Coinbase has launched Solana futures contracts on its regulated US derivatives exchange, the cryptocurrency trading platform said on Feb. 19. Regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Coinbase’s Solana futures contracts aim to hasten SOL institutional adoption and may help pave the way for an eventual SOL exchange-traded fund (ETF) launch in the US….

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has introduced a new roadmap aimed at positioning the city as a global cryptocurrency hub. On Feb. 19, the SEC announced the “ASPIRe” roadmap in hopes of future-proofing Hong Kong’s virtual asset ecosystem. It responds to challenges such as fragmented liquidity, regulatory arbitrage and market volatility while fostering innovation…

Decentralized finance and real-world asset tokenization platform Mantra Finance has received a virtual asset service provider (VASP) license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), allowing it to expand operations in the United Arab Emirates and the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. On Feb. 19, Mantra Finance announced that it secured a…

Tether co-founder Reeve Collins is launching a decentralized stablecoin that will compete with the original dollar-pegged token he helped create, upping the ante in a corner of the cryptocurrency market that has seen intense competition. According to a Feb. 18 Bloomberg report, Collins is now chairing Pi Protocol, a self-proclaimed decentralized project that will launch on…

KernelDAO enhances restaking by enabling stakers to reuse assets across Ethereum and BNB Chain through its Kelp, Kernel and Gain protocols. Many blockchain networks are shifting to a proof-of-stake model, where participants secure the system by locking up their tokens (staking) rather than relying on power-hungry computations. This method rewards stakers with newly issued tokens or fees…

BitGo CEO Mike Belsche has said that crypto companies going public are key to drumming up trust in digital assets and addressing traditional finance players. “One of the things I think, in order to address Wall Street, you’ll [need to] be a public company,” Belsche said on stage on Feb. 19 at Consensus Hong Kong…