Licensing

Brazil

2026-09-13 09:33:47

Brazil central bank rules raise compliance bar for virtual asset service providers

Brazil’s central bank has introduced new rules requiring virtual asset service providers to meet compliance standards covering minimum capital, audits, anti-money laundering controls, and ongoing reporting. The maximum capital threshold reaches 37.2 million reais, or about $7.2 million. Of roughly 300 related firms currently operating in the market, only 20 to 25 may be eligible to apply for authorization, and just 10 are expected to secure a license. Some smaller platforms, including Bitnuvem, NovaDAX, Digitra, and Coinext, have already ended or restructured their retail businesses, though they did not attribute those decisions to the new rules. Firms must apply by Oct. 30. Those that do not apply will be required to wind down operations within 30 days and notify customers. Ripple executive Isabel Longhi said market consolidation is likely as Brazil’s crypto market matures, while warning the rules will limit innovation in the short term.

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Latitude

2026-09-10 14:20:39

Latitude raises $35 million Series A to build local stablecoin payout rails

Latitude has raised a $35 million Series A round led by Oak HC/FT, with participation from NEA, Coinbase Ventures, Lightspeed Faction and OpenFX, as the company builds the local payment infrastructure that connects stablecoin settlement to domestic payout systems. The company said the new capital will go toward licences and local payout connections, a part of the payment stack that still depends on banks and local schemes. Latitude said it holds the permissions itself instead of renting them from third parties, which it described as a core part of what customers are paying for. The round follows an $8 million seed earlier this year, bringing total funding to $43 million. Founded by Cyril Mathew, Brian Wrightson and Vivek Morzaria, whose prior roles include Stripe, Coinbase, Meta, Uber and Zero Hash, Latitude says it now has 39 money transmission licences, one state registration and five no-action letters. Its website also says Latitude Payments Inc. is registered with FinCEN as a money services business. The company has completed a SOC 2 Type I audit and is targeting Type II in the fourth quarter. The company lists live payout markets across Latin America, Asia and most of Europe, while several additional countries in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa remain in beta.

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Australia

2026-09-03 07:47:54

Australia warns unlicensed crypto firms of fines of up to 10% of annual turnover

Australian crypto firms operating under temporary regulatory relief have until Sept. 30 to apply for the licenses they need or change existing approvals, according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. ASIC said businesses that require an Australian Financial Services license must file before the deadline, while firms needing market or clearing and settlement licenses must also notify the regulator and hold a pre-application meeting. From Oct. 1, companies that require authorization but do not meet the conditions of ASIC’s no-action position could be operating in breach of financial services law and may face civil and criminal penalties. The regulator said fines can reach 10% of annual turnover. ASIC also disclosed that it has recorded more than 45 digital asset-related license applications since updating its guidance in October 2025. On June 25, it extended the relief period from June 30 to Sept. 30 and broadened the measure to include crypto firms operating as authorized representatives of licensed entities or through certain intermediary arrangements. ASIC said at that time it had received about 30 applications. The transition relief is separate from Australia’s Digital Asset Framework, which is scheduled to take effect on April 9, 2027.

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Yayoi Kusama

2026-08-27 03:20:54

Yayoi Kusama dies at 97 after reported multi-organ failure

Yayoi Kusama, the Japanese avant-garde artist known worldwide for her polka dots, net patterns, pumpkins and Infinity Mirror Rooms, has died at the age of 97, according to The Yomiuri Shimbun. The report said Kusama died on Aug. 14, 2026, from multi-organ failure. A recipient of Japan’s Order of Culture, Kusama built one of the most recognizable names in contemporary art over a career that spanned decades. The article notes that her international artistic and market standing was firmly established after a 1998 retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. It also highlights the scale of her exhibition-driven commercial reach: a Latin American touring show that began in 2013 drew more than 2 million visitors, while a 2017 solo exhibition in Tokyo recorded about 520,000 admissions. ABMedia said that level of public demand translated into wider economic activity, including tourism, merchandise sales, lodging and dining. The report also points to Kusama’s cross-sector collaborations and the opening of the Yayoi Kusama Museum in 2017 as part of a broader effort to institutionalize her cultural capital and support long-term intellectual property and licensing operations.

