bank

Bitget has launched perpetual contracts for 4 popular stocks: CSTOCK (Citibank), MDT (Medtronic), BP (British Petroleum), and VLO (Valero Energy). The above contracts are settled in USDT, supporting up to 20 times leverage and 24/7 trading. As of now, Bitget supports a total of 368 stock perpetual contract underlying assets.

Market sources say that SoftBank and MGX are in talks to participate in this round of financing for OpenAI.

Financial technology company Ramp announced that it submitted an application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) on October 16 to establish Ramp National Trust Bank. If approved, the trust bank license will allow it to provide fiduciary investment management and digital asset custody services, bringing it under a unified federal regulatory framework.In addition, the proposed entity will not engage in accepting deposits or issuing commercial loans.

The German Savings Bank Group Sparkassen has opened Bitcoin trading through DekaBank's banking application. DekaBank currently lists five savings banks participating in this service, and over 230 savings banks have expressed their intention to participate.According to information disclosed by DekaBank, each Bitcoin transaction incurs a fee of €0.99 plus a spread, and withdrawals are limited to custodians approved by them. DekaBank is a securities service and asset management institution under the German Savings Bank Financial Group, and this time it directly connects Bitcoin trading to the existing banking applications of the savings banks.

The identity project World, co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, announced the launch of a World ID verification product suite aimed at banks and financial institutions, marking the first industry-specific version of the identity protocol. World co-founder Alex Blania unveiled the product at the Money20/20 conference. The suite integrates three existing products, and World claims it can help institutions guard against deepfake fraud and AI-driven identity theft, covering scenarios such as customer accounts, employee workflows, and AI agents.Specifically, the World ID app is an identity wallet used to store and present what World refers to as user Proofs. World ID for Zoom allows call participants to confirm that the other party is a real person and not a deepfake; this feature has officially launched after a limited testing phase that began in April. World’s main developer, Tools for Humanity, has also joined Zoom's Independent Software Vendor Exchange Program. World ID for Agents, also known as AgentKit, allows users to delegate Proofs to AI agents, which present them to third-party platforms.World stated that it is collaborating with OpenExchange, Bain Capital, VanEck Funds, and Outtake as design partners to explore how its technology can support banks and financial services, but did not disclose specific bank names or pricing for the product. A press release cited a Deloitte forecast predicting that by 2027, AI-related fraud losses in the U.S. could reach $40 billion, up from approximately $12.3 billion in 2023. World claims that over 18 million people currently hold Proof of Human. Last month, World also launched the World Money self-custody app, supporting stablecoin payments in over 150 countries; in July, World Foundation raised $52.5 million through a WLD token sale, with a lock-up period of one year.

Deutsche Bank is nearing the launch of institutional-grade cryptocurrency custody services, expected to begin serving institutional clients within weeks, initially targeting German companies and professional investors, supporting assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, with technology co-developed by Swiss digital asset infrastructure company Taurus.This service is not aimed at retail cryptocurrency trading applications, and the related plans still require regulatory approval. Deutsche Bank has also discussed the possibility of tokenized deposits, digital securities, and expanding to Asian financial centers by 2027.

The outstanding balance of Coinbase's crypto asset collateralized loans has reached $2.3 billion, with the product launching in January 2025. Eligible users outside of New York State can stake Bitcoin to borrow USDC without selling their holdings, with loans routed through the Morpho decentralized lending protocol on the Base network.Coinbase has added fixed-rate loans through Morpho Midnight, expanding the stakable assets to XRP, DOGE, ADA, and LTC; as of mid-September 2026, the scale of floating-rate loans has exceeded $1.4 billion, supported by approximately $3 billion in collateral. JPMD tokenized deposits from JPMorgan Chase have been operating on Base for institutions since mid-2026, while Citigroup and BNY Mellon are also advancing related layouts, and several UK banks plan to launch related networks in 2027.

According to Bloomberg, citing informed sources, SoftBank is considering acquiring Allied Universal, the largest security services company in the United States, with a potential equity valuation of up to $18 billion. The company also has about $12 billion in publicly traded loans and bonds, and including related debts, the total transaction value could approach $30 billion.Masayoshi Son is exploring the application of AI robots across various industries. The report indicates that SoftBank hopes to have robots undertake some security tasks for Allied in the future, but the deployment of humanoid security robots may take longer. Relevant discussions are still in the early stages, and matters including pricing have not been finalized.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published a working paper titled "Are Stablecoins and Bank Deposits Substitutes?" The study is based on weekly data from the United States from January 2019 to June 2025. After controlling for factors such as Bitcoin prices, government bond yields, and financial market conditions, it was found that the rise in bank deposit rates is associated with a slowdown in the growth rate of stablecoin market capitalization.According to the benchmark model estimates, a 1 basis point (0.01 percentage point) increase in the average deposit rate corresponds to a reduction of about 3 percentage points in the cumulative growth rate of stablecoin market capitalization over the following ten weeks, from an average level of approximately 15% to around 12%, rather than a decline in market capitalization. The response of USDC is stronger than that of USDT.The authors note that the study cannot conclude that the total amount of bank deposits or lending decreases, and the sample only covers one cycle of high interest rates. The views in the paper belong to the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the BIS or its member central banks.

