Hi fintech friends,

In a week that has mixed hard policy moves with market momentum, China has called off major tech's stablecoin ambitions, Hong Kong has pushed ahead with a Solana spot ETF, and the U.S. has made headlines with a high‑profile pardon—while product launches and funding rounds have continued to shape fintech infrastructure across Asia.

Licensing & Regulations

• Chinese regulators have asked Ant Group and JD.com to suspend Hong Kong stablecoin plans.
• US President Donald Trump has pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, whose 2023 guilty plea was part of Binance’s $4.3 billion DOJ settlement, and the White House has framed the move as ending a “war on crypto.” 
• The UK Financial Conduct Authority has filed High Court civil proceedings against Justin Sun's HTX (formerly Huobi) for unlawful crypto promotions to UK consumers and has listed the exchange on its warning list. 

Financing & Acquisition

• Hong Kong’s SFC has approved the first Solana spot ETF.
• HK construction working‑capital fintech Riverchain has closed a $5 million Series A.

Product & Partnership Launches

• Binance has enabled direct USD deposits and withdrawals in 70+ countries via BPay Global. 
• OKX has launched Rubix, a modular digital‑assets‑as‑a‑service stack for institutions.

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