Major US exchange Coinbase has withdrawn its support for the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act after CEO Brian Armstrong warned it would leave the domestic crypto sector worse off than the current rules. Armstrong argued that the draft bill, released on Jan. 21 with a markup hearing scheduled for Jan. 27, could curb tokenized equities and DeFi, boost SEC authority over CFTC, and undermine stablecoin rewards while expanding government access to financial data.

JPMorgan expects institutional participation in crypto to expand in 2026, following nearly $130 billion of inflows in 2025—a roughly one-third rise from 2024. Analysts cite new rules, including the Clarity Act, and track flows via ETFs, CME futures, venture fundraising, and Digital Asset Treasuries. They also note weaker CME futures activity and mixed venture funding trends.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has publicly opposed the current draft of a U.S. cryptocurrency bill scheduled for a vote by the Senate Banking Committee, arguing it is worse than the existing regulatory framework. He raised concerns over privacy, DeFi oversight, stablecoin yields and the balance of authority between the CFTC and SEC, while USDC trades at $1.00 with a $75.75 billion market cap and $20.17 billion in 24-hour volume. The broader crypto industry remains split, with some stakeholders favoring further amendments to address divisive provisions.

On 15 January 2026, Pakistan began testing World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin as a regulated option for cross-border transactions, running in parallel with its planned digital rupee. The initiative comes as the country advances broader digital finance reforms, including a central bank digital currency pilot, draft crypto regulation and preliminary approvals for major exchanges. Officials and critics are debating whether rapid adoption of tokenized assets and stablecoins could heighten volatility and affect perceptions of Pakistan's sovereign risk.

On January 15, 2026, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the company has withdrawn support for the US Senate's crypto market structure bill after a 48-hour review of the Banking Committee draft. According to his post on X, the text would ban tokenized equities, constrain DeFi, expand SEC authority, weaken CFTC oversight, and curb stablecoin rewards.

On January 13, Polygon Labs said it signed an agreement to acquire Coinme and Sequence for over $250 million. The deal targets stablecoin payments and cross-border settlement, leveraging Coinme's 48-state licenses and 50,000 fiat-to-crypto locations plus Sequence's enterprise wallets and cross-chain tech. Meanwhile, POL fell from $0.18 to $0.15 before rebounding to $0.16.

CryptoQuant contributor Darkfost reports Binance's Bitcoin futures open interest topped $15B on October 6, then fell more than 31% to about $10B as futures-led selling eased. He views the drop and an OI slide below the 180‑day average as a deleveraging signal, while Net Taker Volume has cooled to –$51M from a –$489M monthly peak. BTC last traded at $95,131.

On January 14 2026, Chinese authorities ordered domestic firms to stop using cybersecurity software from more than 12 companies based in the United States and Israel, citing national security risks and potential data exposure. The decision affects major vendors such as Broadcom's VMware, Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike, Fortinet and Check Point Software Technologies, and is part of Beijing's broader push for technological self-reliance and a shift to local providers.