Regulatory Watch Friday: Crypto/Finance Global

April 3, 2026 | Week 13

United States

SEC-CFTC Joint Taxonomy (March 17) — Landmark guidance establishing five-category taxonomy for crypto assets. Bitcoin and Ether confirmed as non-security commodities. Framework applies Howey test; builds on enforcement dismissals against Coinbase, Binance, Ripple.

GENIUS Act Implementation — Treasury's April 1 proposed rule allows stablecoin issuers under $10B to opt for state regulation (60-day comment period).

OCC Bulletin 2026-4 (April 1) — National trust banks authorized for non-fiduciary digital asset custody.

DOL 401(k) Rule (March 30) — Proposed rule eases cryptocurrency inclusion in retirement plans.

Singapore

No new April developments. PSA and FSMA 2022 remain core frameworks. MAS licensing for DTSPs serving overseas mandatory since June 30, 2025.

Canada

Bill C-15 (March 26) — Royal Assent establishes digital finance framework, stablecoins and consumer banking into law.

CSA Tokenization Initiative — Workshops: Calgary (April 9), Toronto (June 11).

Circle first to comply with OSC/CSA VRCA requirements.

United Kingdom

FCA to publish final Policy Statements on cryptoasset regime in 2026. Q2 2026 survey on wholesale brokers' crypto access.

BVI

VASP Act 2022 continues as core framework. 2026 deadlines: beneficial ownership (Jan 1), semi-annual returns (Jan 31), economic substance (June 30), CRS reporting (Sept 30).

Unlicensed operation = criminal offense, fines up to $100K.

UAE / Dubai

VARA Derivatives Framework (March 31) — Rules for futures, options, perpetuals. Client suitability, leverage controls, asset segregation required.

Relm (XBASE) — Full VASP license April 2, institutional OTC trading.

UAE Decision No. 4/R.M/2026 — Eight new license categories, capital requirements, privacy coin ban.

Australia

Parliament passed bill requiring crypto exchanges/custody platforms to obtain AFSL from ASIC. Implementation timeline TBD.

Latin America

Brazil — CVM sandbox launched March 29, 2026. CBDC targeted 2025. Binance expanding.

Argentina — BCRA planning bank crypto services. Decree 640/2024 approves asset tokenization.

Mexico — Regional cooperation with Brazil on digital assets.

Africa

Nigeria — CBN supervisory pilot (April 2026) for VASPs: Flutterwave, KuCoin, Paystack, cNGN, Juicyway, KoinKoin. Monthly AML compliance reports required. Shift from 2021 restriction to formal oversight.

APAC & South Africa updates pending.

Subscribe: https://buttondown.email/mm-project-hub