The past week witnessed BlackRock expanding its Bitcoin investment offerings in Europe, while Ethereum preparing for its Pectra upgrade, as major asset managers filed for spot XRP ETFs, signaling growing institutional adoption.
Regulatory shifts under the Trump administration saw the SEC scaling back crypto enforcement, Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev released under monitoring, and stablecoin legislation gaining priority. Let’s dig deeper.
Bitcoin
BlackRock is set to launch a Bitcoin ETP in Europe, expanding its crypto investment offerings beyond the U.S. amid growing institutional demand and evolving European regulations.
Europe is continuing to follow the path towards Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) despite the recent sea change in the United States, sparked by President Trump’s new administration.
Ethereum
The Pectra upgrade, set for testnet implementation in February and March, aims to enhance scalability, reduce costs, and improve staking processes, with a potential mainnet release in April.
DeFi
On February 6, the event that the alliance behind Singularity Finance has been working feverishly towards for months manifested in the launch of $SFI.
Altcoins
In the high-potential altcoins space, FXGuys is making a name for itself as one of the most promising Top PropFi Projects, with the presale surpassing $3.7 million in Stage 2.
The best blockchain projects to invest in are redefining the crypto market, bringing innovation, strong community support, and real use cases.
Business
Leading asset managers WisdomTree, Bitwise, 21Shares, and Canary Capital have filed for spot XRP ETFs with the Cboe BZX Exchange, marking a significant step toward institutional crypto adoption amid evolving SEC regulations.
Web3
The Tezos-based tokenization platform Fraktion is set to push forward the concept of fractional ownership for high-value assets such as real estate and precious stones after raising $1.1 million in seed funding.
Leading crypto-native travel booking service, Travala announced its partnership with Trivago, a top global search and booking service for travelers, allowing millions of customers to access crypto payment services.
One of the main challenges for developers in Web3 is the lack of available tools to make their lives easier when building Web3 applications.
Cronos Labs is expanding its blockchain interoperability capabilities through its newly announced integration with LayerZero, a growing cross-blockchain interoperability protocol for smoother cross-chain transactions for Cronos EVM and Cronos zkEVM.
Regulation
Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev has been released after spending three years in pretrial detention under the condition that he remains under electronic monitoring, with his appeal potentially setting a precedent for how courts handle privacy-focused crypto developers.
White House crypto czar David Sacks has emphasized that stablecoin legislation is a primary focus for the administration as he endorsed a stablecoin bill introduced known as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act.
The SEC is scaling back its crypto enforcement unit under the Trump administration, reassigning staff and signaling a shift toward a more lenient regulatory approach, raising questions about ongoing lawsuits and future digital asset oversight.
Coinbase has received Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) registration from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) opening the doors for it to provide both crypto and fiat services in the UK.
US President Donald Trump has agreed to pause tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days after both countries took steps on border security and drug trafficking.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Source: https://cryptodaily.co.uk/2025/02/crypto-weekly-roundup-ethereum-prepares-for-pectra-xrp-prepares-for-etfs-more