ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, U.S. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott has proposed a bill aimed at prohibiting regulators from overseeing banks on the grounds of "reputational risk." This move comes in response to accusations from the crypto industry that U.S. government agencies are excluding it from the financial system.The Republican senator from South Carolina submitted the bill on Thursday and stated in a press release that the legislation would "limit the weaponization of federal banking agencies and eliminate the power of regulators to use 'reputational risk' in the regulatory process."The Federal Reserve defines "reputational risk" as: "The risk of loss resulting from negative public opinion (whether true or not) regarding an institution's business practices, which may result in a loss of customers, costly litigation, or revenue decline."

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, European Central Bank President Lagarde stated that the digital euro is more urgent than ever, and it cannot advance without the completion of legislation by the European Commission and Parliament.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, the European Central Bank has lowered the deposit facility rate by 25 basis points to 2.5%, in line with market expectations, marking the fifth consecutive meeting of rate cuts.The main refinancing rate and the marginal lending rate have been reduced from 2.90% and 3.15% to 2.65% and 2.9%, respectively.

ChainCatcher news, CoinDesk senior analyst James Van Straten stated that against the backdrop of increased volatility in the bond market, the European Central Bank is expected to lower interest rates from 4.5% to 2.65% on Thursday, continuing its easing policy. As the anticipated easing policy approaches, the market is re-pricing the Federal Reserve to cut rates at least three times in 2025.The upcoming easing policy from the European Central Bank will only intensify the trend of global liquidity easing, providing a bullish signal for risk assets, including cryptocurrencies.Previous news, the European Central Bank is expected to cut rates by 25 basis points this week, with two more cuts anticipated within the year.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, the European Central Bank's payment system experienced a major failure last Thursday, and the chaos that ensued during the 10 hours it took to identify and resolve the issue led to disruptions in welfare payments for over 15,000 Greeks, a large number of wages and pensions in Austria, and several financial transactions. The situation could have potentially worsened.If the situation had occurred or continued into the next day, i.e., at the end of February, it would have been a payday for many public sector employees, pensioners, and welfare recipients, and this chaos could have impacted millions of people and businesses, putting a strain on the banking system. According to officials from the Eurozone central bank, the core of the escalating turmoil was a hardware failure, but technicians took hours to identify the problem after initially misdiagnosing a database issue.Markus Ferber, a member of the European Parliament and a member of the committee overseeing the European Central Bank, stated, "A hardware failure is forgivable, but it is inexcusable if there is no backup that can be immediately activated when problems arise." An official from the European Central Bank indicated that the affected hardware did indeed have multiple backups, and the bank is analyzing why they did not activate.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the Emirates NBD bank, owned by the Dubai government, will launch cryptocurrency services through its digital banking subsidiary Liv. On March 5, Liv Bank partnered with licensed crypto asset service provider Aquanow to enable cryptocurrency buying, selling, and holding features on its Liv X app.The service allows Liv retail customers in the UAE to trade five major crypto assets, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Ripple (XRP), and Cardano (ADA). Liv's crypto services are provided by the well-known cryptocurrency custody institution Zodia Custody, which received a strategic investment from Emirates NBD at the end of 2024.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, Goldman Sachs stated that it expects the European Central Bank's benchmark interest rate to reach 2% by June. It is anticipated that the central bank will not cut interest rates in July, whereas the previous forecast was a 25 basis point cut.

ChainCatcher news, former Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke stated that the recent acceleration of inflation experienced by the world may make it more difficult for central banks to control prices in the future. Bernanke hinted that central bank leaders may be more cautious about allowing prices to soar again. He cited research indicating that Federal Reserve policymakers in the 1970s (a period when the economy was impacted by oil price shocks) were "generally more hawkish than younger individuals."In his prepared remarks, Bernanke noted that a key lesson from the recent round of inflation is that central bank communication should place greater emphasis on the possibility that outcomes may differ significantly from the most likely forecasts, and that if reality diverges from predictions, monetary policy will respond appropriately.A better communication strategy might be for the Federal Reserve to state that its baseline forecast envisions temporary inflation.

