Crypto Industry News & Market Trends

Ethereum‘s institutional staking boom is growing, but Lido’s share is shrinking

Lido, the liquid-staking protocol, captured just 5.7% of Ethereums net staking growth in the first half of 2026. For holders of its LDO token, the business challenge is to turn a growing market into DAO income that can fund automated purchases.　　Related Asset Ethereum #2 ETH · $2,496.94 24-hour change: up 0.08% 24H Up 0.08% 7D Up 4.98% 30D Up 33.39%　　The gap is visible in NEST, Lidos automated buyback mechanism. At 00:00 UTC on Sept. 9, the contract that releases funds for purchases recorded a negative cumulative budget of about $517,024 and skipped an allocation. Its negative budget measured a deficit in calculated buyback capacity. Funding was already in place, while the rules required more cumulative surplus before a purchase could be financed.　　Institutional routing is one part of that business challenge. Lido‘s first-half report describes capital moving into segments where it captured less growth, while its current institutional offering includes a fee waiver that favors adoption over immediate income. ETH’s dollar price and the rewards earned on each staked coin also affect the outcome.　　Related Company Lido Liquidity for staked assets　　A growing market, a smaller share　　Lidos H1 operating and financial report puts total staked ETH at 43.1 million at June 30, compared

09-10Industry

Fintech Meetup and Signal Week (Formerly Paris Blockchain Week) Join Forces Across the US and Europe

Paris, France, September 9th, 2026, Chainwire – Fintech Meetupand Signal Week, formerly Paris Blockchain Week, are joining forces to create new ways for the people shaping fintech and digital assets to connect, collaborate and do business across the US and Europe.　　The partnership will combine Fintech Meetup‘s meetings-led financial services marketplace with Signal Week’s global digital assets community, launching in Las Vegas and Paris in 2027.　　Traditional finance and digital assets are converging fast. Stablecoins, tokenization, and blockchain infrastructure are moving from experimentation towards real-world financial services, while digital asset companies increasingly need access to the institutions and partners that can take those technologies into the mainstream.　　Together, Fintech Meetup and Signal Week will create the meeting place for that convergence.　　The partnership brings together two highly complementary strengths. Signal Week brings together deep digital-assets expertise, global brands, builders, investors, and policymakers. Fintech Meetup brings the wider financial services ecosystem — particularly banks and other fintech buyers — and its unique, technology-enabled Meetings Program, designed to turn shared interests into valuable one-to-one connections and commercial relationships.　　Discover more　　Financial　　Choose POS Systems　　Trade Crypto Assets　　It also marks the first major milestone since Signal Week joined Hyve Group in 2026, bringing both brands under one roof. Connecting the two

09-10Industry

US Bank Completes First Live Cross-Border Payment Using USBDC Stablecoin

U.S. Bank has completed a live cross-border payment using USBDC, its dollar-backed stablecoin, as major financial institutions expand testing of blockchain-based payment and settlement systems.　　Ad　　Ad　　US Bank Tests USBDC on Stellar Blockchain　　U.S. Bancorp has completed the pilot between its banking entities in North America and Europe. The cross-border transfer was completed on the public Stellar blockchain.　　The bank integrated the blockchain payment with its finance, risk, compliance and operations systems. This enabled U.S. Bank to transfer funds on-chain while maintaining the same banking controls.　　U.S. Bank also tested minting and redemption on its digital asset platform. The pilot covered freezing and clawback capabilities for the USBDC stablecoin as well.　　Discover more　　Financial　　Digital Currencies　　Stock　　However, the transaction does not confirm a wider public rollout of USBDC. U.S. Bank has not announced broad customer access or a commercial launch date.　　Ad　　Ad　　USBDC Targets Payments and Liquidity Management　　U.S. Bank is considering USBDC for treasury payments, liquidity management and collateral-related transactions. The bank is also evaluating digital payment solutions that work outside of banking hours.　　The pilot marks a move from development into a live financial transaction. However, information such as payment value and future transaction volumes remain undisclosed.　　U.S. Bank also has not announced USBDC for cryptocurrency trading or public exchange use. The

