Developers are deploying AI agents to monitor and secure smart contracts after crypto platforms lost over $3.4 billion to hacks in 2025. OpenAI's EVMbench now tests whether these systems can detect, fix, or even exploit live blockchain vulnerabilities. Early findings show AI is more effective at exploitation than safe remediation, raising concerns it could empower both defenders and attackers across decentralized finance.

Coinbase plans to migrate Base onto a unified, internally managed software stack that replaces its prior dependence on Optimism's core technology and external tooling. The move will let Base package its own client binary, target up to six hard forks per year, and introduce Base-specific governance, security council signers, and fee systems. As Base gains more control over upgrades and infrastructure, Optimism faces reduced influence over one of its largest Layer 2 ecosystem partners.

The White House is preparing another high-level meeting with U.S. banks and crypto firms to address unresolved rules on stablecoin yields after talks on February 3, 2026 ended without agreement. The dispute focuses on whether dollar-pegged stablecoins can offer interest-like rewards, with banks warning of up to $500 billion in potential deposit outflows by 2028 while crypto companies argue such returns are fair and necessary to keep users from unregulated products.

BlackRock updated its iShares Staked Ethereum Trust filing, indicating that investors will keep 82% of gross staking rewards while the sponsor and prime execution agent receive 18%. According to a U.S. SEC document dated Tuesday, February 17, the fund also carries an annual sponsor fee of 0.12%–0.25%, with Coinbase supporting staking operations.

Kraken became the first crypto exchange approved to connect its OTC desk to ICE Chat, enabling AI-assisted messaging for institutions. The company reports a global user base of 5.7 million, and the link plugs Kraken into a network used by over 120,000 market participants to negotiate pricing and execute large trades.

Stablecoin platform Bridge, acquired by Stripe last year, has obtained conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to pursue a national trust bank charter. The move would allow Bridge to hold digital assets, issue its own stablecoins and operate under federal oversight, while aligning its compliance framework with the GENIUS Act’s rules for U.S. stablecoin issuers.

On February 5, 2026, Animoca Brands received a Virtual Asset Service Provider license from Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, enabling it to offer broker-dealer and asset management services to institutional and qualified investors across the emirate, excluding the DIFC. The company is also collaborating with Rootstock Labs on Bitcoin-native treasury tools for Japanese corporations, while Dubai continues to strengthen its role as an international crypto hub through transparent regulations and support for firms such as Amber Premium.

Germany's Bundesbank said it supports broad adoption of a digital euro and euro-denominated stablecoins to strengthen Europe's financial system, while ECB officials warned that reliance on dollar-pegged tokens can hinder monetary policy transmission. Analysts expect the stablecoin market to approach around $500 billion by 2028, with longer-term scenarios pointing to euro figures in the hundreds of billions.

Under draft rules from the European Commission, new electric vehicles, hybrids and fuel cell cars would need at least 70% of their non-battery components produced in the EU and final assembly within the bloc in order to qualify for state support. The proposal, linked to a wider effort to protect Europe's €2.6 trillion manufacturing sector, also sets minimum EU production shares for aluminium and plastics used in construction. Automakers are split, with some warning of higher costs while others back a "made in Europe" approach similar to local content requirements seen in the United States.