Henrique Centieiro

📰 This Week in Stablecoins: The Rise of Non USD Stablecoins ⬇️ Amid renewed concerns over U.S. dollar stability and rising trade tensions, more people are asking: what about euro, yen, or peso stablecoins? The benefits of stablecoins — instant settlement, low-cost transfers, programmability — apply to any currency. And yet, over 99% of stablecoin market cap remains USD-based. In this week's edition, I break down:  • Why non-USD stablecoins matter  • The core use cases: FX, remittances, real-time payments  • What’s holding them back (liquidity, infra, regulation)  • And why USD dominance is about product-market fit As always it also includes a round up of product launches, partnerships and regulatory developments from Stables, OKX, Standard Chartered, Brale, Damisa, Kraken Digital Asset Exchange, Borderless.xyz and more. Read the full breakdown via the link in the comments

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Samara Alpha Management, an institutional-grade digital asset manager, today released an update on the BTC+ Fund, a bitcoin-denominated diversified fund-of-funds that has been operating since July 2023. The Fund follows a market-neutral mandate, aiming to generate incremental returns in BTC terms while seeking to limit exposure to broad market direction. The BTC+ Fund invests across a range of arbitrage and relative value strategies, including global market making, statistical arbitrage, DeFi/CeFi yield opportunities, and multi-strategy overlays. As of June 30, 2025, the Fund reported a Sortino ratio above 4.0, with monthly drawdowns since inception contained to approximately 50 basis points. These results are consistent with the fund’s diversified and risk-managed framework. For BitcoinTreasuries.net companies, the Fund illustrates one potential approach to treasury management. Instead of holding bitcoin purely as a reserve, treasuries may consider strategies designed to generate additional BTC yield. Such outcomes depend on market conditions and risks, but they highlight how capital efficiency is becoming an important consideration for balance sheet deployment. “Corporate treasuries are beginning to recognize that holding digital assets is only the first step,” said Wilfred Daye, CEO of Samara Alpha Management. “The next phase is about capital efficiency — how holdings are deployed, and whether they can generate incremental yield without adding undue risk. The BTC+ Fund was designed with that objective in mind.” Samara Alpha has received third-party recognition, including Digital Asset Manager of the Year by FDI Insider and a shortlisting for Hedgeweek’s 2025 Global Digital Asset Manager of the Year Awards. While such recognition is not indicative of future results, it reflects growing industry awareness of Samara Alpha’s work in the digital asset space. Important Disclosures: The BTC+ Fund is offered under a 3(c)(7) exemption and is available only to qualified purchasers with a minimum investment of 1 BTC. Investments involve significant risks, including volatility, liquidity constraints, regulatory uncertainty, and potential loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Any investment decision should be made only after reviewing the Fund’s private placement memorandum. #bitcoin Sylvanus Technologies Blockstone Capital #digitalassets

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🚨 Breaking: IG Group Buys Australian Crypto Exchange for £87 Million 🚨 IG Group (LSE: IGG), the London-listed broker with over £2.9 billion in client assets and over 400,000 active clients, has announced the acquisition of Independent Reserve, a regulated Australian crypto exchange with 129,400 funded accounts and A$1.7 billion in assets under custody. The deal, valued at A$178 million (£87m) or 5x FY25 revenues, marks a bold step in IG’s crypto strategy, expanding its footprint across Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Independent Reserve will continue to operate under its existing leadership, retaining a 30% ownership stake, with IG holding an option to acquire the remainder based on future performance. 🔑 Why this matters: ETFs & Retail Investing: IG has been expanding its multi-asset platform, offering ETFs, shares, FX, and now crypto, aiming to become a one-stop shop for retail and institutional investors. Crypto Growth: Independent Reserve generated A$35.3m in FY25 revenues, nearly doubling year-on-year, and serves an average of 116,000 monthly active customers. Strategic Expansion: The acquisition follows IG’s earlier £160m purchase of Freetrade (UK commission-free trading platform), strengthening its position in equities and ETF trading for younger investors. 🌍 With ETFs continuing to attract record inflows in Europe and the U.S., IG’s dual focus on low-cost ETF investing and regulated crypto trading positions it at the heart of the next wave of digital and traditional finance convergence. 📊 The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals from MAS (Singapore) and FIRB (Australia), with closing expected in early 2026. #IGGroup #ETFs #Crypto #DigitalAssets #RetailInvesting #Fintech #MergersAndAcquisitions #WealthTech #ARKInvest

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Stablecoins are becoming a pillar of modern finance. On @Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) “The Close”, I explained why clear regulation like the GENIUS Act is critical for building trust, how faster settlement can unlock growth by increasing the velocity of money, and why stablecoins are gaining traction as a store of value in places facing inflation. Next big challenge: interoperability and  ensuring stablecoins can work seamlessly across issuers and systems. 🎧 Catch the full discussion here: http://bit.ly/4p2z8iz #Stablecoins #DigitalAssets #CryptoRegulation Crystal Intelligence

