Author: James Wilson
SBI Group has partnered with Visa on a credit card product that allows users to earn crypto assets through card rewards. Summary SBI’s Visa card lets users earn crypto rewards in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP. SBI VC Trade and Aplus will support the crypto rewards and card service. SBI is also discussing a Bitbank deal to expand its Japan crypto exchange presence. The card supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP rewards through SBI VC Trade and Aplus. The product links daily card spending with crypto rewards. It also shows SBI’s continued push to connect traditional finance with regulated digital asset services…
South Korea’s Seoul Administrative Court has granted Bithumb a temporary reprieve from a six-month suspension, allowing the exchange to continue operating while the case proceeds. Summary Seoul Administrative Court has paused Bithumb’s six-month suspension, allowing operations to continue until a final ruling. Regulators imposed a 36.8 billion won fine after identifying about 6.65 million cases of failed user identity checks. Ongoing scrutiny has intensified after a payout error, and AML violations triggered multiple investigations into Bithumb’s controls. According to Yonhap News Agency, the court’s 2nd Administrative Division under Judge Gong Hyeon-jin approved the stay on Thursday, pausing enforcement of a…
SBI Holdings has started formal talks with Bitbank over a capital and business alliance. The planned transaction would make Bitbank a consolidated subsidiary of SBI. Summary SBI Holdings has begun talks to make Bitbank a consolidated subsidiary through a share acquisition. The move follows SBI VC Trade’s merger with Bitpoint Japan in April 2026. Bitbank’s EPOS Crypto Card lets users settle monthly bills with bitcoin balances. The company said it plans to acquire shares after due diligence and internal approval. Details on timing, structure, and acquisition method will be discussed later. The move comes soon after SBI Group absorbed Bitpoint…
The U.S. Senate has approved a resolution banning senators and Senate staff from using prediction markets. Summary Senate approved a rule banning members and staff from using prediction markets, with the change taking effect immediately. Lawmakers cited risks of insider information misuse, with Senator Bernie Moreno saying the ban protects public trust. According to Senate proceedings, the resolution passed by unanimous consent on Thursday changed the chamber’s standing rules and took immediate effect. Lawmakers tied the ban to the risk that officials exposed to sensitive information could profit from event contracts. “Engaging in any way in a prediction market or…
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed on April 29 that the United States has seized almost $500 million in Iranian crypto assets under Operation Economic Fury, including a $344 million Tether freeze on two Tron addresses, while saying Iran’s currency has fallen 60 to 70% against the dollar and the country is in the middle of a currency crisis. Summary Bessent said Operation Economic Fury has seized roughly $350 million in crypto assets plus an additional $100 million seized separately, bringing the total close to $500 million as part of a broader campaign targeting Iranian bank accounts, retirement funds, and overseas…
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig confirmed the agency is deploying AI tools to review crypto registration applications and monitor trading data, the first major US financial regulator to use artificial intelligence to compensate for a workforce cut of more than 20% under the Trump administration’s federal staffing reductions. Summary CFTC AI tools will flag incomplete applications, reject blank filings, and send inadequate submissions to the back of the queue without human review, with staff trained on Microsoft Copilot and in-house surveillance tools under development. The CFTC’s Chicago enforcement office has no active lawyers left following a string of departures and retirements,…
Bitcoin has failed to sustain a move above $78,000 in the 24 hours following Wednesday’s FOMC decision, with three straight sessions of Bitcoin ETF outflows totalling over $490 million signalling that institutional allocators are pausing rather than adding exposure as uncertainty over the Fed’s direction deepens. Summary Bitcoin ETF products logged $137.77 million in net outflows on April 29, ending a nine-day inflow streak worth $2.1 billion, with every active issuer printing negative for the first time in the streak — including IBIT at $54.73 million and FBTC at $36.13 million. Glassnode data show Bitcoin is “trapped” below its True…
XRP Las Vegas 2026 opened today, April 30, as Ripple covered the Las Vegas Strip with “Raise the Standard” billboards and Steven Zeiler of Yellow Network posted live from the floor calling XRP “only a step on the trajectory to becoming a global reserve currency. Summary XRP Las Vegas 2026 runs April 30 to May 1 and draws Ripple executives, regulators, and institutional investors, coinciding with the listing of Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin on OKX and a formal Ripple-OKX partnership announced April 29. White House advisor Patrick Witt hinted at major new developments for the national Bitcoin strategic reserve in the…
President Trump will receive a military briefing today from CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper on new Iran options, including a “short and powerful” wave of infrastructure strikes, a Strait of Hormuz ground operation, and a special forces mission to secure Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, as Bitcoin opened at its lowest level since April 13. Summary The Iran briefing signals Trump is seriously considering resuming major combat operations to break the stalled nuclear negotiations, according to two sources who spoke to Axios. CENTCOM has also prepared an option for US forces to physically seize part of the Strait of Hormuz to…
The dollar index is heading for its biggest monthly drop since June 2025 as U.S.–Iran ceasefire hopes unwind the war premium, even while oil and Fed bets keep it range‑bound. Summary The dollar index is heading for its steepest monthly drop since June 2025 as traders unwind safe‑haven positions following a U.S.–Iran ceasefire agreement. Jinshi News reports the index fell about 1.8% in April, though a late rebound driven by higher oil prices and shifting Federal Reserve expectations has pared some losses. Manulife portfolio manager Nathan Tuft expects the greenback to decline from here but remain “range‑bound” as markets balance…