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Bitcoin Breaks Macro Rules: Risk Appetite Grows Despite Hawkish Signals

by admin June 14, 2025

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Bitcoin is trading just above the pivotal $103,600 level, a critical support zone that has acted as a key threshold for bulls throughout this cycle. If it fails to hold, analysts warn that BTC could swiftly drop below $100,000, triggering a broader correction across the crypto market. This comes as global markets react to escalating geopolitical risk—Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran, prompting immediate retaliation and fueling volatility across commodities, equities, and digital assets.

Despite the turmoil, Bitcoin continues to show relative strength, holding above the $100K psychological level even as investors flee risk assets. Top analyst Darkfost highlights a unique dynamic in this cycle: the unusual decoupling between Bitcoin and bond yields. Historically, rising US Treasury yields have coincided with crypto drawdowns. However, in the current environment, Bitcoin has continued to trend upward, even as yields sit near some of the highest levels in its history.

According to crypto analyst Darkfost, Bitcoin’s bullish momentum appears to be increasingly influenced by weakness in the US Dollar Index (DXY). Each time the dollar retreats, BTC has shown strong acceleration, suggesting global liquidity flows may be favoring Bitcoin as an alternative macro hedge. The next few days will be crucial.

Bitcoin Shows Resilience Amid Geopolitical Risk

After failing to break above the $112,000 resistance, Bitcoin dropped over 6%, sparking concern that bears may push the price below critical support. However, despite the volatility, BTC remains resilient—holding above the $103,600 mark—even as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran rattles global markets.

Darkfost emphasizes the growing importance of macroeconomic indicators like the DXY and US Treasury yields. These metrics increasingly dictate institutional sentiment and global liquidity flows. Traditionally, when both the DXY and yields climb, capital exits risk assets, leading to sharp corrections in Bitcoin and broader crypto markets. Historically, this macro environment has marked the onset of bear markets for BTC.

Bitcoin vs US Treasury Yields | Source: Darkfost on X

Conversely, when the DXY and yields begin to stall or fall, investor confidence in risk assets tends to return. Such periods often coincide with monetary easing or speculation over future interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve—conditions that ignite bullish momentum in the crypto space.

What makes this cycle unique, according to Darkfost, is Bitcoin’s divergence from rising yields. Despite yields reaching multi-year highs, BTC has continued trending upward, particularly when the DXY softens. This decoupling signals a possible structural shift in how Bitcoin behaves relative to traditional financial metrics.

One explanation for this anomaly is the evolving perception of Bitcoin as a macro hedge and store of value. With inflation concerns and sovereign debt risks on the rise, institutional capital may now be treating BTC not merely as a speculative asset, but as a hedge against systemic risk. If this narrative continues gaining traction, Bitcoin could carve out a new role within the global financial landscape—one that redefines its relationship with macro forces.

Bulls Defend Critical Support Amid Renewed Volatility

Bitcoin is currently trading around $105,300 after a volatile session triggered by geopolitical tensions and macro uncertainty. The chart shows that BTC briefly dipped below the $103,600 support level—a key horizontal demand zone—but managed to reclaim it swiftly, suggesting strong interest from buyers at lower levels.

BTC testing key moving averages as resistance | Source: BTCUSDT chart on TradingView

The 50, 100, and 200-period SMAs are clustered between $105,950 and $106,600, and currently act as dynamic resistance. For Bitcoin to regain bullish momentum, it must break above this confluence of moving averages and reclaim the $106,600–$107,000 zone. Failing to do so could open the door to another retest of the $103,600 level, which has been tested multiple times since early May.

Volume spiked during the most recent drop, indicating capitulation or forced selling, often followed by short-term recoveries. However, buyers will want to see sustained strength above $106,000 to consider this a true reversal rather than a relief bounce.

Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView

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June 14, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

SEC Kills Proposed Crypto Custody And DeFi Rules

by admin June 13, 2025

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has rescinded a slate of rules the agency proposed under the Biden Administration, including two relating to crypto custody and exchanges.

The SEC said on Thursday that it was “withdrawing certain notices of proposed rulemaking” that were issued between March 2022 and November 2023 under former Chair Gary Gensler.

The agency added that it “does not intend to issue final rules with respect to these proposals,” and new rules will be proposed should it change its stance in future regulatory action.