ChainCatcher news, according to TASS, the Russian Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank are discussing the launch of domestic cryptocurrency trading under an experimental legal framework, limited to participation by "super high-qualified" investors. The specific criteria for this category are still being developed. Officials from the Ministry of Finance stated that if consensus is reached on the experimental system, investor qualification standards, and risk management, a formal proposal may be submitted to the government. Currently, discussions are ongoing among the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank, and market participants.Previously, Putin signed a law in August 2024 allowing cross-border payments and cryptocurrency trading under an experimental legal framework starting from September 2024, with regulatory authority assigned to the Central Bank.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, options traders expect the S&P 500 index to fluctuate by 1.3% this Friday, which will be the largest fluctuation on a non-farm payroll data release day since the regional bank crisis in March 2023. Citigroup data shows that the S&P 500 index is expected to have a two-way fluctuation of 1.4% on Wednesday, marking the highest implied volatility since the day after the U.S. presidential election on November 6, 2023.The increase in market volatility is mainly influenced by two factors: the uncertainty of the Trump administration's tariff policy and the upcoming non-farm payroll report. Trump recently warned of potential future economic fluctuations and defended his plan to significantly raise tariffs, but U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo indicated that Trump is considering some tariff relief measures, which has slightly eased market sentiment.The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index (VIX) is currently at its highest level since December of last year, breaking through the 20-point mark. Economists expect that U.S. employment will increase by 160,000 in February, the unemployment rate will remain at 4%, and average hourly earnings will rise by 4.1% year-on-year. UBS equity derivatives strategist Grinkov stated, "Macroeconomic factors are becoming more important; this is a higher volatility environment."

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Swiss crypto bank Sygnum has expanded its custody services to the options exchange Deribit and has jointly adopted Fireblocks' "Off Exchange" service with Deribit, allowing traders to hold assets in a regulated bank custody while still accessing Deribit's deep liquidity.

