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Some past enforcement actions against cryptocurrency companies lacked clear investor benefit and misinterpreted federal securities laws, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said on Tuesday.

Since the 2022 fiscal year, the SEC brought 95 actions and $2.3 billion in penalties for “book-and-record violations,” it said in a statement about its enforcement results for 2025.

“Together with seven crypto firm registration-related and six ‘definition of a dealer’ cases, these cases identified no direct investor harm from those violations, produced no investor benefit or protection.”

It also reflected a “bias for volume of cases brought versus matters of investor protection,” a misallocation of resources and a misinterpretation of federal securities laws, the SEC said.

It is the latest example of the regulator’s shift in approach towards enforcement since it came under new leadership under SEC Chair Paul Atkins in April 2025.

His predecessor, former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, has been accused of pursuing a regulation-by-enforcement approach toward crypto. Since his departure, the SEC has adopted a friendlier stance toward digital assets.

SEC said it is shifting its focus to quality over quantity

In the lead-up to Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration, the SEC enforcement division engaged in an “unprecedented rush” to bring cases and moved ahead with an “aggressive pursuit of novel legal theories,” the agency said.

Atkins said the agency has since shifted away from this approach, ending regulation by enforcement and refocusing on the commission’s core mission by prioritizing cases that provide meaningful investor protection and strengthen market integrity.

“We have redirected resources toward the types of misconduct that inflict the greatest harm—particularly fraud, market manipulation, and abuses of trust—and away from approaches that prioritized volume and record-setting penalties over true investor protection,” he added.

Consulting firm Cornerstone Research reported in November that under Atkins, the number of enforcement actions against public companies, including those involving crypto, decreased by about 30% in fiscal 2025 compared with fiscal 2024.

In connection with 2025 enforcement actions, the SEC said it obtained orders for monetary relief totaling $17.9 billion, comprising $7.2 billion in civil penalties and the remainder in disgorgement and prejudgment interest.

“This year’s enforcement results clarify the flaws of these actions and their respective penalties and re-establish the definition and measure of enforcement effectiveness, grounded in Congress’ original intent and focused on bringing actions that actually prevent investor harm instead of headlines and inflated numbers,” the SEC said.

Some crypto companies are still in the firing line

Despite the SEC’s enforcement shift, several crypto companies were still hit with enforcement actions in 2025.

In May 2025, Unicoin and four of its current and former executives were sued by the SEC for allegedly raising $100 million by misleading investors about certificates that purported to convey rights to receive Unicoin tokens and stock. However, the platform has accused the agency of distorting its regulatory statements to build a case.

The SEC also filed a civil complaint against Ramil Ventura Palafox in April 2025, CEO of Praetorian Group International, for allegedly orchestrating a $200 million Ponzi scheme. A parallel criminal case brought by the US Department of Justice resulted in Palafox’s February sentence of 20 years in prison.

Can you trade a token that tracks the Goldman Sachs stock price — without a brokerage account, without KYC, and without waiting for Wall Street’s trading hours?

That’s the specific thing DeFiChain built.

When DeFiChain announced the addition of four new dTokens — dJNJ (Johnson & Johnson), dDAX (DAX ETF), dADS (Adidas), and dGS (Goldman Sachs) — it was adding to a system already offering tokenized versions of Tesla, Apple, Amazon, Google, and dozens of other traditional financial assets. All of it running on a blockchain built as a fork of Bitcoin, anchored to the Bitcoin network every few minutes for security.

The concept sounds simple. The mechanics are not. This article explains both.

What DeFiChain Is, and Why Bitcoin Matters Here

DeFiChain was founded in 2019 by Dr. Julian Hosp and U-Zyn Chua (Chua is also chief engineer at Zynesis and a blockchain advisor to the Singapore government). The mainnet launched on May 11, 2020. Its stated purpose: bring decentralized financial services to the Bitcoin ecosystem.

This positioning matters because most DeFi runs on Ethereum. DeFiChain took a different path: build a dedicated blockchain as a software fork of Bitcoin’s codebase, then anchor it to the Bitcoin blockchain via a Merkle root every few blocks. The practical result is that DeFiChain inherits Bitcoin’s security model — one of the most battle-tested in crypto — while adding DeFi functionality that Bitcoin itself can never natively support.

