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According to Caixin, the second batch of Hong Kong compliant stablecoin licenses is currently under application. Reliable sources reveal that Futu Securities and OSL Group are both contenders for the second batch of licenses.However, in November last year, the People's Bank of China and 13 other ministries reiterated their stance on cracking down on virtual currency trading in China and classified stablecoins as virtual currencies, which means that trading stablecoins will not be possible in mainland China.

The chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Mike Selig, announced the first members of the newly established Innovation Working Group, aimed at providing clear industry rules for American innovators. The working group is led by Mike Selig's senior advisor, Michael Passalacqua, and the first five members include former Latham & Watkins crypto lawyer Hank Balaban, former Patomak crypto and prediction markets advisor Sam Canavos, CFTC legal senior official Mark Fajfar, former Sidley blockchain lawyer Eugene Gonzalez IV, and CFTC Market Participants Division special advisor Dina Moussa.In addition, Mike Selig also released an Innovation Tracker, highlighting the agency's work in advancing regulatory clarity, market integrity, and technological progress, with a primary focus on areas including cryptocurrency and blockchain, AI and autonomous systems, contracts and prediction markets.

The President of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Eddie Yue, stated that the first batch of stablecoin issuers has been granted licenses today. Based on the business plans of the licensees, they intend to commence operations in the coming months once the relevant preparations are completed.Eddie Yue expressed hope that the issuers will carry out their business as planned, actively explore development opportunities while managing risks, promote the application of compliant stablecoins, and address pain points in financial and economic activities. At the same time, the public should remain vigilant against any fraudulent activities or scams claiming to be related to the licensees or the stablecoins they issue. When purchasing or using stablecoins, regulated channels should be used, and if there are any doubts, they should refer to the records of the Monetary Authority to verify the identity of the licensees or contact the licensees for further inquiries.

According to the official website of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced the first batch of stablecoin issuer licenses today at 17:00. The licensed institutions include HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank.

According to Jinshi, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority will announce the first batch of stablecoin licenses at 5 PM on April 10, after which licensed stablecoin issuers will meet with the media. The Monetary Authority received a total of 36 applications and plans to issue 2 to 3 licenses, with strict regulatory standards. The Monetary Authority's Chief Executive, Eddie Yue, stated that the number of licenses issued in the first batch will aim for prudence, with the goal of issuing licenses in March this year.

Binance announced its participation in the international law enforcement operation "Operation Atlantic," led by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), in collaboration with multiple countries' law enforcement agencies to combat cryptocurrency and investment fraud, focusing on "approval phishing" scams.The operation was jointly initiated by the NCA, the U.S. Secret Service, and relevant law enforcement and regulatory agencies in Ontario, Canada, aiming to identify victims who have been compromised or are at risk. Approval phishing typically disguises itself as an investment opportunity, luring users into granting wallet access permissions, thereby transferring assets. During the operation, Binance's special investigation team provided on-site support in London, including fraud identification processes, risk screening, and intelligence analysis, and assisted in identifying potential victims and related malicious websites.At the same time, Binance also provided law enforcement agencies with addresses and suspect intelligence related to the case, supporting asset tracking and enforcement actions. The NCA stated that this operation has successfully protected thousands of potential victims in the UK and overseas. Binance emphasized that it will continue to cooperate with global law enforcement agencies to strengthen the fight against cryptocurrency fraud.

Base has officially launched the third phase of its startup accelerator program, Base Batch 003. This phase lasts for 7 weeks (from April 6 to May 19), and after screening 1,175 applications, 12 teams focusing on areas such as DeFi, AI, stablecoins, and prediction markets have been selected.The 12 selected projects are:Blockrun.ai: Infrastructure for AI agents accessing LLM and data.Stealth: A new type of leveraged primitive for prediction markets.4Mica: Infrastructure for micro-trading settlement.OPAL: A privacy-focused Perp DEX (supporting cryptocurrencies and RWAs).Onsight: A gamified social prediction platform.Credifi: An unsecured lending protocol based on zk-tls and credit scoring.Tomorrow: A collateralized stablecoin lending platform for the creator economy.Agently: A routing layer for AI coordination and trading.Nivo: An on-chain foreign exchange hedging platform for SMEs.JPEG App: An opinion market based on image content.Floe Labs: A credit network for AI agents and institutions.Liminal: A self-custodied AI-native neobank.During the accelerator, selected teams will receive exclusive guidance and partner benefits from experts inside and outside of Coinbase, and they are expected to receive direct investment from the Base ecosystem fund. The program will conclude with an offline Demo Day in San Francisco on May 19.

