Operating without Bank of Russia registration could bring up to seven years in prison. The Supreme Court says the bill is premature until a broader digital currency law takes effect in July.
FinCEN and OFAC published a joint proposed rule on April 8, 2026 requiring payment stablecoin issuers to build bank-grade compliance programs, with a full enforcement deadline of January 18, 2027.
Ron Hammond, head of policy at crypto market maker Wintermute, is significantly more cautious than prediction markets on the CLARITY Act's 2026 prospects. Bank opposition on stablecoin yield, fluid committee timelines, and Trump-linked political headwinds are his three core concerns.
Brian Armstrong's January opposition to the CLARITY Act contributed to a Senate Banking Committee delay that stalled the bill for months. On April 11 he reversed that position, backing the current draft and aligning with Treasury Secretary Bessent's call for Congress to act — though the Senate committee has still not scheduled a markup.
MiCA has turned boardroom approvals into live infrastructure searches across Europe's largest financial institutions. USDC volume in the EU jumped 109% in six months as corporate treasury demand replaces speculative interest.
A US District Court granted the CFTC a temporary restraining order halting Arizona's criminal proceedings against federally regulated prediction market platforms. The order follows the CFTC's simultaneous litigation against Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois — a coordinated assertion of exclusive federal jurisdiction over event-based derivatives.
The State Bank of Pakistan allows licensed crypto firms to open bank accounts under the Virtual Assets Act 2026. Banks remain barred from trading or holding crypto. The country has 40 million crypto users and over $300 billion in annual trading volume.
A Times investigation found WLFI partnered with AB DAO without knowing the firm had recently promoted a resort project tied to Cambodia's Prince Group, designated a major transnational criminal network by U.S. authorities.
South Korea's FIU found 70,000 unverified customer accounts and 10,113 trades routed through 16 unregistered overseas platforms. The three-month partial suspension runs from April 29 to July 28. Existing users retain full access; only new account onboarding is blocked.
The filing asks SEC staff to confirm that recording securities entitlements on Ethereum Mainnet will not trigger enforcement action. If SEC staff approve, it would be the first formal confirmation that public blockchain infrastructure can operate within the U.S. securities recordkeeping system.
SEC Chair Paul Atkins confirmed on April 6, 2026 that 'Regulation Crypto Assets' is at OIRA — the White House's regulatory review office — awaiting sign-off before public comment opens. The proposal creates three safe-harbor pathways, reclassifies most crypto assets as non-securities, and introduces the first structured fundraising framework for blockchain startups under U.S. federal law.
