Crypto Macro News and Global Policy Updates

Welcome to Latam Insights, a compilation of the most relevant crypto news from Latin America over the past week. In this edition, a strategic bitcoin reserve bill was introduced in the Brazilian Congress, Brazil prepares to tax stablecoins, and Argentina’s statistics chief resigns. Strategic

American fast-food chain Steak 'n Shake will start awarding Bitcoin bonuses to hourly employees at company-operated stores from March 1. Employees will receive $0.21 per hour, which can be claimed after two years. The maximum annual earnings are approximately $436.80, with the final value depending on market prices.

ChainCatcher News, venture capitalist Nic Carter recently stated on a podcast that Bitcoin developers' long-term inaction regarding the potential threat of quantum computing to Bitcoin could lead large institutions holding significant amounts of Bitcoin to become dissatisfied, ultimately triggering an "institutional takeover." Nic Carter warned that institutions will not tolerate the long-term neglect of core security issues in Bitcoin. If developers continue to do nothing, institutions will lose patience, dismiss the current developers, and replace them with new ones.

Legislators in Brazil have reintroduced a bill for a national strategic Bitcoin receive that would allow the country to accumulate nearly $20 billion of BTC in five years. The bill was first introduced in November 2024 and has now passed five committees to be tabled before the lower

This week, SOL spot ETF saw a net inflow of $13.1706 million, with Bitwise ETF BSOL experiencing the largest net inflow of $12.7196 million, bringing the total net inflow in history to $683 million. Fidelity ETF FSOL had a net inflow of $7.32 million. VanEck ETF VSOL, on the other hand, experienced a net outflow of $5.541 million. The total net asset value of SOL spot ETFs is $721 million.

This week, XRP spot ETF net inflows amounted to $7.65 million, with Franklin ETF XRPZ experiencing the highest net inflow of $5.4175 million. In contrast, Grayscale XRP Trust GXRP had a net outflow of $5.897 million. Currently, the total net asset value of XRP spot ETFs is $1.01 billion, with a historical total net inflow of $1.23 billion.

This week, Ethereum spot ETFs experienced a net outflow of $161 million, with BlackRock's ETF ETHA experiencing the largest net outflow of $113 million. Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETH) saw a net inflow of $49.9 million, with total ETF assets under management reaching $11.72 billion.

This week, Bitcoin spot ETF experienced a net outflow of $360 million, primarily due to BlackRock ETF IBIT with a net outflow of $235 million. Meanwhile, Fidelity ETF FBTC had a net outflow of $125 million. Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust BTC saw a net inflow of $110 million. The total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs is $87.04 billion, with a cumulative net inflow of $54.33 billion.

Hyperliquid is moving into a completely new phase, and the numbers are starting to make that change extremely notable. As aixbt pointed out in a recent post, open interest on Hyperliquid has dropped sharply, falling about 37% from its $1.06 billion peak to roughly $665 million. Normally, that

Vice President of the University of Hong Kong, Wang Yang, pointed out that Digital RMB has participated in settlement in Hong Kong's digital asset market and has become an important method for digital bond settlement. As the market develops, RMB assets are expected to issue digital assets in Hong Kong, with Digital RMB as the settlement currency, and stablecoins will become an important tool for overseas users.

Comprehensive U.S. crypto legislation is advancing in Congress, with the Clarity Act poised to unlock trillions in sidelined institutional capital as lawmakers confront stablecoin regulation, SEC oversight, and CFTC authority in a high-stakes policy battle. Clear Regulatory Framework Could

From 04:00 to 04:15 (UTC) on February 15, 2026, ETH prices experienced a slight increase, with candlestick returns recording +0.06%. During this time window, market fluctuations were moderate, and trading volume was slightly above normal levels, indicating sustained market attention but no abnormal volatility or extreme market conditions. Short-term investors remained active, and the overall ETH ecosystem environment remained stable. The main driver of this movement was positive macroeconomic developments. January US CPI data showed core inflation below expectations, boosting expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts, and the US dollar index weakened accordingly. Against this backdrop, global risk appetite rebounded.

At the Consensus Hong Kong conference, Sui executives stated that 2025 will be a pivotal year for institutional crypto adoption, driven by the "Genius Act" which boosts institutional interest and demand for crypto assets. Despite market sentiment fluctuations, institutional demand remains strong. They also emphasized the integration of traditional finance and decentralized finance, as well as tokenization and AI-driven on-chain transactions as key focus areas for future development.

Two Democratic Senators have written to the Treasury Secretary, requesting a national security review of the UAE entity's $500 million investment in the crypto company World Liberty Financial, questioning whether the deal could impact user data security. The transaction involves the Trump family, and the Senators are concerned about its history of cooperation with Chinese companies.

_ETF outflows remove key liquidity support, increasing Bitcoin’s vulnerability to selling pressure._ Bitcoin opened the year under clear pressure as demand from investment products weakened sharply. As per onchain reports, capital that fueled much of the last two rallies is now retreating. And t

VeChain and Rekord are deploying DPP infrastructure aligned with the EU’s ESPR, which entered into force on July 18, 2024. The EU is expected to deploy a central Digital Product Passport registry by July 2026, ahead of early DPP-related compliance phases scheduled for 2027. VeChain and Rekor

Crypto ETFs experienced a broad-based recovery, with bitcoin leading a $15 million net inflow and ether following with $10.26 million. XRP and solana also posted gains, indicating a cautious return of investor interest across digital assets.

CFTC named a 35-member Innovation Advisory Committee, including CEOs from Ripple, Coinbase, Uniswap, Solana Labs, and Chainlink Labs. The committee also includes leaders from CME, Nasdaq, ICE, DTCC, DraftKings, FanDuel, and Polymarket, per the CFTC roster. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has

Patrick Witt emphasizes that regulatory clarity is essential to access trillions in institutional capital, highlighting ongoing Senate negotiations on the Clarity Act. He notes the government's efforts to centralize Bitcoin oversight and foster collaboration between banks and crypto firms to enhance innovation and participation in the digital finance sector.

_UAE holds over $900M in Bitcoin via direct reserves and ETF stakes as market fear index drops to 9 and $3B exits crypto funds._ The United Arab Emirates now holds more than $900 million in Bitcoin exposure during a period of market fear. The total includes both direct Bitcoin ownership and