It’s President Donald Trump’s latest regulatory rollback, which has promised sweeping deregulation of crypto and traditional markets.

“Down goes 3b16, qualified custodian, and all the other unfinished Gensler rule proposals,” Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal posted to X.

Source: Paul Grewal

Exchange definition rule nullified

Among the 14 rules withdrawn by the SEC was Rule 3b-16, which would have expanded the definition of “exchange” to include decentralized finance protocols and tightened crypto custody standards for investment advisers.

The amendment defined certain terms used in the definition of “exchange” to include “systems that offer the use of non-firm trading interest and communication protocols to bring together buyers and sellers of securities.”

The broad statement could have seen many decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols categorized as securities exchanges.

The SEC first published proposed amendments to Rule 3b-16 under the Exchange Act in March 2022.

Then-acting SEC chair Mark Uyeda proposed abandoning the rule change to expand the definition of “alternative trading systems” to include crypto firms in March.

Crypto custody rule rescinded

The SEC also killed a rule proposed in March 2023 that would have upped custody requirements for crypto.

The SEC’s proposed Safeguarding Advisory Client Assets rule would have expanded existing Custody Rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. It was broadly framed to apply to all client assets, but was particularly significant for crypto as it aimed to bring digital assets more explicitly under SEC custody requirements.

Investment firms would be required to hold all client assets, including crypto, with a “qualified custodian,” which typically meant regulated banks or broker-dealers.

Most crypto exchanges and wallet providers did not meet the definition of “qualified custodians,” which could have forced advisers to change providers or exit the space.

Related: CFTC’s Pham says it won’t give ‘easy street’ to anybody, crypto included

In March, Uyeda asked his staff to look at possibly withdrawing the proposed crypto custody rule.

🚨 LATEST: The SEC officially withdraws multiple regulatory proposals including the expanded Custody Rule, Rule 3b-16 for DeFi exchanges, and enhanced ESG reporting requirements from the Gensler era. pic.twitter.com/V0jO3FKk8h

— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) June 13, 2025

Other rules rescinded

Other rules withdrawn by the regulator included cybersecurity risk management and reporting rules for investment advisers and funds, which had implications for crypto fund managers and digital asset custodians.

A rule for position reporting for large security-based swaps, potentially affecting entities with large crypto derivatives exposures, was also withdrawn.

The regulator also revoked its proposal to make public companies comply with enhanced ESG (environmental, social, and governance) reporting requirements.

Magazine: Elon Musk Dogecoin pump incoming? SOL tipped to hit $300 in 2025: Trade Secrets

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June 13, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

Philippines Enacts Sweeping Crypto Rules, Mandates Licensing and Capital Requirements

by admin June 12, 2025

In brief

CASPs must register as local entities with a minimum ₱100M ($1.8M) paid-up capital and maintain physical offices.
New rules require asset disclosures, segregated funds, local data storage, and ongoing reporting to the SEC and AML Council.
Experts warn of short-term compliance hurdles but say the framework lays groundwork for broader crypto adoption.

Crypto-asset service providers in the Philippines must now obtain licenses and adhere to strict disclosure requirements under what is considered the country’s most comprehensive digital asset framework to date.

CASPs operating within the country are mandated to register as local corporations with a minimum paid-up capital of ₱100 million (US$1.8 million).

The new guidelines, initially issued on May 30 under the Philippines SEC Memorandum Circular No. 5, took effect on Thursday.

Companies are also required to maintain physical offices, segregate customer assets from corporate holdings, and submit regular operational reports.

The regulator would also require documentation on any digital asset issued or serviced by a company to fully explain the asset’s features, risks, and its underlying technology.

The SEC’s move is “a watershed moment” that could “create short-term compliance hurdles, especially for smaller players,” Nathan Marasigan, Partner at MLaw Office, told Decrypt.

While this may be the case up front, the new guidelines “ultimately set the stage for mainstream adoption of crypto by establishing a regulatory regime where there previously was none,” Marasigan said.

The framework addresses a massive, largely unregulated market that affects millions of Filipino crypto investors, which Philippines Finance Secretary Ralph Recto claimed was sized at roughly $107 billion.

