WuBlockchain’s weekly top 10 list tracked a packed week for crypto policy, infrastructure and deal activity, with the revised CLARITY Act, quantum-readiness funding and the planned split of MetaMask parent Consensys Software among the main developments.
Revised CLARITY Act would require registration for non-decentralized DeFi protocols
Crypto reporter Eleanor Terrett said Senate Republicans released an updated text of the CLARITY Act after negotiations during the August recess. The ethics provisions, BRCA and clauses tied to stablecoin yield were unchanged.
The main revisions include a requirement that non-decentralized DeFi protocols register with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, aligning with Section 10301 in the Senate Banking Committee version. The DeFi section would apply only to spot or cash trading in digital commodities, a change aimed at addressing concerns from tribes over blockchain prediction markets. The draft also further clarifies the authority of credit unions to conduct crypto business.
U.S. Treasury raises long-bond buyback size to $6 billion
The U.S. Treasury is set to buy back as much as $6 billion of Treasuries maturing in 10 to 20 years on Sept. 10. That is three times the size of the previous long-dated bond buyback operation.
The Treasury had said earlier that it would at least double the scale of long-bond buybacks over the next quarter to improve market liquidity. U.S. government bonds had already faced selling pressure, with the 30-year Treasury yield at one point reaching its highest level since 2007. After the latest announcement, yields continued to rise, and the 10-year yield briefly touched 4.8528%, the highest since November 2023.
Germany plans crypto tax overhaul with withholding starting in 2028
The German federal government is planning a reform of crypto asset taxation. Under a ministerial draft from the Finance Ministry, gains from the sale of exchangeable crypto assets such as Bitcoin and Ether, as well as income from lending and staking, would be subject to withholding tax as capital income if the assets were acquired or received after Dec. 31, 2026.
Those assets would no longer qualify for the current tax exemption after a 12-month holding period. Crypto assets acquired earlier would remain under the existing rules. The bill is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027, and crypto service providers would begin automatically withholding taxes from Jan. 1, 2028. NFTs, some stablecoins, security tokens and some crypto assets linked to real-world assets are proposed to remain outside the new framework.
U.K. House of Lords backs digital asset strategy
The U.K. House of Lords voted 194 to 138 on Wednesday to approve an amendment requiring the Treasury to draft, publish and consult on a digital asset strategy within 12 months after the Financial Services and Markets Bill formally becomes law.
The strategy would cover crypto assets, stablecoins, tokenized securities and digital financial infrastructure. It would also address innovation, consumer protection, and access for businesses to banking, payment and settlement services. The Labour government had opposed the amendment. The bill now returns to the House of Commons, which can accept, revise or reject the Lords’ changes.
Canadian regulator says tokenized deposits are legally the same as traditional deposits
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions said it takes a technology-neutral approach to the business and activities financial institutions are allowed to conduct, and that tokenized deposits and other digitalized deposits are legally no different from traditional deposits.
OSFI said institutions and their representatives must comply with applicable laws and regulations when developing these products and should follow guidance including B-13 on technology and cyber risk management and B-10 on third-party risk management. Before launching a new product or service, institutions should contact their OSFI supervisory team in advance and seek legal advice where appropriate.
U.S. Commerce Department finalizes up to $300 million for quantum-related work
On Sept. 8, the U.S. Commerce Department, under the CHIPS and Science Act, finalized research funding of up to $100 million each for Rigetti, D-Wave and Quantinuum. The money is aimed at work on quantum chips, error correction and fault-tolerant computing, for a combined total of up to $300 million.
At the same time, the Ethereum Foundation has set December 2029 as its internal target for layer 1 to become fully quantum-resistant across execution, consensus and data layers, while preparing for a possible "Q-Day" as early as 2030. There is currently no evidence that a quantum computer capable of breaking BTC or ETH keys will appear in 2029. The work now is mainly intended to prepare in advance for a cryptographic migration that could take years.
Nasdaq and others urge the EU to lift or sharply raise tokenization pilot limits
A coalition made up of Nasdaq, Boerse Stuttgart Group, France’s digital asset association Adan, the Crypto Council for Innovation and the European Ethereum Association has formally written to the European Council and the European Parliament.
The group urged regulators to remove the cap on tokenized securities under the EU’s distributed ledger technology pilot regime altogether, or at minimum raise it from the European Commission’s proposed €100 billion to €1.5 trillion, about $1.74 trillion.
The coalition said the Commission had previously proposed lifting the original €6 billion cap to €100 billion because participation in the pilot had been too limited, but argued that even the higher threshold would still fall short of actual institutional demand as tokenized assets expand globally. Some existing projects in Europe have already reached €350 billion in scale and are still growing.
Traditional trust companies are turning away crypto-wealth clients
According to the Financial Times, a growing number of high-net-worth individuals whose wealth came from Bitcoin and other crypto assets are being rejected by traditional trust companies when they try to set up offshore trusts for tax planning and wealth succession.
Trust firms are mainly concerned about difficulties in verifying the source of funds, potential money-laundering risks, sharp swings in asset prices and fiduciary liability tied to lost private keys. The report said some trust firms focused on digital asset clients are taking on the business through on-chain analysis and tighter compliance checks, but most mainstream trustees remain cautious because of possible legal and reputational exposure if the origin of crypto assets is challenged or their value falls sharply.
Consensys Software to split into two standalone companies
MetaMask said Consensys Software Inc will separate into two independently operated companies.
MetaMask will focus on the consumer platform, with Joseph Lubin serving as chairman and chief executive officer. Protocol and institutional infrastructure businesses, including Linea, will sit under a newly formed Consensys, where Lubin will serve as executive chairman. MetaMask said existing users’ apps, assets, private keys and access rights will not be affected, and no action is required from users.
Crypto industry launches seven-figure national TV ad campaign for CLARITY Act
A crypto industry political network launched a seven-figure national television advertising campaign ahead of a planned Sept. 15 Senate vote on the Digital Asset Market Structure Clarity Act, or CLARITY Act.
The bill would establish federal rules for digital asset markets, with oversight shared by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, but it needs 60 votes to pass. Debate over ethics restrictions tied to Donald Trump and his family’s crypto interests could leave the bill short of support. At the same time, a reduced House voting schedule could push final passage until after the November midterm elections.
Key funding deals this week
- Nasdaq invested in Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, at a $21 billion valuation.
- TRM Labs closed an extension of its previous Series C round, lifting its valuation to $2 billion.
- Stablecoin payments infrastructure company Diameter Pay raised $10 million in a Series A round.
- Stablecoin payments infrastructure company Latitude raised $35 million in a Series A round, bringing total funding to $43 million.
More industry funding deals are available at crypto-fundraising.info.