SEC Approves Generic Listing Rules for Spot Crypto ETPs

The SEC has streamlined the launch process for digital asset exchange-traded products, while Bitwise debuts the first US spot NEAR fund and Robinhood rolls out leveraged crypto perpetuals and AI trading agents.

1. SEC Approves Generic Listing Standards for Spot Crypto Exchange-Traded Products Three national securities exchanges received approval to adopt generic listing standards for spot commodity and digital asset trust shares. Exchanges no longer require Section 19(b) rule changes to list qualifying Commodity-Based Trust Shares, allowing issuers to bring eligible trusts to market rapidly under standardized requirements.

2. Bitwise Debuts First US Spot NEAR ETP on NYSE Arca Featuring Staking Rewards Bitwise launched the Bitwise NEAR ETF ($NRR) on NYSE Arca on Sept. 29, 2026, as the first US spot NEAR ETP. The trust charges a 0.75% management fee and stakes its holdings in-house, targeting an annualized network reward rate near 5% with Coinbase Custody serving as custodian.

3. Robinhood Unveils In-App AI Agents and Crypto Perpetual Futures for US Users Robinhood launched in-app AI trading agents with model access from providers like OpenAI. Robinhood Derivatives and Bitstamp will also offer US perpetual futures with up to 10x leverage on $BTC and $ETH, alongside plans to expand stock trading to a 24/7 schedule.

4. CSD BR Partners With Ripple to Mirror Financial Assets on XRP Ledger The Brazilian central securities depository will use the XRP Ledger to mirror BTG Pactual investment fund shares while maintaining official records on regulated internal systems. The deployment uses the XRPL Multi-Purpose Token standard and Ripple custody, restricted to KYC/AML-verified corporate and banking participants.

5. Senator Blumenthal Urges DOJ and Treasury to Probe Tether Over Iran Financing A Senate PSI report found 84% of 846 Iran-linked sanctioned wallets transacted almost exclusively in Tether's $USDT. Senator Richard Blumenthal formally asked the Treasury and DOJ to probe Tether for potential BSA and sanctions violations.

6. House Oversight Committee Probes Polymarket and Kalshi Over Insider Trading House Oversight Chairman James Comer launched an investigation into insider trading risks on Polymarket and Kalshi. The committee requested compliance records covering KYC checks, geofencing enforcement, and trade monitoring.

7. SEC Sues Cryptoaiml and TSAI Entities Over $15 Million AI Trading Scams The SEC filed complaints against Cryptoaiml and TSAI entities in federal court on Sept. 29 over alleged $15 million fraud schemes. Both groups allegedly used falsified SEC Form D filings and WhatsApp groups to solicit retail deposits.

Numbers Bitcoin is trading at $83,889, down 0.2% over the last 24 hours, while Ether fell 0.7% to $2,695, and the total crypto market cap gained 1.0% to reach $2.87 trillion.

Watch

• Initial trading volumes and net inflows across the first week of listing for the Bitwise NEAR ETF on NYSE Arca.
• The Sepolia testnet activation of Ethereum's Glamsterdam upgrade scheduled for October 6, 2026, at 13:53:36 UTC.
• The targeted deployment of Zcash's NU7 network upgrade in November 2026, which cuts block times to 25 seconds.