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Policy Regula

2026-08-27 00:27:02

Kostas Kryptos says Havenex is close to wrapping up Series A after filing license applications

Havenex is nearing the end of its Series A fundraising round, according to Kostas Kryptos, co-founder of Mysten Labs, the development team behind Sui. He said the project has already filed all required license applications, along with some additional ones, and that the fundraising allocation is nearly filled. Kryptos described Havenex not as another Coinbase, Binance, Bybit, or Kraken, but as infrastructure for financial institutions that want to offer digital and traditional financial assets while meeting regulatory, custody, security, and transparency requirements. He also outlined a product design that includes a multi-chain architecture, verifiable custody, continuous proof of solvency, default multisig, quantum-resistant keys, hardware-based two-factor authentication wallets, self-custody, and key-loss protection. In jurisdictions where regulation allows, Havenex also plans to support privacy assets and real-world assets, or RWAs. The project is expected to use Sui technology where it fits, while also integrating assets, bridge protocols, and core components from other ecosystems. Kryptos said the idea originated with him and that he will join as an advisor, while keeping Mysten Labs and Sui as his main focus.

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Pakistan

2026-08-24 12:14:27

Pakistan Gives Crypto Firms Until September 5 to Start Registration Process

Crypto companies serving users in Pakistan have until September 5 to enter the country’s new licensing track or stop operating, under rules announced by the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, or PVARA. Firms already active on or before March 5, when the Virtual Assets Act 2026 took effect, are treated as transitional persons and must file for a No Objection Certificate by that date. PVARA said operating after the deadline without an application would be an offense under Section 70 of the law. The framework, announced by PVARA Chairman Bilal bin Saqib, covers a wide range of activities including exchanges, custody, broker-dealer services, lending, derivatives, asset management, settlement, mining infrastructure, and fiat- or asset-backed token issuance. Applicants must be incorporated in Pakistan under the Companies Act 2017, meet paid-up capital thresholds, pass fit and proper checks, and install anti-money laundering, cybersecurity, and business continuity controls. After receiving a No Objection Certificate, firms must register with Pakistan’s Financial Monitoring Unit and set up a local subsidiary before applying for a license. That requirement means offshore exchanges serving Pakistani users need a domestic entity to remain in the market. PVARA said Binance and HTX already hold certificates.

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Arm Holdings

2026-08-24 12:18:05

Arm Holdings shifts to selling in-house data center chips, targets $15 billion in annual revenue

Techub News said Arm Holdings has announced a strategic shift: the semiconductor design company will start selling its own data center chips and is targeting annual revenue of $15 billion. The report says the move could affect Arm’s existing licensing partnerships and intensify competition in the data center chip market.

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Pakistan

2026-08-24 05:17:57

Pakistan opens crypto licensing portal, sets Sept. 5 deadline for existing firms

Pakistan’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority has opened its licensing portal after notifying rules for crypto exchanges and other virtual asset service providers operating in the country. Firms that were already providing virtual asset services on or before March 5 must apply for a no-objection certificate by Sept. 5 or stop operating. The new framework covers exchanges, custody, broker-dealer services, lending, derivatives, asset management, token issuance and mining-related services. It also gives firms two routes: a sandbox for testing products under supervision and an NOC pathway before local incorporation. Licensed providers must keep customer assets separate, and they cannot lend or pledge them without written consent. The rollout follows a public consultation held from June 11 to July 2. Pakistan’s parliament passed the Virtual Assets Act in March, and the State Bank of Pakistan later allowed banks to provide accounts to licensed VASPs, including segregated client-money accounts.

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