In his 2026/2027 budget speech on February 25, 2026, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan confirmed that the HKMA's CMU OmniClear will roll out a new tokenized bond platform in the second half of 2026 and connect it to regional tokenization hubs. The infrastructure will support settlement of tokenized bonds and other digital assets, alongside a March rollout of fiat-referenced stablecoin licenses aimed at regulated issuers.

Aave Chan Initiative founder Marc Zeller has released a detailed review of Aave Labs' historical funding and delivery ahead of a $51 million "Aave Will Win" Snapshot proposal. His report claims Aave Labs has benefited from about $86 million in total capitalization, questions revenue and usage around the Horizon RWA market, and raises concerns over swap-fee flows and voting power concentration. The review asks tokenholders to weigh these accountability and transparency issues before backing Aave Labs' new expansion plan and V4 roadmap.

On February 25, 2026 in Apia, Samoa, Phemex introduced its AI Bot as a major product step in its shift toward becoming an AI-native crypto exchange. The tool applies advanced machine learning to automate quantitative strategies across Futures Grid, Spot Grid and Martingale systems while emphasizing risk-aware capital management. Phemex also rolled out an AI Bot Carnival with over $1,000,000 in incentives, including full loss protection for new users and tiered USDT rewards.

In his 2026–27 budget speech, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced that HKMA subsidiary CMU OmniClear Holdings will build a digital asset platform to issue and settle tokenized bonds and later connect it with other regional tokenization systems. Chan also outlined plans to begin issuing the first fiat‑referenced stablecoin licenses in March and to introduce new licensing regimes and tax reporting rules for digital asset service providers.

On 25 February 2026, major financial institutions intensified their push into blockchain-based markets, with tokenized real-world assets approaching $20 billion in value. Products tied to U.S. Treasuries, private credit and other traditional instruments are increasingly issued and traded onchain, while large asset managers and banks expand tokenization, stablecoin and deposit token initiatives. This shift reflects a move beyond pilot projects toward scaled onchain funds and infrastructure within mainstream capital markets.

Payoneer said on Tuesday it applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a US national trust banking charter to create PAYO Digital Bank and issue its PAYO-USD stablecoin. The firm plans to use the GENIUS Act-compliant token as a wallet holding currency and to support cross-border payments for its nearly two million mainly small and medium-sized business customers.

On Feb 24, 2026, William M. Peaster outlined how NFTs, as flexible onchain ownership records, are spreading beyond art and PFPs. Citing Paul Brody's "Everything will be an NFT" tweet posted this morning, he highlighted 12 live projects using ERC-721, ERC-1155, and ERC-6551 to power finance and business functions.

On Tuesday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal said he had opened an inquiry into Binance and requested records tied to alleged Iran-linked sanctions evasion. His letter to CEO Richard Teng seeks materials on Iranian users and actions involving compliance staff, coming a little over two years after the exchange’s guilty plea and over $4 billion in penalties.