While the ₱100 million capital requirement is the standard for CASP registration, the SEC has provided a mechanism for potential exemptions, allowing smaller companies to apply for consideration based on specific criteria.

Still, the new guidelines may make technical requirements for running crypto services more challenging, at least in the short term.

“From the perspective of the local firms, there will be some substantial challenges involved in implementing the new CASP rules,” Luis Buenaventura, head of crypto at finance super-app GCash, told Decrypt.

Certain requirements from the SEC mandate “customer data and order execution” to be stored “within the geographic boundaries of the Philippines,” which could imply that “cloud hosting like AWS or Azure is discouraged,” Buenaventura explained.

“₱100 million is not a substantial amount of money if you’re planning to launch a crypto exchange in 2025. Customers expect robust apps with millisecond latency, and that is only possible with a generous amount of resources,” Buenaventura added. “That said, the new framework would indeed create a competitive advantage for licensed players, mostly because they have long since operated at a massive disadvantage against their unlicensed counterparts.”

Such a requirement might “make it infeasible for international players to set up shop here without restructuring their tech stack,” he said.

Under the new rules, CASPs will be classified as covered entities subject to joint oversight by the SEC and the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

Operational requirements include transaction monitoring systems, Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures, and quarterly reporting of board minutes and risk assessments.

“Regulation is rarely perfect on day one, but as long as the regulatory authority takes a progressive approach and stays open to refining the framework over time, then I think this signals the Philippines’ intent to encourage growth and development in this sector,” Marasigan said.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair

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June 12, 2025 0 comments

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Gaming Gear

Solasta 2 is switching to D&D 5th edition’s 2024 rules update

by admin June 12, 2025

A whole decade is a solid run for an RPG ruleset, but the success of Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, released in 2014, was such that replacing it would be an obviously terrible idea. Instead, Wizards of the Coast did something more akin to 4th edition’s Essentials line—a refresh that’s compatible with the previous rules, but makes changes to address criticisms that have emerged over the rules’ lifespan.

The 2024 update is basically a patch then, and one that’s been fairly well-received. The usual complainers have decided it’s “woke” for reasons too tedious to mention, but looking at the actual changes it’s a straight upgrade that formalizes many of the house rules players were already using.

Which is why it’s good news the sequel to Solasta: Crown of the Magister, the CRPG that used the Open Gaming Licence to give players an authentic-feeling D&D experience with the serial numbers filed off, will be using the 2024 update. This wasn’t a sure thing: the demo I played back in February was still using the 2014 rules, and the updated Systems Reference Document explaining what rules are in the creative commons didn’t come out until April. But now, the developers at Tactical Adventures have announced they’re officially making the switch.

A couple of major changes are cited to explain why they consider this a worthwhile upgrade. The first are the new rules for weapon masteries that make “I hit it with my sword” more interesting, with rules for cleaving, pushing, toppling, and other effects you can spice up attacks with. Yes, it is a lot like the options Larian added in Baldur’s Gate 3.

The second are changes to the way classes work, like clerics being able to choose between being a fighty protector or a more magically inclined thaumaturge at level one rather than having to wait until they get a divine domain to get some more personal options. Sorcerers can now turn on something called Innate Sorcery as a bonus action, giving advantage on spell attack rolls, and fighters can use Second Wind to give a bonus to ability checks in addition to its original healing properties. More options that let you lean into a more specific class fantasy, basically.

Solasta 2 is planning to release in early access later this year. You can check out the demo on Steam.

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June 12, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

To Reap Tokenization’s Benefits, Accredited Investor Rules Should Be Revamped: Robinhood Crypto GM

by admin June 8, 2025

In brief

Robinhood’s Johann Kerbrat believes that overhauling investor accreditation rules could help tokenization flourish in the U.S.
Under current rules, 90% of investors in the U.S. would be prohibited from participating from investing in early-stage companies on-chain.
Kerbrat made a formal recommendation to the SEC earlier this year to implement knowledge-based and self-certification components to
the accreditation process.

In order to capitalize on one of tokenization’s true benefits, investor accreditation requirements should be revamped to empower everyday investors with more freedom, according to Johann Kerbrat, Robinhood Crypto’s senior vice president and general manager.

In a recent interview with Decrypt, Kerbrat said that blockchains could one day be used to help startup founders raise capital in a transparent way that helps them preserve control. However, under current rules in the U.S., 90% of the population wouldn’t be able to participate—because they don’t, for example, make more than $200,000 a year.

