Skip to Main Content

Weekly Blockchain Blog – October 12, 2026

10/12/2026 | 9 minute read

Posted in Cryptocurrency

In this issue:

Crypto Companies, Financial Institutions Continue Stablecoin Product Launches

By Robert A. Musiala Jr.

A major U.S. financial services company and payment network recently announced that its stablecoin issuance, reserve, custody and settlement infrastructure platform (Platform) is now live, with the launch of its first use case, the Bank of North Dakota’s dollar-backed stablecoin, Roughrider Coin. According to a press release, the Roughrider Coin was launched on the Platform with assistance from VersaBank as issuer, Fireblocks as infrastructure and tokenization provider, and Solana as the underlying blockchain network. The press release notes that the Platform “helps financial institutions, corporates, marketplaces and fintechs enable emerging stablecoin use cases, including stablecoin card issuance, cross-border payments, programmable commerce and treasury automation … tokenized deposits, [and] global currency account services, including U.S. dollar accounts for financial institutions worldwide.”

In related news, Tereina, a financial services company backed by a major enterprise resource planning (ERP) software company, recently announced that it has partnered with the issuer of the USDC stablecoin to “integrate USDC and EURC into Tereina’s payments infrastructure” and cloud ERP system. According to a press release, “[t]he collaboration is designed to make stablecoin-powered payments easier for enterprises to adopt by bringing USDC and EURC into existing business applications and financial workflows.”

And in the foreign markets, the OKX crypto exchange has reportedly launched its OKX Money product, which reportedly lets users hold, send and spend dollar-backed stablecoins, with qualifying USDG balances earning up to 10 percent APY. The OKX Money product is reportedly targeted toward retail customers in Latin America, Africa, South Asia and the Middle East.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

More Crypto Cos. Seek OCC Trust Charters; ICBA Challenges Charters in Lawsuit

By Keith R. Murphy

According to a recent press release, a U.S. fintech, Modern Treasury, announced that it has applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish the fintech’s eponymously named Modern Treasury National Trust Bank as a federally regulated, limited-purpose national trust bank. If the application is approved, the bank intends to provide customers with an integrated custody platform combining the company’s existing payments and settlement infrastructure with digital asset custody services, providing a single solution to custody and transact in stablecoins as well as fiat currency, according to the release. The company further notes that the proposed bank would not engage in lending activities or issue its own stablecoins.

In related news, another fintech, Rain, focused on infrastructure for stablecoins and tokenized money, has applied to the OCC to establish the company’s eponymously named National Trust Bank to bring custody, reserve management, and stablecoin issuance and redemption activities under a single federal regulatory framework, according to a press release. If approved, the new entity would provide fiduciary custody of digital and fiat assets, manage reserves for stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act, and issue and redeem U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins. The proposed bank reportedly would not accept deposits, make commercial loans, offer consumer accounts, or use client custody assets or stablecoin reserves for lending or other purposes.

In further related news, the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has sued the OCC, challenging a February interpretive rule and related guidance the group says improperly expanded the OCC'’s authority to grant national trust bank charters to crypto firms, according to a recent report. As noted therein, ICBA argues that the rule creates a new class of nondepository national banks that can engage in substantial non-fiduciary activities, allowing crypto companies to obtain federal bank charters without complying with many of the regulatory requirements imposed on traditional banks. According to the report, the ICBA’s arguments presented in its complaint include:

  • Statutory authority concerns: ICBA argues the OCC exceeded its authority under the National Bank Act by creating what it views as a new category of national trust banks Congress never authorized.
  • Regulatory arbitrage: ICBA argues crypto firms can obtain the credibility associated with a federal bank charter while avoiding regulatory obligations that apply to traditional banks, including certain capital, liquidity, supervision and Community Reinvestment Act requirements.
  • Consumer protection risks: ICBA is concerned consumers may mistakenly assume federally chartered crypto trust banks provide protections comparable to those provided by traditional banks, even though assets may not be covered by FDIC insurance and other safeguards.
  • Competitive disadvantage for community banks: ICBA argues trust-chartered crypto firms can offer services similar to those of community banks without bearing the same compliance costs and regulatory burdens.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

Crypto Exchanges Launch Tokenized Securities Initiatives

By Robert A. Musiala Jr.

