Flash News

TREE NEWS update: A Senate Democrat has sent Cantor Fitzgerald a letter seeking answers about its ties to Tether, following a report by Democratic investigators last month alleging that Tether’s USDT has become a key tool for Iran’s shadow banking network. The letter puts the Wall Street firm’s relationship with the stablecoin issuer under fresh scrutiny.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the National Intellectual Property Administration jointly issued a special action plan for agricultural brand protection covering 2026-2027. The plan targets trademark and other infringements to curb illegal practices, foster a fair market environment, boost consumer confidence and protect farmers’ interests.

TREE NEWS update: The International Monetary Fund said Friday that Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda has been invited to deliver a lecture at an IMF central bank event on Nov 6. Ueda will hold a conversation with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva after his speech. Markets are watching for clues on the BOJ’s rate path this year.

TREE NEWS update: US Labor Secretary Sandlin said the government has launched criminal proceedings against the companies named today, after the US suspended green card applications for foreign employees at Microsoft and several other tech firms. The announcement was made in response to the suspension affecting foreign workers at the named companies.

TREE NEWS update: The US federal government said on the 8th it will suspend Microsoft and several other technology companies from the PERM permanent labor certification program, the first step for H-1B visa holders to obtain employer-sponsored green cards. Nine US universities, including Harvard and Stanford, are also under investigation over suspected J-1 visa fraud.

TREE NEWS reports: US Senator Richard Blumenthal, a senior Democrat on the Senate investigation panel, is continuing to examine stablecoin issuer Tether’s financial relationships and has written to Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Brandon Lutnick requesting information on the two firms’ ties. Cantor Fitzgerald holds and manages Tether’s reserve assets in the United States, and the companies have several other business interests. Brandon Lutnick, son of US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, took over Cantor’s leadership after his father joined President Donald Trump’s administration.

TREE NEWS update: Standard Chartered is planning to offer digital asset custody in Singapore, extending a custody network that already spans the UAE, Luxembourg and Hong Kong. The bank has not announced a launch date for the proposed service. No figures or regulatory approvals were disclosed.

TREE NEWS update: The Federal Reserve has taken an enforcement action against American Express over money-laundering issues. The action was announced by the Fed, which did not disclose further details in the statement. American Express is the subject of the enforcement move.

TREE NEWS update: The US Federal Communications Commission has approved SpaceX to launch 15,000 second-generation Starlink satellites for global 2 GHz spectrum use. The decision clears the way for a major expansion of the Starlink constellation.

TREE NEWS update: The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has appointed First Vice President Kim Robbins to the newly created role of chief payments officer, effective Nov. 16. Robbins, who currently serves as the bank’s first vice president, will take on the payments oversight position in addition to her existing duties at the regional reserve bank. The Kansas City Fed announced the assignment but did not detail how the payments portfolio will be structured.

TREE NEWS update: The NFL urged the Supreme Court to resolve a circuit split over whether states can regulate sports contracts on prediction markets, arguing they constitute gambling rather than federally regulated swaps. The league’s filing sides with states against Kalshi in the dispute over jurisdiction over event contracts tied to sports outcomes.

TREE NEWS update: A wallet tagged as belonging to the US government transferred 833.6 BTC, worth $71.6 million, to a Coinbase Prime deposit address. Arkham data shows 568.7 BTC is tied to seized HashFlare assets and 264.9 BTC to Bitfinex hack funds. A transfer to a Prime deposit address does not confirm a sale, and Coinbase also provides custody for government-held crypto; a similar $288 million transfer occurred in July.

TREE NEWS update: The NFL has backed New Jersey authorities in a petition to the US Supreme Court over prediction market Kalshi, arguing that Kalshi and other prediction markets “threaten game integrity” because many event contracts are “highly susceptible to manipulation.” The league’s position aligns it with state regulators in the widening legal fight over event-based contracts.

TREE NEWS update: The National Football League has filed a brief with the US Supreme Court opposing federal regulation of prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket, joining the case as it may head toward a final ruling. Other briefs filed this week include submissions from former regulator Gary Gensler and former senator Chris Dodd. Dodd once pushed a bill on which the CFTC bases its claim to final authority over prediction market oversight.

TREE NEWS update: European Commission fiscal affairs chief Valdis Dombrovskis urged eurozone members to respect budget constraints, rejecting proposals from Italy and Greece for greater fiscal flexibility. He stressed the need for fiscal prudence, especially given current bond market developments, and said he would study the Italian and Greek proposals in depth. The discussion comes as eurozone governments face sharply rising borrowing costs.

TREE NEWS update: India’s National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) responded to the US suspension of H-1B visas, saying it has consistently held that immigration and the movement of highly skilled talent are two entirely separate issues. The industry body did not announce any further measures in the statement.

TREE NEWS update: The NFL filed an amicus brief with the US Supreme Court on October 8 backing New Jersey regulators in their case against prediction market Kalshi, arguing sports contracts are gambling rather than swaps and should fall under state oversight, not the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction. The league said nearly $2 billion of the $3.3 billion traded on prediction markets during the season’s first Sunday related to NFL games. Kalshi responded that the CFTC already regulates sports-related markets and that federal oversight is more consistent than state-by-state rules.

TREE NEWS update: The NFL filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to take up New Jersey’s case against Kalshi, arguing the exchange’s sports contracts are gambling rather than CFTC-regulated swaps. The league’s filing backs New Jersey’s challenge to the prediction market’s sports offerings. The dispute turns on whether such contracts fall under federal derivatives oversight or state gambling law.

TREE NEWS update: US federal prosecutors told Judge Katherine Polk Failla that the D.C. Circuit’s September 25 ruling upholding Bitcoin Fog founder Roman Sterlingov’s conviction supports trying Tornado Cash defendant Roman Storm in New York. The appeals court found Washington, D.C. had jurisdiction because agents deposited about $250 in bitcoin into Bitcoin Fog from the district. Prosecutors argued the same logic applies since user Shakeeb Ahmed accessed Tornado Cash from his Manhattan apartment.