Keyrock, a leading crypto investment company and digital asset liquidity provider, has secured a Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) license, advancing its efforts to expand its presence across the European Union (EU).

 

 

The company announced the authorization in a Monday blog post, stating that it was granted through its French subsidiary, Keyrock FR SAS. According to Reza Ghadiri Zare, Keyrock’s general counsel, the MiCA license provides regulatory certainty as the firm scales its operations across EU member states, thereby strengthening investor confidence.

 

“Achieving a MiCA license not only demonstrates our uncompromising market integrity, but also signals our intent for the future,” commented Kevin de Patoul, CEO of Keyrock. “We’ll continue to drive progress in digital assets, but never at the expense of security or transparency. As we grow, we’ll provide clients with the stability and confidence required in a regulated market.”

 

With MiCA licensing secured and regulatory hurdles cleared, Keyrock aims to enhance its cross-border operations across the EU. Coupled with its liquidity and risk management infrastructure, the company plans to further scale its digital asset initiatives.

 

With a valuation of $1.1 billion, Keyrock operates a liquidity infrastructure that spans more than 85 centralized and decentralized exchanges and over 1,400 markets.

 

About Keyrock 

Founded in 2017, Keyrock is a leading global digital asset market maker that aims to make crypto markets more accessible and scalable. Leveraging its high-frequency trading technologies, risk management capabilities, and deep liquidity, Keyrock offers a range of services, including market making, OTC trading, and digital asset and wealth management.

 

As one of the earliest crypto market makers, Keyrock has achieved several significant milestones, including raising more than $170 million and achieving unicorn valuation. The company has also secured the necessary licenses, reducing regulatory uncertainty as it expands across the EU. Keyrock serves institutional clients, including hedge funds, asset managers, and traditional finance companies entering the digital asset market.

 

 

Exodus Movement Inc. (NYSE American: EXOD), a publicly traded financial technology company and developer of the Exodus wallet, has partnered with Ondo Finance to launch Exodus Markets, a platform for trading tokenized assets.

 

 

With Exodus Markets, users can now buy and sell more than 200 tokenized stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and real-world assets directly in the Exodus wallet app on the Solana blockchain.

 

"Tokenized stocks are one of the most important developments in modern finance," said JP Richardson, CEO and co-founder of Exodus.

 

"For the first time, our customers can trade and hold tokenized equities with the same direct control and global access they expect from crypto. Exodus is becoming the front door to every asset you hold, without compromising on trust and control."

 

The launch of Exodus Markets aligns with Exodus’s goal of transforming from a custodial wallet into a full financial platform that allows users to trade, earn rewards, send, spend, and manage money.

 

As part of its efforts to become a comprehensive financial app, Exodus launched Exodus Pay, a self-custodial payment feature within the Exodus app that enables users to transact with digital assets, including stablecoins, for everyday purchases. The company also launched XO Cash, a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar.

 

The Tokenization Space

The tokenization space, particularly real-world assets (RWAs), has experienced significant growth over the past 1 to 2 years. Excluding stablecoins, the tokenization sector grew from roughly $5 billion to $6 billion at the start of 2025 to $27 billion to $31 billion or more by mid 2026, representing an increase of more than 400% over a period of 15 to 18 months.

 

Several institutions are also entering this growing sector, with Bitget most recently launching Reality, its real-world asset (RWA) platform. Kraken has also launched xChange, an on-chain trading engine designed for trading tokenized equities. MetaMask, Trust Wallet, Blockchain.com, and Robinhood have also made strategic moves to enter the sector, partnering with RWA firms and rolling out tokenized assets and stocks.

 

Given the level of growth and adoption the real-world asset and tokenization sector has seen so far, several projections have been made regarding its future potential. The Boston Consulting Group and Ripple have projected that the sector could be worth more than $15 trillion by 2030.

 

 

Zodia Custody, a company that provides institutional custody for cryptocurrencies and digital assets, has secured a payment license from Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), the country’s primary financial regulator.

 

 

With this payment license secured, Zodia Custody is set to expand beyond crypto custody, its main offering, and is now moving into both the custody and seamless transfer of electronic money tokens and stablecoins within the European Union.

 

“Institutional adoption of crypto assets demands infrastructure that meets the highest standards of regulatory adherence and operational efficiency,” said Ami Nagata, Managing Director, Luxembourg at Zodia Custody Europe.

 

“Securing a Payment Institution license alongside our MiCA CASP authorization is a critical step in bridging our capabilities across crypto asset safekeeping. With both licenses in place, our clients have the certainty they need to manage their electronic money token and crypto asset strategies across Europe, with full confidence that their assets are safeguarded within a bank-grade environment.”

