1-BlackRock met with the SEC to discuss cryptocurrency staking, tokenization, and ETF restrictions.

BlackRock has convened a high-level meeting with the Crypto Task Force of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in order to explore important regulatory problems that will have a significant impact on the future of digital assets.

Staking, tokenization, and crypto ETF criteria were the primary topics of discussion during the conference, which was described in a document. These are all themes that are essential to the continuous development of the cryptocurrency industry.

The ten trillion dollar asset manager is increasing its footprint in the cryptocurrency market. It just stated that its iShares Bitcoin Trust generated $32 million in income during the first quarter.

The fact that BlackRock owns $5.4 billion in Bitcoin-related securities was reported in the company's 13F filing for the first quarter of 2025. The majority of this exposure was associated with the company's investments in MicroStrategy, which is well-known for aggressively stacking Bitcoin.

There was a wide variety of subjects that were discussed during the meeting that were key to BlackRock's growing digital asset strategy. A summary of the company's cryptocurrency-related products, such as the iShares Bitcoin Trust, the iShares Ethereum Trust, and the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund, was presented by the executives of the company.

Regulatory implications for staking were also considered, specifically with regard to the manner in which exchange-traded products that have the ability to stake could be constituted in accordance with the rules that are now in place.

According to the letter, the topic of conversation was on the tokenization of securities and how it fits inside the framework of federal securities regulatory framework. Additionally, the approval standards for crypto ETFs and compliance with the Exchange Act were also discussed.

In addition to this, they investigated other possibilities for crypto exchange-traded funds (ETPs), such as position and exercise restrictions, as well as liquidity thresholds for the digital assets that were being traded.

2-SEC's Hester Peirce wants a cryptocurrency sandbox: Wormhole legal chief has issues.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has made significant changes to its policy regarding cryptocurrency, which has resulted in representatives like Commissioner Hester M. Peirce being brought to the forefront of the discussion. There are, however, others who continue to hold the belief that her pro-crypto strategy has significant shortcomings.

Recently, Cathy Yoon, who serves as the General Counsel at Wormhole Foundation, offered her thoughts on the statements that Commissioner Peirce had made. Peirce's concept of a regulatory sandbox was questioned by her, despite the fact that she acknowledged, to a certain extent, the necessity of regulatory exemptions for cryptocurrency.

Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the discussion revolves around tokenized securities, which are subject to the authority of the SEC. Until the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) declares a security to be compliant, it must first satisfy severe regulatory standards. On the other hand, there remain enormous obstacles still to overcome.

3-The Dow dips 119 points, the Nasdaq rises slightly, and Bitcoin settles at $103k amid China discussion speculations

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.3%, the Nasdaq Composite moved up 0.0043%, and the S&P 500 hung on the flatline, down 0.07%.

The trading action followed a preliminary U.S.-UK trade agreement, but additional tariff bluster has kept markets on edge. U.S. President Donald Trump proposed a "80% tariff on China" via Truth Social, a reduction from the current 145% but still higher than the sub-60% forecasts reported earlier this week.

"Progress this week was encouraging, but we remain in the ebbs and flows of the news cycle," said Nationwide's Mark Hackett. "We are likely in a sideways period of volatility until we begin to get tangible outcomes."

References

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