News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily News: As Wall Street and global financial institutions accelerate their entry into the digital asset space, the boundaries between traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) are gradually blurring. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley stated that the era of "going long Bitcoin and short bankers" is over, and financial institutions are pivoting to the other side of the crypto industry, driving digital asset adoption.Hunter Horsley noted that this summer, two financial institutions, each managing over $1 trillion in assets, approved the launch of crypto products in a bear market environment, showing that large institutions are expanding client access to digital assets. "Everyone put on the crypto jersey this year. Now, everyone is working for the crypto industry," Horsley said. He pointed out that these institutions, managing over a trillion dollars in client assets, would not have opened such services during the 2022 crypto market downturn, but are now actively embracing this sector.Fabian Dori, Chief Investment Officer at Sygnum, also believes the relationship between banks and the crypto industry has undergone a structural shift. "The trade of 'going long Bitcoin and short bankers' is over. Banks have moved from resisting digital assets to building, supporting, and distributing them through custody, tokenization, and compliant trading," a change driven primarily by growing client demand and gradually clarifying regulatory rules, rather than short-term market cycles.Nathan McCauley, CEO of Anchorage Digital, said that over the past two years, its client base has increasingly reflected the convergence of traditional and crypto finance. Large financial institutions typically choose to partner with specialized crypto infrastructure companies rather than building their own technology systems.In recent years, a growing number of financial institutions have entered the crypto space, including Swissquote, DBS Bank, BBVA, BNY Mellon, Credit Suisse-affiliated entities, as well as Morgan Stanley and Charles Schwab. (CoinDesk)
Odaily News: Ethereum treasury company Sharplink (Nasdaq: SBET) announced it will stake $200 million worth of ETH through Lido, Ethereum's largest liquid staking protocol, to enhance returns on its ETH holdings.Sharplink stated that following this staking, the company will receive wrapped staked ETH (wstETH), which represents staked ETH and its rewards, with institutional-grade digital asset custodian Anchorage Digital responsible for custody. This allocation will further expand Sharplink's existing ETH staking and restaking strategies.Lido is currently one of Ethereum's largest liquid staking protocols, with approximately $16.5 billion in ETH staked on the platform. Its wstETH token has been integrated by over 100 protocols, with roughly $10 billion currently used as DeFi collateral. While holding wstETH, users' underlying ETH continues to accrue staking rewards and can still be utilized within the Ethereum DeFi ecosystem.Sharplink CEO Joseph Chalom stated that introducing Lido will further enhance the productivity of the company's ETH assets, leveraging wstETH's composability while maintaining institutional-grade risk management standards. This collaboration will strengthen the diversification of the company's treasury strategy and provide access to one of the most liquid and widely used assets in the Ethereum DeFi ecosystem.Vasiliy Shapovalov, Executive Director of the Lido Labs Foundation, stated that Sharplink's increased use of Ethereum's native staking protocols and DeFi ecosystem reflects its support for the Ethereum application ecosystem. (Globenewswire)
据 Cointelegraph 报道，比特币政策研究所（BPI）联合 Anchorage Digital、BitGo、Bitwise、Blockstream、Kraken、Ledger、MARA、Trezor 等多家加密机构，发布公开信敦促各大前沿 AI 实验室为比特币及开源软件开发者建立或扩展可信访问计划。 信中指出，Bitcoin Core 等开源维护者目前缺乏对 AI 实验室网络安全程序的访问渠道，被迫依赖能力较弱的开源模型，而比特币网络当前保护着逾 1 万亿美元资产，任何开源基础设施漏洞均可能危及用户毕生积蓄。BPI 同时披露，已收到多份报告显示包括潜在境外势力在内的复杂攻击者正借助先进 AI 能力持续发动攻击。
Western Union has partnered with stablecoin infrastructure provider Rain to launch Stablecard, a digital wallet and Visa-branded card that enables users to hold and spend US dollar-pegged stablecoins. The product is now available in 37 markets, with Western Union planning to expand to more than 60 markets by the end of this year. Stablecard supports USDPT, a US dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by Anchorage Digital Bank and running on the Solana blockchain. Users can directly receive Western Union remittances and transfer funds to compatible crypto wallets and exchanges. Users can also spend their balances at all Visa-accepting merchants, as well as through Apple Pay and Google Pay. Western Union also unveiled USDPT in May and expanded its ecosystem through exchange partnerships in June.
