Building Blocks #47
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Birds Eye View (vs Last 7 Days)
?? Overall Crypto Market Cap: $2.85 Trillion (-10%)
?? BTC Dominance: 57.5% (-0.3 PPT)
?? Price Snapshot:
?? Bitcoin: $86488 (-10.9%)
?? Ethereum: $2355 (-13.6%)
? XRP: $2.22 (-17%)
?? Solana: $141 (-17%)
Dubai recognizes USDC, EURC as first stablecoins under token regime
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has formally approved Circle's digital currencies USDC and EURC (EURC) as recognized tokens within its cryptocurrency framework — marking them as the initial stablecoins to receive such recognition under the system.
This recognition enables businesses within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) to now incorporate these two stablecoins across various digital asset functions, including payment systems, financial management, and related offerings.
Founded in 2004, the DIFC functions as a financial hub and free economic zone serving organizations operating across the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. The DIFC reports approximately 7,000 companies currently active in the district, representing a 25% growth from 2023. The district exclusively permits the use and operation of recognized cryptocurrency tokens.
The recognition of USDC and EURC as approved tokens aligns with the expanding regulatory framework in the United Arab Emirates. Throughout 2024, UAE regulators have implemented various regulations and licensing structures that continue to shape the nation's growing cryptocurrency industry.
The UAE Central Bank sanctioned a new regulatory framework for stablecoin oversight and licensing in June. Additionally, Dubai modified its cryptocurrency token regulations for funds that month, enabling both international and local funds to make digital asset investments.
While Circle's stablecoins lead in DIFC recognition, its rival Tether is establishing presence elsewhere in the UAE. Tether's dollar-pegged stablecoin, USDt, gained recognition as a virtual asset in Abu Dhabi during December 2024. Tether is also expanding USDT into UAE property markets through collaboration with Reelly Tech, a UAE property platform.
Circle continues increasing USDC production. Between Jan. 8 and Feb. 10, the stablecoin's market value increased from $45.6 billion to $56.3 billion, showing 23.4% growth. As of Feb. 24, USDC's market value reaches $57.2 billion. However, Tether's USDT maintains market dominance at 63%, based on DefiLlama data.
Stablecoin adoption growth has emerged as a key theme in this cryptocurrency market uptrend. The total stablecoin market value has grown by approximately $100 billion since December 2023.
Bank of America CEO mulls entering stablecoin business
Bank of America's CEO, Brian Moynihan, has indicated to attendees at the Economic Club of Washington DC that the banking giant plans to introduce a stablecoin offering once appropriate legislation is enacted in the US.
As reported by Fortune, during his address at the Economic Club of Washington DC, Moynihan stated, "Once regulatory approval is granted, we'll enter this market segment."
The chief executive mentioned the bank's capability to issue dollar-backed digital tokens connected to customers' deposit accounts, though he remained reserved about specific product details.
Stablecoins are projected to flourish during President Donald Trump's term as new regulations are implemented to utilize overcollateralized dollar-linked tokens to strengthen USD supremacy in global commerce and attract stablecoin operations domestically.
US legislators have put forward multiple stablecoin regulatory proposals, including the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act, the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act of 2024, and the GENIUS stablecoin bill.
In February 2025, House Financial Services Committee ranking member Rep. Maxine Waters advocated for cross-party regulation of stablecoins.
The Representative expressed support for the stablecoin regulatory legislation drafted by former House Financial Services Committee chairman Patrick McHenry in 2024 over alternative proposals.
Senator Bill Hagerty's Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act of 2024 expands upon McHenry's proposal with a notable addition. Hagerty incorporated a clause enabling stablecoin issuers with market caps below $10 billion to operate under state rather than federal oversight.
Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller endorsed bank-issued stablecoins at a Feb. 12 conference.
Waller portrayed stablecoins as an opportunity to transform international payments and trade — suggesting both banking and non-banking entities should be permitted to issue regulated stablecoins.
"I'm observing numerous private sector participants seeking ways to facilitate stablecoin adoption for retail transactions," noted the Federal Reserve governor.
Stablecoins' minimal costs and instantaneous settlement capabilities have established digital fiat tokens as the preferred option for remittances and cross-border transfers that traditionally require days or weeks to process and involve substantial fees.
USDe stablecoin issuer Ethena raises $100M to launch new token — Report
Ethena, a decentralized stablecoin initiative behind the "synthetic dollar" USDe, has allegedly completed a private token offering to introduce a new digital currency.
The project has secured $100 million in funding from various investors, with Franklin Templeton among them, to develop a blockchain network and release a token targeting traditional financial markets (TradFi). Bloomberg made this announcement on Feb. 24, referencing an anonymous source familiar with the development.
The token sale was reportedly finalized in December 2024, with investors acquiring Ethena's native governance token, Ethena, at a median price point of $0.40.
Following the sale announcement, ENA reached a several-month peak of $1.30 in mid-December, subsequently experiencing a 70% decline in value, as shown by CoinGecko statistics.
Besides Franklin Templeton, the private funding round allegedly included prominent industry participants, including F-Prime Capital (affiliated with Fidelity Investments), Dragonfly Capital Partners, Polychain Capital, and Pantera Capital Management.
The reported fundraising coincided with Ethena's collaboration announcement with World Liberty Financial (WFLI), a decentralized finance (DeFi) venture supported by U.S. President Donald Trump.
