innovation

According to CoinDesk's latest September Exchange Review, Gate's average daily trading volume in September was approximately 15 billion USD, maintaining a leading position globally; meanwhile, the platform's global user base has exceeded 61 million, providing support for user foundation and market activity. In the CoinDesk Data Exchange Benchmark, Gate received a Grade A rating, ranking among the top exchanges. From trading and user scale to platform ratings, multiple indicators collectively outline Gate's comprehensive competitiveness in the global market.The world's first stock event contract launched by Gate in September has also been reported, covering initial targets such as MU, SNDK, SK Hynix, and Yushu Technology, supporting bullish or bearish trades in short cycles of 5 minutes and 15 minutes, without the need for leverage or margin, automatically settling after the cycle ends, and allowing for early closing.Combining Gate Money, on-chain trading, and payment products, Gate is expanding its product innovation into various application scenarios, including traditional assets, based on a continuously growing trading scale, gradually building a comprehensive service system that covers a wider range of financial needs.

According to a report by a financial magazine, the company Zhiyuan Innovation has recently launched a new round of financing, with an amount of approximately 1 billion to 1.5 billion yuan. This round of financing is nearing completion, with the latest valuation at around 50 billion yuan. Regarding the new financing, valuation, and IPO progress, a relevant person in charge at Zhiyuan stated that there is no response at this time.In July 2026, Zhiyuan announced the initiation of preparations for its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. At that time, some investors indicated that Zhiyuan is expected to list as early as August, with a target valuation of 40 billion to 50 billion Hong Kong dollars. According to relevant requirements from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, if a company applying for listing completes new financing after submitting its application and before listing, it must wait 120 days after the financing is completed to be listed for trading, unless a special exemption is obtained. The aforementioned investors stated that this new round of financing means that Zhiyuan will not be able to complete its IPO within this year.

Applied Materials collaborates with Intel to accelerate innovations in chip manufacturing driven by artificial intelligence.

ChainCatcher live report, at the OKX NOW Global Products and Ecosystem Conference (Singapore), OKX Vice President of Strategic Markets Louis Tam announced during a roundtable session that OKX and ICE have submitted a notice to the SEC regarding a tokenized securities trading venue, and eligible OKX customers can now trade perpetual contracts referencing ICE Brent and WTI benchmarks;Former New York Governor and OKX Board Member Governor Andrew Cuomo confirmed that the venue is expected to operate under the SEC's "innovation exemption" mechanism, with a launch anticipated in about 30 days, and the SEC has set limits on the number of tradable stocks and trading volume. Cuomo believes this marks a shift from competition to cooperation and integration between traditional finance and crypto fintech.

ICBA accuses OCC of lacking regulatory safeguards in granting banking charters to cryptocurrency companies. The cryptocurrency lobbying group CCI supports OCC, stating that the lawsuit aims to stifle financial innovation.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Michael S. Selig, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), announced on October 5 that the CFTC has officially proposed the first batch of regulatory rules for the cryptocurrency market, aimed at promoting innovation and protecting investors.Previously, due to Congress's failure to pass relevant bills clarifying the federal legal status of cryptocurrency assets, the CFTC and SEC turned to existing statutory powers to lead the formulation of market structure rules. During the previous administration, the two regulatory agencies primarily targeted cryptocurrency exchanges, custodians, and software developers through enforcement actions, resulting in a large number of cryptocurrency companies moving overseas.The introduction of the new rules marks an important shift in U.S. federal cryptocurrency regulation from "enforcement instead of legislation" to "proactive rule-making."

NEAR co-founder @ilblackdragon revealed on the X platform that the recovery of stolen funds from NEAR Intents was mainly due to the AI security layer SHIELD on Intents, as well as some proactive investigative work.The Intents team identified the responsible party and established communication within less than 24 hours of the hack, successfully recovering the funds in full today at 14:30 UTC.@ilblackdragon also stated that NEAR will continuously strengthen its security systems and further adapt to the ever-changing cybersecurity landscape. While AI may accelerate the exploitation of vulnerabilities, it can also help us defend against them. It is hoped that the entire industry will respond with vigilance and feel the same sense of urgency to collaborate together.

