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Circle Secures Binance Backing in USDC vs. Tether Showdown

Circle has landed a $100 million investment from Binance and signed a five-year commercial deal to expand USDC distribution, intensifying its rivalry with Tether in the stablecoin market. Binance bought about 1.24 million Circle Class A shares at $80.84 each and agreed to a two-year lockup on selling or hedging. The deal also includes monthly incentives from Circle tied to USDC balances. Data shows USDC spot markets on Binance grew from 140 to 329, with monthly trading volume jumping from roughly $20–40 billion to over $80 billion.

USDCPartnershipStablecoinInvestment+3

12 hours ago

Tether Says EQIBank Exposure Under 0.034% After U.S. Seizure

Tether has confirmed it holds assets with offshore banking partner EQIBank but says the exposure amounts to less than 0.034% of its total assets. U.S. prosecutors are seeking to forfeit roughly $84.2 million in accounts and crypto assets tied to Capstone, while EQIBank says the approximately $89 million seized represents about 80% of its monetary assets. A federal judge has denied EQIBank's motion to recover the funds. Tether says it was unaware of Capstone's alleged conduct, and its June reserves report showed total assets of $187.75 billion with $4.11 billion in excess reserves.

USDToffshore bankingUSDT reservesUS seizure+3

2026-09-25

Cross-Border Stablecoin Transfers Surge 78% to $220.3B, Defying a 37% Drop in Total Crypto Market Cap

Chainalysis's 2026 Global Crypto Adoption Index shows cross-border stablecoin flows hit $220.3 billion in the year to June 30, 2026, up 77.5% year-over-year, with monthly volumes doubling from $11 billion to $24 billion and an average transfer of about $3,000—signaling commercial trade rather than speculation. The growth came even as total crypto market cap fell 37%, while overall on-chain activity contracted just 1.6%. The top 25% of corridors account for 96.1% of transaction value, raising systemic risk concerns. Brazil topped the adoption index, underscoring how emerging markets are embracing stablecoins for practical needs amid capital controls and currency devaluation.

USDTChainalysisTetherCross-border Payments+3

2026-09-25

Solana Stablecoins Can Now Book Flights on Over 300 Airlines

Solana-based stablecoins can now be used to book flights with more than 300 airlines worldwide through crypto travel platform Nomadz, which previously supported hotel bookings. Payments are settled primarily in USDC via Solana Pay infrastructure. Nomadz acts as a crypto-friendly booking layer between travelers and airlines, with users paying in stablecoins while the actual tickets remain standard bookings. The platform is offering zero fees for the first 30 days. This follows similar integrations from Cryptorefills and Emirates' direct Crypto.com Pay support, expanding Solana's real-world payment use cases.

SOLReal-World PaymentsTravel BookingStablecoins+2

2026-09-24

TRON-Based MeshWallet Raises $10M to Expand Gasless USDT Wallet

TRON-based MeshWallet has closed a $10 million private funding round backed by individual investors and small family offices. The self-custodial wallet lets users send TRC20 USDT without holding TRX, with fees settled in USDT. The funds will go toward product development and growing its user base, targeting both individual senders and businesses that rely on frequent stablecoin payments. TRON has become one of the largest USDT settlement networks, processing $2.1 trillion in USDT transfers in Q2 2026.

USDTgasless walletSelf-Custodialfunding round+4

2026-09-24

Binance Takes $100 Million Stake in Circle with Five-Year USDC Agreement

Binance acquired 1.24 million Class A common shares of Circle at $80.84 per share through a private placement worth roughly $100 million, with the deal closing on September 17. The two companies also signed a five-year commercial agreement under which Circle will pay Binance monthly incentives based on USDC balances held on its platform and modular smart contract wallets, while Binance will promote USDC across its platform. Binance is barred from selling, transferring, or hedging the shares for two years but retains voting rights. The new agreement replaces earlier arrangements from November 2024 and August 2025.

USDCStablecoin Partnershipstrategic investmentPrivate Placement+2

2026-09-22

Hong Kong Jails Ex-Banker for Taking $470K in USDT Bribes

A Hong Kong court sentenced former China Construction Bank (Asia) relationship manager Lam Chun-yin to four years in prison after he admitted to accepting over $470,000 in USDT bribes to certify fake bank instruments worth more than $1.6 billion. He was also ordered to pay about HK$3.7 million in compensation to CCB Asia. The ICAC said arrest warrants have been issued for others involved after the bank uncovered the scam internally. The case, linked to the Vesttoo platform and fraudulent standby letters of credit, highlights the use of cryptocurrency in traditional financial fraud.

USDTmoney launderingbank fraudsentencing+4

2026-09-20

Hyundai Card Eyes Larger Avalanche Stablecoin Rollout

Hyundai Card's stablecoin payment pilot on Avalanche completed a $20,000 cross-border transfer between its U.S. and Mexico units in about seven minutes. Hyundai Motor America converted USD to USDT and sent it directly to Hyundai Motor Mexico. Backed by Tether, Avalanche, and Axiym, the project has Hyundai handling compliance and settlement design. A company executive says the next step is proving the model works reliably at scale, though no full rollout timeline or commercial deployment has been announced.

AVAXcross-border settlementCorporate PaymentsHyundai Card+3

2026-09-17

Column Launches Stablecoin Infrastructure with Instant USDC and USDT Conversion

Column has rolled out four financial infrastructure products spanning stablecoins, card issuing, global banking, and multicurrency accounts, giving fintech companies access to all of them through a single banking platform. Its stablecoin infrastructure enables instant conversion between USDC, USDT, and USD, with round-the-clock connectivity to domestic and international payment rails without intermediaries. Column built its own issuance processing system, combining banking, processing, and funding capabilities into one integration. Co-founder William Hockey says these products already move billions of dollars for major fintechs like Ramp, Brex, and Mercury. The move comes as stablecoins become increasingly embedded in payments and banking.

USDCStablecoin Infrastructuremulticurrency accountsfintech banking+3

2026-09-17

Hyundai Explores Scaling Avalanche After Successful Pilot

Hyundai Card is considering expanding its stablecoin-based cross-border payment pilot on Avalanche after a successful trial. The test involved moving about $20,000 from Hyundai Motor America to its Mexico operations, converting funds to Tether's USDT, transferring via Avalanche, and converting back to dollars—taking roughly seven minutes versus the three to four hours typical of traditional banking. A Hyundai Card payments executive said the next step is proving the model can work at scale, with no timeline yet for group-wide deployment or full commercialization.

AVAXcross-border paymentStablecoin PaymentsEnterprise Adoption+4

2026-09-16