On 28 January 2026, ERC-8004 was presented as set to launch on the Ethereum mainnet with a standard for establishing trust among open AI agents. The design introduces on-chain registries for identity, reputation, and validation to help agents verify counterparts and assess risk. Vitalik Buterin framed 2026 as a year to reclaim self-sovereignty and trustlessness, aligning this effort with broader ecosystem goals.

On January 28, 2026, Kraken announced DeFi Earn, offering DeFi-style rewards with up to 8% APY on cash and stablecoins. The service will initially be available in most U.S. states (excluding New York and Maine), Canada and the EEA, and uses Veda's vaults managed by Chaos Lab and Sentosa.

Zodia Custody, a digital asset custody firm backed by Standard Chartered, has formed a partnership with Dubai Insurance to roll out a crypto-enabled digital wallet for the UAE insurance market. The wallet allows policyholders to pay premiums and receive claim settlements in digital assets within a regulated infrastructure, aiming to modernize insurance operations and enhance transparency. Dubai Insurance will use Zodia Custody's institutional-grade platform as part of its broader digital transformation strategy and alignment with the UAE's fintech ambitions.

Updated January 28, 2026, Bybit EU Co-CEO Georg Harer said at a roundtable that tokenization could become the backbone and rails of future financial infrastructure. He also addressed security, noting Bybit survived a $1.5B heist and has strengthened measures under MiCAR while advocating exchange cooperation against fraud.

SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins and CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig will hold a joint public session on crypto regulatory coordination on January 29, 2026 at 2 p.m. EST. Hosted at CFTC headquarters, the discussion aims to clarify oversight boundaries and advance harmonized rules, with near-term effects expected to be qualitative rather than token-specific.

On January 28, 2026 in New York, QXMP Labs said it activated its real‑world asset liquidity architecture and registered approximately USD $1.1 trillion of certified in‑ground assets on its Layer‑1 blockchain, QELT. The firm outlined a design that routes 30% of tokenisation proceeds through QELT and cited an indicative base valuation near USD $43.6 billion.

Fidelity Investments said on Wednesday it will introduce its first U.S. dollar stablecoin, the Fidelity Digital Dollar (FIDD), issued by Fidelity Digital Assets, National Association. The token will support 1:1 USD redemptions via Fidelity platforms and is slated for retail and institutional access in the coming weeks, with transfers available to any Ethereum mainnet address.

On 28 January 2026, a detailed overview distinguished tokenized bank deposits, tokenized money market funds, stablecoins, and central bank digital currencies as separate forms of digital money. Although these instruments frequently rely on similar blockchain or distributed ledger technology, they differ in issuer, legal framework, and primary use cases across payments, investment, and public monetary infrastructure. Understanding these distinctions is presented as essential for managing risk, designing regulation, and supporting the long-term development of digital finance.