09-10Industry

Gemini Digital Payments Singapore Secures MAS Licence for Crypto

Key Takeaways:Gemini has received a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license from Singapores Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).Gemini Digital Payments Singapore has been licensed as a digital payment token provider and cross-border money transfer service provider.The approval marks Gemini‘s step from October 2024’s in-principle to full licensing for its Singapore crypto operations.　　After almost a year and a half of waiting, Gemini has finally received a full payment license in Singapore. The approval strengthens the exchanges ability to serve retail and institutional customers in the country.　　???????? Big news: Were pleased to announce that Gemini Digital Payments Singapore, Pte. Ltd. (GDPSPL) has received a Major Payment Institution licence from @MAS_sg, allowing us to provide Digital Payment Token and Cross-Border Money Transfer services.　　Singapore continues to…　　Gemini Gets Full Singapore Crypto Approval　　The exchanges Singaporean incorporated entity, Gemini Digital Payments Singapore, has been granted a licence by MAS. The company is authorized to offer digital payment token services and cross-border money transfers, according to the MAS Financial Institutions Directory.　　Discover more　　Financial　　stock　　financial　　The MPI framework enables licensed entities to offer regulated payment services, while the standard payment institutions have limits on their number of transactions. But for major payment institutions, MAS applies more extensive regulation as they have greater operations

09-10Industry

The ‘Practical Magic 2’ Rotten Tomatoes Review Score Is In

It can be risky to revisit beloved films after decades away, but it was a leap that Practical Magic 2 and its A-list leads were willing to take. Well, good news and bad news. Practical Magic 2 reviewed better on Rotten Tomatoes than Practical Magic 1. The bad news is that both films are 35% or under.　　Practical Magic 2, after its rating fluctuated a bit, is firmly in the rotten category with a 35% Rotten Tomatoes score. And though the original film may be considered classic enough to spawn this sequel, back in 1998, Practical Magic scored a 30% with well over 100 reviews in.　　There is, of course, often a disparity between critic and audience opinions. That was certainly true with the original Practical Magic, with a 73% audience score, a full 43% above what critics gave it. Audience scores are not in for Practical Magic 2, but it stands to reason they will likely be much higher.　　Discover more　　Choose POS Systems　　Trade Crypto Assets　　Track Stocks Bonds　　Practical Magic 2　　Rotten Tomatoes　　Practical Magic 2 brought back stars Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock to reprise their roles. The children, however, were recast. Original actress Evan Rachel Wood has commented that no one from production even

09-09Industry

Hunter Biden's LAPTOP Meme Coin Crashes 99% on Debut

In briefLAPTOP launched on Base at 8am ET Wednesday and hit a $190.81 peak just two minutes later, per Arkham, before crashing to as low as $3.70 within the hour.The tokens fully diluted valuation briefly topped $144 billion against a liquidity pool of just $48,000, according to Arkham, before falling to roughly $4.8 billion.This is a common patter in celebrity and political meme coins, which tend to quickly crash.　　Hunter Bidens controversial LAPTOP meme coin hit the crypto market on Wednesday morning and immediately did what most “celebrity meme coins” have done before it: it pumped, then it dumped.　　The token, named for the Delaware laptop saga that dogged Biden through the 2020 election and years after, launched on Base—Coinbases Ethereum layer-2 network—at 8am ET Wednesday.　　Blockchain intelligence firm Arkham reported that LAPTOP topped out at $190.81 just two minutes later, a peak that implied a fully diluted valuation near $144 billion against a liquidity pool holding only $48,000.　　DID LAPTOP TOP IN 2 MINUTES？　　LAPTOP just launched at 8:02pm. It reached a peak price 2 minutes later at 8:04.　　The FDV of the coin is currently $144B and the liquidity pool contains $48K. 　　That gap between the valuation and actual tradable liquidity set up the

09-09Industry

Compound opens USDC market with up to 87% LTV

Compound Foundation has launched a USDC lending market with loan-to-value ratios of up to 87% as part of its $52 million plan to attract institutional capital.　　Compound Foundation said in a Sept. 9 announcement that its Institutional Market runs on Compound v3 and separates selected collateral into a lending pool designed around specific liquidity and risk conditions.　　Borrowers can use Ether (ETH), wrapped staked Ether, Wrapped Bitcoin, or Coinbase Wrapped BTC to access USDC. The market gives ETH an 87% loan-to-value ratio, while wstETH carries an 85% ratio. WBTC and cbBTC each have an 81% ratio.　　Each collateral asset has a $10 million borrowing cap. Liquidation factors range from 86% for WBTC and cbBTC to 93% for ETH, while penalties begin at 5% for ETH and rise to 10% for both Bitcoin-backed assets.　　Compound promoted the product as an institutional-only market in its announcement. However, its official market page states that anyone can borrow, while approval applies to suppliers seeking additional incentives.　　Compound market pairs higher LTVs with a narrow collateral list　　By limiting the market to four liquid collateral assets, Compound said it can offer terms based on their individual risk and liquidity profiles instead of applying one set of conditions across a large group