 

Alongside the payment license and the MiCA license it secured in December last year, Zodia Custody is now well-positioned to serve as a core infrastructure provider for institutional digital finance. Securing these licenses removes structural barriers and counterparty risks commonly associated with crypto asset service providers.

 

The securing of the Luxembourg payment license comes shortly after Standard Chartered made a non-binding offer to acquire Zodia Custody. Although the acquisition cost was not publicly disclosed, the offer has already been accepted by Zodia Custody shareholders.

 

Zodia Custody currently serves a number of institutional clients, including 21Shares, Re7 Capital, Bitwise, and BitMEX. In April of this year, Zodia Custody partnered with BitMEX to integrate the Interchange platform into BitMEX's infrastructure to enable off-exchange trading, a move that enhances the safety of clients' assets on the BitMEX platform, especially in the event of a security breach.

 

 

Kraken has been named the official cryptocurrency exchange supporter of the FIFA 2026 World Cup, which is scheduled to begin on June 11.

 

In a blog post announcing the partnership, Kraken said the collaboration will allow it to leverage its digital technology to enhance the fan experience for the global audience expected to tune in to this year’s World Cup tournament, which will be hosted across three countries: Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The tournament is expected to reach more than 6 billion people worldwide.

 

 

“Innovation has always played a central role in how FIFA evolves and enhances the fan experience. As we prepare to welcome the world to the biggest FIFA World Cup in history, we are delighted to partner with Kraken, an organization that shares our commitment to innovation and technology,” said Romy Gai, FIFA Chief Business Officer.

 

“Together, we look forward to exploring new ways to connect supporters with the tournament, creating memorable experiences that bring fans closer to the game and the moments that make the FIFA World Cup so special.”

 

With Kraken becoming the official cryptocurrency exchange supporter of this year’s World Cup, the company said it will deliver a series of fan-focused product experiences across North America and Europe. Kraken said the initiatives are designed to introduce new audiences to digital assets while strengthening the connection between football engagement and financial participation.

 

About Kraken 

Kraken is one of the world’s oldest global cryptocurrency exchanges. Launched in 2011, the exchange operates as a full-service digital asset platform offering spot trading, margin trading, futures, staking, over-the-counter services, tokenized equities, and stocks. Its mission is to accelerate the global adoption of crypto by enabling broader access to financial services and promoting financial inclusion.

 

Since its launch, Kraken has grown to serve millions of users worldwide. Its services are currently available in more than 190 countries and serve over 13 million users globally. To provide non-U.S. users with access to U.S.-listed stocks and IPO opportunities, Kraken launched xChange, a platform that offers tokenized representations of real U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds to eligible non-U.S. users.

 

 

Mastercard is expanding its stablecoin settlement capabilities to support intraday, weekend, and holiday settlements using both fiat currencies and on-chain card settlements.

 

 

According to Mastercard, the expansion is aimed at providing users across the company's global payments network with greater flexibility, allowing them to better manage liquidity and gain greater control over how their money moves. The expansion is also expected to facilitate transactions that depend on timing and transparency, including cross-border payments, treasury operations, and payouts.

 

"The next phase of stablecoin adoption is about real-world utility, especially in settlement, where timing and liquidity matter most," said Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president of Blockchain & Digital Assets at Mastercard.

 

"By introducing intraday and weekend settlement options across our global network, we're expanding how partners manage liquidity and operate in an always-on digital economy while maintaining the trust, resilience, and safeguards they expect from Mastercard."

 

With this expansion, Mastercard will support additional stablecoins, including Paxos's PYUSD, USDG, and USDP; Ripple's RLUSD; and SoFi's SoFiUSD, in addition to Circle's USDC, which it already supports. These stablecoins will be supported across multiple blockchain networks, including Arbitrum, Base, Canton, Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, Tempo, and XRPL.

 

ARQ (formerly known as DolarApp), CBW Bank, Cross River, Lead Bank, and Nuvei will be among the first companies in the United States and Latin America to support Mastercard's stablecoin settlement options, with further expansion expected throughout the year.

 

Mastercard's addition of more settlement options comes shortly after the payments giant acquired BVNK, a leading stablecoin infrastructure company, in March. The acquisition is part of Mastercard's broader strategy to connect on-chain payment rails with traditional fiat rails.

 

Mastercard is currently one of the world's largest payment processing networks, with more than 150 million merchant locations across 210 countries and territories. The company processed approximately $10.6 trillion in gross dollar volume (GDV) and reported net revenue of about $8.4 billion in the first quarter of this year.

