BNY Mellon has launched tokenized bank deposits for institutional clients, using an in-house permissioned blockchain to represent onchain cash claims fully backed by the bank. The initiative aims to improve settlement speed, transparency, and liquidity as U.S. regulators in September 2025 outlined plans for around-the-clock capital markets. Positioned alongside similar moves by major banks exploring real-world asset tokenization, the product is initially focused on collateral and margin use cases as part of a broader shift toward always-on finance.

On January 1, 2026, the UK's HMRC brought in new rules requiring cryptocurrency platforms to gather and submit detailed user information to help recover an estimated £300 million in tax. The framework targets Capital Gains Tax on digital asset disposals, sets a £3,000 tax-free CGT allowance, and encourages investors to use self-assessment and voluntary disclosure for past gains.

Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman is weighing whether to delay a January 15 markup of a broad crypto market structure bill as bipartisan negotiations with Cory Booker continue. The talks aim to strengthen cross-party backing for the legislation while parallel action in the Senate Banking Committee and pressure from the White House highlight growing urgency around digital asset regulation. At the same time, US community bankers are urging Congress to tighten the GENIUS Act to curb stablecoin-related rewards they say could pull deposits from local banks.

On 10 January 2026, Nasdaq and CME Group consolidated their crypto benchmarks into the joint Nasdaq-CME Crypto Index. The basket covers large, liquid assets including Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, Solana, Chainlink, Cardano, and Avalanche to provide market-wide exposure. The collaboration lays groundwork for ETFs and derivatives aimed at institutional investors.

Nasdaq and CME Group have consolidated their separate crypto benchmarks into a single Nasdaq-CME Crypto Index aimed at institutional investors. The index evolves from the former Nasdaq Crypto Index and currently tracks a diversified basket of assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana, Chainlink, Cardano and Avalanche. By focusing on broad market exposure instead of single tokens, the new benchmark is designed to support the next phase of index-based crypto products such as ETFs and structured instruments.

On Friday, Betterment customers reported an unauthorized notification urging them to send up to $10,000 in Bitcoin and Ethereum for a promise of triple returns within a three-hour window. Betterment later said the message mimicked an official promotion but was sent via a third-party communications platform and was not a real offer. The incident coincides with ongoing social engineering and wallet-drain campaigns targeting EVM-compatible networks through phishing and malicious extensions.

On January 10, 2026, Jim Cramer urged investors not to chase Apple or Nvidia, citing a calm unemployment report and ongoing market rotation. He said money is moving toward storage and equipment names, and flagged near‑term catalysts including Tuesday's December CPI, the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference, and the start of earnings with JPMorgan Chase.

On 10 January 2026, Coinbase outlined how it spent 2025 rebuilding its trading stack across spot, futures, perpetuals, and options to function as a unified marketplace. Over the year, the exchange broadened U.S. and international derivatives, integrated the Deribit acquisition, and expanded spot listings to more than 350 assets while preparing to deepen USDC collateral use in 2026. The company is now positioning its platform as an institutional-grade venue that blends crypto-native products with structures familiar to traditional financial markets.