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Security concerns are slowing the adoption of cryptocurrency payments worldwide.

Bitget Wallet’s latest report found that 37% see security concerns as the biggest obstacle to crypto payment adoption.

Security concerns remain the biggest obstacle to the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency payments, as hacks and phishing scams continue to damage the industry’s legitimacy.

More than 37% of investors identified security risks as the main barrier to using cryptocurrency for payments,

according to a survey of 4,599 users conducted by Bitget Wallet as part of its latest Onchain Report shared with Cointelegraph.

Still, 46% of users said they preferred crypto payments over fiat for their speed and efficiency.

Bitget Wallet has implemented multi-layered protection mechanisms to make security a “top priority” and inspire more confidence in crypto payments, according to Alvin Kan, chief operating officer of Bitget Wallet:

“This includes MEV protection, which is now enabled by default across major chains like Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Solana, helping users avoid common risks like front-running and sandwich attacks. “

“We also introduced smart authorization detection via our GetShield engine, which actively scans smart contracts, DApps, and URLs to flag malicious behavior before users sign anything,” he told Cointelegraph.

Bitget Wallet’s operations are backed by a $300 million user protection fund as an additional layer of assurance in case of an “asset loss due to platform-level issues.”

Security concerns have plagued the industry, especially since the emergence of a new type of phishing attack known as address poisoning or wallet poisoning scams, which involve tricking victims into sending their digital assets to fraudulent addresses belonging to scammers.

Victims of address poisoning scams were tricked into willingly sending over $1.2 million worth of funds to scammers in the first three weeks of March.

While Gen X users cite security as their top concern, Gen Z users prioritize usability and cost-efficiency, Kan said.

Africa and Southeast Asia lead in crypto payment adoption
Bitget Wallet’s report found that 52% of African respondents and 51% of Southeast Asian respondents showed interest in crypto payments, driven by high remittance costs and limited banking access.

To help the world’s unbanked regions, Bitget Wallet offers simplified onboarding with non-custodial wallets that don’t require a traditional bank account, Kan said, adding:

“With support for over 130 blockchains and stablecoins, users can easily send and receive value globally, using assets that maintain purchasing power.”

“Local fiat on-ramps and multichain support ensure that users can tap into crypto without needing deep technical knowledge or centralized platforms,” he added.

In Latin America, high transaction costs associated with traditional wire transfers are the main factor driving users to adopt crypto payments, Kan said.

Such remittance fees averaged 7.34% during 2024 if they involved bank account transfers, according to Statista.

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Crypto companies seeking bank charters under Trump admin

Bank charter approvals have fallen since 2008, but crypto companies see opportunity under the welcoming new administration.

Cryptocurrency and fintech companies are increasingly seeking bank charters in an attempt to grow their businesses under the Trump administration, according to a report from Reuters, which talked to more than half a dozen industry executives.

The moves come as the administration is seen as more industry-friendly and there are opportunities to gain the licenses that regulators under previous administrations may have been slow to approve.

While discussions about pursuing bank charters are on the rise, it is unknown how many companies will ultimately follow through. It can cost tens of millions of dollars to start up a bank, but there are benefits such as increased credibility with the general public.

According to Reuters, 144 bank charter applications were approved every year between 2000 and 2007, but that number shrank to only five approved per year between 2010 and 2023. 2008 marked the year of the great financial crisis and subsequently increased scrutiny on banks.

The Trump administration has signaled openness to innovation in the finance sector, especially in the cryptocurrency industry. Since his January inauguration, President Trump has created a crypto working group, signed an executive order to create a national strategic Bitcoin
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reserve, and hosted the first White House crypto summit.

Crypto companies that have applied for bank charters in US
Although it is uncommon for crypto companies to seek bank charters in the United States, there are examples of some who succeeded in the 2020s.

Crypto exchange Kraken was approved for a bank charter in Wyoming in 2020, Anchorage Digital Bank received its charter in January 2021, and crypto lender Nexo purchased a stake in a holding company that owns a federally-chartered bank in 2022.

Companies face challenges when applying for bank charters in the United States such as compliance with anti-money laundering laws and adherence to the Bank Secrecy Act. The increased regulatory oversight and centralization may also run contrary to the spirit of crypto, where decentralization is a core value.

However, securing a bank charter comes with a major financial benefit: companies that do so can lower the cost of capital by accepting deposits.

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Trump executive order raises EU concerns over USD stablecoin dominance

US dollar-pegged stablecoins account for 97% of the global stablecoin market, raising concerns in the EU about Trump’s plans to push dollar dominance through stablecoins.

US President Donald Trump’s executive order on the country’s leadership in digital financial technology has escalated the European Union’s concerns around US dollar dominance in the stablecoin market.

