Standard Chartered debuts crypto services in Europe with new license  

Cryptocurrency firms and exchanges are increasingly moving into Wall Street territory, launching more traditional investment offerings and showcasing the increasing connection between crypto and traditional finance (TradFi).“There’s a growing synergy between traditional financial investments and the emerging crypto space,” according to Gracy Chen, the CEO of Bitget, the world’s sixth-largest crypto exchange.“Crypto players are now checking out traditional finance as they see the opportunity to bridge it,” Chen told Cointelegraph.“The lines are blurring — investors want flexibility, and products that can straddle both worlds are naturally attractive,” Chen said. “Some players see TradFi as a safety net; others, like Bitget, see it as a launchpad for broader adoption.” She added:“In a volatile market, integration is smarter than isolation.”Related: Trump’s tariff escalation exposes ‘deeper fractures’ in global financial systemChen’s comments come a week after crypto exchange Kraken launched access to 11,000 US-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as the first part of a global expansion into TradFi offerings, Cointelegraph reported on April 14.Kraken’s expansion into traditional stock offerings was announced a week after the S&P 500’s record-breaking two-day loss of over $5 trillion, triggered by US President Donald Trump’s reciprocal import tariffs announcement on April 2.Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong echoed a similar vision. During the company’s latest earnings call, Armstrong said Coinbase aims to help modernize the global financial system and bring more of the world’s GDP onto crypto rails.“We think that’s a more efficient, fair, free world that will accelerate progress, and it creates economic freedom,” he said during Coinbase’s latest earnings call.Related: 70% chance of crypto bottoming before June amid trade fears: NansenCrypto and TradFi relationship is “inherently symbiotic” The relationship between “digital assets and more traditional assets is inherently symbiotic,” a spokesperson for Coinbase, the world’s third-largest crypto exchange, told Cointelegraph, adding:“Core to our mission to enable economic freedom by onboarding one billion users to crypto, is supporting more of ‘traditional finance’ to be integrated with crypto.”“As regulatory clarity and institutional adoption increase globally, we expect more of the global GDP to be running on crypto rails,” the spokesperson added.Related: Bitcoin rally above $100K may follow US Treasury buybacks — Arthur HayesBlockchain technology brings “speed and transparency” while TradFi introduces “trust, scale and compliance,” in an “inevitable convergence,” Omri Hanover, general manager at Gems Trade cryptocurrency platform, told Cointelegraph.“Together, TradFi and crypto unlock new pathways for both retail and institutional investors, especially those seeking exposure to digital assets without navigating the full complexity of native crypto products,” he explained.Traditional investment platforms such as eToro and Robinhood have also launched cryptocurrency offerings.Magazine: Altcoin season to hit in Q2? Mantra’s plan to win trust: Hodler’s Digest, April 13 – 19

US-based publicly traded crypto exchange Coinbase confirmed that it is considering applying for a US federal bank charter.In a statement sent to Cointelegraph, Coinbase said it is considering pursuing a US federal bank charter, according to a company spokesperson.“This is something Coinbase is actively considering but has not made any formal decisions yet,” the spokesperson told Cointelegraph. Coinbase in-office photo. Source: CoinbaseThe comments follow recent reports suggesting that Coinbase and multiple other major crypto firms were planning to apply for US banking licenses. Coinbase, stablecoin issuers Circle and Paxos, and crypto custodian BitGo were the other firms mentioned.Coinbase did not clarify to Cointelegraph why it is considering pursuing a bank charter. Still, a license could potentially allow crypto firms to operate like traditional lenders, taking deposits and making loans. Cointelegraph also reached out to the other firms reportedly considering applying for a charter.Still, firms that obtain banking charters are subject to stricter reporting and regulatory oversight. One example is Anchorage Digital, a crypto firm holding a federal bank charter.Despite the firm obtaining the license, recent reports indicate that the US Department of Homeland Security’s El Dorado Task Force has launched an investigation into Anchorage Digital Bank.Related: Crypto companies seeking bank charters under Trump admin — ReportMany crypto firms are likely to applyThe reports also follow the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granting a preliminary conditional approval for a US bank charter to Paxos back in 2021. Firms may now be considering applying as US regulators take a softer stance on crypto regulation and integrating stablecoins in the broader financial system.The change in stance is visible at multiple levels of the US federal government. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell recently said that as digital assets gain mainstream adoption, establishing a legal framework for stablecoins is a “good idea.” He also recognized that the crypto space delivered a consumer use case that “could have wide appeal.”Related: ECB flags risk of financial contagion from US crypto pushEvolving US stablecoin regulationThe US House Financial Services Committee passed a Republican-backed stablecoin framework bill earlier in April — the Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy (STABLE) Act.Another bill that is moving through the US legislative process is the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act. The STABLE and GENIUS bills differ in how they regulate the stablecoin industry in their current form.The GENIUS Act was introduced first and passed the US Senate Banking Committee in mid-March. The STABLE Act, on the other hand, emphasizes federal oversight, while the GENIUS Act seeks a more flexible path that considers both state and federal regulations.The STABLE Act would enforce a two-year moratorium on issuing collateralized stablecoins that are backed by self-issued digital assets. The bill would also require that stablecoin reserves be held separate from business funds.The GENIUS Act would establish a legal framework for stablecoin payments and leverage US-based stablecoin issuers in an attempt to reinforce the dollar’s global dominance. The bill would also enhance Anti-Money Laundering (AML) safeguards, reserve and liquidity standards and sanctions checks. It classifies stablecoin issuers as financial institutions.Magazine: Coinbase and Base: Is crypto just becoming traditional finance 2.0?