According to The Block, Robinhood's Senior Vice President of Cryptocurrency, Johann Kerbrat, stated during the 2026 Korea Blockchain Week that the company is still advancing work related to the "innovation exemption" with the U.S. SEC to support its tokenized stock business.Kerbrat mentioned that as the scale of stock token trading grows, its trading volume may reach the relevant limits set by the SEC.

NEAR co-founder Illia Polosukhin stated that NEAR Intents and near.com have resumed operations, but some related services of the affected networks are still restricted.Illia mentioned that the approximately $3.8 million attack exploited vulnerabilities in the Omni deposit and withdrawal infrastructure and the interaction with NEAR Intents smart contracts, with the impact limited to USDT on BSC. The NEAR core protocol, NEAR tokens, and other applications were not affected, and affected users will receive full compensation.

From September 29 to October 1, the stablecoin infrastructure platform Interlace made its debut at the 2026 Korea Blockchain Week (KBW), deeply participating in events such as The Next Onchain Economy and HSC Conference Seoul, engaging with global Web3 partners and financial industry practitioners to discuss stablecoin payments and next-generation financial infrastructure.Cat Lucci, the business leader of Interlace, stated that the key to the implementation of stablecoin payments lies in the deep integration of stablecoin channels with bank cards and local clearing systems. Interlace provides efficient and secure capital flow experiences for exchanges, wallets, and B2B trade scenarios through modular capabilities such as cards, accounts, and clearing.During KBW, Interlace also set up a product experience session where attendees could receive Stablecoin Card gift cards to experience the convenient payment of on-chain assets in real-world consumption scenarios, attracting the attention and engagement of many participants.It is reported that Interlace's next stop will be at TOKEN2049 in Singapore, participating in events such as Stablecoin Happy Hour and AI & Emerging Onchain Assets, continuing to share innovative achievements in on-chain financial infrastructure on the core stage of Web3.

According to Crypto Briefing, Orca's Chief Legal Officer Christopher Montagano stated at the Korea Blockchain Week that the innovation exemption released by the SEC on September 17 provides the conditions to verify whether DeFi blockchain tracks are more efficient than traditional infrastructure.The exemption offers a conditional relief period of 5 years, until September 17, 2031; under this framework, tokenized securities venues and specific liquidity providers can operate tokenized U.S. stock licensed trading without registering as exchanges or brokers.Montagano stated that the exemption is specifically designed for AMM but does not constitute a ruling on DeFi; relevant parties must still comply with sanction rules and obtain issuer consent to distinguish it from unlicensed DeFi. Orca has been involved in discussions with the SEC since 2025 and began trading tokenized stocks in November of the same year.

According to Cointelegraph, the European Central Bank (ECB) has announced the launch of a new round of applications for the digital euro innovation platform, inviting fintech companies, payment institutions, and other organizations to explore AI agents participating in digital euro payments.The project will be divided into two parts: practical testing and future application seminars. The practical testing will take place from January to June 2027, where participants will develop prototypes for electronic receipts, multi-party transactions, conditional payments, and more.The seminars will explore AI payments, micropayments, machine-to-machine transactions, and the application of the digital euro in public services. In addition, the ECB has selected 36 banks and payment institutions, including Revolut, Stripe, and Deutsche Bank, to participate in another 12-month digital euro pilot, which is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2027. The final issuance of the digital euro still requires EU legislation and subsequent decisions from the ECB.

Cryptocurrency trader Ansem stated that he is quite optimistic about the real recovery of NFTs in this cycle, and art-related NFTs may see a price increase again.Ansem mentioned that what is more noteworthy is the innovation surrounding the forms of NFTs, including AI agents, ownership mechanisms, new issuance methods, and different models of NFTs combined with on-chain products. He believes that as the broader rotation of on-chain assets is still in its early stages, there may be more new applications and design explorations in the NFT field in the future.

Grayscale's research director Zach Pandl pointed out that the recent "Innovation Exemption" directive issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected to fundamentally change the previous landscape where tokenized U.S. stocks primarily relied on offshore "packaged derivatives" trading, promoting the inclusion of real tokenized stocks with complete shareholder voting rights and dividend rights into the regulated financial system of the United States.This exemption order is valid for 5 years and specifically relaxes two core registration requirements: qualified tokenized trading venues do not need to register as traditional stock exchanges; qualified liquidity providers do not need to register as broker-dealers.Grayscale believes that this marks a significant step as on-chain trading infrastructure is proving to be fully compatible with regulatory compliance and investor protection, and it is expected to drive Congress to advance a broader bipartisan legislative process in the future.

