What has been happening this week in the world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies? Current events and background reports in our weekly review.
Selected articles of the week:
Aleš Michl, Governor of the Czech National Bank (CNB), appeared as keynote speaker at the Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas and called for a 1% Bitcoin allocation of CNB FX reserves before roughly 40,000 attendees. These reserves currently stand at around USD 180 billion, equivalent to about 44% of Czech GDP. The push does not come as a surprise. As early as October 2025, the CNB launched a USD 1 million test portfolio at a Bitcoin price of USD 110,670. In February 2026, however, the board rejected formal integration. Michl is sidestepping the resistance by carrying the test portfolio as an “intangible asset” outside the official reserves, thereby bypassing ECB jurisdiction. Since taking office in 2022, he has already raised the equity share from 15% to 26% and gold from virtually zero to 6%. As a result, he views Bitcoin as a natural diversifier.
CNB Governor Michl argues in Las Vegas for a 1% Bitcoin allocation in central bank reserves – despite rejection by his own Bank Board.
Coinbase folds on the CLARITY Act and unblocks Senate procedure
While central banks debate state Bitcoin reserves, the US Congress continues to wrangle over the rulebook for stablecoins. On 1 May 2026, US senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks presented a bipartisan compromise on the CLARITY Act that Coinbase now supports. Section 404 will prohibit rewards that are “economically or functionally equivalent to interest payments on interest-bearing bank deposits”. However, activity-based rewards tied to genuine platform usage remain permitted. For Coinbase, this is significant. In 2025, stablecoin activities generated USD 1.35 billion in revenue for the exchange, around 20% of net income. The market reacted promptly. On Polymarket, the probability of passage rose from 49% to 64% within 24 hours. Senator Bernie Moreno expects the vote by the end of May.
Coinbase backs the CLARITY Act compromise on stablecoin rewards, now the Senate committee markup path opens, with passage likely.
FINMA puts consumer protection at the centre
In Switzerland, too, the regulatory focus is shifting. According to its 2025 annual report, FINMA is moving its crypto supervision from operational and technical questions toward strategic consumer protection. One direct quote spells it out: “Consumers are exposed to considerable risks when they buy, trade and transfer cryptocurrencies.” However, the authority does not see a systemic risk. Crypto is missing from the nine main risk factors. Furthermore, in March 2025, FINMA granted BX Digital AG the first DLT trading licence in Switzerland since the introduction of the DLT Act. In parallel, the FINIG revision is under way with two new licence categories for payment and crypto institutions. In their consultation response, industry associations such as SBF and CVA criticised licensing timelines of 18 to 24 months and are calling for a reduction to a maximum of six months.
FINMA tightens consumer protection in crypto, grants first DLT license to BX Digital, and plans new license categories for stablecoin issuers.
Canton of Lucerne joins the Swiss Blockchain Federation
While FINMA sharpens the framework, the Swiss blockchain economy continues to organise politically. The Canton of Lucerne is joining the Swiss Blockchain Federation (SBF) as the seventh member canton. Lucerne currently hosts 73 active blockchain companies and ranks among the ten most active locations in Switzerland, with a clear focus on advisory services. Economic Affairs Director Fabian Peter is leading the cantonal participation and intends to “connect digital solutions with the real economy”. SBF President Heinz Tännler, who serves as Zug’s finance director, highlights the geographical proximity to Zug. The federation now has around 100 members, an increase of 17 new entrants in 2025 alone. In addition, in January 2026 the Canton of Zug and the University of Lucerne jointly opened the Zug Institute for Blockchain Research with CHF 25 million earmarked for a five-year build-up phase.
The Canton of Lucerne joins the Swiss Blockchain Federation as its seventh member canton, with 73 active blockchain companies.
Sygnum and FalconX bring tokenised private credit to institutionals
In addition: Swiss-based Sygnum Bank and US crypto broker FalconX are opening regulated access to tokenised private credit funds for institutional and high-net-worth private clients. The participants include the credit platform Pareto, the lending arm M11 Credit and compliance provider Keyring. Distribution runs through Sygnum’s tokenisation platform Desygnate and the FalconX Credit Vault, which currently manages USD 128.94 million. This corresponds to 0.49% of the USD 26.53 billion market for tokenised credit. In 2024, FalconX issued institutional loans worth USD 2.5 billion. Moreover, the vault runs on Ethereum with real-time collateral monitoring and also accepts tokenised money market funds such as BlackRock BUIDL as collateral.
FalconX and Sygnum open institutional access to tokenized credit via the Desygnate platform and the FalconX Credit Vault.
