Tether burns $2.5B USDT on Ethereum; SEC plans 2026 crypto rules for exchanges; Coinbase gains UK traditional investment license; Kraken pursues European banking status.
DeFi & Yields ·
Tether destroyed $2.5 billion in USDT on Ethereum on July 7, marking the largest single burn event since February 2026. The stablecoin issuer also committed $20 million to Mercado Bitcoin as part of a broader investment push into Latin American tokenization initiatives. These moves come amid a notable contraction in stablecoin market value, which fell to $312 billion in June—the largest monthly decline since the TerraUSD collapse.
Regulatory developments are shaping the sector's near-term outlook. The SEC has signaled plans to introduce cryptocurrency rule changes targeting exchanges and broker-dealers as part of its 2026 regulatory agenda. Coinbase obtained UK authorization to provide traditional investment services alongside crypto offerings, enabling institutional clients to trade perpetual futures and retail customers to access equities for the first time in that market. Kraken is pursuing banking status in Europe, reflecting a broader industry shift toward regulated financial infrastructure.
Tokenized equity trading demonstrated strong momentum, surging 145 percent to reach $3.86 billion in transaction volume. The regulatory clarity in certain jurisdictions appears to be enabling this expansion, though the full UK crypto framework is not expected to take effect until October 2027, suggesting additional rule-making remains ahead.