Circle’s revised USDC white paper dated Sept. 15, 2026 added redemption policy Section 8.4, allowing Circle to delay redemptions if reserves cannot be rebalanced across borders between Circle France and Circle Internet Financial, LLC. The provision is grounded in Article 49 of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and is intended to keep global stablecoin liquidity within Europe’s regulatory perimeter. The change is viewed as a response to MiCA scrutiny and could affect how quickly European holders receive dollars during certain stress events.

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order allowing 401(k) retirement plans to invest directly in cryptocurrencies. The policy would let individuals include crypto assets in their retirement portfolios, with tokens such as XRP cited as potential holdings. The move is being viewed as a regulatory step that could broaden mainstream adoption channels for digital assets.

The SEC has approved 3x leveraged cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs) for the first time, signaling a further opening by U.S. regulators toward crypto derivatives, according to Investing.com. The decision gives investors a regulated way to gain high-leverage exposure to crypto. Bitcoin has meanwhile held near $85,000, with markets watching how the new products could affect bitcoin’s trading structure and liquidity.

On October 2, 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission published a rule change allowing Investors Exchange (IEX) to list options on trusts backed by bitcoin and other crypto assets. The rule also sets position and exercise limits for options on BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF and requires each underlying asset to have averaged at least $700 million in daily market value over the prior 12 months. IEX will check the market-value threshold monthly and monitor compliance on an ongoing basis, with non-qualifying products subject to delisting.

Illinois has proposed a new tax framework for digital assets, including a 0.2% levy on qualifying cryptocurrency transactions starting January 1, 2027. Mining operations that use more than 2.25 million kilowatt-hours a year would also face an electricity excise tax of 2 cents to 5 cents per kilowatt-hour. The proposal estimates $95 million in revenue beginning in 2027 and $380 million a year through 2030. The move follows a similar digital-asset excise tax proposal introduced in New York in 2025, underscoring growing state-level efforts to build crypto tax regimes.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has approved crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) that offer investors 3x leveraged exposure to bitcoin and ether. The decision allows issuers to launch leveraged crypto ETPs, giving traders amplified participation in BTC and ETH price moves. The move marks a further regulatory acceptance of crypto derivatives-style products and introduces new trading tools that could attract additional capital.

Circle is lobbying the European Union to relax reserve rules under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) that require stablecoin issuers to keep a minimum share of reserves as bank deposits. MiCA currently sets that floor at 30% for e-money token issuers and 60% for issuers the EU deems significant. Circle cites USDC’s brief de-pegging during the 2023 Silicon Valley Bank episode as evidence that high concentration in bank deposits can threaten stability, and it also proposes removing a 35% cap on exposure to any single sovereign and a 1.5% limit tied to any one bank’s total assets. Circle shares, CRCL, are currently trading at $87.80.

NEAR Intents, a crosschain swap protocol built on NEAR, suffered a security exploit on Thursday that resulted in losses of about $3.8 million. The service has been paused. A week earlier, the protocol publicly blocked up to $50 million in stolen funds linked to the Bitget attackers. The team said it has patched the flaw and will fully reimburse users.