Robinhood, Kraken, Gemini, and a few other crypto exchanges now offer tokenised stocks outside the US, while Coinbase wants to bring them into the US. While platforms are currently offering listed stocks, a key feature of tokenised stocks is their potential to make unlisted shares of private companies tradable. Robinhood has demonstrated this by rolling out tokenised shares of OpenAI and SpaceX to users in Europe. Despite the many claimed benefits and loud voices supporting them, some critics are pointing out the drawbacks. Anton Golub, the Chief Business Officer at crypto exchange Freedx, questioned the marketing claims and noted that tokenised stocks are very similar to what contracts for difference (CFDs) brokers are already offering in Europe and elsewhere. It’s wrapper,” he wrote in a LinkedIn post. “It’s not real equity,” he added, pointing out that people would be buying tokens that track real stocks – much like derivatives. Furthermore, when it comes to round-the-clock access, liquidity remains a concern. CFDs brokers and retail platforms do offer after-market trading, but in practice, liquidity during those hours is very low. “No market maker can hedge exposure on Saturday or Sunday,” Golub said. “That means there is no liquidity and you’ll be quoted a fake price with wide spreads.” “Tokenized stocks only make sense if they are natively issued by companies themselves [or] they exist as primary asset, not a synthetic wrapper,” Golub added.
ALT5 Sigma’s crypto-as-a-service solution enables institutions to seamlessly integrate stablecoins into core operations via APIs regardless of the issuing entity or blockchain protocol through support for both permissioned and permissionless stablecoins
ALT5 Sigma Corporation, provider of Crypto-as-a-Service infrastructure, has launched a comprehensive stablecoin management solution for U.S. institutions. Designed for regulated entities, the platform enables seamless integration, utilization, and oversight of stablecoins-regardless of the issuing entity or blockchain protocol. Whether managing proprietary tokens or leveraging market leaders, institutions can operationalize, monitor, and scale stablecoin use through ALT5 Sigma’s infrastructure. Integration with existing workflows and systems is supported via robust APIs. ALT5 Sigma’s infrastructure supports both permissioned and permissionless stablecoins, enabling institutions to: Integrate stablecoins into core operations, regardless of the blockchain or issuance model; Manage risk, compliance, and wallet infrastructure through built-in KYC/AML and monitoring tools; Connect to internal systems via APIs, including treasury, ERP, CRM, and banking platforms; Enable programmable flows, such as recurring disbursements, settlement automation, and cross-border transfers. Ron Pitters, Chief Operating Officer of ALT5 Sigma Corporation said, “By integrating stablecoins into enterprise systems, we enable real-time payments, automated settlements, and streamlined treasury functions-without requiring custom blockchain development.”
Ripple Ledger is to support a prime broker’s post trade settlement, data reconciliation, and collateral movements lowering settlement times to just 3 to 5 seconds
In a significant move, Ripple recently confirmed that XRPL will play a core role in powering Hidden Road’s post-trade processes, marking a potential turning point for how trades are settled in prime brokerage. Ripple’s UK and Europe Managing Director, Cassie Craddock, has revealed that XRPL will manage the post-trade infrastructure for Hidden Road, a prime broker handling over $10 billion in daily cleared volume. According to Craddock, the ledger will support trade settlement, data reconciliation, and collateral movements. This integration is expected to drastically cut settlement times, from the standard 24 hours to just 3 to 5 seconds. Craddock added, “We also see that there is an active audience of 300 institutional clients. We are very much focused on building our business, developing new cases and utility for digital assets, and enabling and solving customer problems for our banking and institutional customers.” Beyond infrastructure, Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin will serve as the core collateral for Hidden Road’s trading services. Craddock confirmed this role, saying RLUSD enables the bridging of the digital asset space to TradFi, highlighting Ripple’s broader ambition to integrate stable digital value into traditional financial ecosystems. “The XRP Ledger will be used as post-trade for all of Hidden Road’s Prime Brokerage Services,” Craddock mentioned. “We will use RLUSD as collateral to enable the bridging of digital assets to tradfi.”