According to SeeNews, Bulgaria's Postbank plans to add stock and cryptocurrency investment features to its mobile banking app. Postbank is a subsidiary of Eurobank Bulgaria AD. This move signifies that traditional banks are integrating digital assets with securities investment services into retail banking channels. The report was published on October 16, 2026, and currently, the page only displays the title, without disclosing details such as the launch time, supported currencies, and partners.

According to Cointelegraph citing Reuters, Deutsche Bank plans to launch Bitcoin and Ethereum custody services within weeks and aims to expand its business in Asia by 2027.

Bank of America warns that the AI investment boom is showing signs of classic capital cycle risks, manifested in a surge in spending, intensified competition, and falling prices.The capital expenditure expectations of hyperscale cloud vendors have jumped from $330 billion to $1 trillion, roughly equivalent to 3% of the U.S. GDP. Meanwhile, since the summer, the prices of AI tokens have dropped by about 50%, and the increase in usage may not translate into sufficient revenue. The key risk is that AI technology may succeed, but investors could be harmed by over-investment and declining returns.

According to Jinshi Data, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda stated that Japan's core inflation is close to 2%, marking a policy shift, and the central bank's policy has entered a new phase where inflation cannot be allowed to rise further. Due to core inflation being close to 2% and the financial environment remaining accommodative, the Bank of Japan will continue to raise interest rates and adjust its monetary easing policy. The central bank will discuss whether to adjust the assessment of "core inflation close to 2%" at the upcoming meeting.Kazuo Ueda mentioned that the situation in the Middle East, demand for artificial intelligence, and exchange rates will influence the timing of interest rate hikes. The central bank has been monitoring the impact of the weakening yen and the Middle East situation on inflation. He also stated that it is difficult to make a clear statement about Japan's neutral interest rate, and the stability of 2% inflation is becoming increasingly important. The central bank will focus on consolidating the 2% inflation target. Additionally, Ueda noted that the main takeaway from this week's meeting (including the G20) was the communication with other policymakers regarding the impact of the Middle East conflict and demand for artificial intelligence on the global and Japanese economy, and there was nothing heard that deviated from the Bank of Japan's fundamental views. He exchanged opinions with Federal Reserve Chairman Waller but will not disclose specific details; since the meeting in Asheville, he has not contacted U.S. Treasury Secretary Yellen.

According to the official announcement from Mitsubishi UFJ Trust Bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust Bank, in collaboration with Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mizuho Bank, and TISI, completed an empirical experiment on the joint issuance of yen stablecoins and optimization of cross-border payments from July 17 to 23, 2026.This experiment was supported by the Financial Services Agency's "Fintech Empirical Experiment Hub - Payment Enhancement Project," verifying the feasibility of a multi-bank joint issuance stablecoin model and exploring the application potential of blockchain technology in international remittances and inter-company payments. The results of the experiment showed that the issuance and circulation of stablecoins are operationally feasible, providing important references for the future social implementation of digital payment services and blockchain financial assets.

Singapore Gulf Bank (SGB) announced that personal customers can conduct two-way exchanges between USD and USDT, USDC through the mobile banking app, without the need to transfer funds to a cryptocurrency exchange.Customers can hold USDT, USDC, and other fiat currencies in the same bank account, and the service supports 24-hour exchanges from Monday to Friday. Singapore Gulf Bank was initiated by the Singapore Huangpu Group.

According to Cointelegraph, the Swedish central bank (Riksbank) recently submitted a proposal to the parliamentary finance committee, urging lawmakers to initiate legislative preparations for a potential central bank digital currency—Digital Krona.

On October 12, the Central Bank of Russia clarified in its updated guidelines that individuals are not allowed to withdraw cryptocurrency from regulated digital accounts to self-custodied wallets. The Central Bank stated that this restriction is based on Article 31(9) of the new Russian cryptocurrency market law (Federal Law No. 282-FZ), which will take effect on September 1, 2026. Digital accounts are statutory accounts used to record crypto assets, and digital custodians are registered institutions that register and transfer these assets and provide access to wallet addresses.This restriction applies to the withdrawal of funds under the regulated custodial system in Russia. For withdrawals from ordinary investment accounts, the rules cover resident individuals and do not provide exemptions for qualified investors. According to Article 31, individuals who pass the required tests and receive risk disclosures can transfer cryptocurrency to wallets managed by legally authorized foreign custodians, which is different from withdrawing to personal wallets outside of institutional custody. The law also sets exceptions for foreign trade settlements and mining.The Central Bank also stated that transfers between individuals using addresses managed by digital custodians are not allowed, including transfers generated from transactions between individuals. The aforementioned provisions belong to the general cryptocurrency market law and are not rules applicable only to participants in experimental projects. The Central Bank indicated that direct peer-to-peer transactions between individuals are only permitted until July 1, 2027, when Article 30(1) will take effect; thereafter, residents who are not authorized as intermediaries in the cryptocurrency market must complete transactions through or with the participation of authorized intermediaries, with optional channels including licensed brokers and operators of cryptocurrency exchanges listed in the Central Bank of Russia's registry.