exchange on the list. According to local press coverage, the initial phase includes Nigerian payment and crypto players cNGN, Flutterwave, Juicyway, KoinKoin and Paystack, alongside KuCoin, which serves a global user base but has significant volumes in Africa’s largest crypto market. The pilot is designed to test how selected VASPs perform under direct central bank oversight on issues such as anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing and counter-proliferation financing,…

Swiss-based financial giant UBS has published a noteworthy assessment regarding the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut schedule. According to the institution, the Federal Reserve’s first interest rate cut may be delayed until September due to persistent inflation and increasing geopolitical risks. UBS also predicts that a second rate cut could be on the agenda later in the year, possibly in December. UBS economist Andrew Dubinsky stated that the Fed is waiting for clearer inflation signals before changing its policy. According to Dubinsky, core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation is currently hovering around 3%, which, partly due to the impact…

Former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo said delaying the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act could hurt banks more than crypto companies, because crypto firms can always move to other countries if the rules are unclear, while banks remain stuck. According to Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal, in an interview, lawmakers may soon find a compromise on the stablecoin rewards issue, but the bill must still pass through the Senate for a final vote. Banks face more risk because the Clarity Act has stalled Chris Giancarlo said financial institutions need the Clarity Act more than people think because crypto companies will…