On Thursday, the United States Senate approved an amendment to the 21st Century Road to Housing Act that blocks the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency until Dec. 31, 2030. The measure, which passed by an 89–10 vote, allows dollar-linked digital assets that are open, permissionless and private, while critics in Congress and finance argue CBDCs could enable intrusive financial surveillance.

On 12 March 2026, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York asked the court to deny Sam Bankman-Fried's latest request for a new trial, describing his arguments as "incoherent" and "fanciful". The motion, filed on his behalf by his mother, claims political targeting and new witnesses, while the FTX bankruptcy estate has recovered over $16 billion and now projects 118–119% payouts on allowed claims by March 31, 2026.

A federal court in the Middle District of Alabama has granted a motion by former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao to dismiss significant portions of a February 2024 complaint alleging Binance, Binance.US and Zhao violated the Anti-Terrorism Act by facilitating transfers to Hamas. The judge ordered the plaintiffs to file a second amended complaint by April 10 or face the risk of total or partial dismissal, while Binance later characterized the ruling as a “full and complete legal victory.”

On March 12, 2026, blockchain intelligence platform NOMINIS reported that crypto-related incidents led to about $49.3 million in losses in February, down sharply from roughly $385 million in January. Researchers say the drop does not mean the ecosystem is safer, as attackers are shifting from complex smart contract exploits to techniques that manipulate user behavior and transaction authorizations. A major Solana-based DeFi breach at Step Finance accounted for about $30 million, while multiple smaller cases involved phishing approvals, malicious signatures and address poisoning.

The US Senate is advancing legislation that would bar the Federal Reserve from creating or issuing a central bank digital currency or any similar digital asset. The proposal, which includes exceptions for open, permissionless and private digital assets, comes amid heated political debate over financial privacy, digital money and the expanding role of prediction markets under new CFTC guidelines.

On March 12, 2026, US lawmakers led by Senator Adam Schiff unveiled the DEATH BETS Act to block prediction markets from listing contracts tied to war, terrorism, assassination or an individual's death. The bill would bar any exchange registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission from offering these products, with Representative Mike Levin introducing a matching measure in the House. Supporters say the proposal is meant to remove regulatory discretion and fully prohibit controversial markets that have included contracts on geopolitical events and leadership changes.

On Thursday, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission published guidance explaining how exchanges should list event-based prediction market contracts while Chair Mike Selig highlighted plans to define clearer "rules of the road." The advisory stresses that designated contract markets must ensure products are not vulnerable to manipulation, as platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket see record volumes and valuations reportedly approaching $20 billion each. It also flags heightened risks for narrowly defined sports and violence-linked contracts amid mounting ethical and legal scrutiny.

On 12 March 2026, JPMorgan Chase was named in a proposed class-action lawsuit in Northern California alleging it helped process transactions for a $328 million crypto Ponzi scheme tied to Goliath Ventures. The complaint says about $253 million in deposits moved through JPMorgan accounts between January 2023 and June 2025 and claims the bank ignored red flags while serving as the firm's primary banking partner.