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The State Tax Inspectorate of Lithuania has updated the user reporting program for cryptocurrency service providers, clarifying the reporting scope and operational standards through Order VA-63, aligning national regulations with the EU DAC8 and the OECD Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF). The new regulations require regulated cryptocurrency service providers and local crypto operators to enhance customer due diligence, collect user identity, transaction records, and tax residency information, and record customer identification numbers, transaction logs, and account balances. Entities that have completed registration and reporting obligations in other EU member states are exempt from re-reporting in Lithuania.The comprehensive operational reporting across the EU will commence on January 1, 2026, with data collected by the platform in 2027 to be automatically exchanged by member state tax authorities starting mid-2027. The new regulations do not change Lithuania's capital gains tax rate on virtual assets, but relevant institutions must update customer access processes and backend systems. Starting from March 2, certain transactions involving electronic money tokens (EMT) must additionally obtain payment service authorization, including transferring EMT on behalf of customers and operating custodial wallets for third-party transfers; exchanges between EMT and exchanges between EMT and fiat currency do not automatically fall under payment services.

Aero announced the token exchange terms and schedule for the merger of Aerodrome and Velodrome. The merger will start on October 21 at 20:00 (Eastern Time), at which point the token emissions of the two old platforms will cease. Existing AERO will be exchanged at a 1:1 ratio for the new AERO, with each VELO exchanging for approximately 0.044 AERO. This ratio applies to both circulating tokens and locked tokens. The exchange rate for VELO depends on the supply at the time of launch, with Aerodrome holders receiving 94.5% of the new supply and Velodrome holders receiving 5.5%.According to DefiLlama data, as of October 9, the total locked amount for the two exchanges is approximately $422 million. The merger was announced in November 2025, and the developers, Dromos Labs, originally planned to complete it in the second quarter of 2026. The new model replaces the original weekly voting cycle with real-time allocation, allowing staked AERO (sAERO) holders to direct rewards to the liquidity pool and accumulate earnings along with exchange revenue. There is an initial 47-hour cooling period for allocation adjustments.Existing veAERO and veVELO positions will be converted to new sAERO positions, with the remaining lock-up time carried over and rounded up to the nearest whole week, and permanent locks will convert to the longest staking period. Tokens will not be automatically exchanged; self-custodied assets must be managed through the upgrade portal at aerodrome.finance or velodrome.finance, and rewards and rebases must be claimed and active votes cleared first.

According to Catcher Predict monitoring, in the market prediction on Polymarket for the event "LoL: Movistar KOI Fénix vs TLN Pirates - EMEA Masters Playoffs," the option "Movistar KOI Fénix" in the sub-market "Game 4 Winner" has experienced a drastic fluctuation in win rate, soaring from 54.5% an hour ago to the current 82.5% (a fluctuation of 28%). Please note the impact of relevant breaking news.

The Ethereum scaling network Starknet, built by StarkWare, has indicated that it is actively considering transforming into an independent Layer 1 network (L1), with 2027 set as the target date to become the first fully quantum-resistant network. STRK was approximately $0.073 on Friday, up about 20% in 24 hours, more than doubling from around $0.03 in April.StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson stated that after becoming L1, Starknet will be able to control security upgrades independently, without waiting for Ethereum to advance related work. As a Layer 2 network (L2), Starknet currently relies on Ethereum for security; after transitioning to L1, it will verify and secure transactions on its own.Eli Ben-Sasson pointed out that quantum computers may potentially break the elliptic curve cryptography used by Bitcoin and Ethereum in the future, and developments in AI in the field of mathematics also pose another risk. The Ethereum roadmap is expected to complete its core quantum-resistant infrastructure around 2029, while Starknet plans to advance this to 2027; currently, no quantum computer exists that can break these systems.