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Solana Foundation x Shinhan Securities Co. why this matters: —STO and RWA are the next battleground for programmable capital markets — solana offers the scale, speed, and global access for tradFi needs — custody infra = trust bridge between institutions and on-chain assets — stablecoin rails = solana 's another step into real-world payments solana is positioning itself as the backend of real-world finance — not in 10 years, but now

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🇯🇵 Japan is building stablecoins for banks and consumers - How? ↓ - 10 days ago, MUFG, SMBC Group and Mizuho announced a joint pilot for an institutional stablecoin built on the Progmat, Inc. platform - Yesterday, #JPYC (Japan’s first yen-pegged stablecoin) went live, opening the door for consumers and startups It’s still early to know how widely yen stablecoins will be used but the future looks promising - what do you think? __ I made this comparison table to highlight the two approaches ↓

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The stablecoin regulatory landscape in Hong Kong is heating up, and it's set to reshape the global financial scene. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has received 77 expressions of interest for its new stablecoin license regime. But the first round of licenses will be very limited—my educated guess is we'll see only 3 to 6 licenses issued. This intense competition means even some projects that participated in the sandbox may not make the final cut. This is where the real nuance lies: while the HKMA's guidance is focused on principle-based regulation, there remains a lack of clarity on how KYC and DeFi will intersect. My view is that with adequate tech, token holders (distinct from those who mint or redeem stablecoins) will still find avenues to access compliant DeFi ecosystems. So, who stands to benefit the most? Beyond the issuers themselves, the true beneficiaries will be the downstream ecosystem that is built on these regulated rails. Look for a boom in: Tradfi Custody Solutions: As stablecoins back real-world assets like treasury bills and bonds, specialized custody providers will be in high demand. Tokenization Service Providers: The regulatory clarity will unleash the full potential of tokenizing real-world assets, including tokenized deposits, treasury bills, stocks, and commodities, for use as settlement instruments. DeFi Protocols: More TVL, more economic activity. Decentralized overcollateralized lending and borrowing protocols, as well as yield optimizers, will be poised for massive growth by providing trusted financial services on-chain. With the first licenses expected in Q1 2026, the race is on. This licensing process will determine who gets to be an early mover in Hong Kong's vibrant digital asset market. What are your predictions for who will be granted the first licenses? Let's discuss in the comments! 香港的穩定幣監管正在升溫，並將重塑全球金融格局。 香港金融管理局（HKMA）已收到77份關於其新穩定幣牌照制度的意向書。然而，首輪牌照數量將非常有限——我大膽推測只會發出3到6張牌照。這場激烈的競爭意味著，即使是曾經參與沙盒測試的項目，也可能無法進入最終名單。 這正是關鍵的細微之處：雖然金管局的指導方針側重於原則性監管，但在KYC（認識你的客戶）與DeFi（去中心化金融）如何交會方面仍缺乏明確性。我認為，只要有足夠的技術支援，代幣持有者（與鑄幣或贖回者不同）仍將找到途徑進入符合規範的DeFi生態系統。 那麼，誰將從中受益最多？ 除了發行者本身，真正的受益者將是建立在這些受監管軌道上的下游生態系統。以下領域將迎來蓬勃發展： 傳統金融資產管理託管： 隨著穩定幣以國庫券和債券等現實世界資產為後盾，專業的傳統金融資產管理將備受追捧。 代幣化服務提供商： 監管的明確性將釋放現實世界資產代幣化的全部潛力，包括代幣化存款、國庫券、股票和商品等，以作為結算工具。 DeFi協議： 更多的總鎖定價值（TVL）和經濟活動。 去中心化的超額抵押借貸協議以及收益優化器，將透過在鏈上提供值得信賴的金融服務，迎來巨大的增長潛力。 隨著首批牌照預計在2026年第一季發出，這場競賽已經開始。這個牌照審核過程將決定誰能成為香港蓬勃發展的數字資產市場中的先行者。 你對首批獲得牌照的公司有何預測？歡迎在評論中一起討論！ #HongKong #FinTech #Stablecoins #HKMA #DigitalAssets #Web3 #Blockchain #FinancialRegulation #Tokenization #DeFi #FutureOfFinance #Innovation

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📊 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗔𝗡𝗔𝗟𝗬𝗦𝗜𝗦: 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗞𝗼𝗻𝗴'𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 🪙 I've just published a comprehensive analysis of Hong Kong's emerging stablecoin ecosystem on Medium, examining: • The HKMA's regulatory approach • $𝟭𝟱-𝟮𝟱𝗕 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 opportunity by 2027 • Competitive positioning of sandbox participants • Strategic implications for market players Read the full analysis: 👉 https://lnkd.in/geBcXKsH 👈 #Stablecoins #DigitalAssets #HongKong

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