Coindesk

Walmart (WMT) and Amazon (AMZN) are considering issuing their own stablecoins in the United States, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. These corporate digital tokens, pegged to the U.S. dollar or other government-backed currencies, could dramatically reduce merchant fees and speed up payment settlements, disrupting the dominance of traditional financial institutions.The move is contingent on the passage of the Genius Act, a proposed regulatory framework for stablecoins that recently passed a key procedural step in Congress. If passed, it could pave the way for large companies to adopt or issue stablecoins as an alternative to existing payment rails.Read more: Senate Begins Passage of Stablecoin Bill as House Marks Market-Structure WinsBoth companies are still in early stages, exploring...

SINGAPORE — Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse is betting big on XRP’s XRP role in the future of cross-border payments, saying the token could capture 14% of the volume carried by SWIFT, the global interbank messaging network, within five years.Speaking at the XRP APEX 2025 event in Singapore on Wednesday, Garlinghouse framed the prediction around XRP’s utility in transferring funds internationally.“There are two parts to SWIFT today: messaging and liquidity,” Garlinghouse said. “Liquidity is owned by the banks. I think less about the messaging and more about liquidity. If you're driving all the liquidity, it is good for XRP … so I’ll say five years, 14%.”SWIFT dominates interbank messaging for cross-border transfers, telling banks where to send money, but doesn't actually...

The SEC and Ripple have moved to close the chapter on one of crypto’s longest-running legal battles, jointly filing a motion in Manhattan federal court to dissolve the injunction in their case and release the $125 million civil penalty currently held in escrow.Under the proposal, $50 million would go to the SEC, while the remaining $75 million would be returned to Ripple.The motion, filed under Federal Rules 60(b)(6) and 62.1, cites “exceptional circumstances” as grounds for reopening the final judgment, pointing to changing regulatory attitudes at the SEC and a shared desire between both parties to avoid further litigation.The move also aims to settle outstanding appeals in the Second Circuit and avoid prolonging the case into another year of courtroom...

Crypto bulls took a heavy beating on Thursday with over $1.15 billion in liquidations wiping out leveraged positions across major exchanges, marking one of the bloodiest days for crypto markets in recent months.The largest single liquidation was a bitcoin BTC long position on Binance, valued at $200 million, making it one of the biggest one-off losses in the year so far. It is unclear which trading firm or individual was behind that position, as exchanges don’t make that data public.Data from Coinglass shows over 247,00 traders were liquidated in the 24-hour span. Long traders bore the brunt, accounting for over $1 billion in losses — reflecting overly optimistic positioning after a week of bullish sentiment fueled by Circle’s high-profile IPO...

Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) has introduced the Responsible Innovation and Safe Expertise (RISE) Act of 2025, a legislative proposal designed to clarify liability frameworks for artificial intelligence (AI) used by professionals. The bill could bring transparency from AI developers – stoping short of requiring models to be open source.In a press release, Lummis said the RISE Act would mean that professionals, such as physicians, attorneys, engineers, and financial advisors, remain legally responsible for the advice they provide, even when it is informed by AI systems.At the time, AI developers who create the systems can only shield themselves from civil liability when things go awry if they publicly release model cards.The proposed bill defines model cards as detailed technical documents...