Odaily News: Global remittance giant Western Union has announced the official launch of Stablecard, built on Rain's stablecoin infrastructure. Users can directly receive USDPT, a stablecoin issued by Western Union and minted on Solana via Anchorage Digital Bank, and spend instantly at Visa-accepting merchants worldwide through the integrated Visa card, or choose to withdraw cash. Stablecard initially covers 37 markets, with Western Union planning to expand to over 60 markets by the end of the year. The company stated that stablecoins will help reduce upfront capital requirements for cross-border remittances, improve capital efficiency, and support the launch of additional digital financial services.
the token is issued by Anchorage Digital Bank, can be natively minted and redeemed on Celo, and can be directly used to pay on-chain gas fees via Celo's fee abstraction mechanism. USAT went live in January this year and currently has a market cap of approximately $185 million.
this morning, two addresses suspected to be associated with Paradigm unstaked 2.92 million HYPE (approximately $171 million).Former Ethereum core developer and angel investor Eric Conner commented on this, saying: "Everyone assumes this is a sell-off, but it's more likely that this is for ETF seeding. Custodians require tokens to be liquid, and staked HYPE cannot be used. Back in April, they also unstaked $88 million worth of tokens, and on the same day, Grayscale updated its S-1 filing and switched its custodian to Anchorage."
According to the official press release, Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets, Galaxy, and Strategy, nine leading financial institutions and Bitcoin companies, jointly announced the establishment of the Bitcoin Security Consortium on July 23, 2026. The members independently committed to contributing a total of $15 million over the next three years to support long-term security research for the Bitcoin network, with a focus on development work in the field of post-quantum cryptography. The consortium's daily affairs are coordinated on a voluntary basis by Brink Executive Director Mike Schmidt; it will not intervene in protocol development or specific change decisions and will regularly release Bitcoin security status reports to investors and the public.
documents filed by Protect Progress PAC, an affiliate of the crypto-focused political action committee Fairshake, with the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) show that as of Tuesday, it has spent over $986,000 to support current Democratic Representative Shri Thanedar in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District and oppose challenger Donavan McKinney. The expenditure occurs two weeks before the August 4 Democratic primary, which will determine the party’s nominee for the November general election. Protect Progress PAC spent approximately $1 million in 2024 to support Thanedar, who received 54.9% of the vote in that year’s Democratic primary and went on to secure 68.6% of the vote in the November general election. Fairshake and its affiliated organizations report having a $191 million war chest to influence key elections. Other crypto industry-related political action committees include the Fellowship, backed by Cantor Fitzgerald and Anchorage Digital, and the Blockchain Leadership Fund, supported by Anchorage and Chainlink Labs. Protect Progress PAC has also spent over $100,000 to support Arizona Representative Greg Stanton’s re-election. Meanwhile, Defend American Jobs PAC has spent over $65,000 to support Amanda McKinney, the Republican candidate in Washington’s 4th Congressional District.
Crypto bank Anchorage Digital has announced its integration with Lido, the largest liquid staking protocol on Ethereum, offering institutional clients direct access to its derivative asset, wstETH. Institutional users can now mint and redeem wstETH, earning Ethereum staking yields while benefiting from Anchorage’s custody and governance compliance framework. (The Block)
The House Financial Services Committee held a hearing on Wednesday to discuss the changing roles of banks and fintech companies, with a key focus being the "skinny master account" option under consideration by the Federal Reserve, which would allow certain crypto banks and fintech companies limited direct access to the Fed's payment system.A Federal Reserve master account allows financial institutions to directly use the Fed’s payment network and gain the most direct access to the U.S. dollar monetary system. Institutions without such an account typically rely on partner banks that hold master accounts to provide services. The so-called "skinny account" is a version with limited functionality, intended to provide restricted access for new types of financial institutions.Republican Representative Dan Meuser stated during the hearing that access to the Fed’s payment system is no small matter, and the core issue is which institutions should be permitted to directly use these critical payment rails. Traditional institutions like community banks worry that crypto and fintech companies are not subject to the same stringent regulations, and granting them direct access could pose safety and soundness risks.The crypto industry generally supports the proposal, arguing that direct access to the Fed’s payment system is long overdue, as it would help reduce reliance on intermediary banks and foster innovation. In May, former President Trump signed an executive order requiring the Federal Reserve to evaluate policies for opening central bank payment rails to fintech companies, including crypto firms.Previously, in March, the Kansas City Fed approved Kraken’s parent company, Payward, for a "limited purpose account," sparking discussions about the extent to which crypto and fintech companies should have direct access to Fed services. A representative from Anchorage Digital stated during the hearing that if the U.S. is to remain the global financial center, it must allow for innovative federal and state-level regulatory frameworks.
Avalanche announced the launch of the Avalanche Payments Collective, with 28 organizations already joining the coalition to build payment infrastructure on the Avalanche network. The coalition aims to integrate multiple domains, including settlement, stablecoins, capital infrastructure, foreign exchange, asset management, compliance, and global payments. Members include Franklin Templeton, VanEck, WisdomTree, Paxos, Kraken, Anchorage Digital, Ethena, and the Wyoming Stablecoin Committee.