Starknet published an article introducing the Quantum Secure Bitcoin solution (QSB), stating that StarkWare researchers have verified a quantum secure locking mechanism on the Bitcoin mainnet that does not require a soft fork, new opcodes, or modifications to consensus rules. The first QSB output was completed on August 26, 2026, in Bitcoin mainnet block 964,199, with related GPU computing costs dropping from approximately $320 to about $50.QSB constructs the locking mechanism through hash calculations, but each transaction still requires significant computation, and assets transferred into this solution still need to undergo traditional transactions that are subject to quantum risks. This transaction does not comply with the default relay rules of Bitcoin Core, and currently, there are no accompanying wallets, address formats, or recovery processes. StarkWare stated that QSB is an emergency research solution, and a long-term solution will still need to introduce post-quantum signature mechanisms through a soft fork. The comprehensive quantum security of Starknet also depends on the progress of Ethereum's underlying upgrades.

According to the official announcement, the 152nd Gate contract points airdrop will be open for collection from October 9th, 18:00 to 23:59 (UTC+8). This period features two points redemption prize pools, both adopting a first-come, first-served mechanism.Among them, Prize Pool One is aimed at users with a contract points balance of 120--90 points (decreasing), with a redemption threshold of 15 points, corresponding to a reward of 0.015 SPYG; Prize Pool Two is aimed at users with a contract points balance of 40 points, with a redemption threshold of 20 points, allowing for the collection of a 100 USDT position experience voucher.

The official account of the AI assistant Claude from the artificial intelligence company Anthropic stated that the application volume for the Claude Startups program has exceeded expectations, and they will suspend the $1000 API credit offer for Claude Team.Claude mentioned that there have been hundreds of thousands of applications for the program, and the team is re-evaluating to cover as many startups as possible. Accounts that have already received the discount can still retain their related rights; accounts that have applied or have been approved but have not yet claimed will enter a review process, and some previously approved accounts will not be able to receive the discount.Claude stated that accepted program members can still use Startup Stack and Applied AI office hours. Users on the Claude Max or Team plan can continue to use their monthly API credits as usual in the Console.

According to Dongcha news, the former head of ByteDance's AI programming tool TRAE, Shi Yang, has reportedly left the company before the National Day holiday. The news states that he plans to start a business with ByteDance's former head of AI data and security, Fu Yue, focusing on AI office solutions. This project is said to have completed its first round of financing, with a valuation of approximately 200 million USD; the company name, financing amount, and investors have not yet been disclosed.Shi Yang's LinkedIn profile shows that his tenure at ByteDance ended in September, and his new job is marked as a startup project with an undisclosed identity. He joined ByteDance in 2024 and was responsible for Doubao MarsCode and TRAE, having previously founded the identity management company Yufu Technology, which was later acquired by Tencent.Fu Yue was responsible for ByteDance's AI training data business and was reported to have left in August. In August of the same year, TRAE and the Kouzi team were merged into the Doubao system, with the relevant product teams reporting to Doubao head Zhao Qi. On October 9, TRAE announced the merger of TraeWork and TraeCode into a single product.

StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson published an article discussing the necessity of upgrading Starknet to L1 to address threats from the post-quantum era. He pointed out that quantum computing threats may be closer than expected, and the rapid development of AI could break existing security assumptions, necessitating that blockchain enters a "shelter mode" to quickly achieve future-proofing.Key elements include: adopting appropriate cryptographic technologies, having cryptographic flexibility, and becoming an independent L1. As L2, Starknet relies on Ethereum's security. Ethereum aims to achieve full quantum resistance by the end of 2029, while Bitcoin has yet to make such a commitment. If Starknet upgrades to L1, it could achieve this by 2027. This move would allow it to independently control security migration, becoming a quantum-resistant network for public or private transactions and asset holdings.

According to U.S. officials, despite Trump's fluctuating attitude towards restarting the war against Iran, the U.S. military is preparing plans to resume large-scale military operations against Iran.The U.S. Department of Defense has developed a new three-day strike plan against Iran, with three aircraft carriers set to be deployed in the Middle East.

SpaceX has received approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch 15,000 Starlink second-generation satellites for global 2GHz spectrum.

According to TASS, the Moscow Exchange plans to offer cryptocurrency trading services under the new regulatory framework starting from December 1.Boris Blokhin, Senior Managing Director of the Moscow Exchange, stated that the exchange will continue relevant testing work before the official launch.

