Author: NBTC

The US Congress has reached an agreement on a comprehensive legislative package covering housing and transportation infrastructure, but the legislation includes a significant provision closely related to the cryptocurrency and digital finance sector. The adopted regulation will prevent the US Federal Reserve (Fed) from issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) until 2030. The legislative package, dubbed the “21st Century Housing and Roads Act,” focuses primarily on housing finance, infrastructure investments, and transportation projects. However, the inclusion of a CBDC provision in the bill marks a new phase in the long-running political debate surrounding the digital dollar. Central bank digital currencies…

Hyperliquid has faced a wave of criticism over its handling of UK sanctions against crypto exchange $HTX. According to a user known as “as required,” the platform has adopted the harshest possible interpretation of the sanctions and is blocking wallets that only indirectly interacted with $HTX. Addresses associated with Bybit may also be affected. The controversy stems from UK sanctions imposed on Huobi Global SA, a company associated with $HTX, on May 26, 2026. Authorities suspect the exchange of helping Russia evade sanctions by transferring more than $1.5 billion through the so-called A7 network. Under UK regulations, the restrictions apply…

Bitcoin price started a recovery wave above the $80,500 zone. $BTC is consolidating and might aim for more gains if it clears the $81,500 resistance zone. Bitcoin managed to form a base above $80,000 and started a recovery wave. The price is trading above $80,500 and the 100 hourly simple moving average. There is a bearish trend line forming with resistance at $81,500 on the hourly chart of the $BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken). The pair might gain bullish momentum if it settles above the $81,500 zone. Bitcoin Price Eyes Fresh Upside Break Bitcoin price remained supported above the…

South Korea, a nation long revered by the digital asset industry as the “El Dorado of liquidity,” is seeing a change in investment trends. The country’s famously tech-savvy and highly active retail traders are pivoting their capital away from digital assets and pouring it into the domestic stock market. They are being lured by the explosive, momentum-driven returns of the artificial intelligence and semiconductor sectors. South Korea has historically been a major hub and a boon for cryptocurrency trading due a highly enthusiastic population of retail investors, technological infrastructure as well as appetite for volatility. Many cryptocurrency projects have historically…

SWIFT Tackles the “Last Mile” as Ripple Pushes Instant Settlement on the $XRP Ledger Market analyst Diana notes that the gap between traditional cross-border payments and blockchain settlement is becoming increasingly difficult to overlook. While SWIFT works to refine the long-standing “last mile” issue, Ripple is already focused on enabling near-instant settlement through the $XRP Ledger. SWIFT may move messages between banks in seconds, but that doesn’t translate into instant settlement. The real delay sits in the “last mile,” where roughly 80% of cross-border payment time is lost after funds reach the beneficiary bank. At this stage, local compliance checks,…

Australia’s High Court has unanimously ruled 7-0 in favor of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, finding that Block Earner’s former fixed-yield crypto product required a financial services licence under existing law. According to a June 17 court document, the High Court determined that the product offered by Web3 Ventures Pty Ltd, which operates as Block Earner, functioned as a facility for financial investment and also met the legal definition of a derivative. The court found that investor returns depended on movements in underlying digital asset values and exchange rates. As a result of the ruling, the case will return…

Tether launched version 1.4 of its wallet with Lightning Network support, including BOLT11 invoices and LNURL functionality. The update allows sending and receiving Bitcoin over Lightning with improved fee estimation, within a self-custodial framework based on the WDK. The integration anticipates the migration of $USDT to Lightning through the Taproot Assets protocol, announced in January 2025 alongside Lightning Labs. Tether expanded the capabilities of its mobile wallet with the launch of version 1.4, which incorporates native support for the Lightning Network. The update includes compatibility with BOLT11 invoices and LNURL functionality, two standards that enable sending and receiving Bitcoin at…

Many experts share Bilotta’s AI agent outlook, including Charles Hoskinson, founder and CEO of Cardano’s Input Output, who said that by 2035 they will become more relevant than humans. The macro numbers support his stance. Data from the U.S. International Trade Administration via Trade.gov shows that business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce across the broader Asia-Pacific region is expanding at a 15% annual clip, with market values projected to climb past $28.9 trillion by the end of this year. Yet, despite that explosive growth, the plumbing underneath remains broken. The problem is fundamentally an issue of legacy infrastructure and compliance, Bilotta noted. Global…

Girin Labs Brings $XRP Ledger to Everyday Payments Girin Labs is bringing the $XRP Ledger closer to everyday use by closing the gap between holding digital assets and actually spending them. Through the integration of its Girin Wallet with Doppler Finance’s institutional-grade yield layer, the focus shifts from passive storage to active, real-world utility. The aim is straightforward: make $XRP and $RLUSD secure, spendable, and productive in daily transactions without compromising user control. At the core of the rollout is a simple shift that the Girin Wallet enables real-world payments on the $XRP Ledger. Users can spend $XRP and $RLUSD…

The People’s Bank of China said stablecoins could play a larger role in cross-border payments and called for closer monitoring of their impact on the international monetary system and global payment networks. According to remarks delivered by Wang Xin, director-general of the Research Bureau of the People’s Bank of China, at the Lujiazui Forum on June 17, policymakers are paying close attention to how stablecoins could affect the international monetary system and cross-border payment networks. Addressing a session on global financial governance reform and cooperation, the central bank official said sustainable development depends on large volumes of cross-border investment and…