According to reports, the OKX cryptocurrency exchange recently filed notice with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of its plans to offer trading of tokenized stock as a Tokenized Securities Venue (TSV) under the SEC’s recently issued Innovation Exemption. OKX’s filed notice reportedly lists stock from more than 60 U.S. public companies that will be available for tokenized securities trading through its TSV. The new TSV will reportedly launch through a joint venture between OKX and a major U.S. operator of global stock exchanges.

In related news, the Bybit crypto exchange recently announced a “strategic collaboration” with a major U.S. global investment company to “allow[s] eligible clients to use tokenized money market fund shares as off-exchange collateral when trading on Bybit.” According to a Bybit blog post, the shares will be issued through the investment company’s “proprietary blockchain-integrated recordkeeping and transfer agency infrastructure.”

And in a final development, a major U.S. credit rating agency recently announced the launch of its “Vault Risk Assessment (VRA), a new analytical approach that delivers independent, forward-looking insights into the risks associated with digital asset lending vaults.” According to a press release, the new VRA framework “delivers independent risk transparency for onchain investment vehicles” and “brings institutional-grade transparency to the rapidly evolving digital asset ecosystem.”

For more information, please refer to the following links:

SEC Proposes New Crypto Custody Framework for RIAs, Registered Funds

By Om M. Kakani

On Oct. 1, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a proposed rule (Proposal) aimed at modernizing the federal custody framework for digital assets held by registered investment advisers (RIAs) and regulated funds. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins stated that the proposal, titled Adviser and Regulated Fund Custody Rules; Crypto Custody Rules, is intended to provide “a clear regulatory framework for the custody of crypto assets” and a compliant pathway for advisers and funds seeking to offer crypto-related investment strategies.

Under current law, RIAs generally must maintain client assets with a qualified custodian, such as a bank or broker-dealer, while registered investment companies are subject to separate custody requirements under the Investment Company Act of 1940. In issuing the Proposal, the SEC acknowledged that for certain crypto assets, qualified custodians may not be readily available. Accordingly, the Proposal seeks to create new pathways for crypto asset custody while retaining investor-protection safeguards.

Adviser Self-Custody

The Proposal would allow an RIA to “self-custody” crypto assets when the RIA determines no permitted custodian is available for the asset, the RIA continues to evaluate that determination on at least a quarterly basis and certain other conditions are met. Among other requirements, an RIA would need to:

  • Demonstrate expertise in safeguarding each crypto asset held in self-custody.
  • Maintain systems to protect against loss, theft, misuse and misappropriation.
  • Implement private-key management controls and require dual authorization for crypto asset transactions.
  • Maintain separate blockchain addresses for only a particular client's crypto assets.
  • Review cybersecurity controls at least annually.
  • Obtain annual internal control reports from an independent public accountant.
  • Deliver account statements to clients at least quarterly.
  • Agree in writing that self-custodied crypto assets will be treated as “financial assets” under applicable state law.

For registered funds, the Proposal would allow adviser-facilitated self-custody subject to additional board oversight requirements, including periodic reviews of the adviser’s determination that no qualified custodian is available and assessments of whether the custody arrangement provides reasonable protection.

State Trust Company Custody

The Proposal would also permit RIAs and regulated funds to use state trust companies as custodians for crypto assets, subject to specified conditions.

Before engaging a state trust company and annually thereafter, RIAs or funds would need to establish a reasonable basis for believing that the institution is authorized to provide crypto custody services and maintains reasonable safeguarding policies and procedures; review the trust company’s audited financial statements and internal control reports; and ensure segregation of client and fund crypto assets from a trust’s proprietary assets.

The Proposal would also amend recordkeeping requirements under both the Advisers Act and the Investment Company Act to reflect the new custody framework, and would allow records maintained on a crypto network to satisfy certain recordkeeping requirements, subject to specified conditions. The Proposal is subject to a 60-day public comment period following publication in the Federal Register.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

CFTC ANPRM Seeks Comment on ‘Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions’

By Robert A. Musiala Jr.

