stablecoins

The European Central Bank has rejected proposals to relax reserve requirements for euro-denominated stablecoins, according to news reports. The decision means issuers of euro stablecoins must continue holding conservative, high-quality reserves, despite pressure from parts of the crypto industry for lighter rules. The move underscores the ECB's cautious stance on digital assets and its concern that loosely backed stablecoins could pose risks to financial stability in the eurozone.

The Federal Reserve has put forward proposed rules for stablecoins under the GENIUS Act, the US legislation establishing a federal framework for dollar-pegged digital tokens. The proposal would set requirements for issuers operating under US oversight. The move marks a key step in implementing the new stablecoin law and is being closely watched by banks, crypto firms, and regulators assessing how the market will be supervised.

South Korean regulators are calling for liquidity safeguards for won-backed stablecoins, while Hana Bank has issued $100 million in blockchain-based digital bonds. The moves highlight Korea's dual track of tightening oversight of stablecoins while advancing tokenized bond markets, drawing attention across Asia's crypto and banking sectors this week.

Coinbase is bringing USDC lending to the United Kingdom, allowing customers to borrow against their Bitcoin and Ether holdings. The move expands the exchange's lending services into the UK market and gives British users a way to access liquidity in the dollar-backed stablecoin without selling their crypto. It follows Coinbase's broader push to grow its international presence amid a more favourable UK regulatory environment for digital assets.

Stablecoin issuer Tether has released beta command-line interface and MCP wallet tools that let users manage Tether holdings locally and keep custody of their own keys. The move is aimed at users who prefer self-custody over leaving assets on exchanges or custodial platforms, and the tools are available in beta while feedback is gathered from the crypto community.