On Wednesday, Rep. Ro Khanna opened a congressional inquiry into World Liberty Financial over a reported $500 million investment from an entity connected to the UAE royal family and its national security advisor. His letter raises concerns that these financial links, including a 49% stake purchase and related chip export and crypto transactions, could create national security and constitutional risks tied to China.

On Tuesday, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization released a Digital Asset Custody Framework that introduces a four-tier structure for crypto custodians. The rules cap internal custody at 20% of client crypto holdings and allow top-tier external custodians to hold up to 100% of client assets, aiming to address risks highlighted by past failures such as QuadrigaCX.

Ark Invest expanded its holdings in Circle, Bitmine, Bullish, Coinbase and Block Inc. as share prices declined on Monday. The firm bought $9.4 million of Circle stock, $6.25 million of Bitmine shares and $6 million of Bullish, while adding smaller stakes of $1.9 million in Block Inc. and $1.25 million in Coinbase. These moves came as crypto-related equities and major coins like bitcoin and ether recorded notable price drops.

Russia plans to finalize a national cryptocurrency regulatory framework for a vote at the end of June, with implementation targeted for July 1, 2027. The rules would open the market to both qualified and non-qualified investors, cap annual purchases of the most liquid coins for retail participants, and keep a domestic payments ban and licensing obligations for service providers in place.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino told Bloomberg on Tuesday that the company aims to become one of the world's leading gold central banks and will actively trade its reserves. Bloomberg reported Tether holds around 140 tons of gold, valued at over $23.3 billion, stored in a Swiss nuclear bunker, and is buying one to two tons per week.

Solana Mobile opened claims for its SKR token to Seeker phone owners and active dApp participants, with eligible season 1 developers also included. The airdrop offers a 90-day claim window via the built-in wallet, draws on a 10 billion supply with 30% set for airdrops and launch unlocks, and features a linear inflation schedule starting at 10%.

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev reiterated his support for the U.S. Senate's comprehensive crypto market structure bill in a Wednesday post on X, even after a planned markup was postponed. The Senate Banking Committee pulled its scheduled Thursday session late Wednesday following Coinbase's decision to withdraw support over concerns about tokenized equities, DeFi restrictions, and stablecoin reward limits.

On Wednesday, Lighter said users must stake LIT to deposit into its Lighter Liquidity Pool, with a 1:10 ratio allowing 1 LIT to unlock up to 10 USDC. The change takes effect immediately for new participants, while existing depositors have a two‑week grace period ending Jan. 28; fee waivers kick in at 100 LIT staked.

Ripple President Monica Long said in a Tuesday Bloomberg interview that the company intends to stay private, arguing its strong finances remove the need for an IPO. Ripple raised $500 million at a $40 billion valuation in November 2025 and spent nearly $4 billion on four acquisitions in 2025 to expand payments, treasury and custody services.