GM. BNB Chain activated its Fermi upgrade to slash block times to 0.45 seconds, boosting its speed to compete with high-throughput rivals like Solana for DeFi and gaming.

Meanwhile, a federal judge blocked Tennessee from banning Kalshi, 21Shares listed a Bitcoin and gold ETP in London, and Ukraine blocked Polymarket for unlicensed gambling.

Here are the details on network speed, regulatory wins, and global access hurdles. 👇

BNB Chain to Activate Fermi Upgrade For 0.45-Second Blocks

BNB Chain developers are set to activate the Fermi hard fork to drastically slash block production intervals for global users. This technical overhaul elevates the network’s competitive posture against high-throughput rivals by fortifying its architectural foundations.

The upgrade triggers tomorrow on 14 January 2026 across the mainnet ecosystem at exactly 02:30 UTC. These adjustments arrive during a period of intense onchain activity, following a record-breaking 2025 for the decentralized smart contract platform.

Engineers are implementing this acceleration to satisfy latency-sensitive applications like high-frequency decentralized finance trading and interactive blockchain gaming. Faster confirmations ensure predictable performance during speculative surges, preventing the debilitating congestion that previously plagued various Ethereum compatible chains.

The protocol achieves these gains by reducing block times from 0.75 seconds to a mere 0.45 seconds through BEP-619. Validators must adopt stricter propagation rules and advanced EVM super instructions to guarantee that transaction finality remains stable.

Federal Judge Blocks Tennessee Enforcement Against Kalshi

US District Judge Aleta Trauger granted a temporary restraining order on Monday against the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council. This ruling prevents state regulators from shutting down Kalshi's sports event contracts while the federal court case proceeds. The judge noted that the company is likely to succeed on its claims regarding federal preemption by the Commodity Exchange Act.

State officials previously ordered the platform to halt all operations and refund customer deposits by January 31, 2026. Kalshi argues that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission holds exclusive jurisdiction over its regulated derivatives exchange. This legal freeze allows the platform to continue serving Tennessee residents until a preliminary injunction hearing takes place on January 26.

21Shares Lists Bitcoin And Gold ETP In London

Asset manager 21Shares launched its BOLD exchange-traded product on the London Stock Exchange this Tuesday morning. This hybrid investment vehicle combines Bitcoin and gold through a rules-based strategy that rebalances based on inverse historical volatility. The product carries a 0.65% management fee and offers retail investors regulated exposure to both scarce digital and physical assets.

The London listing follows the Financial Conduct Authority's recent decision to lift the retail ban on crypto-linked investment notes. ByteTree Asset Management collaborated on the fund's design to provide a transparent hedge against persistent global inflation. Physical backing for the holdings is secured in cold storage through JP Morgan and Anchorage Digital Bank for maximum investor safety.

Ukraine Blocks Polymarket Citing Unlicensed Gambling Rules

The National Commission for Regulation in Ukraine officially blocked access to the Polymarket prediction platform this week. Resolution 695 classifies the site's blockchain-based betting activities as unlicensed gambling that violates current national communication laws. Internet service providers must now restrict the domain to prevent local users from participating in geopolitical and war-related market wagers.

Ukrainian authorities have specifically criticized the platform for facilitating speculation on events linked to the ongoing Russian invasion. Polymarket uses the USDC stablecoin on the Polygon network to settle transactions through publicly verifiable smart contracts. This decision adds Ukraine to a list of over 30 countries that currently restrict the $8 billion decentralized prediction market.

Data of the day

The privacy-focused cryptocurrency Monero surged to a new all-time high of $687 during Tuesday's trading session. This 14% daily increase pushed the token into the 12th position among global digital assets by total market capitalization. Market analysts attribute the rally to heightened demand for financial confidentiality as governments worldwide implement stricter onchain surveillance measures.

Trading volume for the privacy coins sector climbed 32% as capital rotated from Bitcoin into various anonymity-preserving tokens. Despite the price breakout, data platform Santiment warned of overheating social sentiment and a recent decline in development activity. The surge occurred as the European Union prepares to enforce sweeping new bans on anonymous crypto accounts starting in 2027.

More breaking news

• Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams faces rug pull allegations after $2.5 million in liquidity was abruptly withdrawn from his NYC Token.

• South Korea’s crypto exchange alliance strongly opposed a government proposal to cap shareholder stakes, warning it could destabilize the domestic digital industry.

• Senator Elizabeth Warren pressed the SEC for clarity on protecting retirement savers as the Trump administration integrates volatile cryptocurrencies into 401(k) plans.

• The Bank of Thailand is increasing surveillance of USDT trades to combat illicit "grey money" flows and maintain long-term macroeconomic financial stability.

• A Bank of Italy economist warned that a collapse in ether’s price would degrade Ethereum’s infrastructure, threatening the reliability of regulated settlements.

• CZ invested over $10 million in Genius Trading, a privacy-focused DeFi platform aiming to become a decentralized, onchain alternative to Binance.

• Kraken-backed KRAKacquisition Corp filed for a $250 million IPO to acquire cryptocurrency ecosystem businesses and expand the exchange’s presence in public markets.

• Polygon Labs spent $250 million to acquire Coinme and Sequence, securing licensed fiat gateways and smart wallet infrastructure for its Open Money Stack.

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