 

 

Binance is winding down its centralized non-fungible token (NFT) platform and has instructed users to move their NFT assets before July 3, 2026.

 

Although the shutdown was framed as an "upgrade" by the exchange, users have been urged to transfer their NFT assets from the Binance NFT marketplace to the Binance Wallet, which the exchange says will now support NFT custody.

 

 

Users holding transferable NFT assets have been given one month's notice, until July 3, 2026, to move their NFTs to either their Binance Wallet or any other compatible wallet of their choice, or risk losing access to any NFTs that remain unwithdrawn.

 

As for users holding non-transferable NFTs, those assets will neither be withdrawable nor transferable because they were originally coded to prevent withdrawal and transfer. However, Binance said through Binance Academy that it will issue PDF certificates to users who have completed courses on the Binance Academy platform.

 

To facilitate the prompt withdrawal of NFTs from its marketplace, Binance said it will reimburse 1 USDC to up to 100,000 users withdrawing general NFTs from the platform. The 1 USDC reimbursement represents the estimated cost of withdrawing a single NFT. For users holding CR7-themed NFTs, Binance said it will refund the full withdrawal fees.

 

Declining NFT Market

The NFT market has experienced a dramatic decline in recent years, falling sharply from its 2021 and 2022 peaks. At its height, the market was valued at an estimated $17 billion to $24 billion, with monthly trading volume surpassing $4 billion.

 

However, market conditions have changed significantly, and the sector has fallen to historic lows. The global NFT market is currently valued at approximately $1.5 billion, representing a decline of more than 90% from its 2022 peak. Monthly trading volume has also dropped substantially and now ranges between roughly $400 million and $720 million, well below the peak level of more than $4 billion recorded in 2022.

 

Several NFT platforms, including Magic Eden, X2Y2, Zora, and Nifty Gateway, have either scaled back parts of their operations, significantly reduced their activity, or shifted their focus away from the NFT market, citing the sector's prolonged downturn.

 

Decentralized finance protocol Ethena Labs has partnered with Anchorage Digital, a digital asset infrastructure provider, to expand its presence in institutional lending through Anchorage Digital's Atlas Collateral Management platform, which manages institutional-grade digital asset collateral.

 

 

As Ethena Labs seeks to deepen its involvement in institutional lending, the partnership will see Anchorage Digital act as collateral manager for Ethena's institutional lending activities. This arrangement allows Ethena to focus on deploying capital for loans, while Anchorage Digital manages and safeguards the associated collateral under its custody.

 

"Institutions want access to crypto native capital, but not at the cost of custody, controls, or operational rigor. Atlas Collateral Management lets protocols like Ethena Labs meet institutional borrowers where they are, combining the speed of DeFi with the standards institutions require," said Nathan McCauley, Co-Founder and CEO of Anchorage Digital.

 

Through the Atlas Collateral Management platform, Anchorage can monitor collateral and loan thresholds in real time, support margin processes, and execute rules-based actions when necessary. Because the collateral remains under Anchorage's custody and does not move on the chain, Ethena can access traditional institutional lending markets without requiring institutions to adopt blockchain native custody solutions or interact directly with DeFi smart contracts.

 

For borrowers, the collaboration provides access to crypto native credit while allowing them to maintain their existing custodial, compliance, and risk management frameworks. Atlas offers protocols a streamlined way to expand into institutional lending without building and maintaining their own collateral management, monitoring, and liquidation infrastructure.

 

The partnership between Ethena Labs and Anchorage Digital builds on an existing relationship. In July 2025, Ethena partnered with Anchorage Digital Bank, the first federally chartered crypto bank in the United States, to become the primary issuer of USDtb, Ethena Labs' institutional-grade stablecoin.

 

As part of its broader push into institutional lending, Ethena recently partnered with Solana-based DeFi platform Jupiter and Bitwise Asset Management to launch an institutional-grade USDe lending market on Jupiter's lending platform.

 

The partnership between Anchorage Digital and Ethena Labs comes at roughly the same time as Coinbase's investment in Ethena Labs, which included the purchase of an undisclosed amount of ENA tokens. Coinbase and Ethena are working together to launch on-chain savings and finance products for Coinbase's more than 100 million users.

 

 

Robinhood Markets, Inc. has completed the acquisition of WonderFi, a formerly publicly traded Canadian fintech company focused on cryptocurrency and digital assets.

 

The acquisition, valued at $180 million, now allows Robinhood to fully enter the Canadian crypto market, with WonderFi subsidiaries Bitbuy, a crypto trading platform, and Coinsquare, a regulated crypto exchange, becoming part of the Robinhood brand.