Typically, as a company goes from a passion project to publicly traded firm, venture capitalists and private equity firms help raise funds along the way. When it comes to listing on a stock exchange, investment banks also play a significant role, underwriting the offering, and as Kerbrat described it, commanding a “huge banking fee.”

According to Kerbrat, a founder risks losing control through share dilution, among other factors, as intermediaries extend their services on the company’s path to an eventual IPO. On top of that, venues like the Nasdaq often charge their own exchange fee, he added.

“These steps are just middlemen that are taking over the company, and not necessarily creating value for your customer, for your employee base, or anything like that,” he said. “We could bring, with tokenization, a new world to raising funds, where instead of launching a new coin, you could launch a new offering for your startup and raise funds on-chain.”

With a regulatory backdrop that’s more supportive of innovation, Kerbrat said that Robinhood is well positioned to help startup founders bypass middlemen, leveraging its “huge retail platform” alongside its connections on the institutional side with market makers.

Instead of basing an investor’s accreditation on factors like their salary, Kerbrat argued that “the checkpoint should be education” and whether investors are aware that early-stage investments carry outsized risk.

In April, Kerbrat submitted a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission recommending that there should be knowledge-based tests and self-certification components to accreditation.

“A new regulatory approach is needed to allow tokenization to flourish, and that system should be designed at a federal level to provide consistency to the marketplace,” the letter stated.

Whether it’s stocks, bonds, or real estate, tokenization can refer to any asset that’s represented with a token on-chain. Last month, crypto exchange Kraken said that it would begin offering users in Europe the ability to trade U.S.-listed stocks using Solana.

Tokenization advocates, including BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, have focused on benefits beyond the potential democratization of markets. When he backed tokenization in 2022, his focus was on greater market efficiency and settlement that’s nearly instantaneous.

“I think there are a lot of advantages, but right now, what is blocking us from this world is a lot of [outdated] rules,” Kerbrat said, underscoring that tech isn’t what’s holding tokenization back.

Edited by James Rubin

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June 8, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

India crypto rules still in limbo as RBI says ‘no thanks’

by admin June 8, 2025

Despite mounting pressure for regulatory clarity, the Reserve Bank of India remains firmly opposed to cryptocurrencies, citing risks to monetary policy and financial stability.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra reaffirmed the central bank’s stance even as a government committee reviews policy options and the Supreme Court presses for clearer guidelines. The tension highlights India’s ongoing regulatory deadlock, where legal, judicial, and financial forces continue to clash over the future of digital assets.

Malhotra underlined during a news conference following the announcement that the RBI is still concerned about the possible threats that cryptocurrencies could pose to monetary policy and financial stability.

“RBI has maintained a consistent stance on this issue. A [government] committee is currently examining the matter. We remain concerned about the potential risks crypto poses to financial stability and monetary policy,” Malhotra said.

The comments come as a government committee continues examining cryptocurrency regulation. India is also expected to release a comprehensive policy discussion paper in June 2025 following mounting pressure from the Supreme Court for regulatory clarity.

India’s Supreme Court pushes for comprehensive regulation

In recent proceedings, the Supreme Court has questioned the government’s delay in establishing clear cryptocurrency policies. The justices also noted the absence of proper regulatory frameworks has created confusion in the digital asset space.

Given the advancements in the global financial system, a Supreme Court bench led by Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh stated that prohibiting cryptocurrencies is not feasible.

The country has maintained an ambiguous stance since the Supreme Court overturned RBI’s 2018 banking ban on cryptocurrency transactions in March 2020.

India’s cryptocurrency regulation saga began in 2018 when RBI issued a circular prohibiting banks and financial institutions from providing services to cryptocurrency businesses.

The prohibition was later struck down by the Supreme Court in March 2020. The court ruled that the banking ban was disproportionate and violated constitutional rights under Article 19(1)(g) of the Indian Constitution.

Following the court ruling, RBI instructed banks not to block cryptocurrency transactions based on the invalidated circular. This provided a temporary relief to the crypto industry.

RBI’s persistent opposition to private cryptocurrencies

Despite legal setbacks, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has consistently characterized cryptocurrencies as posing “huge risks to financial stability” and called them a “clear danger” to the economic system.

