Stablecoins face regulatory pressure, institutional capital continues to increase BTC and ETH positions

Source: CritpoTendencia Original Title: Stablecoins under regulatory pressure as institutional capital increases positions in BTC and ETH Original Link:

US Passes GENIUS Act, Establishes New Regulatory Framework for Stablecoins

The US has launched the Stablecoin National Innovation and Establishment Act (GENIUS), which was approved on July 18. The act aims to free dollar-pegged stablecoins from regulatory ambiguity. The new framework places these tokens under payment-focused oversight and sets strict capital adequacy and transparency requirements.

The regulation requires authorized issuers to maintain a 1:1 ratio between issued tokens and high-quality assets, including cash, Federal Reserve balances, and short-term Treasury bonds and money market funds. In addition, issuers must provide parity redemption, regularly disclose reserves, and undergo audits when exceeding certain thresholds.

While supporters cheer for legal clarity and consumer protection, criticism has also followed. Some analysts warn that reserve requirements turn issuers into structural buyers of US Treasury debt. Every dollar-issued digital currency becomes a regulated sovereign debt purchase.

South Korea Requires Draft Stablecoin Bill Submission by December 10

South Korean lawmakers have increased pressure on financial regulators, demanding submission of a draft bill to regulate crypto stablecoins by December 10, aiming to resolve ongoing disagreements over the role banks should play in their issuance and oversight.

According to local media, the ruling party has issued an ultimatum to regulators to speed up the process. Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Jun-hyun warned that if the bill is not submitted by the deadline, the relevant parliamentary committee will unilaterally approve the bill.

If submitted on time, the draft is expected to be debated at a special session of the National Assembly scheduled for January 2026.

BitMine Increases Treasury to $12.1 Billion, Now Controls Over 3% of Ethereum Supply

BitMine Immersion (BMNR) reported that the total value of its crypto assets, cash, and tech investments has reached $12.1 billion, mainly due to its claim of owning the world’s largest Ethereum treasury.

Despite the recent market downturn, the company has ramped up purchases: last week alone, it acquired 96,798 ETH for about $273 million—an increase of 39% over its usual pace. Company president Tom Lee stated that with this position, BitMine now controls more than 3% of the total Ethereum supply and claims to be moving toward an internal goal of accumulating 5% of the network, “two-thirds of the way there.”

Lee pointed to several factors he believes will drive increased demand for ETH, including a network upgrade scheduled for December 3 and the imminent end of Federal Reserve quantitative easing. He stated that after a major liquidation event in October, the market has now seen seven straight weeks of recovery.

MicroStrategy Expands Massive BTC Position After Purchasing 130 BTC for $117 Million

MicroStrategy further increased its already massive Bitcoin reserves by purchasing 130 BTC (worth about $117 million), according to an 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. These acquisitions took place between November 17 and 30 at an average price of $89,960 per unit.

With this transaction, the company led by Michael Saylor has accumulated 650,000 BTC, worth approximately $56 billion. Its historical average purchase price is $74,436, which means the company still holds about $7.6 billion in unrealized gains despite the recent market correction. The company now controls over 3% of Bitcoin’s maximum supply of 21 million coins.

The new purchases were financed by selling 8.21 million shares of class A common stock (MSTR) on the market, generating about $1.48 billion in proceeds over the past two weeks. As of November 30, the company still has authorization to issue an additional $1.337 billion in stock under its current plan, while its perpetual preferred stock program still has $30.2 billion of available capacity.