Japan's Financial Services Agency has made blockchain-based finance a policy priority for 2026, while SWIFT simultaneously tests its blockchain ledger platform with Citibank and MUFG for 24-hour cross-border payments with faster transfers and lower fees.
NYSE President Lynn Martin announced on August 10 that the exchange is continuing to develop infrastructure for onchain settlement of tokenized securities. The blockchain-based platform is being developed under parent company Intercontinental Exchange to enable trading and settlement of tokenized securities.
The European Central Bank's digital euro initiative has progressed from initial exploration to broader institutional and financial sector alignment by 2026, as European institutions increasingly converge on the strategic rationale for a euro-denominated central bank digital currency.
The Federal Reserve proposed creating a new, more limited form of payment account that would allow firms like fintechs to move money across the Fed's payment rails without enjoying all the privileges of traditional master accounts.