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s lawsuit against Coinbase argues that XRP and other digital assets are unregistered securities.Rayield sued US-based, publicly traded crypto exchange Coinbase for allegedly violating Oregon’s securities law. In an April 18 announcement, the Oregon Department of Justice said the suit was part of an effort to fill what it described as a regulatory vacuum left by federal agencies under the Trump administration:“States must fill enforcement vacuum being left by federal regulators who are abandoning these cases under Trump administration,“ the department said.Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal voiced his frustration over the lawsuit in an April 21 X post. Justin Slaughter, the vice president of regulatory affairs at crypto investment firm Paradigm, pointed out that the lawsuit claims a long list of digital assets, including XRP (XRP), are unregistered securities.Source: Paul GrewalYarden Noy, partner at crypto legal firm DLT Law, told Cointelegraph that if the court ruled these assets are securities, it “would mostly create more confusion in this regard.” It would not be a binding precedent in other cases, not even within Oregon, he added.Still, Noy explained that the court decision could be used by regulators and potential plaintiffs to build and make their cases. He said:“Just like the decision in the Ripple case which the complaint seems to be ignoring entirely, did not make all tokens immediately listable on US platforms, I don’t expect the opposite to happen here.”Related: Court grants 60-day pause of SEC, Ripple appeals caseA long list of crypto assetsParadigm’s vice president of regulatory affairs Justin Slaughter called the action a “kitchen sink lawsuit.” The list of tokens cited includes high-profile altcoins such as Aave (AAVE), Avalanche (AVAX), Uniswap (UNI) and Near Protocol (NEAR), as well as the wrapped version of Terra’s collapsed token, wLUNA — but not LUNA itself.The complaint does not explain why certain wrapped assets were included while others were excluded. It states:“Coinbase—through the Coinbase Platform and Prime—has made available for trading in Oregon crypto assets that are offered and sold as investment contracts, and thus as securities. This includes, but is not limited to, the units of each of the crypto securities further described below.“Related: Circle, BitGo about to apply for bank charters, others may follow: WSJXRP in the legal crosshairs once againRipple Labs, the firm behind XRP, has already faced a years-long legal battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Ripple was hit with a lawsuit by the SEC in late 2020, calling XRP a “$1.3 billion unregistered securities offering.”The same lawsuit was dropped by the SEC in late March, but it provided little legal certainty for the crypto industry. Oregon’s complaint comes amid growing concern among state officials that federal regulators are pulling back from crypto enforcement. The suit appears to be part of a broader trend of state-level authorities stepping in.Before Oregon’s action, XRP’s legal standing was being viewed as increasingly clear. Coinbase — a crypto exchange known for its relatively cautious stance on regulatory matters — added XRP futures to its derivatives trading platform on April 21.Magazine: XRP win leaves Ripple and industry with no crypto legal precedent set