The trade-off is intentional. DeFiChain uses a non-Turing complete transaction scripting language. That means it can’t run arbitrary smart contracts the way Ethereum can. It’s deliberately limited to DeFi-specific operations: lending, exchanges, asset tokenization, liquidity mining, staking. Less surface area for exploits. Faster, cheaper transactions. More predictable behaviour. Not the right design for every use case — but arguably the right design for a platform dedicated to financial services on the Bitcoin security layer.

The native token is DFI, capped at 1.2 billion. It functions as payment for transaction fees, governance (masternode holders vote on DeFiChain Improvement Proposals, or DFIPs), and collateral for minting dTokens. Running a staking node requires 20,000 DFI locked as collateral. Over 10,000 masternodes distributed globally secure the network.

What Are dTokens?

dTokens are decentralised asset tokens on DeFiChain that track the price of real-world assets: US stocks, ETFs, commodities, indices. The key word is track. Holding a dToken does not give you equity ownership in the underlying company. No shareholder rights, no dividends, no vote at the annual meeting. What you get is price exposure — if Apple’s stock goes up 15%, dAAPL goes up approximately 15%.

That distinction matters, and most tokenized stocks across all platforms work the same way — they’re price-linked digital contracts, not legal ownership of shares.

What makes dTokens different from a derivatives contract at a broker:

• No intermediary. You mint and trade directly on-chain through DeFiChain’s decentralised exchange.
• No trading hours. dTokens trade 24 hours a day, seven days a week. dTSLA doesn’t close when the NASDAQ does.
• Fractional access. You don’t need to buy a full share of Goldman Sachs at $500+. You can hold $5 worth of dGS.
• No geographic restrictions. A user in Indonesia or Nigeria can get price exposure to the S&P 500 or Adidas stock without a US brokerage account.
• Yield opportunity. Providing liquidity to dToken pools on DeFiChain’s DEX generates liquidity mining rewards, paid in DFI.

The asset list DeFiChain built out over 2021–2022 included not just the four new additions (JNJ, DAX, Adidas, Goldman Sachs) but also dTSLA, dAAPL, dGOOGL, dAMZN, dMSFT, dNFLX, dMETA, dSPY (S&P 500 ETF), dQQQ, precious metals, and more.

The Four New dTokens: JNJ, DAX, Adidas, Goldman Sachs

dJNJ — Johnson & Johnson J&J is one of the most traded healthcare stocks globally, consistent dividend payer, component of the Dow Jones. Adding dJNJ extended DeFiChain’s healthcare sector exposure and gave non-US investors a path to pharmaceutical/consumer health price exposure without opening a US brokerage account.

dDAX — DAX ETF The DAX is Germany’s benchmark stock index — 40 major German companies including SAP, Siemens, BASF, and Deutsche Bank. Adding the DAX ETF made DeFiChain genuinely international: rather than a list of primarily US tech stocks, users could now access European market exposure on a Bitcoin-anchored blockchain. This was a meaningful differentiation from Ethereum-based competitors at the time.

dADS — Adidas Adidas stock (listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange) brought more European equity exposure. Adidas shares tend to be volatile around product launches and partnership news — a product that appeals to traders looking for short-term momentum alongside longer-term holders.

dGS — Goldman Sachs Goldman Sachs is one of the flagship financial institutions in global markets. Adding a tokenized Goldman Sachs exposure on a DeFi platform built on Bitcoin had a certain symbolic weight — a Wall Street titan available to trade on a decentralised exchange at 3am on a Sunday.

Together, these four additions moved DeFiChain’s dToken offering from US-tech-centric to a more internationally diversified pool of traditional financial assets.

How dTokens Are Minted: The Collateral Mechanics

Creating a new dToken requires collateral. The collateralisation system works as follows:

Option A: DFI + other assets. A user locks a minimum 150% collateral ratio — typically a combination of 50% DFI and 50% other supported assets — and mints dTokens against that collateral. If the underlying stock price rises and the collateral ratio falls below the minimum, the position faces liquidation.

Option B: dUSD. DeFiChain’s decentralised stablecoin (dUSD) can also be used as the minting collateral. The dUSD itself is a decentralised stablecoin backed by the vault system — not issued by any central entity.

Oracle price feeds. The accuracy of dTokens depends on oracle price data — external price feeds that tell the blockchain what Apple or Goldman Sachs is actually trading at in the real world. DeFiChain uses a decentralised oracle system where multiple trusted sources submit price data and the median is used. Price accuracy during after-hours or weekend trading (when markets are closed) relies on the last available price.