According to CoinDesk, the Financial Services Commission of South Korea and the Financial Supervisory Service jointly issued new regulations requiring all domestic cryptocurrency exchanges to adopt a unified withdrawal delay review standard to curb voice phishing scams.The new regulations eliminate the authority of each exchange to set its own withdrawal exemption conditions, and reviews will be conducted uniformly based on standards such as account history, trading patterns, and behavioral anomalies. It is expected that less than 1% of users will qualify for instant withdrawals. Platforms must also enhance identity verification and fund flow monitoring.Previously, scam groups exploited the exemption rules of various platforms to guide victims to convert cash into cryptocurrency and complete withdrawals within minutes. This new regulation marks a shift in South Korea's cryptocurrency risk control system from industry self-regulation to a national unified standard.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is making significant adjustments to its enforcement strategy in the cryptocurrency sector for the fiscal year 2025. The SEC has successively withdrawn seven cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions initiated by the previous commission, involving institutions such as Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, Cumberland DRW, Consensys, Dragonchain, and Balina, on the grounds that these cases lack sufficient federal securities law basis.At the same time, the SEC has established a Cyber and Emerging Technologies Division, focusing on combating violations of securities trading related to blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. In terms of specific enforcement actions, the SEC has filed lawsuits against the following cases: New York cryptocurrency company Unicoin and its four executives for allegedly making false statements to mislead investors; PGI Global founder Ramil Palafox for allegedly orchestrating a cryptocurrency and forex fraud scheme amounting to $198 million and misappropriating over $57 million; and the founder of AI company Nate, Inc. for allegedly raising over $42 million illegally through false advertising of artificial intelligence capabilities.

According to Jinshi reports, International Monetary Fund (IMF) President Kristalina Georgieva stated that the Middle East war will lead to increased inflation and may slow down global economic growth.

Analyst Alicharts updates multiple long-term bottom indicator signals for Bitcoin to reference Bitcoin's bottom points.Key support levels include around $63,111 shown by URPD, the trend line guarding for nearly 10 years at $56,000-$60,000, the structural bottom of CVDD at $47,960, and the extreme pain zone of MVRV at $43,647. Alicharts suggests that investors diversify funds into areas between $63,000 and $36,000, rather than precisely predicting a single bottom. Currently, the market is mostly in a wait-and-see or distribution phase, suitable for macro rebound layouts.

According to Cointelegraph, Riot Platforms' wallet transferred about 500 bitcoins on Wednesday, which may belong to the company's selling activities. As of now, the company has not publicly commented on this matter. Analysts believe this move may further exacerbate the selling wave of publicly listed bitcoin mining companies.Last week, another bitcoin mining company, MARA Holdings, disclosed the sale of approximately $1.1 billion in bitcoin to repurchase convertible bonds at a discount. Recently, several publicly listed bitcoin mining companies have cumulatively sold over 15,000 bitcoins to balance operational and investment needs. However, the trend of bitcoin mining companies selling off may not be a universal phenomenon, as bitcoin treasury companies, including Metaplanet, are still actively increasing their holdings.

The first batch of issuer licenses in Hong Kong was originally scheduled to be issued in March 2026, but it has not materialized as planned. A spokesperson for the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) responded that the HKMA is fully committed to advancing the licensing process and will make announcements to the public at the appropriate time.Regarding who will obtain the first batch of stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong, the market has previously focused on two major Hong Kong dollar issuing banks, HSBC and Standard Chartered. HSBC has not publicly disclosed whether it has submitted an application for a stablecoin license. However, as early as mid-January this year, there were rumors in the market that HSBC had a good chance of obtaining the first batch of licenses. Currently, there is no clear official disclosure on why the issuance of stablecoin licenses has been delayed beyond the anticipated timeline.Individuals close to the stablecoin license applications revealed that the HKMA has been in close contact with the first batch of potential compliant licensees, and there are still proposed amendments regarding the issuance matters. In addition, the second batch of compliant stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong is also in the application process. Reliable sources indicate that Futu Securities and OSL Group are strong contenders for the second batch of licenses.

According to Jinshi reports, Fed's Schmid stated that the Iran war is likely to further exacerbate inflationary pressures.

The cryptocurrency data platform Nonce announced a strategic investment and deep incubation of the on-chain sports prediction platform S315, aiming to promote its realization from on-chain products to global capital docking in a full-chain landing.It is reported that S315 is positioned at the decentralized SportFi application layer and infrastructure, supporting users to make on-chain predictions and settlements for "Yes/No" binary contracts or specific match results for major global leagues such as football, basketball, and tennis.

1inch announced the launch of the 1inch DAO Aqua yield flow incubator, allocating $400,000 in funding to support Aqua strategies that can generate yield.Each team can receive up to $50,000 in funding, and the profit share will be returned to the DAO treasury.

Brazilian President Lula has signed Law No. 15,358, which explicitly incorporates seized cryptocurrency assets during law enforcement into the public safety funding system for expenditures such as police equipment, intelligence operations, and personnel training.The law allows for the temporary use of relevant cryptocurrency assets prior to final conviction with court approval. The new regulations also significantly expand the powers of judicial authorities, allowing them to freeze, block, or confiscate cryptocurrency assets during the investigation phase, including restricting access to exchange accounts, digital wallets, and related platforms. Once convicted, the individuals involved will be permanently deprived of the ability to use the formal financial system and cryptocurrency systems. Additionally, the law categorizes the use of encrypted communication tools or privacy technologies to conceal criminal activities as an aggravating circumstance, promotes cross-border asset recovery and intelligence sharing, and establishes a national database to integrate the financial structures of criminal organizations. Analysts believe that this initiative marks Brazil's shift of cryptocurrency assets from potential reserve tools to law enforcement resources, strengthening the crackdown on organized crime (such as PCC and Comando Vermelho) while advancing the judicial system's regulatory and disposal capabilities regarding digital assets.