Tether is expanding globally, hiring around 150 more staff and investing in sectors from sports to AI as USDT adoption grows to $185 billion. The company is also seeking regulatory footholds outside the US while rivals like Block reduce staff amid market pressures.
AnaisSouth Korea’s Bithumb exchange accidentally sent over $40 billion in bitcoin to customers as rewards, causing a brief market sell-off. Most of the coins were recovered, but regulators warned the incident exposed weaknesses in crypto systems and called for stricter rules.
WeatherlyThe TON Foundation has launched TON Pay, a new payments tool that lets people pay with Toncoin and USDT directly inside Telegram Mini Apps, without leaving the app or using separate wallets. The system aims to make in-app crypto payments faster and cheaper, with near-instant transactions and fees below one cent.
WeatherlyMoonPay has partnered with Deel to let companies pay employees in stablecoins, starting in the UK and EU, with plans to expand to the US. The service sends wages directly to workers’ crypto wallets, offering faster and more flexible global payroll.
AnaisFormer SafeMoon CEO Braden John Karony was sentenced to 100 months in a US federal prison after being found guilty of running a scheme that misled investors and diverted millions from the project’s liquidity pools. The court said he and his co-conspirators secretly used investor funds for personal profit, despite promising the money was locked and safe.
WeatherlyThe EU plans to sanction two Kyrgyz banks and several other foreign lenders for helping Russia move money through crypto and bypass existing sanctions. It also wants to block all crypto transactions linked to Russia, including stablecoins and the digital rouble, to close this route for payments and trade.
AnaisHong Kong is set to issue its first stablecoin licences in March 2026, following the new Stablecoins Ordinance. The city is also expanding crypto market rules and tokenisation projects while China remains cautious about cryptocurrency activity.
AnaisA US court fined Paxful US$4 million after finding the crypto exchange helped criminals move money and allowed illegal prostitution and other crimes to run through its platform for years. Regulators said the company ignored basic anti-money laundering rules and failed to report suspicious activity.
AnaisCoinbase has launched Agentic Wallets, crypto wallets that let AI agents trade, pay, and earn on the blockchain without human approval. The wallets use the x402 protocol, support multiple networks including Ethereum and Solana, and include built-in security controls to manage spending and protect private keys.
WeatherlyT-Mobile is launching a beta live phone call translation service that uses AI built directly into its mobile network to translate more than 50 languages in real time, without apps or new devices. The free test opens on 12 January 2026, with selected users getting access this spring before a wider rollout later this year.
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