Loan vaults. The infrastructure for dToken minting runs through DeFiChain’s loan vault system. Each vault tracks the collateral-to-loan ratio in real time. The vault owner earns yield from providing collateral (through liquidity mining rewards), while taking on the risk of liquidation if the collateral value drops relative to the minted asset.

The Broader dToken Ecosystem in 2025–2026

The tokenized real-world assets market has grown substantially since DeFiChain’s early dToken launches. On-chain RWAs rose from approximately $5.5 billion in early 2025 to $18.6 billion by year-end, according to RWA.xyz data. Analysts project the market reaching $2 trillion by 2030 under base scenarios. Tokenized US Treasury products alone exceeded $9 billion by late 2025.

DeFiChain was among the earliest movers in this space, building out a tokenized stock system in 2021–2022 when most DeFi protocols were focused on crypto-native yield farming. The DeFi Meta Chain (DMC) — DeFiChain’s EVM-compatible layer — expanded the ecosystem further in 2023–2024, making DeFiChain assets accessible to Ethereum-native wallets and developers.

In late 2024, DeFiChain launched cUSDC — a cross-chain stablecoin that moves between DeFiChain and Polygon, providing portable stability rather than locking value within DeFiChain’s native environment. The DTL (DeFiChain Technical Lab) team was also developing native dUSDC — a decentralised version not backed by any single entity — as of early 2026, though the bridge from cUSDC to native dUSDC remained in development due to resource constraints.

A significant community governance vote in early 2026 (95.26% approval) redirected approximately 58,200 DFI per day from block rewards to the Community Fund, strengthening the treasury’s capacity to fund development, grants, and ecosystem growth.

DeFiChain also ranked third globally among DeFi projects by development activity in February 2025, according to Santiment data — ahead of Synthetix and Liquity, behind only Chainlink and DeepBook on Sui. For a project with a sub-$10M market cap at the time, that development velocity was notable.

The Competitive Context: Tokenized Stocks in 2025

DeFiChain pioneered decentralised tokenized stocks on a Bitcoin-anchored blockchain, but the broader market has evolved. By December 2025, tokenized public equities reached approximately $683 million in total on-chain value across all platforms, generating around $1.74 billion in monthly transfer volume. Ethereum holds the largest share with roughly $329 million, followed by Solana ($158 million) and Algorand ($130 million).

The dominant players in tokenized stocks are now Backed Finance and Ondo Finance, together accounting for roughly 95% of the tokenized stock market. These platforms operate on Ethereum primarily, and their growth reflects the broader institutional adoption of on-chain real-world assets following BlackRock’s $1.8 billion BUIDL fund launch in 2024.

DeFiChain’s dToken approach differs from these in one significant way: dTokens are synthetic, created through a collateralised vault system on a decentralised blockchain, with no custodian holding actual shares. Backed Finance, by contrast, holds real shares in custody. Both approaches have trade-offs — DeFiChain’s is more decentralised but requires active collateral management; Backed Finance’s is more capital-efficient but introduces custody risk and regulatory exposure.

The competition hasn’t made DeFiChain’s system obsolete. It has positioned dTokens as the most decentralised version of tokenized stock exposure available — particularly valuable for users in jurisdictions where regulated tokenized stocks aren’t accessible.

DeFiChain’s Current State (April 2026)

The DFI token’s price trajectory has been difficult. CoinGecko shows DFI trading at approximately $0.0009–$0.003 in early 2026, down dramatically from its December 2021 ATH of $5.61. The market cap sits below $3 million — a significant decline from the $2 billion+ peak. The dUSD peg has also experienced strain, with 1 dUSD trading around 5.08 DFI rather than the intended 1:1 ratio, which the community fund proposal was specifically designed to address.

That said, DeFiChain’s technical development has continued. The DFI ERC-20 format on Uniswap opened the ecosystem to Ethereum users. The Huobi listing in 2022 expanded exchange availability. The interchain development (version 1.0 tested on devnet) is positioning DeFiChain for cross-chain connectivity beyond Polygon.

The gap between the technical work happening in the ecosystem and the DFI token price reflects a common pattern in DeFi infrastructure: development continues, but market sentiment has not yet rewarded it. The community governance structure — masternodes voting on DFIPs — has maintained active participation. The 2026 community fund vote with 95.26% approval on a governance mechanism affecting daily block rewards is a healthy sign of engaged governance even at current price levels.