09-09Industry

KiiChain Adds Two Major Banks to Its 24/7 LatAm FX Network

Bogota, Colombia, September 9, 2026– With two major Colombian financial institutions onboarded — including state-owned Banco Agrario — more than $500 million in processed volume, and a target of up to $10 million in daily transactions with Financiera Juriscoop, KiiChain is expanding its institutional FX and settlement footprint across Latin America.　　KiiChain is expanding its institutional footprint in Colombia through two new agreements that place its 24/7 foreign exchange and settlement infrastructure underneath regulated Colombian financial institutions, including state-owned Banco Agrario de Colombia.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　The first is a partnership with Financiera Juriscoop, a regulated Colombian financial institution with more than 40 years in the market. Juriscoop brings institutional Colombian peso liquidity onto KiiChains FX rails, creating a foundation for currency execution and settlement outside traditional banking hours. The two are targeting up to $10 million in daily transaction volume as the integration scales.　　The second names KiiChain as an infrastructure provider for a joint initiative between Banco Agrario de Colombia, the countrys state-owned agrarian bank, and Merke Plaza. Banco Agrario holds the banking relationship, custody of funds, and compliance controls.　　Merke Plaza is digitizing Colombias plazas de mercado, the traditional market halls that anchor commerce in cities and small towns alike. KiiChain provides the settlement,

09-09Industry

DCENT Unveils New Brand Identity Eight Years After Its Launch, Expanding Beyond Digital Asset Storage

South Korea-based digital asset wallet company IoTrust, led by CEO Sangsu Baek, unveiled a new brand identity for DCENT on September 8, marking the first major rebranding since the brand was launched eight years ago.　　As part of the rebranding, the English brand name has changed from “DCENT” to “DCENT,” removing the apostrophe, while the Korean brand name remains unchanged.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　The new slogan, “Own your future. At ease.”, reflects DCENTs commitment to keeping ownership of digital assets in the hands of users while reducing the burden associated with storing and managing them. The new wordmark and signature color, “DCENT Lime,”visually represent this direction.　　Beyond the Name: Expanding the Digital Asset Experience　　The rebranding goes beyond changes to the brand name and visual identity. Hardware wallets have evolved from devices used primarily for asset storage into access points for approving transactions, participating in staking, and using a wide range of digital asset services.　　In line with this evolution, DCENT is expanding into a brand that provides a comprehensive digital asset experience encompassing storage, backup, management, and utility.　　The key phrase behind the rebranding is “Beyond Storage.”It represents DCENTs commitment to making the entire digital asset journey more convenient—from secure storage to backup, recovery, management, and use.　　Unveiled alongside

09-09Industry

HTX Releases August Performance Report: 13th Anniversary Celebration Ignites Global User Engagement

Apia, Samoa, September 9, 2026– In August, leading global cryptocurrency exchange HTX marked its 13th anniversary with a major anniversary celebration. In an industry where leading projects come and go rapidly, few platforms have continued delivering quality services to users worldwide for 13 consecutive years. Even fewer have continued expanding their capabilities after weathering multiple bull and bear cycles.　　Centered around the “Resilience Reveals the Future” campaign and Trading Championship #3, HTX delivered a series of anniversary rewards for global users throughout August. At the same time, the platform continued to expand its asset offerings and enhance its trading tools and yield products.　　On-platform balances grew 6.6% month over month, supported stock trading assets reached 210, and cumulative TradFi trading volume surpassed $4 billion, resulting in a strong August performance.　　13th Anniversary “Resilience Reveals the Future”: Rewards All Month Long　　At 13:13 (UTC+8) on August 13, HTXs 13th anniversary carnival month campaign, “Resilience Reveals the Future,” officially kicked off. The campaign allowed users to complete designated Growth Challenge tasks, light up Future Gems, and unlock anniversary rewards step by step.　　Sponsored　　Sponsored　　The Grand Prize included a 2,000 USDT Future Exploration Fund, an all-inclusive trip to Singapore TOKEN2049 (flights & hotel included), and an HTX 13th Anniversary

09-09Industry