 

“WonderFi has extensive experience operating regulated crypto platforms that serve beginner and advanced crypto users alike, making it an ideal partner to accelerate Robinhood’s mission in Canada,” said Johann Kerbrat, SVP and General Manager of Robinhood Crypto & International.

 

“We’re pleased to have closed our acquisition and look forward to delivering innovative, user-centric investing products to Canadian customers,” he added.

 

With this acquisition, WonderFi employees will join more than 240 Robinhood employees based in Canada, collectively serving more than 1 million Robinhood customers internationally and 300,000 existing WonderFi customers.

 

About Robinhood 

Robinhood Markets, Inc. is a Nasdaq-listed American financial technology company with a presence in the United Kingdom, the European Union (EU), and now Canada.

 

Established in February 2018, Robinhood operates a dual trading platform across mobile and web that is designed to make access to different asset classes easier, particularly for newer investors. Its mission is simple: to democratize finance for all.

 

Since its launch, Robinhood has achieved several milestones, including pioneering commission-free trading in the United States, a move that prompted many brokerage firms to eliminate commission fees. Over the years, Robinhood has also completed a number of acquisitions, including X1, a financial technology company; TradePMR; Bitstamp, a cryptocurrency exchange; and Pluto Capital.

 

Like Robinhood, several other companies have completed acquisitions this year to expand into new areas of finance and cryptocurrency. Bullish, a cryptocurrency exchange, recently acquired Equiniti for approximately $4.2 billion as part of its effort to enter the tokenized securities sector. Other companies, including Mastercard, Polygon Labs, and OKX, have also pursued strategic acquisitions to expand their market presence.

 

 

Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs has blocked access to Polymarket, the world’s largest prediction market platform, and plans to block all social media accounts affiliated with it.

 

According to Alexander Sabar, Director General of Digital Space Supervision, platforms that facilitate money-based betting on specific outcomes or events are still categorized as online gambling, even if they are presented as prediction markets.

 

“The government will not allow any form of online gambling in Indonesia. Activities like Polymarket involve betting and speculation on uncertain outcomes, thus violating Indonesian law,” Sabar said in Central Jakarta, one of the country’s main administrative areas.

 

The agency also said the decision to block Polymarket is intended to protect younger users and the broader public in the digital space, and added that it will block access to other platforms that facilitate online gambling activities in the country.

 

Prior to the ban, Polymarket had a limited user base in Indonesia. However, it gained greater visibility between May 20 and 21 of this month when it launched a contract on whether President Prabowo Subianto would leave office early. The contract drew significant attention in Indonesian digital spaces, attracting roughly 51,000 dollars in trading volume within days of its launch.

 

Global Crackdown on Prediction Markets Continues

Regulators' crackdown on the activities of prediction market companies continues to intensify. Just last month, Brazil’s National Monetary Council (CMN), together with other government agencies and regulators, blocked Polymarket, Kalshi, and 27 other prediction market platforms from operating in the country. This came shortly after a court in Buenos Aires reportedly ordered a ban on Polymarket in Argentina.

 

Other countries in Europe, including France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Hungary, have either banned or heavily restricted the activities of Polymarket, Kalshi, and other prediction market companies within their jurisdictions.

 

In the United States, several state regulators have taken action against prediction markets, with Minnesota most recently imposing a comprehensive ban on them. At least 17 states, including Illinois, New York, and Ohio, have issued cease-and-desist orders against prediction market companies.

 

 

Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, has partnered with the Georgian government to launch GELT, a stablecoin representing the lari, the country’s official currency.

 

 

The partnership, announced on Monday, aims to create a financial ecosystem that supports cross-border commerce, fintech development, and broader access to programmable financial infrastructure across Georgia.

 

GELT will serve as a digital representation of the Georgian lari and will be designed to enable lower transaction costs, near instant settlement, programmable payments, and more efficient movement of value across digital financial systems.

 

“Together with visionary partners like Tether, Georgia is laying the foundations for a more connected, transparent, and digitally empowered financial world,” said Irakli Kobakhidze, Prime Minister of Georgia.

 

The launch of the GELT stablecoin is built on a regulatory framework created by the Georgian government and the National Bank of Georgia. In March this year, the National Bank of Georgia developed a framework governing the issuance of stablecoins.

 

The framework, officially known as “The Rule for the Initial Coin Offering of a Stable Virtual Asset by a Virtual Asset Service Provider,” sets out standards that must be met by all virtual asset service providers (VASPs) operating in the country, including requirements for 100 percent reserve backing, strong consumer protections, proper risk management, and full compliance with the country’s Anti Money Laundering (AML) standards.