Previous statements from Das suggested that all cryptocurrencies should be banned due to their potential to undermine India’s financial and macroeconomic stability.

The central bank has remained firm in its belief that crypto could undermine India’s financial stability. It has also cited concerns about its use in money laundering and its potential impact on monetary policy effectiveness.

In 2022, India announced a 30% tax on crypto gains and a 1% TDS on cryptocurrency transactions. This remains one of the world’s highest cryptocurrency tax regimes.

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June 8, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

ICE Quietly Scales Back Rules for Courthouse Raids

by admin June 5, 2025

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has quietly rescinded guidance that advised ICE agents conducting courthouse raids to take steps to avoid violating state and local laws while carrying out civil immigration arrests. The subtle policy change could lead to an escalation in enforcement tactics and legal disputes.

Revised policy guidance recently posted to ICE’s website and reviewed by WIRED reveals efforts by the agency to enhance the discretion and autonomy of the federal agents making arrests in and around courthouses—one of the more aggressive initiatives employed by the Trump administration as part of its all-out push to round up migrants across the United States and its territories. The policy revision has not been previously reported.

In recent weeks, ICE agents have made high-profile arrests of immigrants attending routine court hearings, as part of the administration’s effort to conduct what Trump calls the largest deportation campaign in American history.

The change in guidance comes amid sweeping ICE raids across the US, some sparking protests and heated confrontations with citizens, threatening an erosion of local autonomy and democratic governance over law enforcement operations within communities, while further blurring the line between civil and criminal enforcement.

Interim guidance, issued in January by ICE’s former acting director, Caleb Vitello, ordered agents to ensure that courthouse arrests were “not precluded by laws imposed by the jurisdiction in which enforcement actions will take place.” Todd Lyons, the current acting director, issued a superseding memo dated May 27 that removes the language about respecting local laws and statutes that limit ICE agents from performing “enforcement actions” in or near courthouses.

“The old policy required ICE to consult with a legal adviser to determine whether making an arrest at or near a courthouse might violate a nonfederal law. The new policy eliminates that requirement,” says Anthony Enriquez, vice president at RFK Human Rights, a human rights advocacy nonprofit. “Now, these frequently complex legal questions fall to the judgment of a line officer untrained in local laws.”

“It is certainly yet another effort to unleash and expand ICE’s enforcement operations without regard to state law,” says Emma Winger, deputy legal director at the American Immigration Council.

Federal policy guidance is not legally binding, but it carries the power of law in practice, mandating procedures that ICE agents must follow in carrying out enforcement operations.

In response to a request for comment, ICE spokesperson Mike Alvarez referred WIRED to the May 27 memorandum. ICE declined to clarify whether it would continue to consider local courthouse policies and security protocols during enforcement actions.

Vitello, responsible for issuing the original guidance, was appointed ICE acting director by President Donald Trump soon after inauguration. Vitello was removed in late February and reportedly transferred to oversee the agency’s deportation operations. Lyons assumed the acting directorship in March.

The Biden administration previously limited ICE enforcement actions in and around courthouses in 2021, saying the arrests—which reportedly spiked during Trump’s first term—“had a chilling effect on individuals’ willingness to come to court or work cooperatively with law enforcement.”

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June 5, 2025 0 comments

Crypto Trends

India Can Lead the Web3 Wave With Clear Rules: Sumit Gupta

by admin June 2, 2025

Sumit Gupta, the founder of CoinDCX, a cryptocurrency trading platform, has shared his thoughts about how India has a fantastic chance to become a leader in Web3, which is the next big step for the internet, focusing on technologies like blockchain and cryptocurrencies.

In his recent post on X, the CoinDCX founder stated that India can lead in Web3. Some X users concur with him, stating that India could lose its opportunity to lead in Web3 if the government doesn’t move swiftly, and they don’t want India to lag behind.

India has the users, the talent, and the opportunity. What’s missing is regulatory clarity. If that is addressed, we can lead the global Web3 wave!

Recently spoke to @FortuneIndia to share thoughts on how India risks losing the next internet revolution to global rivals, unless…

— Sumit Gupta (CoinDCX) (@smtgpt) June 2, 2025

Gupta said India has everything it needs to make the country successful in Web3. He stated that India has many people interested in these technologies, with skilled workers and many possibilities for growth. He has also emphasized the problem the country faces.

