As crypto legislation stalls, regulators are taking the lead.

The SEC laid out a five-year framework for tokenized stock trading, while the CFTC made it easier for passive software to plug into regulated markets.

On the corporate side, a ratings giant picked up a smart contract security firm.

And macro data gave Bitcoin a modest lift.

Here's your quick daily briefing.

SEC clears path for onchain trading of tokenized stocks

The SEC just gave blockchain trading platforms a five-year pass to list tokenized securities.

Under the exemption, these platforms can run automated market makers and liquidity pools without registering as traditional exchanges.

If this works, stock trading could eventually look a lot more like DeFi than the NYSE.

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Markets

Falling oil prices and strong jobs data gave Bitcoin a lift

WTI crude dropped 3% after reports that China asked Iran to help calm Houthi tensions.

Lower oil dragged Treasury yields down, giving risk assets room to breathe.

Meanwhile, jobless claims fell to 196K, the lowest since mid-July, complicating the case for rate cuts.

BTC climbed near $77K, ETH traded above $2,400, and SOL pushed past $100.

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CFTC clears path for passive software providers to skip broker registration

The CFTC just made it easier for software providers to connect users with regulated derivatives markets.

Qualifying firms can avoid introducing broker registration if their technology stays passive.

That means no custody, trading signals or discretionary order execution.

The expanded relief could give crypto trading apps more room to build around regulated derivatives.

Check the details →

S&P Global agrees to buy blockchain security firm OpenZeppelin

S&P Global is acquiring OpenZeppelin, the firm behind some of crypto's most widely used smart contract security tools.

OpenZeppelin has been auditing and protecting onchain code since 2015. S&P wants that expertise for its own risk assessment products.

When a $150B financial data giant buys a web3 security shop, blockchain is no longer a side project.

Read the full breakdown →

On Our Radar

Arc's API gatekeepers: Your pick of five RPC providers for the year ahead.*

Breach of faith: Revolut denies ransom demand despite alleged customer data leak.

AI's gift to cybercriminals: Onchain malware attacks jumped 420% this year.

_*sponsored

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