⚖️ U.S. Treasury Drops Self-Custody Wallet Surveillance Rules
The U.S. Treasury has withdrawn two long-pending regulatory proposals targeting self-custodial crypto wallets and crypto mixing services, ending years of industry uncertainty.
The move was flagged by Coin Center and marks a significant policy shift under the Trump administration. The withdrawn rules would have imposed reporting requirements on unhosted wallet transactions — a measure that had faced sustained opposition from the crypto industry since it was first proposed.
The decision signals a broader change in how U.S. regulators intend to approach digital asset oversight, with the current administration taking a notably lighter stance on self-custody compared to its predecessor.
🔷 Ethereum Holds Over Half the RWA and Stablecoin Market
Ethereum has issued $185.8 billion in real-world assets (RWAs) and stablecoins, accounting for more than half of the total market across all blockchains.
This positions Ethereum as the dominant settlement layer for tokenized financial assets, ahead of competing networks in both categories combined.
The scale of on-chain issuance underscores Ethereum's continued role as the primary infrastructure for institutional-grade tokenization and dollar-denominated digital assets.
⚖️ Japan freezes assets of sanctioned Russian crypto exchange Garantex
Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has added Russian crypto exchange Garantex to its asset-freeze list, aligning with earlier U.S. and EU sanctions against the platform.
The U.S. Treasury previously linked Garantex to over $100 million in illicit transactions, including ransomware proceeds. U.S. authorities seized the exchange's domain in March 2025, and Treasury reported that Garantex staff had already shifted operations following the action.
Japan's move signals continued international coordination on crypto-related sanctions enforcement, closing potential gaps that could allow sanctioned entities to access financial systems through jurisdictions that had not yet acted.
🟠 Saylor hints at another Bitcoin buy for Strategy
Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Strategy, has posted a cryptic "more orange than ever" message alongside the company's signature orange dot chart — widely interpreted as a signal of an upcoming Bitcoin purchase.
The hint follows two consecutive weekly acquisitions disclosed in September. Strategy's most recent buy was $143 million, bringing total holdings to 847,666 BTC. MSTR shares currently trade at a 14% premium to net asset value.
No purchase has been confirmed yet, but Saylor's orange dot posts have historically preceded official acquisition disclosures.
⚖️ Philippines and Japan Move to Tighten Crypto Rules
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is tightening its regulatory framework for crypto, while Japan is introducing a new tax reporting system for crypto assets as part of a broader regional push toward stricter oversight.
Japan's updated tax rules are designed to improve transparency and compliance in crypto asset reporting, signaling increased regulatory attention across Asia.
The moves reflect a growing trend among Asian governments to bring crypto activity under closer institutional control.
⚖️ Philippines Freezes 25 Crypto Wallets in Flood Scandal Probe
Philippine authorities have frozen 25 cryptocurrency wallets along with 91 other accounts and assets as part of a plunder investigation linked to an unnamed lawmaker.
The freeze is connected to a flood-control scandal, with investigators targeting digital asset holdings alongside traditional financial accounts.
The move signals that crypto wallets are increasingly within scope for asset recovery in high-profile government corruption cases across Southeast Asia.
🔐 North Korea's 2026 crypto theft crosses $1 billion after Bitget hack
Chainalysis has attributed the September 24 Bitget exchange breach — worth $387 million — to North Korea-linked actors, and says the attack pushed the regime's total 2026 crypto haul past $1 billion.
The blockchain analytics firm used in-house AI tools to trace the stolen funds across four separate blockchains, racing to follow the attackers as they moved assets in an attempt to obscure the trail.
The finding highlights the growing scale and sophistication of state-sponsored crypto theft, and the increasingly central role AI-assisted on-chain forensics plays in attribution efforts.