American Express is agreeing to a $17,500,000 settlement in a federal antitrust class action filed in New York that challenges its alleged anti-steering rules for merchants. The case covers consumers who made purchases between 2015 and 2022 at 38 businesses in nine US states, but the settlement will be distributed only to a subset of Illinois shoppers. Eligible Illinois residents used non-rewards Visa, Mastercard or Discover credit cards at specified merchants, and they must submit claims by May 19 before a judge considers final approval on June 17.

Robert Kiyosaki, currently in Vietnam, used a new X post to argue that modern warfare operates as a financial system that consumes large amounts of silver. Silver has climbed more than 150% year-on-year from around $32 in 2025 to above $80 in early 2026 and is now trading at $84.33 after briefly hitting a $116 record. He maintains his call for silver to reach $200 in 2026, framing gold, silver, and Bitcoin as protection against currency debasement driven by heavy war spending.

On March 7, 2026, prediction market operator Kalshi was sued in a U.S. federal court over a disputed market tied to the tenure of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with plaintiffs seeking $54 million. The platform declined to settle bets placed on Khamenei leaving office before March 1, 2026, after he was killed in U.S.-Israeli military strikes, citing a controversial "death carveout" clause. Investors claim the terms were clear and binary, while Kalshi's CEO has defended the decision and offered to refund trading fees.

On March 7, 2026, the White House announced that the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation will extend up to $20 billion in reinsurance to ships operating in the Persian Gulf to stabilise energy markets. The move follows an 81% plunge in Strait of Hormuz traffic and around 200 stranded tankers after major marine insurers halted coverage, while the facility will add to the DFC's existing $205 billion statutory risk exposure.

Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority has instructed MEXC, KuCoin, and their affiliates to stop all unlicensed crypto activities in the emirate, warning users of potential financial and legal risks. The enforcement actions, issued on Thursday and Friday, come amid surging crypto flows in the wider region and growing concerns over Iran’s increasing use of digital assets to bypass U.S. sanctions.

Bitcoin has slipped from $70,000 to around $68,000, leaving it roughly 4% lower over the past day and cutting its market capitalization to $1.360 trillion. While major altcoins like ETH, SOL and BNB are also posting losses, Pi Network's PI token has climbed about 13% to trade near $0.23, marking its highest price in three months.

Between 2023 and 2026, Italian authorities have sharply increased checks in the Register of Virtual Currency Service Providers as more Italians invest in digital assets. The OAM-managed registry, active since 2022, now serves as a key financial intelligence tool for Guardia di Finanza, police and supervisory bodies, which filed 27 information requests in 2023, 44 in 2024 and 107 in 2025. Early 2026 data already show dozens of new enquiries, as Italy prepares by 31 December to align its framework with the MiCAR rules that will convert VASPs into CASPs.

Dubai's Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority has issued cease and desist orders to KuCoin and MEXC after stating the exchanges may have offered virtual asset services to local residents without required authorization. The regulator stressed that neither platform holds a license to provide crypto services in or from Dubai and warned users about the financial and legal risks of dealing with unlicensed firms.