ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, the Bank of England will launch the "Digital Pound Lab" this year as part of its blueprint for the design phase of a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC).The lab will operate in a sandbox environment, supporting practical experiments on CBDC APIs, innovative use cases, and potential business models. According to the progress report on the digital pound released by the Bank of England on Tuesday, the lab will provide a platform for collaboration with private sector partners to explore functionalities and technological innovations. The initiative aims to provide insights for the UK's payments and technology sectors during the ongoing design phase.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jin Shi reports, the outgoing chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) warns that if the Trump administration aggressively cuts back on bank regulations, the U.S. financial system could pay a "high price."Martin Gruenberg stated, "Short-term changes aimed at achieving immediate results in the financial sector may incur real costs and, in a sense, undermine our long-term goals." As he issued this warning, President-elect Trump vowed to cut rules and red tape as part of his plan to boost the U.S. economy, while his allies expressed interest in streamlining U.S. financial regulatory agencies.Gruenberg noted that the U.S. remains vulnerable to the same combination of issues that led to recent major crises, including the savings and loan collapse of the 1980s, the 2008 financial crisis, and the regional bank runs of 2023.In each case, deregulation and oversight allowed new products and non-bank financial companies to grow rapidly, which later proved to be riskier than expected. He remarked, "It is important to note that history tends to repeat itself. I fear we will have to pay a painful price again."

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, the Bank of England stated that it has not yet made a decision on whether to proceed with the digital pound. After the design phase is completed in the coming years, the bank and the government will evaluate the policy case for the digital pound and decide whether to continue to advance it.

ChainCatcher news, the GBP/USD exchange rate fell to a two-year low on Monday, while the exchange rate against the euro hit a new low in 10 weeks, after which the pound rose. However, Deutsche Bank analyst Michael Pfister stated in a report that the pound remains vulnerable to rising bond yields and a weak economy, and is more susceptible to these factors than the euro.He noted that the pound is no longer one of the world's major reserve currencies, so if UK government bonds depreciate, investors "would be more willing to shift their reserves to other currencies until the turmoil ends." Pfister also mentioned that the Bank of England has limited room to cut interest rates, which means that economic growth in the UK may struggle to recover, and the pound will be affected as a result. (Jin Ten)

ChainCatcher news, Swiss and Singapore-based crypto bank Sygnum has completed a $58 million financing round, led by Fulgur Ventures, with a post-financing valuation of $1 billion.The new funds will be used to expand its product offerings (focusing on Bitcoin technology), enhance its institutional infrastructure, strengthen its compliance team, and explore strategic acquisition opportunities. The proceeds will also support Sygnum's expansion plans in the EU and establish a regulated business in Hong Kong.According to RootData, Sygnum is a digital asset bank with a Swiss banking license and a Singapore asset management license. Sygnum enables institutions and private qualified investors, corporations, banks, and other financial institutions to invest in the emerging digital asset economy in a fully trusted manner. Clients can invest in leading digital assets using Swiss francs, US dollars, euros, and Singapore dollars that they deposit.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Adrienne Harris, the head of the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), announced the "Transatlantic Regulatory Exchange" (TRE) program to help regulators better understand how foreign institutions handle emerging payment and digital asset issues.In a notice on January 13, Harris stated that the program will begin with the exchange of senior officials with digital asset experience between NYDFS and the Bank of England, which is "crucial for regulatory coordination." The TRE program's exchanges will start in February with the Bank of England and will last for at least six months.It is understood that NYDFS is responsible for overseeing cryptocurrency regulation in New York State, where many companies take advantage of the region's business and regulatory environment. The financial regulatory agency implemented the BitLicense program in 2015 and approved projects such as Ripple Labs' RLUSD stablecoin last December.

ChainCatcher news, the proprietary trading division of the Italian banking group Intesa Sanpaolo has purchased 11 BTC, amounting to approximately 1 million euros.This is the first time an Italian bank has purchased Bitcoin.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya stated that if our economic forecasts are realized, there may be an interest rate hike. The Bank of Japan aims to achieve a 2% price stability target in a sustainable and stable manner. Although the direction of interest rate hikes is to further raise rates, we must carefully monitor various upward and downward risks both domestically and internationally.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, U.S. Bank economist Stephen Juneau stated in a report on Monday, "After the stronger-than-expected employment report was released, we have revised our outlook for the Federal Reserve: we no longer expect any further rate cuts, inflation is above target levels, risks are skewed to the upside, economic activity is strong, and the labor market seems to have stabilized."Juneau wrote that the movements in inflation and employment are becoming more aligned, making it difficult for the Federal Reserve to justify further easing of monetary policy.He indicated that policymakers may find themselves having to tighten policy. "Our baseline scenario is that the Federal Reserve will maintain interest rates unchanged for a long time, but we believe the risk of the next action is skewed towards rate hikes. In our view, if core PCE inflation exceeds 3% year-on-year and long-term inflation expectations become unanchored, then the Federal Reserve may resume rate hikes."

ChainCatcher news, according to cryptonews, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has recently allowed digital banks to establish physical branches. Hong Kong's largest digital bank, ZA Bank, is considering this move to improve customer experience and transaction processes.The establishment of physical branches will enhance the competitiveness and customer trust of digital banks, promote financial inclusion, and accelerate industry development. At the same time, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has also launched the "Distributed Ledger Technology Regulatory Sandbox" project, aimed at helping banks safely adopt blockchain technology.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Travis Hill, the vice chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), recently expressed criticism of the FDIC's stance on digital assets during a public speech and called for banking regulators to issue new guidelines for digital assets. Hill was appointed to the board by the Republicans two years ago, and he criticized the FDIC's role in pressuring banks to abandon crypto clients.He stated, "The long-term goal of the FDIC is to reduce the number of unbanked individuals. It is unacceptable to deprive law-abiding customers of banking services, and regulators must work to put an end to this behavior. Anyone who overtly or covertly pressures banks to stop providing services to law-abiding customers has no place at the FDIC."Current FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg has informed agency staff that he will resign on January 19 (the day before Trump's inauguration). In the absence of the chairman, Vice Chairman Travis Hill will temporarily assume the role of chairman.