European Central Bank (ECB) executive board member Piero Cipollone addressed the digital euro’s role in supporting Europe’s financial and strategic autonomy at a panel of the 13th ILF Conference on the Future of the Financial Sector in Frankfurt on Jan. 24.

Cipollone expressed concerns over US dollar dominance in the stablecoin market, which is a major reason for the European Union to continue building its central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital euro.

US dollar stablecoins account for 97% of all stablecoins globally
During the panel, Cipollone raised concerns over Europe’s growing reliance on international card schemes, which currently settle more than 60% of card payments in the EU.

He also mentioned the rapid growth of mobile app payments in the EU, which saw their value share in day-to-day retail payment transactions grow from 1% in 2019 to 9% in 2024.

Among other concerns, Cipollone referred to the overwhelming role of the US dollar in the stablecoin market. At the time of writing, dollar-backed stablecoins account for 97% of the global stablecoin market, which is valued at $215 billion, according to CoinGecko.

Given these concerns, Cipollone reiterated the need for a digital euro to preserve people’s access to central bank money and to allow European banks to continue serving a key role in our financial system.

Trump pushes dollar sovereignty and further growth through stablecoins
Adding to the EU’s concerns around the overwhelming role of the US dollar in the stablecoin market, the Trump administration has signaled its intention to further promote dollar-backed stablecoins.

In the executive order (EO) on “Strengthening American leadership in digital financial technology,” the Trump administration pledged to promote the US dollar’s sovereignty, “including through actions to promote the development and growth of lawful and legitimate dollar-backed stablecoins worldwide.”

While pushing US dollar stablecoins, the order prohibits the establishment, issuance, circulation and use of CBDCs in the US, raising significant challenges for global CBDC development.

Is dollar supremacy the ultimate goal of Trump’s EO?
While many in the crypto community see the executive order as confirmation of Trump’s pro-crypto agenda, some observers suggested that its ultimate goal is to maintain US dollar dominance worldwide.

“In the crypto executive order, broad statements are meant to put the US at the forefront of the development of digital financial assets and infrastructure,” attorney David Lesperance told Cointelegraph, adding:

“However, that support ends if any of those developments threaten the USD as the world’s reserve currency. Specifically targeted are CBDC.”
According to Lesperance, the Trump administration would likely be willing to curb CBDC development worldwide.

“Trump is clearly using bargaining chips such as the threat of tariffs as a means to force the EU and other economies to impose a similar CBDC ban,” the attorney stated.

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Dark Knight & Superman writer launches AI-powered crypto film universe

Hollywood veteran David S. Goyer (The Dark Knight and Blade) is pioneering a blockchain- and AI-based creative platform he hopes will revolutionize the film industry.

David S. Goyer, the screenwriter behind the Dark Night and Blade film franchises, is heading up an innovative new sci-fi project called Emergence that aims to overturn Hollywood’s business model using blockchain and artificial intelligence.

Launched Jan. 28 on the Incention platform on Story Protocol, Emergence is a crowdsourced science fiction franchise that tracks community contributions to its intellectual property using smart contracts and pays users for them via cryptocurrency rails.

Goyer, who was also the showrunner for the first season seasons of the Apple TV series Foundation and one of the writers of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, is overseeing the creative aspects of Emergence and wrote its story “bible.”

The aim of the project is to create a universe like Star Wars or the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where different creators — from professionals to members of the public — can launch their own projects. If the model proves successful,

Incention hopes that other film and TV studios will open up their existing IP for new creators to build on while taking a cut of the proceeds, which are tracked via blockchain.

“We’re trying to create the environment for anyone — whether you’re a crypto enthusiast, a professional creator or a semi-pro creator — to fall in love with a brand new universe and then use emerging technology to turn around and become a creator within that space,” explained Chase Rosenblatt, co-founder and CEO of Incention.

An AI agent called Atlas has been trained on the story bible and will answer user questions about the rules and canon of the universe to ensure consistency. The agent will also sort through IP contributions and help manage logistics.

Story, which raised $143 million in funding in a number of rounds led by a16z, launched its developer mainnet on Jan. 20. Its founder, Jason Zhao,

told Cointelegraph Magazine in December that the protocol aims to simplify intellectual property licensing issues via legally enforceable smart contracts.

Emergence: White fountains and infinite possibilities
The story bible tells of another galaxy where “white fountains” have appeared. They’re the opposite of black holes and spew mysterious objects back into the universe.

“No one knows who made them or why, whether it’s some other race’s trash or whether these things have been sent to poison the galaxy. But they’re immensely powerful,

and the discovery of these objects has created a new gold rush. Now everyone from freebooters to corporations to whole planets is after these objects,” Goyer told Cointelegraph.

“I was trying to create something that provides these little seeds, or a yogurt starter, for people to take off on,” he explained.

