Messari research analyst Austin Weiler argues that insider trading can only be meaningfully deterred on prediction markets that implement Know Your Customer checks, while fully onchain, non-KYC platforms face near-impossible enforcement. He notes that even KYC cannot completely prevent abuse, as insiders may still pass information to third parties, but it allows platforms to restrict access and raise enforcement standards amid growing scrutiny of political and geopolitical betting.

On Wednesday in the Oval Office, US President Donald Trump said that the person responsible for leaking information on Venezuela "has been found and is in jail," following a series of well-timed Polymarket wagers on President Maduro's potential removal. Blockchain researchers have since noted that two of three wallets tied to profitable Venezuela bets have gone inactive, while a third wallet recently shifted focus to prediction markets concerning Iran's leadership. The situation has intensified US policy discussions over insider trading risks on political prediction platforms.

SG-Forge said on Thursday it completed exchange and settlement of tokenized bonds using its euro-pegged EUR CoinVertible as part of SWIFT interoperability testing. The firm called EURCV the first MiCA-compliant on-chain settlement asset natively compatible with SWIFT. SWIFT announced in September 2025 a blockchain-based shared ledger and named at least 30 partner banks.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs logged $843.6 million in single-day inflows on Wednesday and amassed more than $1.7 billion over three sessions, reversing roughly $1.4 billion of outflows from Jan. 6–9. Bitcoin climbed above $97,000, with risk appetite improving as the Fear & Greed Index reached 61.

French regulator AMF has reportedly identified 90 crypto firms registered in France that have not obtained a MiCA license ahead of the June 30 transition deadline. Around 40% of these firms are said to have no intention of applying, while roughly 30% have not responded and risk being forced to shut down operations in July.

BitGo Holdings filed a Form S-1 with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, launching a US IPO of its Class A common stock. The crypto custody firm plans to offer about 11.8 million shares at $15 to $17 each, seeking to raise up to $201 million and valuing the company at as much as $1.96 billion, with over $90 billion in assets under custody.

Future Holdings AG, a Switzerland-based Bitcoin treasury backed by Adam Back, said on Monday it entered a non-binding letter of intent for Sweden-listed H100 Group to acquire 100% of its shares. The proposed consideration values Future at about 375,000 Swiss francs plus cash for an estimated total near 600,000 francs (roughly $753,000), with signing and closing expected in January 2026.

Rain, a U.S.-based stablecoin infrastructure provider and principal member of the Visa network, has closed a $250 million Series C round at a $1.95 billion valuation to accelerate its international expansion. The company, which saw its active card base grow 30-fold in 2025 and annualized payment volume jump 38 times, plans to use the capital to scale its platform and enter markets across the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa. Existing and new investors, including Iconiq and several major venture firms, joined the round, bringing Rain's total funding to $338 million.

A Polymarket account identified as "0x31a56e" that made roughly $400,000 from a wager on former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's capture and removal is now inaccessible on the platform. The account had placed about $32,000 on Maduro's ouster and related U.S.-Venezuela conflict markets, and later moved more than $436,000 in USDC from its Polygon address on Jan. 3. Its disappearance, while other user pages remain visible, is intensifying scrutiny over potential insider trading and transparency issues on prediction markets.