On February 25, it was announced that Hong Kong's Financial Secretary, Paul Chan, revealed in the 2026-27 fiscal budget that Hong Kong will issue the first batch of fiat-backed stablecoin licenses next month, marking the substantive implementation phase of the stablecoin regulatory framework. The regulatory authorities will continue to assist licensed issuers in exploring applications of stablecoins in payments, cross-border settlements, and real asset digitization in a compliant and risk-controlled manner, strengthening Hong Kong's institutional advantages in the digital asset regulatory system. At the policy level, it was also confirmed that Hong Kong plans to introduce new legislation later in 2026 to establish a licensing system covering crypto asset exchanges and custodial service providers. The scope of regulation will be expanded from platforms and stablecoins to key areas such as over-the-counter trading and custody, further improving the compliant virtual asset ecosystem. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission will take measures to enhance market liquidity, expand the categories of crypto financing and derivative products available to professional investors, and promote compliant innovation and market depth through the establishment of an innovation accelerator.

On February 25, news reports indicate that as Ethereum's price has declined approximately 37% this month, market attention has shifted to Vitalik Buterin's on-chain fund movements. On-chain data platform Arkham Intelligence shows that Buterin-related wallets held about 241,000 ETH in early February, but this has recently decreased to approximately 224,000 ETH, with continuous outflows during this period, totaling a reduction of nearly $43 million in a single month, adding additional disturbance to ETH market sentiment. On-chain records indicate that this batch of Ethereum was not sold off in a single large transaction but was gradually exchanged through decentralized aggregated trading methods, a typical slippage reduction strategy. This pace suggests that selling pressure is being released gradually rather than causing short-term liquidity shocks. Meanwhile, Ethereum's price has fallen back to around $1,900, with the weak trend resonating with ongoing fund outflows, intensifying investors' cautious outlook on the short-term trend.

BlockBeats News, February 24 — According to DL News, El Salvador is further advancing its Bitcoin experiment through a new public education initiative. The Bitcoin Diploma 2.0, launched by the El Salvador National Bitcoin Office on Sunday, is a "complete reimagining of its educational program." The first batch of teaching materials has been printed and will be used in El Salvador's education system. The program is scheduled for full implementation in public schools by 2026.

February 24 News, the Ethereum Foundation has officially launched its vault staking program, with the first batch of approximately 70,000 ETH already staked. The staking rewards generated will be directly funneled back into the Foundation's vault. This move aligns with its previously announced vault management policy, marking the start of the institutional-level native Ethereum staking strategy into practical implementation, and also strengthening the long-term sustainability of funds. In terms of technical architecture, the Foundation has chosen the open-source distributed signer Dirk and verification coordinator software Vouch as a combined solution. Dirk deploys signing nodes across different regions to reduce single points of failure and enhance system resilience; Vouch supports a hybrid configuration of multiple beacon clients and execution clients to mitigate potential network risks caused by client centralization. Additionally, its validator infrastructure adopts a minority client strategy and combines custodial resources with self-built hardware deployments across multiple jurisdictions to improve decentralization and operational stability.

Hong Kong Legislative Council member Wu Jiezhuang stated that in March, a license for stablecoin issuers will be issued. The plan is to encourage citizens to use cryptocurrencies through stablecoin airdrops, enhance Hong Kong's position in the Web3 and digital asset sectors, while also stimulating the economy and promoting the adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Owlto Finance has launched the Privacy Mode (Beta), a privacy cross-chain feature that supports one-to-many address batch sending and random amounts and sending interval configurations to enhance privacy protection. Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin emphasizes the importance of on-chain privacy, and this new feature is a response to that demand.

Cryptocurrency asset trading platform Gate completed the packaging and verification of the first batch of 17 MCP Tools on February 2, becoming the first exchange to launch these tools. MCP Tools cover core data for spot and contract markets, promoting the application of AI Agents in trading scenarios. This move marks an important step forward for Gate in building AI-oriented trading infrastructure.

February 12 News, decentralized derivatives platform Lighter announced the launch of its first batch of on-chain perpetual contracts linked to major Korean stocks, covering Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Hyundai Motor, and the Korea Composite Stock Price Index. Traders can use up to 10x leverage for long and short positions without brokers, custodial accounts, or trading hours restrictions. All contracts are settled in cryptocurrencies. This launch is seen as an important step in integrating traditional finance with on-chain derivatives. Samsung, SK Hynix, and Hyundai Motor hold key positions in the semiconductor, artificial intelligence, and automotive supply chains, and their stock performance is closely related to the global tech and manufacturing industry outlook. Lighter "tokenizes" these blue-chip stocks, allowing users to participate directly in the price fluctuations of the traditional stock market just like trading crypto perpetual contracts.

Sichuan Province has implemented digital renminbi smart contracts for the first time in Chengdu High-tech Zone, successfully distributing over 1 million yuan in wages to 104 construction workers. This allows for instant salary payments and traceability control, helping to address the issue of wage arrears among migrant workers. Local company "Yizhi Technology" provided technical support, and Chengdu High-tech Zone established a smart supervision system covering 176 projects, with a total salary distribution exceeding 2.8 billion yuan and a salary issuance rate of 98.62%.

On February 11, it was announced that Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, has officially launched a series of cryptocurrency futures products linked to the CoinDesk benchmark indices, marking a new phase in the regulated market's layout for digital asset derivatives. These contracts are settled in USD cash, providing institutional investors with a compliant channel to participate in the volatility of mainstream crypto markets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum without directly holding or custodying crypto assets. ICE stated that this batch of futures was first announced externally on January 9 and has begun trading this week. It includes a wide range of market contracts linked to the CoinDesk 20 and CoinDesk 5 indices, as well as single-asset futures tracking the price performance of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, and BNB. Since these products do not involve physical delivery, they are more aligned with traditional institutions' risk management and asset allocation needs.