 

“Stablecoins are no longer a niche financial instrument. They are becoming part of the infrastructure layer for global finance,” said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “Georgia has moved early to create serious regulatory architecture for digital assets and stablecoins, and that clarity creates the foundation for real innovation and adoption.”

 

Georgia’s stablecoin framework is also designed to be compatible with other regulatory frameworks, including the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act) and Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA).

 

By partnering with Tether to launch the GELT stablecoin, Georgia becomes the first country to team up with a major stablecoin issuer to issue a government-supported stablecoin pegged to its national currency. The UAE has also launched a dirham-pegged stablecoin, but unlike Georgia’s GELT, that stablecoin was issued by local consortia rather than a major stablecoin issuer such as Tether.

 

The planned launch of the GELT stablecoin comes shortly after Tether launched its self-custodial wallet. In an effort to increase access to stablecoins, Qivalis recently expanded its consortium to include more banks, which are collectively working to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin.

 

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has signed a new pro-crypto bill into law that establishes a comprehensive regulatory framework for the use of cryptocurrencies.

 

The bill, known as Senate Bill S.163, was passed this week and creates a crypto-friendly environment for crypto use. According to the new law, individuals and businesses are no longer prohibited from accepting digital assets as payment or from using self-hosted or hardware wallets to store their crypto holdings.

 

By passing this pro-crypto law, the South Carolina government enhances the real-world utility of cryptocurrencies, especially in payment finance, and removes regulatory uncertainty associated with their use in commercial activities.

 

Since the newly enacted law exempts cryptocurrencies used for payment from any additional tax or government-imposed charges, it prevents merchants and businesses from discriminating against crypto transactions or against converting crypto into a tax-disadvantaged payment method. The result is that crypto moves further into the mainstream and its adoption increases.

 

The Anti-CBDC Portion of the Bill

Another important aspect of the newly enacted law is the anti-CBDC provision, which rejects the use of a government-controlled digital asset.

 

Under the new legislation, no state-level government parastatal, including agencies, boards, commissions, and departments, may accept or require payments in central bank digital currency (CBDC). The law also prevents these state-level entities from participating in any “digital asset” test conducted by the Federal Reserve.

 

The law also strongly supports crypto mining, prohibiting local governments from restricting mining in industrial zones or imposing any additional limits on mining companies beyond general noise pollution regulations.

 

South Carolina Becomes Latest Crypto-Friendly State

With these pro-crypto bills passed, South Carolina has joined other crypto-friendly states, such as Kentucky, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Louisiana, and Arizona, that have enacted similar laws.

 

In March of last year, Kentucky passed a pro-crypto bill, HB 701, into law. Just like South Carolina's new laws, the law allowed users to hold and use digital assets in self-hosted wallets or hardware wallets. The law also exempted digital asset mining companies from the requirement to obtain a money transmitter license or comply with securities regulations before operating in the state.

 

 

Qivalis, an Amsterdam-based joint venture developing a fully regulated MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin, has expanded its consortium to include 25 new banks.

 

 

With this expansion, the Qivalis consortium now comprises 37 banks across 15 European countries, including major names such as ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Nordea, Intesa Sanpaolo, Banco Sabadell, and Bankinter.

 

Created in early December last year, the Qivalis consortium is a group of European banks that came together to develop a stablecoin pegged to the euro. By launching a euro-pegged stablecoin, Qivalis aimed to create a credible and regulated alternative to the widely used United States dollar stablecoin.

 

The Qivalis euro-backed stablecoin would also eliminate the need for European banks to launch competing bank-issued stablecoins, as it is interoperable and fully compliant with MiCA across the European Union and the European Economic Area.

 

The consortium is currently pursuing an Electronic Money Institution license from De Nederlandsche Bank, the Dutch central bank, with plans to launch a euro-backed stablecoin in the second half of this year.

 

The State of the Stablecoin Market

The stablecoin market continues to grow significantly, with more traditional finance institutions entering and tapping into the expanding sector. According to a recent report, total stablecoin liquidity, or market capitalization, has crossed $320 billion, with US dollar-backed stablecoins accounting for about 95% of the market.

 

Tether (USDT) remains the most widely used US dollar-backed stablecoin, accounting for about 57.96% of the market, or approximately $ 185 billion in market capitalization. USD Coin (USDC) follows, accounting for about 24% of the market and having a market capitalization of roughly $78-79 billion.

 

The euro-denominated stablecoin market still represents a small fraction of the global stablecoin market. According to CoinGecko, euro-denominated stablecoins have a combined market capitalization of roughly $670 million, with EURC from Circle and EURS from Stasis being the two most prominent, with market caps of $436 million and $145 million, respectively.