On Oct. 5, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) “to provide notice of, and seek public comment regarding, its intent to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework comprised of fit-for-purpose rules concerning section 2(c)(2)(D) of the Commodity Exchange Act and retail commodity transactions described thereunder involving crypto assets (such transactions, ‘CTXs’).” According to a CFTC press release, the ANPRM begins the CFTC’s process of new rulemakings, grounded in the Commodity Exchange Act, to propose a federal crypto asset regulatory market structure using the CFTC’s existing statutory authorities.

The press release notes that among other topics, the ANPRM solicits public comment on how the CFTC can (i) prevent abusive practices in crypto asset markets and CTXs under a uniform national regime; (ii) provide market participants with crypto asset-specific contextual information concerning certain requirements and practices that are commonly accepted in the industry and have been found, based on the CFTC’s experience in overseeing aspects of crypto asset markets since 2014, to represent industry best practices for compliance with the regulatory requirements that attach to CTXs; and (iii) codify through rulemaking a subcategory of designated contract market registration, known as a crypto asset market, that is purpose-built specifically for CTXs.

According to reports, the ANPRM contemplates two rules that would allow both existing CFTC registrants and crypto-focused upstarts to offer margined, leveraged or financed crypto trades under a federal license. Comments on the ANPRM must be received within 60 days of the ANPRM’s publication in the Federal Register.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

Treasury, DOJ Target Iran Sanctions-Evasion and Hamas Financing Networks

By Om M. Kakani

The U.S. government recently announced a series of coordinated enforcement actions focused on sanctions evasion and terrorism financing. On Oct. 1, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury), as part of Operation Economic Outcast, targeted the A7 Network, a Russia-linked shadow banking system allegedly used by Iran and other sanctioned actors to move funds through a global network of intermediary companies. According to a Treasury press release, the A7 Network has facilitated transactions related to North Korean hacks of cryptocurrency exchanges. Treasury’s actions included a proposed FinCEN rule aimed at restricting transactions involving A7 Network participants, a FinCEN alert to financial institutions, and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions designating the A7 Network as a significant transnational criminal organization. Treasury stated that the network functioned as a sanctions-evasion and money-laundering mechanism designed to disguise illicit transactions as legitimate commercial activity.

The following day, Treasury, OFAC, the FBI and the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced coordinated actions targeting a Hamas financing network that allegedly raised and transferred funds through sham charities and cryptocurrency channels. OFAC designated a Hamas military-wing operative, two France-based individuals, and affiliated entities alleged to have provided financial support to Hamas. DOJ concurrently unsealed charges and announced arrests in the U.S. and France tied to the same fundraising network. Treasury described the matter as a multiyear scheme that moved more than $2 million to Hamas, emphasizing the continued use of sanctions, criminal prosecutions and international cooperation to disrupt terrorist financing networks. Additional OFAC Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list updates accompanied the actions.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

DOJ Continues Actions Prosecuting Illicit Crypto Activity

By Keith R. Murphy

According to a recent press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Jonathan Spalletta was convicted by a federal jury on computer fraud and money laundering charges arising from two 2021 hacks of the decentralized cryptocurrency exchange Uranium Finance. Prosecutors established that Spalletta exploited vulnerabilities in Uranium’s smart contracts, first stealing approximately $1.4 million and later fraudulently obtaining about $53.3 million in cryptocurrency, which ultimately contributed to the platform’s collapse, according to the release. As further noted therein, following the hacks, Spalletta laundered the stolen assets through a series of cryptocurrency transactions, including the use of the mixing service Tornado Cash.

Another recent DOJ press release reports that the creator of the digital asset Kishu Inu has been indicted in federal court in Chicago for allegedly operating a $9 million “rug pull” fraud scheme. Alexander Sisemore founded and launched in 2021 the digital asset Kishu Inu, subsequently reaching a market capitalization of more than $1.6 billion, according to the release. The indictment alleges that Sisemore and others made materially false statements to investors in order to maintain Kishu Inu’s liquidity and increase its price in the cryptocurrency market while surreptitiously selling a large quantity of Kishu Inu tokens that Sisemore and others secretly allocated to themselves at the time the asset was created. 

A third DOJ press release announced that the cofounder and operator of the Empire Market darknet marketplace has been sentenced to 40 years in prison. According to a DOJ press release, as part of the action, the defendant agreed to forfeit approximately 1,230 bitcoin and 24.4 Ether, as well as three properties in Virginia.

For more information, please refer to the following links: