Blockchain.com has been cleared to join the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission’s Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Program, or ARIP, according to Chainwire. The approval means the global crypto platform has met the SEC’s initial participation threshold and can operate within a defined sandbox while continuing to comply with ongoing regulatory conditions, testing parameters, and compliance requirements. Through the program, Blockchain.com will work directly with the Nigerian SEC to assess digital asset business models, test safeguards, and contribute to the development of a longer-term regulatory framework. ARIP is designed for virtual asset service providers and fintech innovators, with a focus on reviewing emerging business models, operational risk, investor protection, and anti-money laundering standards. Owen Odia, Blockchain.com’s general manager for Africa, said Nigeria is one of Africa’s most important digital asset markets and described the company’s participation in ARIP as a key step in its long-term commitment to the country. He said the process would allow the firm to bring global experience into a controlled environment while supporting a framework that protects consumers and encourages responsible innovation. Over the past year, Blockchain.com has also secured UK FCA registration, authorization under the EU’s MiCA framework, and a VASP license from the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority.

The week ahead includes a dense run of crypto policy, exchange and project events. DeepSeek’s revised API pricing takes effect on Aug. 17 with peak and off-peak rates, while Coinbase is scheduled to carry out system maintenance, launch US500 perpetual-style index futures for U.S. users through Coinbase Derivatives, and end support for USDC deposits and withdrawals on Noble. Hashdex is also set to close and liquidate its Bitcoin ETF, and Binance will delist six tokens on the same day. Attention then shifts to regulation. South Korea will implement tighter rules for single-stock leveraged ETF and ETN products on Aug. 19, including stricter deviation-rate controls and an added simulated-trading requirement for first-time retail investors. Politico, citing three people familiar with the matter, reported that the White House may meet crypto and prediction-market executives on Aug. 19. On Aug. 20, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Innovation Advisory Committee will hold its first meeting, with crypto assets, artificial intelligence and prediction-market oversight on the agenda. The week also features several token unlocks, including LayerZero, KAITO, MBG and SOON, plus project updates from Solana, DGrid AI, SNS, Doodles, Step App and Manus. Binance will make additional network and compliance-related changes later in the week, including restrictions involving EXMO and other platforms.

Bits of Gold, described in the report as Israel’s largest regulated crypto broker, has suffered a data breach that reportedly led to the theft of personal information belonging to about 200,000 customers, according to Crypto Briefing. The report said all users of the platform may be at risk. Crypto Briefing also noted that Bits of Gold received Israel’s first Virtual Asset Service Provider, or VASP, license in September 2022. In April 2026, the company was approved to issue BILS, a stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the Israeli shekel. The specific types of data taken in the breach have not been disclosed. Still, crypto brokers commonly collect sensitive materials under know-your-customer, or KYC, rules, including identification documents, proof of address, and financial information. The report added that while cold wallets can protect digital assets, they do not secure customer identity files stored on company servers. Past cases show that breaches of this kind are often used for phishing, SIM-swap attacks, and targeted social engineering.

Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission on Aug. 13 released a draft amendment to the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing rules for virtual asset service providers, refining how the travel rule would apply to crypto transfers. The proposal aligns with Recommendation 16 revised by the Financial Action Task Force in June and sets NT$30,000 as the threshold for more detailed data collection. For transfers below that level, VASPs would only need the sender’s and recipient’s names and wallet information. Once a transfer exceeds NT$30,000, the sending VASP would need to collect added identity details, including date of birth and residential address for natural persons, or official identification number and registered address for legal entities. The draft also adds a matching obligation for receiving VASPs, which would need to compare recipient data against information sent by the originating firm. If required information cannot be obtained and transmitted, the transfer could not proceed. Public comments are open until Sept. 14, while the detailed implementation scope and timeline would be set by the industry association and submitted to the FSC for approval.

Jeong Sang-ho, CEO of South Korean crypto lending platform Delio, was sentenced to 15 years in prison by the Seoul Southern District Court on Aug. 13 in a fraud and embezzlement case, according to The Block. The court ordered Jeong remanded into custody over flight risk; prosecutors had sought a 20-year term. He was convicted of using falsified documents to obtain a virtual asset service provider (VASP) registration and of misappropriating user assets. The sum tied to the conviction is roughly 70 billion won (about $49.2 million). A separate major fraud charge, involving about 2,800 victims and 250 billion won (around $175.6 million), was acquitted. Delio abruptly halted withdrawals in June 2023 and declared bankruptcy in November 2024, leaving many depositors' assets frozen. The verdict shows South Korea is stepping up enforcement against crypto operators that collect deposits improperly. For depositors, it establishes criminal liability, yet how much of the frozen funds can be recovered remains another long process.

A South Korean court has sentenced Delio CEO Jeong Sang-ho to 15 years in prison over the collapse of the crypto deposit platform, convicting him on a narrower set of charges worth roughly 70 billion won, or about $49 million. The ruling came after the court threw out Delio server database evidence, finding that prosecutors failed to properly protect the company’s right to participate in a search and seizure at server host Gabia and did not provide a list of seized items. That decision wiped out much of the original indictment, which had alleged fraud involving about 2,800 victims and roughly 250 billion won, or about $176 million, between August 2021 and June 2023. The court also found Jeong guilty of registering Delio as a virtual asset service provider with a falsified accounting firm report that allegedly overstated coin holdings by about 47.6 billion won. Judges said Jeong dishonestly obtained his license, promoted Delio as a crypto bank despite lacking the ability to run it, and blamed bankruptcy for failing to return customer assets. The verdict had been scheduled for July 16 but was delayed after the evidence dispute reopened arguments.

South Korea is set to broaden the scope of its registration review for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) to include major shareholders, with the change scheduled to take effect on August 20, according to News1. Under the updated rules, operators will be required to give financial authorities 30 days' advance notice in the event that major shareholders or the company's legal compliance framework undergo any changes. The revised registration handbook was released during a briefing in Seoul hosted by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), which was intended for VASPs and prospective operators. The review now covers the largest shareholder, shareholders with a stake of at least 10%, and shareholders with a special relationship to the largest shareholder. Where the largest shareholder is a legal entity, the entity's own largest shareholder and its representatives may also be brought under review. The details emerged from a session that brought together existing service providers and firms considering entry into the sector.

Stablecoin infrastructure provider Yellow Card said on Aug. 4 that it had raised $40 million in a strategic financing round backed by SC Ventures, Sony Innovation Fund, Polychain Capital, and Blockchain Capital, lifting its total equity funding to more than $120 million. The company’s path to this point took nearly a decade and included two major shifts: from a Bitcoin gift card product launched in 2016, to a retail crypto trading app in Nigeria in 2019, and then to a business focused on enterprise stablecoin infrastructure after demand moved sharply from Bitcoin to USDT. During the pandemic, Yellow Card’s transaction volume rose from $1 million per month to $1 million per day, and after listing USDT, 99% of volume shifted from Bitcoin to stablecoins in four months. The company later decided to shut its consumer mobile app, telling retail users on Oct. 29, 2025 to withdraw funds by Dec. 31 before the app closed on Jan. 1, 2026. Yellow Card now positions itself as a payments and settlement infrastructure provider for banks, fintech firms, and enterprises across emerging markets, with operations in more than 50 markets and licenses, authorizations, or registrations in 22 jurisdictions as of August 2026.