Here are some most recent developments in the crypto world over the past few days.
The EURC stablecoin, formerly EUROC, is now available on Stellar in addition to Ethereum and Avalanche. According to a September 26 announcement, stablecoin issuer Circle has released a Stellar-based version of EURC stablecoin, backed by the euro. Until recently, only the Ethereum and Avalanche networks supported EURC.
Stablecoins, or crypto tokens backed by fiat currency, have proven crucial to the Web3 ecosystem. On blockchain networks, they let users send payments, borrow money, lend it out for interest, and carry out other fiat-currency-related tasks. By market cap, USD Coin, backed by the dollar and Tether are presently ranked sixth and seventh positions, respectively. According to Etherscan, the Tether contract is Ethereum's third-largest gas fee user.
There are currently few options for users who want to send Web3 payments in their home currency because the US dollar backs the majority of stablecoins.
The Japanese bank joins a rapidly growing number of digital asset firms operating in Abu Dhabi and the rest of the United Arab Emirates. According to a letter from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) on September 26, Laser Digital, the digital assets division of Japan's Nomura Bank, has been given preliminary authorisation to offer broker-dealer services and asset/fund management services with both digital and traditional assets.
When Laser Digital satisfies the requirements outlined in the existing permission, the company will be granted full financial services permission to operate. ADGM comprises a registration authority, and a common law court and spans almost 15 square kilometres across two islands.
In April 2022, Binance acquired preliminary authority to operate in the ADGM, and in November, it received financial services permission. In 2022, Kraken was authorised to conduct business within the ADGM. The ADGM granted licenses to two smaller virtual asset companies this year: M2 in the UAE and Rain in Bahrain.
Gary Gensler, the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has been asked by four members of the US Congress to “immediately” authorise the listing of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, or ETFs.
House Financial Services Committee members were expected to question Gensler during a hearing on September 27. US Representatives Mike Flood, Wiley Nickel, Tom Emmer, and Ritchie Torres said in a letter to Gensler that the SEC was “discriminating against spot bitcoin exchange-traded products,” noting the legal standard that Grayscale Investments had established by successfully defending its own ETF offering. Following the Grayscale court ruling, which determined the SEC's justification was "arbitrary and capricious" in having already approved investment vehicles linked to Bitcoin futures, the four congressmen warned Gensler there was "no reason to continue to deny" spot crypto ETFs.