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This week, two of the United States’ largest payment networks announced initiatives to accelerate cryptocurrency payments. One teamed with Consensys, the Ethereum software company behind MetaMask, to launch the MetaMask Card, which lets users connect MetaMask wallets to a physical card for everyday crypto purchases. The same company also partnered with a U.S. bank to enable SoFiUSD as a settlement option across its global payments network, and executives said they are committed to exploring additional interoperable use cases across stablecoins, fiat, and tokenized assets, including programmable treasury applications and expanded money movement and payout scenarios.
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Another major payment network announced a collaboration with the digital assets-focused affiliate of a large U.S. payments company to expand the reach of a stablecoin-linked card program that began in 2025. The stablecoin-linked cards are already available in 18 countries, with plans to expand to more than 100 countries across Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East by the end of 2026.
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Separately, a major money transmitter announced a partnership with Crossmint, a platform for enterprise-grade stablecoin infrastructure. Crossmint will support the rollout of USDPT, the transmitter’s new U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoin issued on Solana, and support its Digital Asset Network designed to link stablecoins to real-world cash access; users will be able to convert digital dollars into local currency at more than 360,000 collection points worldwide.
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On March 4, Kraken Financial, a Wyoming bank operating as a special purpose depository institution, announced it had been granted a master account at the Federal Reserve, enabling direct access to core U.S. payment rails such as Fedwire for faster fiat movement for institutional clients. Kraken’s arrangement is described as a limited-purpose account for an initial term of one year with restrictions tailored to its business model and risk profile. Additionally, more crypto-native and traditional financial institutions have submitted OCC applications to conduct digital asset activities under national trust bank charters, including Zerohash and a wholly owned subsidiary of a major U.S. financial institution.
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BitGo announced two offshore initiatives: a custodian role for FYUSD, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin designed for institutional adoption in Asian markets, and a new Crypto-as-a-Service offering targeted at financial institutions in the EU.
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The OCC recently finalized a rule clarifying the longstanding authority of national banks limited to the operations of a trust company to engage in non-fiduciary activities in addition to fiduciary activities. The final rule amends 12 CFR 5.20 to align with the OCC’s statutory authorization and changes references from fiduciary activities to operations of a trust company and activities related thereto. The OCC noted that the final rule would neither expand nor contract its authority to charter a national bank.
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On March 3, the Financial Action Task Force published its Targeted Report on Stablecoins and Unhosted Wallets, highlighting illicit finance risks and recommending actions to protect the integrity of the financial system. The report notes there were more than 250 stablecoins in circulation by mid-2025, with a market cap exceeding $300 billion, and cites Chainalysis data indicating stablecoins accounted for 84 percent of illicit virtual asset transaction volume in 2025, often involving unhosted wallets and sophisticated laundering techniques. Recommendations include requiring stablecoin issuers to adopt risk-based governance controls, customer due diligence at redemption, and, where appropriate, smart contract controls such as allow-listing and deny-listing, as well as the development of strong supervisory capabilities and effective domestic and international cooperation, including public-private partnerships.
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The Bank for International Settlements published From cash to crypto: towards a consistent regulatory approach to illicit payments, arguing for a holistic AML/CFT framework that spans payment instruments and advocates a balanced, principled regulatory approach adaptable to future digital innovations. The paper presents a framework for evaluating AML/CFT designs, considers regulatory arbitrage between instruments, and discusses behavioral responses that can impact privacy and instrument choice. The Department of Justice issued two press releases highlighting efforts to seize illicit crypto, including a civil forfeiture action to recover approximately 327,829.720952 USDT linked to a money laundering scheme and the Scam Center Strike Force’s actions that have topped $580 million in cryptocurrency seizures.
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A recent report details a sophisticated supply chain attack campaign targeting software developers via fraudulent GitHub repositories masquerading as legitimate Next.js projects, with multistage malware capable of exfiltrating saved passwords, credentials, browser data, and crypto wallet information. Chainalysis data show total on-chain ransomware payments stagnated in 2025 despite higher attack counts and potentially larger ransom demands, while coordinated law enforcement actions appear to be increasing costs across cybercrime networks and shifting attacker focus toward higher-volume, faster-pay incidents.
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