Why the dToken Concept Still Matters

The idea DeFiChain proved out in 2021–2022 has become mainstream infrastructure in 2025–2026 — just not primarily through DeFiChain. BlackRock tokenizing a $1.8 billion fund, Franklin Templeton running a money market fund on Stellar, Ondo Finance creating compliant tokenized Treasuries: these are the direct descendants of the same thesis DeFiChain was building when adding dJNJ and dGS.

The specific addition of four new dTokens isn’t just a product announcement. It’s a data point in a longer story: the first attempts to bring real-world financial assets on-chain in a decentralised way, running on infrastructure secured by Bitcoin’s proof-of-work through cryptographic anchoring, governed by community masternodes rather than any corporation.

Whether DeFiChain itself becomes part of the next wave of RWA adoption — or whether it serves primarily as an early proof of concept that inspired more capitalised successors — depends on the interchain development and whether the Community Fund can attract enough developer activity to rebuild momentum.

The dToken system works. The collateral mechanics are sound. The oracle infrastructure functions. The missing piece is the user adoption that turns a working technical system into a growing financial platform.

Africa’s crypto regulation is accelerating as Ripple highlights eight nations advancing formal oversight, driving adoption and investment while positioning the region for deeper integration into global digital asset markets.

Key Takeaways:

• Ripple highlights 8 African nations advancing crypto regulation, led by South Africa licensing rules.
• Nigeria, Kenya, and Mauritius frameworks boost adoption, with stablecoins rising in trade flows.
• Ghana, Botswana, and Ethiopia signal next wave, targeting broader compliance rollout through 2026.

Africa Crypto Regulations Expand Across Key Markets

Evolving policy approaches worldwide are beginning to redefine how digital asset ecosystems develop in emerging markets. Ripple, a company focused on blockchain-based payment solutions, released findings on April 6 that examine how African nations are approaching crypto regulation at different stages of maturity. The insight underscores a combination of rising usage, gradual policy coordination, and ongoing investment in financial infrastructure, with emphasis on how regulatory paths differ across jurisdictions rather than follow a single model.

Ripple stated:

“As activity grows across the continent, regulators in several key jurisdictions are moving quickly to set the stage for the next phase of Africa’s digital asset ecosystem.”

South Africa has positioned itself as one of the most advanced regulatory environments on the continent, formally treating crypto assets as financial instruments and requiring service providers to register and comply with oversight bodies such as the FSCA and FIC. In Kenya, authorities have moved forward with a legal framework for virtual asset providers, dividing supervisory responsibilities between monetary and capital markets regulators, while continuing to refine the framework through stakeholder consultation and iterative policy adjustments.

Mauritius continues to expand its regulatory toolkit, building on earlier initiatives by broadening licensing categories and clarifying its stance on stablecoin-related activity, with ongoing work aimed at establishing clearer long-term rules for issuance and use. Nigeria, meanwhile, has shifted toward formal recognition of digital assets within its securities framework, while also relaxing earlier banking constraints and experimenting with supervised compliance environments, reflecting a more pragmatic and engagement-driven regulatory approach.

Regulatory Activity Broadens Across the Region

Beyond these key markets, the insight identifies a wider group of countries beginning to formalize their approach to digital assets, contributing to a more interconnected and steadily evolving regulatory landscape. Ghana has introduced initial compliance measures, including registration requirements, which serve as a foundation for more comprehensive oversight in the future.

Botswana, Namibia, and Seychelles are at various stages of drafting or implementing crypto-focused regulations, with an emphasis on defining licensing processes and ensuring adherence to compliance standards. These developments highlight a gradual but intentional move toward regulatory consistency across the region, as policymakers seek to establish clearer entry conditions for market participants. Ripple noted:

“Today, roughly eight African countries have implemented some form of crypto-specific regulation, with additional jurisdictions working toward formal frameworks.”

Elsewhere, countries such as Ethiopia, Morocco, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda are still in exploratory phases, assessing how digital asset policies can be adapted to local economic structures and financial system priorities. In many cases, regulators are carefully weighing the benefits of innovation against potential systemic risks, particularly those linked to capital mobility and rapid adoption.

“Africa has long been a global leader in crypto adoption, driven by practical needs like remittances, cross-border trade and mobile-first financial services,” Ripple observed. This widespread adoption is closely linked to longstanding gaps in traditional financial systems, especially in areas such as cross-border payment efficiency and access to stable foreign currencies. As a result, digital assets are increasingly viewed as practical tools for addressing these limitations, particularly in markets where conventional banking infrastructure remains uneven or inaccessible.

