Tether sued over frozen 'pig butcher' coins, 6,600 students get crypto loans: Asia Express. Magazine PublishedSep 3, 2026 Thai businessmen sue Tether over $42M frozen USDT tied to pig butchering scam, Aussie crypto firms face big fines unless they meet licensing deadline. Thai businessmen sue Tether for freezing $42M in $61M pig butchering case. Two Thai businessmen have sued stablecoin issuer Tether in a New York district court, claiming it illegally froze $42.4 million in Tether USDt (USDT) in October, as part of a broader case tied to a pig butchering scheme. The plaintiffs claimed that Tether illegally froze the $42 million without a warrant in October 2025, following an informal request from US Homeland Security Investigations. Authorities in the Eastern District of North Carolina only issued a seizure warrant for the funds later in February 2026. The warrant directed the burn and reissuance of the tokens to a government wallet. While the plaintiffs didn't dispute their involvement in the investment scam, the lawsuit tests the freezing authority of stablecoin issuers. Thailand adopts crypto Travel Rule with self-custodial wallet checks. Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued new Travel Rule regulations requiring digital asset operators to collect information about parties involved in crypto transfer. The rules will take effect on Feb. 27, 2027. Thailand SEC proposes retail access to regulated overseas crypto derivatives. Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed allowing intermediaries to facilitate retail access to certain digital asset derivatives traded overseas. Under the proposal, eligible products would need to resemble crypto derivatives traded in Thailand, including their underlying assets, maturity, leverage and settlement methods. The products must also trade on an exchange that uses a central counterparty for clearing and is overseen by a regulator belonging to specified international regulatory or exchange groups. The consultation remains open until Sept. 30. Pencil Finance completes $1M onchain lending cycle for 6.6K students in Southeast Asia. Pencil Finance has completed a $1 million onchain student loan cycle, offering financing to 6,600 students in Southeast Asia who were underserved by traditional lenders. Of the 6,600 students across 118 schools and universities in Southeast Asia, about 1,050 received direct funding. Pencil said the loans were designed for students underserved by traditional lenders, with 50% female borrowers and 93% stemming from lower-income households. Pencil Finance claims this is the first-ever fully onchain lending cycle financing student loans transparently recorded on the blockchain network. Asia crypto custody deals from Ripple and Coincheck. Ripple has partnered with digital asset infrastructure company SettleMint to offer financial institutions solutions for custody, issuance and management of tokenized assets across their full lifecycle. Digital asset service provider Coincheck Group has also partnered with wallet infrastructure provider DFNS to build digital asset wallet technology and custody services in Japan. Singapore weighs recognizing some foreign-issued stablecoins. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is reconsidering its earlier restriction on stablecoins issued across multiple jurisdictions, proposing a route for some jointly issued tokens to qualify under its regulatory framework. Under one proposal, stablecoins jointly issued by a Singapore issuer and a foreign issuer could be regulated under the framework and labeled "MAS-regulated stablecoins," provided that the associated risks are sufficiently mitigated. MAS is also considering recognizing a limited number of foreign-issued stablecoins regulated under comparable overseas frameworks, citing their potential use in cross-border wholesale transactions. Australia warns unlicensed crypto firms of fines up to 10% of annual turnover. Australian crypto companies relying on temporary regulatory relief have until Sept. 30 to apply for a financial services license or risk penalties, including fines reaching 10% of their annual turnover. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said businesses requiring an Australian Financial Services license must apply for one or seek changes to an existing license before the deadline. ASIC has recorded more than 45 digital asset-related license applications to date. Standard Chartered launches spot Bitcoin and Ether trading in UAE. London-headquartered multinational bank Standard Chartered has launched spot Bitcoin and Ether trading for institutional clients in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The move makes Standard Chartered the first global bank to offer institutional digital asset trading in the region and the first Global Systemically Important Bank (G-SIB) with a similar offering, the bank said. Japan's Remixpoint dumps altcoins. Remixpoint, one of Japan's largest corporate Bitcoin holders, sold all its altcoins, leaving about 1,506 BTC ($115 million) as its only cryptocurrency holding as it concentrates its crypto strategy around Bitcoin. Remixpoint sold its Ether, Solana, XRP and Dogecoin holdings for a combined 878.8 million yen ($5.5 million), generating a 117.8 million yen ($736,000) gain, according to a Wednesday company disclosure. The company recorded gains on its ETH, SOL and XRP sales but sold its DOGE holdings at a 3.26 million yen ($20,000) loss. Japanese regulator seeks stablecoin tax exemption. Japan's Financial Services Agency (FSA) submitted a request to exempt trust-type stablecoins from mandatory tax filings starting in fiscal year 2027. Metaplanet moves 4,800 BTC worth $377M to Coinbase. The Japanese Bitcoin treasury company has transferred 10,270 BTC to Coinbase Prime this week, triggering speculation about the company selling its holdings. Japan's FSA warns Hong kong-based IZAKA-YA over unregistered services. Japan's Financial Services Agency issued a formal warning to Hong Kong-based Izakaya Limited, alleging its cryptocurrency exchange services are unregistered. SBI Holdings takes 20% stake in