Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) published detailed guidance on Thursday that clarifies how token issuers should structure, disclose and distribute virtual assets in the emirate, sharpening rules for stablecoins and real-world asset (RWA) tokens.The document, which interprets VARA’s existing Virtual Asset Issuance Rulebook rather than creating new law, sets out three distinct issuance pathways and spells out who is responsible for what in each.Rather than treating all tokens as if they pose the same risks, the framework draws clear lines between Category 1 issuances (including fiat-referenced virtual assets and...

The Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT), the first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) offered by a US bank, recorded $30.6 million in inflows on its trading debut, giving the Wall Street bank a respectable entry into the spot Bitcoin ETF market.MSBT started trading on the NYSE Arca on Wednesday, generating $34 million in trading volume, slightly above the expectations of Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, who predicted first-day volume would reach $30 million.As of April 8, MSBT held 444.4 Bitcoin (BTC), worth around $31.7 million, accounting for 0.03% of the...

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has asked Congress to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act without delay, warning that Senate floor time is limited and now is the moment to act.In a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday, Bessent said the legislation is critical for providing clear regulatory rules for digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets and decentralized exchanges. He warned that with the global crypto market rising to $3 trillion and nearly one in six Americans holding digital assets, the stakes for US leadership in financial innovation...

A South Korean court has canceled the Financial Intelligence Unit’s (FIU) three-month partial business suspension of Dunamu, the operator of crypto exchange Upbit, according to local reports.Yonhap News Agency reported on Tuesday that the Seoul Administrative Court sided with Dunamu in its lawsuit against the FIU, overturning the sanction tied to alleged Anti-Money Laundering (AML) violations. The court said clear rules existed for transactions above 1 million won (about $675), but found that regulations for smaller transfers were not specific enough, weakening the basis for enforcement within the case. The ruling narrows...