Market Demand and Infrastructure Continue to Drive Growth

Underlying economic conditions continue to support both policy development and rising institutional involvement throughout the region. The success of mobile money platforms has already demonstrated the viability of digital-first financial solutions, creating a natural bridge for broader digital asset usage.

Stablecoins, in particular, are seeing expanded use cases ranging from commercial settlements to liquidity management and remittance flows, offering efficiency gains compared to legacy financial rails. At the same time, financial institutions are exploring new service offerings, including secure custody and compliance-driven platforms, to meet increasing demand from both enterprises and individual users. As regulatory clarity improves, this trend is expected to further enable institutional participation and streamline cross-border financial activity. Ripple remarked:

“Africa remains one of the world’s most compelling regions for digital asset adoption and momentum.”

Looking ahead, continued progress in regulation and greater coordination between jurisdictions could accelerate the integration of digital assets into mainstream financial systems. Sustained alignment on policy standards may ultimately support a more cohesive, scalable, and resilient digital economy across Africa, positioning the region for long-term growth and deeper global financial connectivity.

Bitcoin accumulation by long-term holders is signaling a market transition, with Binance data pointing to tightening supply conditions that could support the early stages of a new bull cycle.

Key Takeaways:

• Binance shows $BTC accumulation since Feb. 2026 as long-term holders steadily stack positions.
• Binance signals early bull cycle setup, with 2026 trends aligning with past breakout phases.
• $BTC supply tightens as holders lock coins, reinforcing conditions for sustained upside.

Binance Sees Bitcoin Long-Term Holders Return to Accumulation Mode, Pointing to Early Bull Market Phase

The cryptocurrency market is showing early signs of a structural shift as long-term bitcoin holders return to accumulation, reinforcing a potential turning point in the current cycle. Binance detailed this transition in its April 6 market report, highlighting how investor behavior has evolved after a prolonged drawdown. The findings emphasize that sustained accumulation by experienced holders is reshaping market structure and influencing future price dynamics.

Richard Teng, CEO of Binance, shared on social media platform X on April 7 a direct observation supporting this trend. The chief executive stated:

“Since mid-February, $BTC long-term holders have been back in accumulation mode.”

His comment highlights a phase where seasoned investors are steadily increasing exposure, a pattern that has historically emerged during early stages of market recovery before broader bullish momentum develops.

Bitcoin Accumulation Trend Signals Supply Tightening Shift

According to Binance, long-term holder behavior plays a central role in shaping bitcoin market cycles and overall supply conditions. Commenting on long-term holder (LTH) supply, the report notes:

“Historically, LTH supply contraction following market peaks – as seen in December 2023 and October 2024 – signals early bull market dynamics driven by profit-taking.”

In contrast, the current cycle shows long-term holders expanding their positions even after a significant correction, indicating that coins are increasingly held rather than redistributed across the market.

This continued accumulation contributes to a gradual tightening of available supply while aligning with renewed institutional demand through spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds. Binance emphasized: “Together, these suggest a market reset which paves the foundation for a new accumulation cycle.”

Teng’s observation reinforces this trajectory by pointing to the return of accumulation behavior, which historically precedes stronger price trends. As more supply becomes held by long-term participants, the market structure shifts toward conditions that can support a developing bull phase, particularly if demand continues to build alongside reduced selling pressure.

The price of Bitcoin pushed past $72,000 for the first time in 20 days after the US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire.

“I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Tuesday, hours before his deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face military attacks on key infrastructure.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council also said it accepted the ceasefire.

Bitcoin (BTC) climbed 2.6% in the hour following the announcement, reaching $72,339 at the time of publication, according to CoinMarketCap.

Crypto traders have historically seen geopolitical tensions as a headwind for prices, with any hints of easing often triggering quick relief rallies.

The deal also came hours after Trump renewed threats against Iran.

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump said in a post on Monday.

The last time Bitcoin traded above $72,000 was March 18, as sentiment continues to drag in the crypto market.

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which measures overall crypto market sentiment, posted an “Extreme Fear” score of 11 on Tuesday, signaling that investors are taking a cautious approach to the crypto market.

On April 1, Trump said the US could wrap up its military campaign in Iran within weeks, claiming the goal of eliminating Iran’s nuclear capabilities had been achieved.