CompoSecure’s hardware wallet to allow users to deposit cash at MoneyGram locations and receive Circle USDC on the Stellar blockchain, and withdraw local currency from their digital USDC holdings
Payment card and security solutions provider CompoSecure announced the integration of its Arculus Cold Storage Wallet with MoneyGram Access. The move lets users convert physical cash to digital USDC stablecoins and withdraw cash at MoneyGram locations worldwide. This integration allows users to deposit cash at participating MoneyGram locations and receive Circle USDC on the Stellar blockchain, which can be managed within the self-custody Arculus crypto wallet. Users can also withdraw local currency from their digital USDC holdings at over 440,000 MoneyGram retail locations across more than 200 countries and territories. Adam Lowe, chief product and innovation officer at CompoSecure and Arculus, said this could be particularly appealing to those who lack access to traditional banking services. “This integration enables people to convert physical cash into digital dollars on the highly performant Stellar blockchain and store those digital dollars securely, giving them complete autonomy and control over their assets.” Additionally, Arculus announced a grant from the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), a non-profit organization supporting the development and growth of the Stellar network, to enable payments over traditional payment card rails directly from self-custody crypto wallets via smart contracts.
PayPal to offer users a 3.7% annual rewards rate on holdings of the PayPal USD (PYUSD) stablecoin in their PayPal or Venmo wallets
PayPal Holdings will launch a rewards program this summer that will allow users to earn rewards on holdings of the PayPal USD (PYUSD) stablecoin in their PayPal or Venmo wallets. The company expects to offer a 3.7% annual rewards rate upon the launch of the program, although it can change the rate at any time. Users will be able to immediately use the rewards to send to other PayPal or Venmo users, fund international transfers, exchange for fiat, convert to other cryptocurrencies or make purchases at merchants with PayPal Checkout. “Consumers and businesses use PYUSD today for commerce, crypto, peer-to-peer transfers and B2B payments,” PayPal President and CEO Alex Chriss said. Michelle Gill, general manager of small business and financial services at PayPal, said the company expects to use the stablecoin to power a new B2B bill pay offering. “B2B bill pay is tapping into a $2 trillion market,” Gill said. “This is exciting not just for our merchants, but also for PayPal in that it opens up a brand-new network. … They now get to invite their vendors and their suppliers to join the PayPal ecosystem. … By the end of 2025, we hope to power all of this through PYUSD.”
P2P payment information network Phixius by Nacha partners Kinexys by J.P. Morgan to add near real-time global validation of bank account ownership, status and transactions to its real-time validation
Phixius by Nacha and Kinexys Liink established information exchanges between their payment information networks. The collaboration will enhance account validation coverage for financial institutions, FinTechs and corporations. Phixius, which is a peer-to-peer payment information network, will serve as Kinexys Liink’s key U.S. payment information network responder, enabling near real-time validation of domestic bank account data. Kinexys Liink, which is a bank-led peer-to-peer data-sharing network and part of Kinexys by J.P. Morgan, will allow Phixius participants access to its Confirm application’s global account validation capabilities, expanding the reach of the Phixius network. “Kinexys Liink and Phixius customers can benefit by validation services using data provided by either network, helping to mitigate payment fraud and reduce potential ACH returns,” Rob Unger, managing director of ACH Network development at Nacha, said. Gloria Wan, general manager of Kinexys Liink at Kinexys by J.P. Morgan, said: “Through the collaboration with Phixius by Nacha, we look forward to expanding the reach of Kinexys Liink to further strengthen account validation and cross-border payment infrastructure globally.”
