Author: NBTC

Circle had a challenging year, with rapid growth and economic headwinds. For 2025, Circle Internet Group Inc. achieved over 66% in revenue growth. Circle Internet Group Inc., the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, saw over 66% in revenue growth. The group emerged as a growth leader among other crypto-friendly fintech companies. Circle achieved the biggest growth rate among fintech companies, though its revenues remain comparatively small to mature fintechs. | Source: Artemis Circle’s main source of revenue came from its role as a stablecoin issuer. The company retained most of the fees, achieving $2.93B in revenues. Based on DeFi Llama…

China’s financial associations have jointly declared real-world asset tokenization (RWA) illegal under current national regulations. A new risk warning issued by seven major industry bodies confirmed RWA falls within the category of prohibited virtual currency activities. The statement brings clarity to regulatory treatment and signals a full enforcement posture against RWA in both domestic and offshore operations. Cross-Industry Warning Identifies RWA as Unlawful Activity The notice was co-signed by seven associations, including the Internet Finance Association, the Securities Association, and the Payment & Clearing Association. The document referred to RWA as a financing and trading activity, placing it alongside stablecoins…

Network International partners with MBank to enable AE Coin payments in the UAE. AE Coin integrates into existing payment rails for retail and e-commerce use. The move signals the UAE’s push toward compliant, real-world digital currency adoption. Network International, a fintech company, has taken a decisive step in reshaping digital payments in the UAE by enabling regulated stablecoin acceptance nationwide. The move follows a strategic partnership with Al Maryah Community Bank, widely known as MBank. Through this collaboration, Network becomes the first payments platform in the country to support AE Coin payments across everyday commerce. Consequently, the development signals a…

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said Thursday the central bank has completed its technical and preparatory work on the digital euro and that it is now up to political institutions to act. The project, which aims to create a public digital means of payment, is under review by the European Council and the European Parliament. Her remarks came during the ECB’s final press conference of the year, where policymakers left the eurozone’s key interest rates unchanged. Lagarde reaffirmed the ECB’s commitment to a meeting-by-meeting approach to rate decisions, saying they will be based on “incoming economic and financial data,”…

Financial authorities in the United Kingdom set a timeline for a new crypto licensing regime, requiring aspiring companies to seek full authorization before the framework comes into force. Crypto asset service providers (CASPs) will be able to apply to enter the UK under the crypto licensing regime starting this autumn, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Thursday. “We expect the application period will open in September 2026,” the FCA noted, adding that the timeline will be confirmed in due course. The FCA’s gateway will offer a limited window for applications to be processed before the regime goes live, expected on…

At the start of 2026, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have shown a notable growth. Thus, the cumulative weekly DEX volume has hit $86B, showing a 12% increase over the seven days, while the decentralized exchange (DEX) vs centralized exchange (CEX) Dominance indicator presents a 18.55% increase. TOP #DECENTRALIZED EXCHANGES BY WEEKLY TRADING VOLUME #Meteora #Uniswap #PancakeSwap #Raydium #Aerodrome #Curve #Orca #Aster #Hyperliquid pic.twitter.com/nM74z8NDbw — PHOENIX – Crypto News & Analytics (@pnxgrp) January 6, 2026 As per the data from Phoenix Group, Meteora, Uniswap, and PancakeSwap have taken the leading positions among the DEXs in terms of weekly volume. This serves as…

Forward Industries (NASDAQ: FWDI), a leading company in digital asset management on Solana, has announced an unprecedented innovation: its SEC-registered shares are now available on the Solana blockchain through Superstate’s Opening Bell platform.This initiative marks the first time that the equity of a public company can be directly used as collateral within decentralized finance (DeFi). Thanks to this integration, holders of FWDI tokenized shares can now use their equity as collateral on Kamino, one of the leading lending protocols on Solana.Eligible investors thus have the opportunity to borrow stablecoins using their tokenized shares, while maintaining exposure to the underlying equity…

South Korea unveiled a comprehensive digital asset strategy on Friday as part of its “2026 Economic Growth Strategy.” This signals a major policy shift from regulation-focused approaches toward institutional adoption and industry development. The plan encompasses stablecoin legislation, spot ETF approvals, and blockchain-based government payments, marking the country’s most ambitious crypto policy overhaul since the Terra-Luna collapse in 2022. Stablecoin Framework Takes Shape The Financial Services Commission (FSC) will finalize the so-called “Digital Asset Phase 2 legislation” within the first quarter of 2026. This will establish a clear regulatory framework for stablecoins. Under the new rules, stablecoin issuers must obtain…

Binance continues to expand its futures product line. According to a company statement, Binance Futures will launch the USDⓈ-backed XAGUSDT Perpetual Futures Contract on January 7, 2026, to increase users’ trading options and enhance the trading experience. The new contract will be available on the Binance Futures platform starting January 7, 2026. The XAGUSDT perpetual futures contract is based on the price of silver (XAG) in US dollars, with each contract representing 1 troy ounce of silver. The contracts will be settled in USDT. Binance announced that it will offer investors leverage of up to 50x for this product. This…

Cryptocurrency analytics company Messari shared its predictions for the sector in 2026 in its new report. The report argues that 2025 will be an extremely polarizing year for the crypto industry, with the market offering completely different experiences for different actors. According to Messari, 2025 will be one of the strongest years in crypto history for Wall Street-based institutional investors, while it will stand out as a challenging period that falls short of expectations for individual investors and community-focused participants. The report states that Bitcoin has clearly diverged from all other crypto assets and solidified its position as the leading…