ChainCatcher News, Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Shinichi Uchida hinted in a speech that the benchmark interest rate will continue to be gradually raised, which may quell speculation about an early rate hike. Uchida stated during a speech to business leaders on Wednesday: "If the economic outlook is realized, the Bank of Japan will continue to raise the policy interest rate accordingly and adjust the degree of monetary easing. In this regard, the key point of the outlook is that the central bank expects to achieve the 2% price stability target."Uchida noted that officials will have to monitor the economy's response to each rate hike, as the central bank has raised rates three times in the past 12 months, making it difficult to accurately determine where the neutral rate lies, which is neither restrictive nor stimulative. This comment suggests that the central bank is unlikely to raise rates at two consecutive meetings, including a hike in January followed by another in March. He hinted that, based on a range of estimates, the benchmark interest rate could rise to at least 1% by the end of fiscal year 2026.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the Bank of Israel has proposed a design scheme for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) that may be adopted in the future, provided that a decision is made to launch such a currency. In a document released on Tuesday, the Israeli central bank described the proposed digital shekel (DS) as a "multi-purpose CBDC," which can be used for both retail and wholesale.The document states, "The digital shekel will be a multi-purpose digital currency that meets the retail needs of end users such as households and businesses, as well as the wholesale needs of financial institutions." Therefore, the Bank of Israel will provide a digital currency equivalent to cash while upgrading the existing settlement systems of financial institutions, adding "smart" features such as composability and programmability.The Bank of Israel also emphasized that no decision has yet been made on whether to issue a CBDC. Therefore, the design scheme proposed in the document should only be regarded as a preliminary concept.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jin10, Deutsche Bank's economic team holds the most hawkish view on the Federal Reserve's policy for 2025 on Wall Street, predicting that the Fed will not cut interest rates this year. While this remains the team's official stance, Chief U.S. Economist Matthew Luzzetti acknowledged that the impact of Trump's new tariffs could jeopardize this forecast."You have certainly started to see some negative effects of trade uncertainty in the economic data," Luzzetti said, "If this impact broadens and is reflected in weak labor market data, the Fed may cut rates this year." However, Luzzetti stated that Deutsche Bank wants to see how long the tariffs will last before changing its forecast for the Fed.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Turkey's digital bank BankPozitif is set to collaborate with Swiss crypto platform Taurus to launch cryptocurrency custody services, becoming the latest financial institution in Turkey to embrace digital assets.Currently, the two parties have established a strategic partnership, allowing their institutional clients to store crypto assets at the bank.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, State Street Global Advisors analyst Konrad Kleinfeld stated that the European Central Bank is expected to cut interest rates on Thursday, with two more cuts anticipated this year.Data from LSEG shows that the market has fully priced in the expectation of a 25 basis point rate cut at the upcoming European Central Bank decision. Following a 25 basis point cut in January this year, the remaining three cuts will bring the total monetary easing this year to 100 basis points.Kleinfeld stated, "Despite recent developments and Europe's urgent need to increase defense and fiscal spending, we still believe that the European Central Bank will cautiously adjust its interest rate policy in this environment." The current main deposit rate of the European Central Bank is 2.75%.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Bitcoin mining company Core Scientific, Inc. (CORZ) announced the appointment of investment banking veteran Jim Nygaard as the new Chief Financial Officer, who will officially take office on March 17.Nygaard has nearly 30 years of financial experience, having worked at XMS Capital Partners and Morgan Stanley, specializing in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and capital markets operations.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, based on predictions from State Street, the world's largest ETF service provider, the demand for cryptocurrency ETFs is surging, and it is expected that by the end of this year, their total assets will surpass North American precious metals ETFs. This change will make digital token ETFs the third largest asset class in the $15 trillion ETF industry, following stocks and bonds, surpassing real estate, alternative investments, and multi-asset funds.Frank Koudelka, head of State Street's global ETF solutions, stated, "The growth rate of cryptocurrencies has surprised us. I expected there would be pent-up demand, but I didn't expect it to be this strong." He anticipates that cryptocurrency ETFs will continue to grow rapidly this year and points out that data shows an increasing number of investment advisors are interested in cryptocurrencies and incorporating them into their portfolios. Precious metals ETFs have a 20-year first-mover advantage, with the world's first physically-backed gold ETF—the $85 billion SPDR Gold Trust (GLD)—launched in 2004, and it remains the largest precious metals ETF to date. However, State Street expects that the total assets of North American precious metals ETFs, currently at $165 billion, will be surpassed by cryptocurrency ETFs this year.State Street also predicts that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve more digital asset ETFs this year. In addition to the existing Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, fund management companies have applied to launch ETFs based on various tokens such as SOL, XRP, and others. State Street expects that by 2025, ETFs based on the top ten tokens by market capitalization will be approved.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Custodia Bank CEO Caitlin Long stated that the U.S. government has still not addressed the issue of cryptocurrency de-banking since Trump's return to the White House.Caitlin Long mentioned at ETHDenver that while "people think regulation has loosened, no federal banking agency has actually overturned any anti-cryptocurrency guidelines." "Even for very small amounts, banks' engagement with digital assets is still considered unsafe and unsound."

ChainCatcher news, Swiss National Bank (SNB) President Martin Schlegel does not wish to consider Bitcoin as a reserve asset for Switzerland, citing factors such as insufficient stability, liquidity concerns, and security risks.On March 1, Schlegel told Swiss local media Tamedia that the volatility of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is too high, which is detrimental to maintaining the value of SNB investments. "Secondly, our reserves need to be highly liquid so that they can be quickly used for monetary policy purposes when needed." He also pointed out that since Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are run by software, they are inherently susceptible to vulnerabilities and technical weaknesses: "We all know that software can have bugs and other weaknesses."Although Schlegel acknowledged that the crypto market secures nearly $30 trillion in value, he stated that the industry remains a "niche phenomenon" compared to the broader financial system. The Swiss central bank president added that he does not believe Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies could replace the Swiss franc: "We are not afraid of competition from cryptocurrencies."