The founder of the decentralized perpetual contract trading platform Hyperliquid, Jeff Yan, was interviewed by the Empire podcast at DAS 2026 Asia Station. When asked what he would build if he were a builder and no longer allowed to create infrastructure, he stated he would look at what hasn't been built yet and has real potential, depending on what other builders are doing.Jeff Yan mentioned that at least for now, he might explore options because he has heard many people want to trade options. He believes that perpetual contracts generally meet the needs of many users, but some users express that trading perpetual contracts does not satisfy all the market views they want to express.He thinks that HIP-4 is a very obvious way to build an options protocol, which can inherit spot, order books, and portfolio margin; on the market-making side, there are also perpetual contracts that can be used to hedge the delta of options. The key is how to turn that one element into something widely appealing. He does not believe that any products similar to options or convexity yield styles have truly achieved escape velocity in the crypto space, but such products have clearly done so in traditional finance.

Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder and CEO of StarkWare, stated that Starknet, as an L2 relying on Ethereum's underlying security, is considering various options, including transitioning to L1, in order to independently control the network security migration process and address the cryptographic risks posed by quantum computing and AI.Starknet is built on ZK-STARK, possesses cryptographic agility, and has developed a post-quantum security migration roadmap. Ethereum plans to achieve full resistance to quantum attacks at L1 by the end of 2029, while Bitcoin has not made a similar commitment. Starknet expects to implement related upgrades as early as 2027.

Alphabet's AI drug development company Isomorphic Labs, led by Demis Hassabis, is in early negotiations for a new round of financing, with a valuation of at least $40 billion, potentially reaching $50 billion.The company completed a $2.1 billion Series B financing in May this year. Reports also indicate that the application of AI in the biopharmaceutical field is still in its early stages, and more efforts are needed before clinical trials and product launches. This negotiation is still in the early stages, and specific terms and investor information have not been disclosed.

According to Fortune, retail proprietary trading startup Vest Labs announced the completion of a $13 million seed round of financing, led by Portal Ventures, with some executives from Citadel Securities, BlackRock, and KKR participating as individuals. The company did not disclose its post-financing valuation.Vest allows eligible traders to use the company's funds to trade perpetual contracts in real markets around the clock, with traders able to retain up to 80% of the profits, while the remainder goes to the company. The company stated that compared to some retail proprietary trading firms that rely on charging fees for simulated trading accounts, this model allows Vest to benefit from the success of traders rather than betting on their failure.The financing will be used to develop a mobile application, expand the current team of 22 people, and increase the variety of assets available for trading around the clock. According to Vest's own disclosure, as of late September, 26% of the approximately 27,000 traders on the platform had received cash payments, with monthly active traders and trading volume both increasing by over 300% month-over-month.

According to Globenewswire, the U.S. publicly traded company Genius Group announced the restart of its Bitcoin treasury purchase plan. After liquidating its Bitcoin reserves in April this year, the company purchased 10 Bitcoins for approximately $854,000 between October 2 and 5, at an average price of $85,364 per Bitcoin.This purchase is part of its execution of a $1.2 billion "dual treasury" capital plan, which aims to allocate $827 million to Bitcoin and $800 million to AI assets, with a plan to increase the total asset size to $2 billion by fiscal year 2031.

Binance has now completed the token merger of Stargate Finance (STG) into LayerZero (ZRO). The tokens have been distributed at a ratio of 1 STG = 0.08634 ZRO. The old STG tokens will no longer support deposits and withdrawals.

At the TOKEN2049 event in Singapore, OKX founder and CEO Star stated that AI's impact on the financial industry is not only occurring at the user level but is also deeply penetrating backend operations such as compliance and risk control. OKX has utilized AI to assist in identifying risks, supporting investigations of suspicious transactions and behaviors, and providing recommendations to enhance processing efficiency and execution consistency. Currently, AI does not make compliance or risk management decisions directly; the final decisions are still made by humans.On-site, OKX board member and former Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo also added that clear regulatory rules are an important foundation for fintech companies to expand their services. To provide financial services to a broader user base, companies must comply with regulatory requirements and establish public trust through compliant operations.