2026-01-20 04:23:48

2026 has just begun, and the cryptocurrency industry has already experienced a qualitative shift. The era of wild growth is completely over, and the current rules of the game are set by the Federal Reserve and global regulators together.

The Federal Reserve has already taken action. In 2025, it abolished the pre-approval process for banks' crypto businesses and launched the "Simplified Main Account" to allow compliant institutions to connect directly to the central bank's payment system—some even built their own exchanges, with a throughput of 1.7 million transactions per second. Coupled with the SEC's "Innovation Exemption" policy that took effect in January, DeFi and stablecoin projects can now directly obtain S-1 registration exemptions, and compliance sandboxes have been established. The regulatory attitude has shifted from suppression to empowerment—how strong is this signal?

The rest of the world hasn't been idle either. The EU's MiCA standards came into full effect in July, Hong Kong began issuing its first stablecoin licenses, and Japan cut its tax rate to 35%. The most critical change is on the banking side—JPMorgan Chase and Bank of New York Mellon have launched crypto custody services, and Standard Chartered is preparing compliant stablecoins. The channel for institutional funds to enter has been fully opened.

The market logic now boils down to two words: compliance. Stablecoins like USDC continue to attract funds, and the application scenarios for tokenized securities and cross-border payments are about to explode. While the Federal Reserve maintains the dollar's dominance and opens the floodgates, the crypto market in 2026 is no longer a playground for retail investors—this is the era of value investment led by institutions.

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MetaverseLandlord

· 10h ago

Compliance has been talked about for two years, and now it's finally serious. Retail investors, get ready to be pressed down by institutions. --- The Federal Reserve building its own exchange? This is a full takeover move, is there still room for wild growth? --- Wait, Japan's tax rate drops to 35%. What does this mean for exchanges? It feels like a fight for institutional clients. --- JPMorgan Chase launching custody services—this is the real turning point. Money is coming in. --- It's called empowerment in nice words, but actually it means holding the rules in your hand. The era of retail investors is truly over. --- USDC continues to siphon blood, the stablecoin battle is not over yet. --- Tokenized securities and cross-border payments—if these really take off, they will be on a different level. --- The channel for institutional entry is open, but will the liquidity be good? Or is it another way to cut costs? --- This article sounds like good news, but why do I feel retail investors' opportunities are actually fewer? --- Is the opening of dollar hegemony and easing really that simple?

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BlockchainRetirementHome

· 10h ago

Retail investors are really being marginalized now, look at JPMorgan all in Banks are competing in the stablecoin space, while we're still arguing about which coin has potential... The era of compliance has arrived, but so have the barriers. This round probably only allows institutional giants to perform Wait, the Federal Reserve's self-built exchange with 1.7 million transactions per second? Isn't that a bit over the top... The dividends of the era of wild growth are really gone for good, it's a bit regrettable If retail investors entering now don't have hundreds of millions, it probably won't be interesting anymore USDC is bleeding, institutions are harvesting profits, and we're small retail investors still dreaming of a turnaround From suppression to empowerment, in simple terms, the Federal Reserve wants to incorporate crypto into its system Once this trend emerges, there's little room for speculation; it has purely become an institutional game

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LayerZeroHero

· 10h ago

1.7 million transactions per second? Has it been tested? How is the cross-chain interoperability of the central bank's exchange? I have a feeling the data is too perfect.

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ForumLurker

· 10h ago

The era of compliance has arrived; retail investors need to wake up --- So now it's a situation where institutions eat the meat, and we drink the soup --- 170 million transactions per second? Is this number real? It’s a bit exaggerated --- JPMorgan has entered the market; this time, it’s truly different --- The Federal Reserve building its own exchange feels a bit strange --- Stablecoins are the trump card; other cryptocurrencies are just a waste of time --- Wait, Japan’s tax rate cut to 35%? Isn’t that still quite high --- The era of wild growth will never return, sigh --- USDC is taking off, while other stablecoins are cooling down --- Standard Chartered is preparing stablecoins; the big banks really can’t sit still

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MemecoinTrader

· 10h ago

yo the institutional gatekeeping is actually unhinged rn... fed playing 4d chess while we're stuck watching the price action

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