Appold Market Watch - Week ending 2 October 2026

Market Update & Industry News - Week ending 2 October 2026

🔷 Citi and Coinbase have expanded their partnership to enable Citi’s institutional clients to accept stablecoin payments, with automatic conversion into fiat through Coinbase and settlement by Citi as the bank of record. The collaboration also brings Citi’s banking infrastructure to Coinbase Virtual Accounts, providing Coinbase customers with functionality that automatically converts incoming fiat into stablecoins.

Appold View: In most deals between banks and digital asset firms, the bank typically provides rails and the digital asset firm plugs in. This partnership sees neither party as purely a vendor and speaks to the increasing mutual dependence between digital asset natives and traditional firms in the future of finance.

🔷 The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has opened applications for firms seeking authorisation under its new cryptoasset regulatory regime, due to take effect on 25 October 2027. The FCA finalised its rules for the new regulatory framework in June, extending regulatory oversight beyond the current anti-money laundering and financial promotion requirements.

Appold View: The pressure is now on for firms that wish to continue carrying out newly regulated cryptoasset activities in the UK to submit their applications by the end of February 2027. For many firms facing regulation for the first time, this scrutiny of their governance and controls may be unfamiliar, and their ability to demonstrate readiness is likely to vary considerably.

🔷 Lloyds Banking Group and Visa completed a seven-day live pilot to settle $750,000 in payment obligations using USDC. Lloyds acquired USDC through digital-asset exchange Archax, with funds reaching Visa in the US in under one hour, including during the weekend. The pilot also explored interoperability between blockchain environments, with Lloyds operating a node on the Canton Network, while Visa supported settlement on a separate public blockchain.

Appold View: Proving the ability to settle across borders over a weekend is a significant step in moving beyond traditional settlement windows. While less significant, it is also interesting that the announcement explicitly named Canton, whereas Visa’s choice of blockchain remained unnamed.

🔷 Strategy has purchased a further 1,665 Bitcoin for approximately $143 million, taking its total holdings to 847,666 BTC. The acquisition, which came alongside the repurchases of Strategy’s STRC preferred stock, was funded via the sale of 1.47 million MSTR shares for $246.2 million.

Appold View: Strategy has placed greater emphasis on capital efficiency to increase its Bitcoin-per-share metrics. The company’s growth remains contingent on access to capital and on the cost of financing, which is tied to a complex capital structure involving STRC perpetual preferred stock, convertible notes, and equity offerings.

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