According to Gupta, India does not have clear rules for Web3 and cryptocurrencies yet. He warns that without these rules, other countries might take the lead, and India could miss out on this important opportunity.

He also mentioned that he gave an interview to Fortune India, where he explained these ideas in more detail. Gupta is pushing for the government to create clear regulations quickly so India can stay ahead in this new internet revolution and not fall behind other countries.

Although many were frustrated, pointing out problems like the high tax on crypto trades, which makes trading expensive, and the lack of enough buyers and sellers in the Crypto-INR market, making it hard to trade easily. The users feel that these issues are already holding India back compared to other countries.

Gupta’s message highlights CoinDCX’s big goal. He wants to make cryptocurrencies as normal and popular as stocks in India. His words also highlight that India is at a decisive moment. He believes the country needs clear and fair rules for crypto to grow while also keeping in mind that it should be safe while encouraging new ideas and making sure talented people stay in India to work on Web3.

Also Read: U.S. Embraces Bitcoin – India Must Lean In: CoinDCX CEO

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June 2, 2025 0 comments

GameFi Guides

EU must scrap ill-fitting GDPR rules for blockchains

by admin May 28, 2025

Disclosure: The views and opinions expressed here belong solely to the author and do not represent the views and opinions of crypto.news’ editorial.

Last month, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) quietly published Guidelines 02/2025 on the processing of personal data through blockchain technologies. Buried in paragraph 63 is a line that jolted the entire web3 stack: “When deletion has not been taken into account by design, this may require deleting the whole blockchain.”

That one clause converts GDPR from the world’s privacy gold standard into a kill-switch for every permissionless network. Yes, that includes Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and the hundreds that settle trillions of dollars a year.

The reality is worse than it seems because deleting every node is the only surefire way to “forget” a transaction. The guideline effectively makes permissionless networks non-compliant by default. Public consultation comes to a close on June 9—after that, the text hardens into Europe’s enforcement playbook. After that, Europe’s future is set.

GDPR was never written for tamper-proof ledgers

The 2018 GDPR authors assumed that data lives on centrally controlled servers where a single operator can erase it. Fast-forward to modern-day public blockchains; the opposite is true. Blockchains are distributed, immutable, and borderless.

Public chains rely on thousands of independent nodes that jointly guarantee history. Since rewriting a block would destroy that integrity, Article 17’s “right to be forgotten” collides head-first with the very feature that makes blockchains trustworthy.

Techniques such as salted hashes, zero-knowledge proofs, and off-chain data pointers already minimize or obfuscate personal information—the new draft barely acknowledges them. Instead, it assumes that a single “data controller” can be identified, which is another notion that undermines decentralization and permissionless network integrity.

Sovereign-cloud ambitions are at risk

For two years, Brussels has promised a sovereign cloud—digital autonomy on European terms. The Commission’s latest policy goals are explicit. By 2030, three-quarters of EU businesses should run on cloud-edge technology; 10,000 climate-neutral edge nodes must be live, and the forthcoming Cloud and AI Development Act vows to triple the EU’s data-centre capacity within seven years.

All of this is framed as digital sovereignty. The problem is, sovereignty requires independence. Today, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud still hold roughly 70% of Europe’s cloud market. Members of the European Parliament warn that without an indigenous backbone, EU data remains one United States subpoena away from offshore exposure.

The only architecture that can realistically break that grip is a decentralized cloud in which infrastructure providers are coordinated by blockchain incentives, while data stays inside European data centres. If the EDPB renders those ledgers illegal by design, Brussels will hard-wire the very dependency it claims to end.

Paragraph 63 would kneecap Europe’s builders

By threatening whole-chain deletion whenever a single record cannot be erased, the draft injects existential risk into every European web3 project and ices any future venture funding. Its bias toward permissioned ledgers nudges developers back to the centralized silos policymakers say they oppose.

Labeling volunteer validators “data controllers” would saddle hobbyists with corporate-grade liability, shrink node participation, and weaken network security. Treating every peer-to-peer link as a regulated international transfer risks splintering global consensus behind national borders.