“We’re waiting for some really brilliant person out wherever to flesh that in and [for the community to] vote on it and make it part of canon.”
The top community-voted contributions go to council review and then, if approved, become part of the canon.

Award-winning science fiction authors Rich Larson, Rebecca Roanhorse, Adam Roberts and Chen Qiufan have already written stories based in the world, with concept artists illustrating the central ideas.

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US Senator calls crypto regulation ’a matter of national importance’

Lawyers for Cynthia Lummis filed an amicus brief as part of Coinbase’s appeal over a ruling in its case with the SEC, claiming the commission “flouts” its enforcement authority.

Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, a crypto holder and US lawmaker vocal about her support for legislation and regulation favoring the digital asset industry, has penned an amicus brief in support of Coinbase’s appeal against the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In a Jan. 24 filing in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, Lummis claimed that the SEC “flouts” its approach to crypto enforcement cases, arguing that the regulator exceeded its authority. The senator said that “decades-old securities statutes and regulations” could not always be applied to modern assets like cryptocurrencies and called for lawmakers to establish a framework for digital assets.

“With lawsuits pending across the country that rely on the SEC’s overzealous interpretation of the securities laws, it is vital that the Second Circuit — the country’s leading securities law court — weigh in now and halt the SEC’s contravention of the separation of powers and encroachment on Congress’s lawmaking powers,”

said the amicus brief. “A Second Circuit standard regarding when digital assets qualify as securities is urgently needed.”

The appeal to the Second Circuit could determine whether the SEC’s civil case against Coinbase moves forward in the Southern District of New York. On Jan. 7, Judge Katherine Failla ordered the SEC case to be stayed until the appellate court could rule on potentially reversing an order denying Coinbase’s motion for judgment.

Will most cryptocurrencies be labeled “securities” under the SEC’s new leadership?
At the center of the regulator’s case against Coinbase is the interpretation of securities laws and how they may apply to certain cryptocurrencies and activities at digital asset firms. Senator Lummis said the SEC had a “novel interpretation” of the law in its crypto enforcement cases, claiming that Congress did not intend to grant the commission such authority.

Should the appellate court reverse the lower court ruling, it could impact how the SEC handles pending enforcement actions against crypto exchanges, including Ripple Labs and Binance.

Former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, whom many in the industry claimed spearheaded the lawsuits, stepped down on Jan. 20, but the commission’s cases are still moving through the courts.

US President Donald Trump nominated former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins to take over the remainder of Gensler’s term, ending in June 2026. Commissioner Mark Uyeda has been serving as acting chair until the Senate considers Atkins’ nomination.

Following Republicans taking majority control of the US Senate on Jan. 3, lawmakers chose Lummis to chair the chamber’s subcommittee on digital assets.

In the House of Representatives, Wisconsin Representative ​​Bryan Steil will chair the subcommittee on crypto, fintech and AI under the Financial Services Committee.

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Russia is free to use Bitcoin in foreign trade, says finance minister

Russia has all legal tools to use digital financial assets and Bitcoin in foreign trade, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said.

Russia has been actively experimenting with digital financial assets (DFA) in foreign trade in line with the country’s legislation, according to a senior government official.

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov discussed US dollar alternatives for international trade in an interview on the state-owned news channel Russia-24 on Dec. 25.

Siluanov said the Russian government has passed legislation authorizing foreign trades in DFAs and Bitcoin
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.

According to the minister, such foreign trade transactions have already been in use, and Russia plans to develop and scale that further.

“We can use mined Bitcoin”
In the interview, Siluanov said that in the present circumstances, implementing DFAs in foreign trade as an alternative to the US dollar is “quite understandable” as it enables the use of modern infrastructure.

It’s an innovation in the global settlement system, he said, adding, “That is the future.”

Siluanov said Russia is free to use digital financial assets — including Bitcoin — in foreign trade, in line with its experimental legal regime, which came into force in September 2024.

He stated:

“We can pay for the delivery of goods with digital financial assets. It is also possible to use Bitcoin, which we mined here in the Russian Federation, within the experimental regime.”

The finance minister mentioned that Russia legalized mining earlier this year. “That is why such transactions are going.

We say that they need to be developed and expanded, and I am sure that next year, it will be a reality,” he added.

Siluanov warned against crypto investment amid Bitcoin’s ATHs
Siluanov’s latest remarks on DFAs and Bitcoin come a few weeks after the finance minister urged the public to stay away from crypto investment in November.

“Some people see cryptocurrency as a source of quick money. I don’t recommend it as a means of investment,” the minister stated in a speech at a local educational event on Nov. 6.

“Definitely not. Today, there are plenty of other ways to invest and make good money,” Siluanov stated.

At the time of Siluanov’s warning, Bitcoin was hitting all-time highs above $76,000 and was heading toward a historic milestone of $100,000 smashed in just about 30 days.