Galaxy Digital has obtained a New York BitLicense and a Money Transmission License, enabling it to broaden regulated digital-asset trading and custody services in New York. The authorization applies to its institutional subsidiary GalaxyOne Prime NY and is intended to deepen access to New York-based institutional clients. Galaxy said it oversees nearly $9 billion in client assets across its digital-asset operations.

On May 24, 2026, Zerohash Europe said it became the first firm operating under the EU's MiCA regime to also obtain a full Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license, enabling wider regulated stablecoin and brokerage services across Europe. The EMI authorization from De Nederlandsche Bank allows the company to pair crypto-asset services with electronic-money capabilities throughout the European Economic Area, ahead of MiCA's full rollout in July.

Nasdaq has teamed up with decentralized trading platform Ostium to supply market data for blockchain-based perpetual contracts linked to US equities. The integration supports onchain equity perps without requiring traditional brokerage accounts, as Ostium says its platform has surpassed $50 billion in cumulative volume across more than 26,000 traders.

On May 23, 2026, Ethereum investors continued increasing the amount of ETH committed to staking contracts even as the token is down roughly 26% year to date. About 31% of total ETH supply is now staked, up from roughly 29% at the start of 2026, highlighting a widening gap between onchain participation and price performance.

On May 23, 2026, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission approved spectrum transactions worth more than $40 billion involving EchoStar, AT&T and SpaceX. The agreements shift 30 MHz of nationwide 3.45 GHz and about 20 MHz of 600 MHz to AT&T, while SpaceX gains access to AWS-3, AWS-4 and H-Block assets to support direct-to-device and hybrid satellite services.

Ericsson said on May 22, 2026 that many telecom operators are moving too slowly to deploy AI and advanced 5G capabilities, potentially missing new revenue streams. In a survey of 455 senior telecom executives, 90% expected AI and 5G services to create new revenue, but 70% said their companies have not begun implementing the technologies they view as required.

Bitcoin options markets are focusing heavily on the $82,000 strike as the May 29 expiry approaches, with nearly $6 billion in contracts set to roll off. Positioning is skewed toward calls, a setup that could amplify volatility and, via dealer hedging dynamics, add upward momentum if spot prices move closer to $82,000.

On May 21, 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said it is preparing a temporary regulatory exemption that would let eligible firms trial tokenized stock trading on blockchain networks under tight limits. The plan would test tokenized shares, automated market makers and crypto-native settlement, with conditions such as volume caps, whitelisted participants and time-limited approvals.

On May 21, 2026, Ripple Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz cautioned the XRP community about a sharp uptick in AI-enabled scam campaigns, including deepfake videos and fake giveaways. He said schemes often push bogus XRP airdrops that lure users into sending funds or connecting noncustodial wallets to malicious sites that can rapidly drain holdings. Schwartz also described a separate phishing effort aimed at Robinhood users that leveraged Gmail address tricks and emails designed to look authenticated.