FinCEN Drops Wallet Rules, CFTC Opens Market Review and Russia Registers Crypto Operators

Regulators are withdrawing old proposals, opening new consultations and deciding which crypto businesses can operate under formal supervision.

The regulatory news this week is not one uniform shift toward tighter or looser rules. In the United States, FinCEN ended two unfinished proposals affecting self-hosted wallets and mixers, while the CFTC invited comments on how retail crypto transactions should be supervised. Russia admitted its first operators to newly created registers. In Germany, a MiCA authorization refusal left Bitcoin.de looking for licensed partners. Rain, meanwhile, applied for a US national trust bank charter rather than announcing an approval. A Kyrgyz stablecoin project also posted a termination notice tied to an August government order. These decisions matter to users and businesses in different ways: they affect which services may operate, where assets can be held, and which rules are still only proposals. The distinction between an application, a consultation and an authorization is central to this roundup.

FinCEN Withdraws Wallet and Mixer Proposals, Leaving Existing AML Duties in Place

FinCEN withdrew two proposed digital-asset rules on October 5. One would have imposed recordkeeping, verification and reporting requirements on certain transfers involving unhosted wallets. The other proposed a special measure for convertible-virtual-currency mixing. Neither proposal became a final rule.

The agency said it reviewed comments before withdrawing the proposals. This removes two pending requirements from the rulemaking queue; it does not repeal existing anti-money-laundering obligations. For firms providing crypto wallets, the immediate change is greater clarity about these particular proposals, not a general exemption from compliance.

CFTC Opens Comment Period on Retail Crypto Transactions and a New Market Category

The CFTC issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on October 5 covering retail commodity transactions involving crypto assets. It asked how a federal framework could address abusive practices, clarify compliance expectations and create a registration subcategory called a crypto asset market.

The notice starts a consultation, not a new licensing regime. Written comments are due within 60 days of its Federal Register publication, after which the agency may decide whether to propose specific rules. Businesses building crypto finance services should watch the next stage, because today's document does not itself authorize a new class of trading venue.

Bank of Russia Registers Five Digital Depositories and Four Crypto Exchange Operators

The Bank of Russia added five organizations to its digital-depository register and four to its crypto-exchange-operator register on October 6. It said the registrations follow transitional provisions of the digital-currencies law that took effect on September 1, 2026.

Registered depositories may record and transfer digital currencies and rights and provide access to relevant addresses. The exchange operators may buy and sell digital currencies on their own account outside organized trading. Both groups must meet the new law's requirements by September 1, 2027. The register creates a defined route for custody and exchange infrastructure, but it should not be read as permission for every blockchain service to operate without further checks.

BaFin Refuses Futurum Banku2019s MiCA Authorization, Keeping Bitcoin.de Trading Largely Suspended

Bitcoin Group said on October 6 that BaFin refused its subsidiary futurum bank's MiCA authorization application. Futurum operates Bitcoin.de, where trading had already been largely suspended since June 12. The company said BaFin's previous tolerance of its crypto-asset services no longer applies.

Futurum plans to work with regulated German firms to restore trading and arrange custody, but it has not announced a restart date. Bitcoin Group says customer assets remain held until they can be transferred to an alternative custodian. For people using Bitcoin payments or trading services, this is a concrete example of how MiCA authorization decisions can interrupt an existing platform rather than merely affect new entrants.

Rain Applies for an OCC Trust Bank Charter to Bring Stablecoin Reserves Under Federal Supervision

Rain filed an application with the OCC on October 5 to establish Rain National Trust Bank in New York. If approved, the proposed subsidiary would hold digital and dollar assets in fiduciary custody, manage reserves for permitted stablecoin issuers, and issue and redeem dollar-backed stablecoins for institutional clients.

The application is still subject to review. Rain says the trust bank would not take deposits, offer consumer accounts or make commercial loans. Rain's existing payments business continues separately. The proposed structure could give firms behind crypto cards and stablecoin programs a federally supervised custody and reserve option, but those services cannot be attributed to the proposed bank until it receives approval.

USDKG Announces Closure Under Kyrgyz Government Order and Offers Holder Redemption

USDKG's official site now announces the project's termination, including its blockchain activity, under Kyrgyz Cabinet order No. 639-t dated August 20, 2026. The notice tells token holders they may request an exchange of their USDKG for fiat currency or USDT. The order predates this week's coverage; the current news is the public closure and redemption notice, not a new October order.

The announcement gives holders a stated redemption route, although the site does not publish a processing timetable. Anyone handling the token should verify the procedure through the project's official channel before sending assets. The case shows that a government's decision can reach beyond an issuer's legal status to the usability of its token, even when holders are offered an exit into USDT.