Flash News

TREE NEWS update: China’s National Development and Reform Commission will issue new incremental policies as needed to keep the economy within a reasonable range, Zuo Gang, deputy director of the NDRC’s comprehensive economic department, said at the commission’s October press conference. The NDRC will work with relevant departments to improve the efficiency of existing policies, accelerate the launch of major projects under the 15th Five-Year Plan and the “six networks” implementation plan, and speed up the deployment of new policy-based financial instruments, while opening nuclear, hydropower and water conservancy projects to private capital.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Deputy Prosecutor General Ge Xiaoyan said the country will strictly crack down on financial fraud, illegal fundraising, money laundering and other crimes that seriously endanger financial security, speaking at the 2026 Financial Street Forum in Beijing. Ge said authorities will push ahead with related work and resolutely guard the bottom line of preventing systemic financial risks.

TREE NEWS update: China Securities Regulatory Commission Chief Lawyer and Legal Affairs Department Director Cheng Hehong said the CSRC is evaluating the implementation effects of the Securities Law and advancing amendments to the Securities Investment Fund Law, and is studying the inclusion of a Securities Law amendment in the next National People’s Congress legislative plan. Speaking at the 2026 Financial Street Forum, he noted that the Financial Stability Law and amendments to the PBOC Law, Commercial Bank Law and Banking Supervision Law are already on the NPC legislative agenda.

TREE NEWS update: The People’s Bank of China said it has expanded its repo facility for overseas central bank-type institutions to include foreign currency RMB business clearing banks, to support their liquidity management and better serve offshore RMB business. Operational terms will follow the existing repo tool for overseas central bank-type institutions, the central bank said.

TREE NEWS update: BlackRock filed a registration statement with the SEC on Oct. 19 for the iShares Bitcoin Managed Protection ETF, ticker PBIT, which seeks returns linked to the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) or similar bitcoin-related assets via options and fixed-income investments without directly holding bitcoin or a bitcoin ETF. Each tranche carries an initial loss threshold of roughly 10% of the reference asset’s starting value, though the fund cautions the threshold may change and losses could exceed that level; the management fee has not been set.

TREE NEWS update: Pump.fun has launched pre-IPO token trading covering eight companies including OpenAI and Anthropic. Separately, Papertrade said its PAPER token remains non-transferable due to perpetual contract attack risk and gave no date for opening trading. Mastercard introduced stablecoin security tools for payment fraud and sanctions screening, while the Blockchain Association backed the Treasury’s GENIUS Act implementation rules and called for clearer stablecoin issuance and sales requirements.

TREE NEWS update: Intel has filed for a conditional exemption with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to keep maintaining and upgrading foreign-made advanced robotics equipment it says is critical to American semiconductor manufacturing. In an Oct. 16 filing published Monday, the company said a ban on importing and selling new foreign-made advanced robots could affect upkeep of automated guided vehicles used to move materials inside its fabs. TSMC, Micron, GlobalFoundries, Samsung Electronics and Texas Instruments, which also run chip plants, may need similar exemptions.

TREE NEWS update: People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng said the central bank plans to make the overnight repo rate its main policy rate and will introduce a liquidity support tool for large redemptions by non-bank institutions. The PBOC also issued new rules on administrative penalties for illegal securities transfers, supporting advance-compensation entities to work with investor protection agencies.

TREE NEWS update: At least 10 of China’s 19 private banks have introduced localization measures for personal deposit business, halting new sales of personal deposit products to out-of-region customers and tightening online channels for cross-regional deposits. The banks announced the changes in a wave of recent notices, as regulators push a unified rule requiring private banks to operate within their home regions. The cleanup of cross-regional deposit-taking is now in a concentrated implementation phase.

TREE NEWS reports: China’s personal pension fund roster grew to 349 products as of September 30, 2026, up 28 from the end of the first half, while the number of sales institutions held at 52, according to the Asset Management Association of China’s latest registries. “Fixed-income plus” products drove the bulk of the expansion, marking their first inclusion in the scheme and further refining the risk-return ladder available to individual retirement savers.

TREE NEWS update: UK Chancellor John Healey ruled out raising capital gains tax in the budget, the Financial Times reported. The decision removes a potential tax increase that had been anticipated ahead of the fiscal statement. No further details on the budget’s tax measures were provided.

TREE NEWS update: BlackRock’s iShares trust filed on Oct. 19 with the U.S. SEC to register the iShares Bitcoin Managed Protection ETF, ticker PBIT. The fund aims to deliver capped upside exposure to the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) and similar bitcoin exposure while offering a degree of downside protection. Its strategy typically involves buying bitcoin options in three tranches, selling options to offset the purchase cost — which caps gains — and holding fixed-income products for interest income to hedge option costs and support downside protection.

TREE NEWS update: The Alberta Energy Regulator took control of Sumerian Oil & Gas Inc.’s wells, pipelines and facilities at a Canadian military base in an Oct. 5 order, citing public safety and environmental concerns. The regulator said it believes no oil and gas infrastructure was involved in a fire during a training exercise at the base that killed four soldiers and injured dozens; the cause has not been confirmed. Sumerian said it has had no operational control of the sites since the order.

TREE NEWS update: Intel has asked the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for an exception to rules barring foreign-made advanced robots, citing the need to keep sourcing niche equipment critical to U.S. semiconductor manufacturing. The chipmaker uses automated guided vehicles to move materials inside its fabs and says keeping them running is vital to national security. Intel is seeking a conditional waiver, arguing routine maintenance poses no cybersecurity risk.

TREE NEWS update: Cuba’s new oil and gas regulations took effect on October 19, expanding participation by domestic private companies and foreign investors in the sector. The rules, Decree-Law 135 on Oil and Gas and its implementing Decree 184, were published in the Official Gazette on October 12. They allow qualified Cuban and foreign entities and individuals to take part in exploration, extraction, refining, transport, storage and sales, subject to licensing, while underground reserves remain public property and the state retains priority purchase rights.

TREE NEWS reports: A Fairshake affiliate is spending $362,000 on ads supporting incumbent Aisha Wahab in a California congressional race in November, even though Wahab already won a special election in the district. The crypto PAC’s spending comes in a contest voters effectively settled in August.

TREE NEWS update: The SEC is scheduled to close public comments on its proposed ‘Regulation Crypto Assets,’ which was introduced in August. Market participants are weighing in on the proposal as the deadline approaches. The rulemaking marks a formal step in the agency’s effort to set a regulatory framework for digital assets.

TREE NEWS update: The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on children and armed conflict on the afternoon of Oct. 19 local time, with all 15 members voting in favor. The resolution calls for addressing the risks of digital technologies being used to commit, enable or exacerbate violations against children. It was passed in a single 15-0 vote.

TREE NEWS update: Germany’s Sparkassen savings banks began rolling out cryptocurrency trading inside their mobile banking apps on Oct. 19, initially supporting BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL and POL, with stablecoins and meme coins excluded. DekaBank executes trades and Stuttgart Stock Exchange provides custody, at a fee of €0.99 per order. The DSGV expects 30-40 savings banks to onboard monthly, with about 230 expressing interest and most due to connect by the first half of 2027, potentially reaching some 50 million customers.

TREE NEWS update: Mastercard unveiled an API-based tool at Money20/20 that combines payment and blockchain intelligence to flag fraud, scams and sanctions exposure before funds move on-chain. The product extends the card network’s fraud-fighting capabilities to stablecoin payments. No launch date or pricing was disclosed.