FurGPT’s Web3 virtual pet platform each pet’s behavior securely on-chain creating a unique personality and memory profile, while providing verifiable continuity for users
FurGPT, a leading player in Web3 virtual pet innovation, has introduced emotion-driven mechanics to its AI-powered pets. The new features allow users to engage with their pets in more lifelike and emotionally responsive ways, enhancing user experience and deepening bonds. The AI pets can interpret and respond to user behavior in a nuanced and adaptive manner, allowing them to develop emotional states like curiosity, joy, or loyalty. The platform also integrates blockchain technology to securely record each pet’s behavioral data, ensuring a unique personality and memory profile that evolves over time. The emotional AI system also introduces mood-based quests and emotion-driven animations, making user interactions more intuitive and emotionally rich. This fusion of tech and sentiment in decentralized play represents a shift in the Web3 gaming space towards experiences that prioritize personalization, emotional depth, and interactive narrative.
Deloitte study shows tokenized ownership of loans and securitizations to grow to US$2.39 trillion by 2035 while tokenized private real estate funds expected to grow to US$1 trillion by 2035
Deloitte Center for Financial Services predicts that real estate tokenization could become a core pillar of property financing, ownership, and trading. The market of tokenized real estate could reach $4 trillion by 2035, growing at a 27% compound annual rate from under $300 billion. This sector combines crypto tech and traditional finance, creating digital versions of assets like bonds, funds, and real estate on blockchain rails. It offers operational efficiencies, cheaper settlements, and broader investor access. The report outlines three-pronged evolution of tokenized property: private real estate funds, securitized loan ownership, and under-construction or undeveloped land projects. Tokenized debt securities are expected to dominate, reaching $2.39 trillion in value by 2035. Challenges remain, including regulation, asset custody, cybersecurity, and default scenarios.
Mastercard is partnering crypto exchanges and fintechs to unveil end-to-end acceptance and payments capabilities of stablecoins such as wallet enablement, card issuance and digital commerce
Mastercard is doubling down on stablecoins, unveiling new global end-to-end acceptance and payments capabilities with an integrated 360-degree approach to allow consumers and businesses to use stablecoins as easily as the money in their bank accounts. The company has partnered with a host of crypto natives such as MetaMask, Kraken, Gemini, Bybit, Crypto.com and Binance on wallet enablement and card issuance and acceptance. Now it is working with OKX to launch the OKX Card, providing millions with easy access to their funds. Mastercard is also teaming up with Nuvei and Circle to give merchants the option to receive their payments in stablecoins such as USDC, regardless of how a consumer chooses to pay. It already offers this functionality across Paxos-issued stablecoins. “When it comes to blockchain and digital assets, the benefits for mainstream use cases are clear,” says Jorn Lambert, chief product officer, Mastercard. “To realise its potential, we need to make it as easy for merchants to receive stablecoin payments and for consumers to use them. We believe in the potential of stablecoins to streamline payments and commerce across the value chain.
Stripe is testing cross border API infrastructure for stablecoin payments to support countries with volatile currencies and/or very high cross border payments costs
Stripe’s crypto product team member, Jennifer Lee, announced on X that the company is starting to test its Bridge-based product and invited companies outside the US, UK and EU who want to access dollars. She didn’t mention which stablecoins solutions would be offered initially. Bridge’s APIs support several corporate use cases including cross border transfers, enabling large corporates such as SpaceX’s Starlink to move money around the world, and dollar payouts to staff or others. An important one is enabling clients in countries with volatile currencies to save using dollar stablecoins. Stepping back, Stripe’s appeal for participant companies outside the US, UK and EU is notable. While it’s easy to think that Stripe has a presence worldwide because it sends payments globally, it only offers services to companies in 51 jurisdictions, of which 31 are in Europe, plus the five mainly English-speaking regions of the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Anecdotal evidence has shown that stablecoins appeal most to people in countries with volatile currencies and/or very high cross border payments costs. Quite a few of these countries are not currently served by Stripe. Hence, Stripe’s Bridge integration represents a strategic addition in emerging markets, where stablecoins offer both expanded payment options and access to previously underserved territories with volatile currencies.