The partnership agreement involves WFLI and Ethena combining sUSDe — a staked variant of Ethena USDe (USDE) — with WFLI's Aave implementation, allowing participants to stake USDe and earn both sUSDe and World Liberty's WLF tokens as rewards.
The report indicates that Ethena intends to utilize the fundraising proceeds to establish its blockchain platform and launch the TradFi token.
In a January update, Ethena Labs founder Guy Young revealed plans to introduce iUSDe, a solution crafted for regulated financial institutions.
Similar to sUSDe, the upcoming iUSDe token aims to implement a "simple wrapper contract" incorporating transfer limitations at the token level "to enable traditional financial entities to hold and utilize it."
Young stated that facilitating iUSDe access for TradFi distribution partners would be Ethena's primary objective during the first quarter of 2025.
XRP Ledger unveils institutional DeFi roadmap
Ripple Labs has announced its strategic plan for developing an institutional decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem on the XRP Ledger blockchain platform, as detailed in a Feb. 25 blog announcement.
The blockchain company is focusing on applications that establish XRP Ledger as "a reliable, protected, and high-performance layer 1 for financial institutions seeking blockchain integration within regulatory frameworks," the company stated.
These include a controlled decentralized exchange (DEX), a credit-driven DeFi lending system, and an innovative token framework called multi-purpose token (MPT), Ripple announced.
Each component will utilize XRP Ledger's "decentralized identifiers" to embed compliance verification within the application's smart contracts, the company explained.
XRP Ledger's development plan enhances existing components, including price feed systems and an automated market maker (AMM).
The value of XRP Ledger's native cryptocurrency, XRP has surged over 300% since Nov. 5, following crypto-supportive Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election.
As of Feb. 26, XRP's market value reaches approximately $128 billion, based on CoinMarketCap data.
Yet, XRP Ledger's usage remains below competing networks. Its total value locked (TVL) is about $80 million, while Ethereum holds more than $50 billion, shows DefiLlama statistics.
Unlike blockchain systems such as Ethereum, XRP Ledger hasn't traditionally allowed external smart contract deployment.
Features like XRP Ledger's AMM are implemented by Ripple's primary development team.
The DEX has processed over $1 billion in cryptocurrency exchanges since its 2024 launch, according to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse.
Established in 2012, XRP Ledger ranks among the earliest blockchain networks.
Ripple anticipates that embracing institutional DeFi, including real-world assets (RWAs), will accelerate the network's expansion, the blog post indicates.
Tokenized RWAs present a $30-trillion market potential globally, stated Colin Butler, Polygon's global head of institutional capital, in an interview.
Trump, who pledged to transform the US into the "world's crypto capital," intends to appoint industry-favorable leaders to key financial regulatory positions, including the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Multiple asset managers have submitted applications for XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US, which JPMorgan predicts could draw billions in investment flows.
Analysts suggest that the SEC lawsuit against Ripple, continuing since 2022, might be suspended or completely withdrawn.
On Feb. 25, the US regulator concluded its investigation into Uniswap, a DEX, as part of a broader crypto policy shift under Trump.
Altcoin ETFs are coming, but demand may be limited: Analysts
Investment analysts are predicting that exchange-traded funds (ETFs) focused on alternative cryptocurrencies might struggle to attract significant investor interest, even if they receive approval for launch in the United States this year.
Multiple asset management firms have submitted over a dozen applications to introduce US ETFs that would hold various altcoins, including Solana, XRP, Litecoin, and others. Industry experts anticipate numerous approvals from US regulators in 2025.
According to Katalin Tischhauser, head of research at Sygnum, the initial demand for altcoin ETFs will be considerably lower compared to mainstream cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether, with retail investors being the primary audience.
Tischhauser projects that altcoin ETFs will attract total inflows between several hundred million and $1 billion, significantly less than the over $100 billion in net assets currently held by US Bitcoin ETFs.
According to Tischhauser, investors who are knowledgeable enough about crypto to be familiar with altcoins like SOL typically already possess spot cryptocurrencies either on-chain or through spot exchanges.
Tischhauser added that institutional investors and wealth managers are more likely to gain altcoin exposure through index funds that passively track the broader cryptocurrency market.
On Feb. 20, Franklin Templeton debuted its dual-cryptocurrency ETF, incorporating both spot Bitcoin and Ether. This launch followed closely behind Hashdex's pioneering cryptocurrency index ETF, the Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (NCIQ), which was introduced on Feb. 14.
Currently, these funds exclusively hold BTC and ETH, though they maintain the flexibility to incorporate additional cryptocurrencies subject to regulatory approval.
Asset management firms pursuing altcoin ETF launches display greater optimism, referencing JPMorgan's analysis that forecasts aggregate demand for altcoin ETFs potentially surpassing $14 billion.
Federico Brokate, who heads 21Shares' US operations, emphasized that ETF-wrapped altcoins could benefit even cryptocurrency-savvy investors.
Additionally, "investors can seamlessly integrate these assets into their existing investment portfolio with a single transaction."
Brokate noted that professional wealth managers, particularly independent registered investment advisors (RIAs), are expressing interest in altcoin ETF allocations as a means of market differentiation.
Independent RIAs emerged as early institutional adopters of BTC and ETH ETFs following US regulatory approval in 2024.
Matt Horne, head of digital asset strategists at Fidelity Investments, shared in an interview that for novel investment vehicles like crypto ETFs, "each client segment follows its own 'adoption spectrum.'"
"While some embraced Bitcoin early, others will gradually increase their adoption over time."
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