indonesia's Ajaib Group. Japan's SBI Holdings will spend $270 million to acquire a 20% stake in Indonesian online brokerage Ajaib Group. The aim is to expand its crypto business across the region and to promote SBI's yen stablecoin JPYSC. Hashkey joins DTCC working group as first Asian crypto service provider. Hashkey joins over 100 other global financial institutions including JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange. DTCC custodies $114 trillion in liquid assets, including stocks and exchange-traded funds. Its working group was formed to connect traditional finance with decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure. DTCC plans to launch access to tokenized securities in October. Bitcoin Asia conference 'subdued' The mood at Bitcoin Asia in Hong Kong was subdued according to the South China Morning Post. Despite a pep talk by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao who declared Bitcoin "will for sure become more important than gold" the bear market hangover was all too evident. "Psychologically, I think this has been one of the hardest bear markets we've had, because this time it wasn't just the price of bitcoin that took a hit," said Brandon Green, CEO of conference organiser BTC, during his opening address. "This time, the Bitcoiners' ego also took a hit." OSL Group reports 65.8% revenue surge. Hong Kong-based digital asset firm OSL Group reported a 65.8% revenue increase in its first-half financial results. SFC warns Star Bridge Capital is unlicensed. Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission has added Star Bridge Capital Group to its Alert List following forced liquidation anomalies and millions in trader losses. Mirae Asset lays out crypto, stablecoin, tokenization plans for Digital X. South Korean financial group Mirae Asset plans to build a 150 trillion won ($109 billion) digital asset business around Digital X, the crypto exchange formerly known as Korbit, according to The Korea Times. The report said Digital X will focus on crypto, stablecoins, real-world assets and security token offerings, with plans to tokenize physical assets including gold, silver and electricity. The expansion plans follow Mirae Asset Consulting's acquisition of a 97.15% stake in Korbit in July for a cumulative 141.4 billion won. The exchange was subsequently rebranded as Digital X, marking the first time an affiliate of a South Korean financial group acquired control of a domestic crypto exchange. Get more of Cointelegraph on Google Add Cointelegraph as a preferred source for Google Search. Cointelegraph publishes long-form journalism, analysis and narrative reporting produced by Cointelegraph's in-house editorial team with subject-matter expertise. All articles are edited and reviewed by Cointelegraph editors in line with its editorial standards. Some articles contain affiliate links, from which Cointelegraph may earn a commission. These relationships do not influence which products Datacenterbuilders review or its editorial conclusions. Content published in here does not constitute financial, legal or investment advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult qualified professionals where appropriate. Cointelegraph maintains full editorial independence.

How the ripple-settlemint deal could change institutional crypto. September 2, 2026 Bitcoin general Positive Ripple and SettleMint are joining forces to deliver an integrated platform combining digital asset custody, tokenization infrastructure, and compliance tooling specifically designed for regulated financial institutions, a move that could reshape how banks and asset managers approach institutional crypto adoption. The partnership targets one of the most persistent friction points in enterprise blockchain deployment: the fragmented reliance on multiple third-party providers for token issuance, regulatory compliance, settlement, custody, and asset servicing. By consolidating these functions, Ripple and SettleMint aim to lower operational complexity and cost for institutions exploring real-world asset tokenization and XRP Ledger-based settlement rails. The deal arrives at a critical moment for institutional blockchain adoption, as global regulators push forward with digital asset frameworks and major financial players race to tokenize everything from bonds to real estate. Ripple (XRP), which recently resolved its long-running SEC legal battle and expanded its stablecoin RLUSD footprint, is aggressively positioning itself as the infrastructure backbone for compliant institutional digital asset markets. SettleMint's no-code blockchain development platform adds rapid deployment capabilities that could accelerate time-to-market for banks piloting tokenized asset programs. For XRP investors and institutional crypto watchers, this integration signals Ripple's continued push beyond payments into broader financial market infrastructure. Watch for announcements of specific banking or asset management clients adopting the combined Ripple-SettleMint stack as a signal of real-world institutional traction. Ripple and Settlemint are combining digital asset custody and tokenization tools for regulated financial institutions. The integration could reduce reliance on separate providers for issuance, compliance, settlement, custody, and ongoing asset servicing.

Ripple and SettleMint have partnered to offer financial institutions in Asia Pacific an integrated solution for digital asset custody and tokenisation. The partnership combines Ripple Custody's institutional-grade infrastructure with SettleMint's Digital Asset Lifecycle Platform (DALP), enabling regulated institutions to issue, manage, and operate digital assets through a single platform rather than multiple vendors. The solution addresses growing institutional demand for digital assets. A May 2026 Boston Consulting Group report projects tokenised real-world assets could reach $88 trillion by 2035, warning that traditional banks failing to adapt face potential 30% profit reductions by 2035. The partnership has launched in Asia, with plans to expand to other markets as demand develops.