According to Forbes, Western Union will launch its stablecoin USDPT on the Solana blockchain in May 2026. Issued by Anchorage Digital Bank, USDPT will be accompanied by a digital asset network designed to connect crypto wallets and exchanges. Analysts note that this move represents Western Union’s deliberate disruption of its core profit model: traditionally, the company relies heavily on foreign exchange spreads in cross-border remittances, but near-instant settlement via stablecoins will render such spreads transparent and unsustainable. At the same time, Western Union must still bear substantial fixed costs associated with its extensive offline agent network—a burden absent from crypto-native remittance firms from day one. The company’s Q1 financial report already reflects mounting pressure, with net income halved year-on-year to $65 million.
Falcon Finance officially announced the launch of its U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin, fUSD, in collaboration with Anchorage Digital Bank. Positioned as an institutional-grade payment stablecoin compliant with the GENIUS Act framework, fUSD is now live on Ceffu’s custody and collateral infrastructure. Reportedly, fUSD is backed by reserves including U.S. Treasury securities and is issued by Anchorage Digital Bank—but does not pay interest or returns directly to holders.
the Blockchain Leadership Fund (BLF), a bipartisan hybrid political action committee (PAC) co-founded by Anchorage Digital and Chainlink Labs in March 2026, has released its first list of endorsements for the 2026 US midterm elections, providing campaign contributions to support multiple candidates from both parties in the Senate and House of Representatives.The endorsements include Senate candidates Barry Moore, Kurt Alme, Jon Husted, and Angie Craig, as well as House candidates Houston Gaines, Jim Kingston, Jon Bonck, Adrian Boafo, Christian Menefee, and Don Davis, covering key states such as Alabama, Montana, Ohio, Minnesota, Georgia, Texas, Maryland, and North Carolina. The fund stated it will continue to evaluate candidates and expand its support at the federal, state, and local levels. (Cryptoinamerica)
Turnkey, a company specializing in crypto wallets and key management infrastructure, has announced the completion of a $12.5 million strategic financing round. Archetype and Circle Ventures led the round, with participation from Sequoia Capital, Bain Capital Crypto, Lightspeed Faction, Galaxy Ventures, and Variant. The project's total funding has now exceeded $65 million.The company's primary business involves developing wallet and key management infrastructure for crypto applications. This round of financing will be used to support the development and public launch of Turnkey Verifiable Cloud, a product focused on digital asset security computing. This product aims to provide enterprises with verifiable operating environments, encompassing functionalities such as transaction visibility, policy decisions, and agent-driven wallet activities. Turnkey's current clientele includes Polymarket, World App, and Anchorage Digital.
cross-border remittance giant Western Union has announced the launch of the US dollar stablecoin USDPT on the Solana blockchain. USDPT is issued by Anchorage Digital Bank, is fully backed by the US dollar on a 1:1 basis, and is built on Solana.It is reported that USDPT will be directly integrated into its global payment system to build a more efficient settlement layer. It will serve agents, partners, and future consumer application scenarios, aiming to provide on-chain settlement capabilities for cross-border payments, combining the efficiency of blockchain settlement with Western Union's global compliance and distribution network. (Businesswire)
Anchorage Digital has announced a partnership with stablecoin infrastructure protocol M0 to jointly develop a next-generation compliant stablecoin issuance and management system aligned with the U.S. regulatory framework. Anchorage Digital plans to expand its issuance platform capabilities by integrating M0's modular stablecoin protocol, providing institutional clients with infrastructure support to issue stablecoins under the U.S. regulatory system.M0 allows institutions to issue and manage stablecoins based on demand and has already partnered with several payment and crypto platforms, including Stripe, MoonPay, and MetaMask. The protocol supports a highly modular design, enabling various types of institutions—including fintech companies, exchanges, and payment service providers—to quickly issue their own stablecoins. (CoinDesk)
Odaily News Grayscale has updated its ETF application document linked to Hyperliquid, changing the custodian to Anchorage Digital Bank, replacing Coinbase which previously served as the prime broker and custodian.This adjustment has garnered significant attention, as Coinbase has long dominated the crypto ETF custody space. Currently, almost all U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs (except Fidelity's) rely on its custody services.The filing shows that The Bank of New York Mellon will continue to serve as the transfer agent for this ETF (proposed ticker GHYP). The fund's staking functionality still requires regulatory approval and will utilize CoinDesk's Hyperliquid benchmark pricing data.Furthermore, Anchorage Digital Bank, as the first federally chartered crypto bank in the U.S., has been continuously expanding its institutional service capabilities in recent years, including areas such as stablecoins, wealth management, and token lifecycle management. (The Block)
According to The Block, Grayscale has filed a revised Hyperliquid ETF application with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), naming Anchorage Digital Bank as the fund’s custodian in place of Coinbase. Anchorage is the first crypto-native bank to receive a federal banking charter in the U.S. and has recently expanded rapidly into stablecoin services, wealth management, and token lifecycle management—becoming the first institution in the U.S. to support TRON. If approved, the ETF will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker “GHYP”; staking functionality remains subject to regulatory approval.