The non-small number joint D3 Finance is hosting the non-small number × GWDC 2026 Innovation Forum. This forum will be held on September 29, 2026, at AT CENTER in Seoul, South Korea, focusing on topics such as stock tokenization, Web3, AI, and RWA.D3 Finance, as a co-organizer, will bring Bribe Finance, ve(3,3), Gauge voting, and on-chain incentive mechanisms to the live event in Seoul. D3 Finance targets the Asian market, connecting the liquidity needs of project parties and user participation through voting rights and on-chain incentives, creating a more transparent on-chain path for emission distribution, funding, and liquidity competition.The GWDC Korea event is expected to attract 5,000 participants, including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of South Korea, TRON founder Justin Sun, representatives from Microsoft, Bithumb, Animoca Brands, MetaMask, BNB Chain, and other political, business, technology, and Web3 figures. D3 Finance will leverage this international exchange scenario to further demonstrate the connection between DeFi liquidity mechanisms and RWA asset liquidity.

Feixiaohao partners with MOS/SSD to advance the Feixiaohao × GWDC 2026 Innovation Forum. MOS/SSD will participate as a co-organizer in this forum, which will be held on September 29, 2026, at AT CENTER in Seoul, South Korea, focusing on topics such as stock tokenization, Web3, and AI.MOS/SSD (Sea Star) will participate in this forum as a co-organizer. MOS (Sea Star Community) is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) deeply engaged in Web3, established on February 19, 2022. The community's vision is to build a trustworthy metaverse DAO and collaborate with SPF META to promote blockchain gaming and the metaverse ecosystem.The GWDC Korea event is expected to attract 5,000 participants, with guests and institutions such as Sun Yuchen, Animoca Brands, Bithumb, and Microsoft also in attendance. The entry of the Sea Star community into this scene will help bring the DAO, blockchain gaming, and metaverse community ecosystem into a more open exchange environment.

The non-small number joint AtlasX Protocol promotes the non-small number × GWDC 2026 Innovation Forum. AtlasX Protocol will participate as a co-organizer in this forum, which will be held on September 29, 2026, at AT CENTER in Seoul, South Korea, focusing on stock tokenization, Web3, and AI leadership summit.AtlasX Protocol will participate in this forum as a co-organizer. The project will introduce AI Agent into the Web3 event information organization and community interaction scenarios, attempting to connect decentralized events, content, and user participation into a sustainable product experience. During the conference, AtlasX Protocol project guest Xiao Qi will also give a speech, serving as the Global Chief Strategy Officer of AtlasX Protocol.The GWDC Korea event is expected to attract 5,000 participants, with guests and institutions such as Sun Yuchen, Microsoft, Bithumb, and Animoca Brands also appearing at the same venue. AtlasX Protocol will leverage this opportunity to bring AI event tracking, content collaboration, and community participation topics into a larger public setting.

Feixiaohao collaborates with VITAL-X to promote the Feixiaohao × GWDC 2026 Innovation Forum. VITAL-X will participate as a co-organizer in this forum, which will be held on September 29, 2026, at AT CENTER in Seoul, South Korea, focusing on topics such as stock tokenization, Web3, and AI leadership.VITAL-X will participate in this forum as a co-organizer. The project is positioned as the next-generation Web3 business ecosystem platform, connecting decentralized merchants, e-commerce transactions, and DeFi contribution distribution, using VXD as a certificate for ecological development contributions to build a global business value network. During this conference, VITAL-X project guests Su Yaoran and Wang Yanmei will also deliver speeches; they are the Global Ecological Strategy Officer and the Co-Initiator of VITAL-X Korea, respectively.The GWDC Korea event is expected to attract 5,000 participants, with representatives from Sun Yuchen, Microsoft, Bithumb, Animoca Brands, MetaMask, BNB Chain, and others also present. VITAL-X has the opportunity to integrate Web3 business, merchant networks, and contribution distribution mechanisms into a more concentrated industry exchange through this event.