ShapeShift Rolls Out Support for Shielded Zcash Transactions

Multichain DEX aggregator Shapeshift announced support for shielded (private) transactions with the Zcash privacy cryptocurrency. According to a Thursday announcement shared with Cointelegraph, ShapeShift’s self-custodial decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator and self-custodial wallet now support Zcash (ZEC) shielded transactions. The announcement comes as Zcash Community Grants allotted $50,000 to support ShapeShift’s technical and marketing investments. According…

Luxembourg Takes The Orange Pill

Today in crypto, in a eurozone first, Luxembourg’s sovereign wealth fund has allocated 1% of its $900 million portfolio, or about $9 million, into Bitcoin ETFs, veteran trader Peter Brandt says Bitcoin will either top this week or be set up for a “dramatic” surge, and the Bank of North Dakota announced plans to introduce…

Japan PM May ‘Refine’ Blockchain Regulations, Boost Crypto Economy

Japan’s newly elected prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, may open the door for more “refined” regulations to boost the country’s cryptocurrency economy, which could be set to emerge as the next global hub for crypto companies. Takaichi was elected leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Saturday and is set to become Japan’s first female…

DeFi TVL Hits Record $237B As DApp Wallets Drop 22% In Q3

The decentralized application (DApp) industry ended the third quarter of 2025 with mixed results, as decentralized finance (DeFi) liquidity surged to a record high while user activity fell sharply, according to new data from DappRadar. In a report sent to Cointelegraph, DappRadar said that daily unique active wallets averaged 18.7 million in Q3, down 22.4%…

Bank of France Pushes for ESMA Oversight, Stricter Stablecoin Rules

The Bank of France has called on the European Union to give its markets regulator direct supervision over major crypto firms, warning that fragmented oversight could threaten the bloc’s financial sovereignty. Speaking at the ACPR-AMF Fintech Forum in Paris on Thursday, Bank of France Governor François Villeroy de Galhau said the European Securities and Markets…

Citi Joins Visa in Backing Stablecoin Payments Company BVNK

The venture arm of the U.S. multinational bank Citigroup (C) made a strategic investment in stablecoin payments platform BVNK, the companies announced on Thursday. Citi Ventures joins Visa (V) in backing BVNK, after the payments giant made its own strategic investment in the company in May this year. The companies have not disclosed the size…

3 reasons XRP’s time spent under $3 could be short-lived

Despite XRP’s dip below $3, strong whale accumulation, ETF optimism and bullish technicals suggest a rebound is brewing. Source link

What really drives altcoin seasons? A closer look

What really is altcoin season? Altcoin season, often called “altseason,” occurs when a significant portion of altcoins, cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin, experience rapid price increases that outpace Bitcoin’s performance. This period is characterized by a shift of investor capital from Bitcoin (BTC) into assets such as Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA) and even smaller…

SoftBank’s PayPay Acquires 40% Stake In Binance Japan

Binance Japan has entered into a capital and business agreement with PayPay, a mobile payment service operated by the major Japanese investment holding company, SoftBank Group. SoftBank’s PayPay acquired a 40% equity stake in the Japanese subsidiary of global crypto exchange Binance, with Binance Japan becoming an equity-method affiliate of PayPay as of September 2025,…

Uganda to Launch CBDC Pilot, Kenya Close to Regulation

Uganda has launched a central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot as part of a broader tokenization effort across the African nation, while its neighbor Kenya is on the verge of enacting a crypto regulation bill.  Blockchain financial infrastructure company the Global Settlement Network (GSN) has partnered with Ugandan developer Diacente Group in an initiative to…