Stellar News Today: U.S. Institutions Redirect Crypto Liquidity to Domestic Markets as Blockchain Integration Gains Traction

U.S. banks and financial institutions are increasingly embracing cryptocurrency, with Coinbase Markets Inc. leading the charge by expanding 24/7 futures trading for a range of altcoins, including Shiba Inu (SHIB), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Dogecoin (DOGE). The exchange announced on December 5 that it will offer U.S. perpetual-style futures with a five-year expiry, positioning itself as a regulated alternative to offshore trading venues. This move aims to attract institutional investors by providing compliant access to non-stop trading, a feature currently dominated by platforms like Binance and Bybit according to CoinDesk.

The expansion aligns with broader trends in blockchain adoption, particularly as global payment giant SWIFT retires its legacy MT format in favor of ISO 20022, a blockchain-friendly standard. The transition to ISO 20022, which uses XML for human- and machine-readable messages, is seen as a critical enabler for interoperability between traditional finance and decentralized systems. Platforms like Ripple, Stellar, and Hedera were explicitly designed with ISO 20022 in mind, allowing for seamless integration with smart contracts and on-chain token transfers. This shift has accelerated experimentation with blockchain-based payment rails, including tokenized deposits, which Citi projects could support up to $140 trillion in annual transaction volume by 2030 according to Yahoo Finance.

Coinbase's altcoin futures rollout and SWIFT's ISO 20022 migration reflect a broader push to integrate cryptocurrencies into mainstream financial infrastructure. While challenges such as regulatory scrutiny and market volatility persist, U.S. institutions are increasingly seen as pivotal in redirecting liquidity from offshore to domestic markets. This trend is particularly notable as Stellar and other blockchain protocols gain traction in bridging traditional and digital finance.

Stellar (XLM) is emerging as a focal point in this evolution. The network's Total Value Locked (TVL) recently hit a record $169 million, signaling growing ecosystem activity. On the price front, XLM is approaching a key resistance level of $0.256, with technical indicators suggesting a potential breakout. If it closes above this threshold, it could rally toward the 50-day Exponential Moving Average at $0.292. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) further support bullish sentiment, with the latter showing a bullish crossover.