Author: NBTC

Gold-backed stablecoins have surged to about $4b in 2025, led by two tokens holding nearly 90% of supply as rising gold prices and a major issuer’s vault push tokenized bullion into the spotlight. Summary Catenaa News data shows gold-backed stablecoins near $4b in market cap, almost tripling since early 2025 as one token expands supply and overtakes its main rival.​ The top two tokens now represent close to 90% of tokenized gold, offering fractional claims on vaulted bars and tracking a spot market lifted by macro risk and central-bank demand.​ A major stablecoin issuer has quietly become one of the…

The US Senate has taken a significant step towards the long-awaited legislation regulating the cryptocurrency market. The Senate Banking Committee has scheduled a markup hearing on the bill regulating the cryptocurrency market for Thursday, January 15. A markup session is known as a committee stage in the U.S. Congress and refers to the formal meeting where a bill is finalized before being put to a vote. The date in question was first mentioned by Digital Chamber of Commerce CEO Cody Carbone during a live broadcast on December 19th. While multiple sources have confirmed the date, the official announcement is expected…

South Korea’s premier cryptocurrency exchange, Upbit, announced a groundbreaking expansion of its digital asset offerings on January 1, 2025, revealing plans to list Tether Gold (XAUT) with multiple trading pairs. This strategic move positions Upbit as the first major South Korean exchange to integrate a physically-backed gold cryptocurrency, providing investors with novel exposure to precious metals through blockchain technology. The listing, scheduled for 6:30 a.m. UTC, introduces XAUT trading against Bitcoin (BTC), Tether (USDT), and the Korean won (KRW), significantly broadening the exchange’s product portfolio during a period of increasing institutional interest in tokenized commodities. Upbit XAUT Listing Details and…

Martin Yeza, deputy of the new Congress, stated that stablecoins might fulfill a new pivotal role in the country’s payment structure. He considers that allowing the central bank to hold cryptocurrency and state companies to mine crypto would be positive. Local analysts also supported a so-called economic “tetherization.” Argentina’s New Congress Might Give Crypto A New Push In 2026 The new Argentine Congress will have to deal with several critical cryptocurrency and stablecoin-related issues this new year. According to Deputy Martin Yeza, the government will reevaluate the recipe for dollarization to stabilize the economy this year, with the inclusion of…

Following the 2024 elections, in which an estimated 270 lawmakers with favorable views on digital assets won seats in the US Congress, many cryptocurrency-affiliated organizations and political action committees show no signs of slowing their progress in the next significant election, the 2026 midterms. Likely boosted by advocacy work from organizations — such as the Coinbase-affiliated Stand With Crypto group and whose campaigns were supported by media buys from political action committees (PACs) — a majority of lawmakers in the 119th session of the US Congress took office in January having already expressed views signaling that they would support pro-crypto…

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong unveiled the company’s ambitious 2026 roadmap, promising a global “everything exchange”. While the vision is bold, users and developers alike are signaling frustration, citing a widening gap between Coinbase’s stated priorities and their on-the-ground experiences. Brian Armstrong Takes Fire as Coinbase’s 2026 Roadmap Faces User Backlash According to the Coinbase executive, the Everything app would span crypto, equities, commodities, and prediction markets. It would also feature scaled stablecoins and payments, as well as expanded developer onboarding through the Base chain and the Base App. “We’re making major investments in product quality and automation underlying each of…

Japan’s second largest city, Osaka, has begun testing autonomous AI agents in local government in an attempt to ease the country’s shrinking work force. Osaka Prefecture has launched a public-private consortium that will experiment with AI Agents designed to provide clerical support and multilingual services. The prefecture will pool expertise from a consortium, which includes Google Cloud Japan, telecom provider NTT West, Microsoft Japan, and Osaka Metropolitan University. The trial will assess whether AI can streamline administrative processes accurately and independently under predefined rules. Osaka governor Hirofumi Yoshimura said the initiative moves to create “a society that is more convenient…

Key Takeaways UK and 47 other countries adopt new crypto tax reporting rules. Under OECD’s framework, exchanges are required to report detailed transaction records to tax authorities. Crypto-asset service providers, such as exchanges and wallet providers, in the UK and over 40 other countries are now required to begin collecting detailed data on their users and transactions under the OECD’s Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF). The CARF aims to stop crypto assets from becoming a loophole for tax evasion by creating a global system where tax authorities automatically receive standardized information on crypto users and their transactions. In guidance issued last…

OKX has published its December Proof of Reserves (PoR) report. It is showing modest but steady growth across major user-held assets. The snapshot, dated December 11, marks the exchange’s 38th PoR disclosure and reflects rising balances in Bitcoin, Ether and Tether. Compared with the prior report in November. Bitcoin Holdings Show Stable Growth According to the disclosure, user Bitcoin holdings on OKX reached about 130,507 BTC in December. That figure represents an increase of 68 BTC. Or roughly 0.05% from the previous snapshot taken on November 19. While the growth rate remains small, the data suggests stability rather than withdrawals…

In 2025, the NFT market matured beyond its speculative bubble, shifting toward functional utility and sustainable growth. Market leaders included Cryptopunks, Courtyard, Dmarket and Pudgy Penguins. The 2025 NFT Landscape: From Hype to Utility In 2025, the non-fungible token ( NFT) market underwent a significant transformation, moving beyond the hype that defined the 2021-2022 bubble. What was once dominated by overpriced collectibles and short‑lived projects has evolved into a phase of functional utility and sustainable growth. This revival is being driven by three key pillars: infrastructure development, blockchain-based gaming and the tokenization of real-world assets ( RWA). Improved infrastructure—including scalable…