On January 15, 2026, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said that staking is still unavailable for users in four U.S. states and called on lawmakers to provide clear crypto rules. He backed a market structure bill in Congress and argued that regulatory clarity is needed to balance innovation with consumer protection, while also commenting that AI could create new categories of jobs.

In January 2026, Pakistan signed an agreement with Trump-linked World Liberty Financial affiliate SC Financial Technologies to study using the USD1 stablecoin for cross-border payments. Under the deal, World Liberty and Pakistan's central bank aim to integrate USD1 into the country's digital payments infrastructure as the token's circulating supply exceeds $3.5 billion.

On January 12, 2026, former New York Mayor Eric Adams launched NYC Token, a memecoin he framed as a tool against antisemitism and anti-Americanism. The token briefly hit a $580 million market cap before crashing 80% amid allegations of a rug pull and multimillion-dollar liquidity removal, with critics also warning about its highly concentrated ownership.

In February 2025, South Korea's FSC set a three‑phase plan and is now moving to end a nine‑year corporate crypto ban. According to a local media report, new guidelines let listed companies and professional investors trade top‑20 tokens on five major exchanges with an annual cap of 5% of equity capital. The final phase could open access to roughly 3,500 entities while stablecoin eligibility remains under review.

Bloomberg, citing Artemis Analytics, reported on Friday that global stablecoin payment flows totaled $33 trillion in 2025, a 72% year-over-year increase. USDC led by transaction value at $18.3 trillion, while USDT handled US$13.3 trillion and remained the largest by market cap at $187 billion. Artemis also noted Q4 2025 volumes reached $11 trillion versus $8.8 trillion in Q3.

On January 8, 2026, Bitmine staked 109,504 ETH valued at $344.44 million, according to Onchain Lens. The move followed an earlier 19,200 ETH stake and brought the firm's total to 908,192 ETH worth $2.95 billion. Bitmine began staking on Dec. 26 and says it aims to acquire 5% of circulating ETH.

Prenetics Global said it stopped adding Bitcoin to its treasury as of Dec 4 and will keep its existing 510 BTC, valued at about $45 million. Announced on Tuesday, the board is prioritizing its IM8 nutrition brand, which reached $100 million in recurring revenue within 11 months and is projected at $160–$200 million in 2026.

Japan's 2026 tax reform blueprint introduces a flat 20% levy on qualifying crypto asset gains, replacing current rates that can reach up to 55%. The change will apply only to "specified crypto assets" handled by businesses listed in the Financial Instruments Business Operator Registry and will add a three-year loss carryover system from 2026.

The People's Bank of China issued an action plan to upgrade the digital yuan's management and infrastructure, with a next-generation CBDC framework slated to launch on January 1, 2026. Deputy Governor Lu Lei said the central bank will provide technical support and oversight, and banks operating digital yuan wallets will pay interest based on customers' balances.