Requiring human overrides for smart contracts breaks composability and undermines everything from decentralized finance to on-chain Environmental Social and Governance reporting, which big energy companies have already piloted.

A joint call-to-action from the European Crypto Initiative (EUCI) and Web3Privacy Now warns that the draft guidelines “fundamentally threaten the existence of public blockchains” across Europe. What more evidence does the EU need to see that including this paragraph will kneecap its own builders?

Privacy-by-design beats prohibition

A cleaner path preserves both privacy and decentralization. Destroying an encryption key or proving in zero-knowledge that the key is irretrievable satisfies the intent of Article 17 without dismantling a ledger. The guidelines should recognize cryptographic deletion alongside physical erasure, state that a 32-byte on-chain hash is not personal data, and treat validators as processors rather than “controllers.”

Brussels has already shown through the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation that bespoke rules for frontier tech can be crafted without blanket bans. Striking the kill-switch sentence, codifying key-to-dust deletion, and clarifying validator status would align GDPR with technical reality, all while keeping Europe’s sovereign-cloud strategy alive.

The public-comment portal closes in less than a month, and unless paragraph 63 is rebalanced, Europe risks spending the next decade paying U.S. hyperscalers to host ‘sovereign’ data. Meanwhile, the rest of the world will build on auditable, privacy-preserving rails beyond Brussels’ reach.

With time fast running out, builders, investors, and policymakers should hit that comment portal now, before Europe locks itself out of its own digital future.

Kai Wawrzinek

Kai Wawrzinek is a co-founder of the Impossible Cloud & Impossible Cloud Network. He is a seasoned entrepreneur with a Ph.D. in Law and a proven track record of building successful ventures. Recognizing the need for enterprise-grade solutions in the web3 space, Kai founded Impossible Cloud Network (ICN), a decentralized cloud platform aimed at creating a decentralized alternative to AWS. Before ICN, Kai founded Goodgame Studios, an online game company, and grew the company to over 1,000 employees and generated more than €1 billion in revenue, taking it public on Nasdaq in 2018 through a reverse merger.

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May 28, 2025 0 comments

NFT Gaming

Thailand Eyes Crypto-Linked Credit Cards, Revised Digital Asset Rules

by admin May 27, 2025

In brief

Thailand is exploring plans to allow tourists to pay in crypto via linked credit cards.
The country is also considering merging its separate legislation covering digital assets and conventional securities.
Thailand has been exploring similar frameworks in its tourism and crypto hubs for some time.

Thailand is actively exploring legislation that would allow both tourists and citizens to spend their digital assets via linked credit cards.

According to English-language Thai publication The Nation, the country’s Ministry of Finance is aiming to streamline transactions for visitors. Under the new plans, sellers will receive their payment in local currency as usual, without necessarily being aware that the buyer utilized crypto.

The Ministry is reportedly already in conversations with the country’s central bank, the Bank of Thailand (BOT), to pilot the system before a wider rollout. In addition, the country’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira unveiled several other pro-crypto measures at the event in Bangkok on Monday.

Chunhavajira said the government plans to merge the legal frameworks governing the country’s “capital market” and its “digital asset market.”

At present, these are governed by two separate pieces of legislation: the Securities and Exchange Act and the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses.

The officials said the aim is to enable investors to “transfer funds between the two markets more conveniently, thereby accommodating modern investment behaviors.”

Thailand eyes crypto tourism

The move shouldn’t come as a big surprise—Thailand has been trialing these types of crypto payments in specific regions for quite some time.

In January, the government trialed a crypto payments program on the island of Phuket, a major regional crypto hub with high tourist numbers. Meanwhile, small communities such as the Huay Phueng district of Kalasin province have adopted Bitcoin payments en masse, with more than 80 local businesses in the area accepting the cryptocurrency.

Initiatives like these come as the country, which relies heavily on tourism, has been combating recent declines in visitor numbers, amid a smaller number of Chinese tourists and a comparatively stronger local currency.

Meanwhile, other Asian nations are exploring how crypto-friendly infrastructure can boost tourism. The small Himalayan country of Bhutan recently added crypto payments across its entire tourist ecosystem, enabling payments for everything from flights to street food, courtesy of a partnership with Binance Pay.

Edited by Stacy Elliott.

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May 27, 2025 0 comments