ChainCatcher news, Societe Generale analyst Sam Cartwright stated in a report that the Bank of England is expected to cut interest rates, which could support the UK government bond market and prevent disorderly sell-offs. Cartwright noted that due to weakening economic growth and inflation in the UK, the extent of the Bank of England's rate cuts may exceed market expectations.He stated: "We expect a more aggressive easing policy than what the market currently reflects, which could alleviate some of the pressure on UK government bonds." LSEG Refinitiv data shows that the market expects the Bank of England to cut rates by 43 basis points in 2025, while Societe Generale anticipates a cut of 100 basis points. (Jin Shi)

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, influenced by better-than-expected U.S. employment data, Goldman Sachs has lowered its expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts, pushing the first rate cut expectation from March to June, and now expects only two rate cuts in 2025.Bank of America is more cautious, believing that the Federal Reserve may extend its pause on rate cuts, and there is even a risk of rate hikes. The market is focused on the CPI data set to be released on January 15, with a month-on-month increase of 0.3% for the fifth consecutive month potentially further strengthening hawkish expectations.Since the Federal Reserve's first rate cut in September 2023, Bitcoin has risen over 50%, once breaking through the historical high of $108,000. The market generally expects Bitcoin to test the support level of $92,000, which has consistently provided support since last November.

ChainCatcher news, according to Insight Korea, South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is changing its partner bank to KB Kookmin Bank. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the South Korean Financial Services Commission has recently accepted Bithumb's report regarding the change of the bank issuing real-name accounts. If approved, starting from March 24, customers trading cryptocurrencies on Bithumb will need to use a Kookmin Bank account.According to current laws, South Korean domestic cryptocurrency exchanges operate under the "one company, one bank" principle. Under the Specific Financial Information Act, exchanges must establish a real-name account partnership with a designated commercial bank to trade in Korean won.Bithumb has had a real-name account contract with Nonghyup Bank since 2018. However, Bithumb has been trying to change its partner bank since last year to secure market share before the contract with Nonghyup Bank expires. As a result, the two companies, which typically sign one-year contracts, only extended their contract for six months in March. A Bithumb representative stated, "We are requesting confirmation from the financial authorities and plan to announce relevant information as early as the 13th."

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, ECB board member Lane stated that regardless of the measures taken by the Federal Reserve, the ECB should continue to lower borrowing costs. He said: "In the context of a downward trend in inflation becoming established and a weakening growth outlook, it is reasonable to continue cutting interest rates. The direction of interest rates is clear, and the scale and pace of rate cuts depend on the data to be released soon."Lane stated that the ECB "is not the 13th district bank of the Federal Reserve system; we make decisions based on our own mandate, which is to maintain price stability in the Eurozone." Economists and investors expect the ECB to cut rates again in less than three weeks, with economists anticipating three more cuts thereafter. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is slowing down the pace of rate cuts.

ChainCatcher news, Bankless co-founder David Hoffman posted an image on X again (narrated from the perspective of another co-founder, Ryan Adams) in response to the "AICC crash incident."Ryan stated that he and another co-founder of Bankless, David Hoffman, each invested 5 SOL in Aiccelerate in their personal capacities. Additionally, Bankless Ventures invested 2 SOL in the name of the fund, with GP Ben Lakoff being the person in charge of that investment.Afterward, Bankless Ventures sold 8% of the fund's shares (which have now been repurchased). Ryan mentioned that he and David were not aware of the sale, and Ben himself was not familiar with the situation at Aiccelerate; the sale was merely based on trading considerations. This was a huge mistake, and it was the first time such a situation occurred, which made Ben very upset.Ryan finally clarified once again that he and David have never sold their personal shares.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official account of the Shanghai headquarters of the People's Bank of China, the Shanghai headquarters of the People's Bank of China held a work meeting for 2025. The meeting pointed out that the Shanghai headquarters of the People's Bank of China continuously enhances financial management and service levels, utilizing blockchain technology to achieve "one-stop" online processing of cross-border electronic tax payment services, steadily advancing the research and application of digital renminbi, and will focus on supporting the digital transformation of financial institutions in 2025.

ChainCatcher news, the Central Bank of Russia has introduced regulations to manage foreign exchange operations involving digital rights. According to Russian law, digital rights include electronic records such as cryptocurrencies, tokenized securities, and digital tokens. These rights represent claims or obligations related to assets or services. The new decree will take effect on January 11 and outlines the obligations of residents engaged in such transactions, aiming to clarify and strengthen the oversight of digital assets used for trade and payment purposes.A key requirement outlined in the regulation is that foreign trade contracts involving digital rights settlements must be registered with authorized banks. The document states: "Foreign trade contracts, including those settled using digital rights, must be registered with authorized banks. The registration thresholds for these contracts remain unchanged: import contracts exceeding 3 million rubles and export contracts exceeding 10 million rubles."In addition to registration, the Central Bank of Russia also explained: "The regulation specifies the documents and information that residents must provide to banks, including transaction data related to the transfer or receipt of digital rights as a means of payment under foreign trade contracts, as well as data related to other foreign exchange operations involving digital rights."By defining these requirements, the Central Bank of Russia aims to integrate digital rights into the broader financial system while reducing the risks associated with their use.