E-commerce and trade

Bitcoin adoption remains uneven across US states

A recent SmartAsset study based on IRS tax return data highlights sharp regional differences in Bitcoin participation across the US. Crypto engagement is concentrated in certain states, driven by income, tech adoption, and local economic culture.

Washington leads the rankings, with 2.43 per cent of taxpayers reporting crypto transactions, followed by Utah, California, Colorado and New Jersey. These states have strong tech sectors, higher incomes, and populations familiar with digital financial tools.

New Jersey’s position also shows that crypto interest extends beyond traditional tech hubs in the West. At the opposite end, states such as West Virginia, Mississippi, Kentucky, Louisiana and Alabama record participation close to or below one per cent.

Lower household incomes, smaller tech industries and a preference for conventional financial products appear to limit reported crypto activity, although some low-level holdings may not surface in tax data.

The data also reflects crypto’s sensitivity to market cycles. Participation surged during the 2021 bull run before declining sharply in 2022 as prices fell.

Higher-income households remain far more active than middle-income earners, reinforcing the view that Bitcoin adoption in the US is still largely speculative and unevenly distributed.

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Sberbank issues Russia’s first crypto-backed loan

Sberbank has issued Russia’s first crypto-backed loan, providing financing to Intelion Data, one of the country’s largest Bitcoin miners. The bank did not disclose the loan size or the cryptocurrency used as collateral but described the move as a pilot project.

The loan leveraged Sberbank’s own cryptocurrency custody solution, Rutoken, ensuring the digital assets’ safety throughout the loan period. The bank plans to offer similar loans and collaborate with the Central Bank on regulatory frameworks.

Intelion Data welcomed the deal, calling it a milestone for Russia’s crypto mining sector and a potential model for scaling similar financing across the industry. The company is expanding with a mining centre near the Kalinin Nuclear Power Plant and a gas power station.

Sberbank has also been testing decentralised finance tools and supports gradual legalisation of cryptocurrencies in Russia. VTB and other banks are preparing to support crypto transactions, while the Central Bank may allow limited retail trading.

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SK Telecom introduces South Korea’s first hyperscale AI model

The telecommunications firm, SK Telecom, is preparing to unveil A.X K1, Korea’s first hyperscale language model built with 519 billion parameters.

Around 33 billion parameters are activated during inference, so the AI model can keep strong performance instead of demanding excessive computing power. The project is part of a national initiative involving universities and industry partners.

The company expects A.X K1 to outperform smaller systems in complex reasoning, mathematics and multilingual understanding, while also supporting code generation and autonomous AI agents.

At such a scale, the model can operate as a teacher system that transfers knowledge to smaller, domain-specific tools that might directly improve daily services and industrial processes.

Unlike many global models trained mainly in English, A.X K1 has been trained in Korean from the outset so it naturally understands local language, culture and context.

SK Telecom plans to deploy the model through its AI service Adot, which already has more than 10 million subscribers, allowing access via calls, messages, the web and mobile apps.

The company foresees applications in workplace productivity, manufacturing optimisation, gaming dialogue, robotics and semiconductor performance testing.

Research will continue so the model can support the wider AI ecosystem of South Korea, and SK Telecom plans to open-source A.X K1 along with an API to help local developers create new AI agents.

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Trust Wallet urges update after $7 million hack

Trust Wallet has urged users to update its Google Chrome extension after a security breach affecting version 2.68 resulted in the theft of roughly $7 million. The company confirmed it will refund all impacted users and advised downloading version 2.69 immediately.

Mobile users and other browser extension versions were unaffected.

Blockchain security firms revealed that malicious code in version 2.68 harvested wallet mnemonic phrases, sending decrypted credentials to an attacker‑controlled server.

Around $3 million in Bitcoin, $431 in Solana, and more than $3 million in Ethereum were stolen and moved through centralised exchanges and cross‑chain bridges for laundering. Hundreds of users were affected.

Analysts suggest the incident may involve an insider or a nation-state actor, exploiting leaked Chrome Web Store API keys.

Trust Wallet has launched a support process for victims and warned against impersonation scams. CEO Eowyn Chen said the malicious extension bypassed the standard release checks and that investigation and remediation are ongoing.

The incident highlights ongoing security risks for browser-based cryptocurrency wallets and the importance of user vigilance, including avoiding unofficial links and never sharing recovery phrases.

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IMF calls for stronger AI regulation in global securities markets

Regulators worldwide are being urged to adopt stronger oversight frameworks for AI in capital markets after an IMF technical note warned that rapid AI adoption could reshape securities trading while increasing systemic risk.

AI brings major efficiency gains in asset management and high-frequency trading instead of slower, human-led processes, yet opacity, market volatility, cyber threats and model concentration remain significant concerns.

The IMF warns that AI could create powerful data oligopolies where only a few firms can train the strongest models, while autonomous trading agents may unintentionally collude by widening spreads without explicit coordination.

Retail investors also face rising exposure to AI washing, where financial firms exaggerate or misrepresent AI capability, making transparency, accountability and human-in-the-loop review essential safeguards.

Supervisory authorities are encouraged to scale their own AI capacity through SupTech tools for automated surveillance and social-media sentiment monitoring.

The note highlights India as a key case study, given the dominance of algorithmic trading and SEBI’s early reporting requirements for AI and machine learning. The IMF also points to the National Stock Exchange’s use of AI in fraud detection as an emerging-market model for resilient monitoring infrastructure.

The report underlines the need for regulators to prepare for AI-driven market shocks, strengthen governance obligations on regulated entities and build specialist teams capable of understanding model risk instead of reacting only after misconduct or misinformation harms investors.

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Agentic AI, digital twins, and intelligent wearables reshape security operations in 2026

Operational success in security technology is increasingly being judged through measurable performance rather than early-stage novelty.

As 2026 approaches, Agentic AI, digital twins and intelligent wearables are moving from research concepts into everyday operational roles, reshaping how security functions are designed and delivered.

Agentic AI is no longer limited to demonstrations. Instead of simple automation, autonomous agents now analyse video feeds, access data and sensor logs to investigate incidents and propose mitigation steps for human approval.

Adoption is accelerating worldwide, particularly in Singapore, where most business leaders already view Agentic AI as essential for maintaining competitiveness. The technology is becoming embedded in workflows rather than used as an experimental add-on.

Digital twins are also reaching maturity. Instead of being static models, they now mirror complex environments such as ports, airports and high-rise estates, allowing organisations to simulate emergencies, plan resource deployment, and optimise systems in real time.

Wearables and AR tools are undergoing a similar shift, acting as intelligent companions that interpret the environment and provide timely guidance, rather than operating as passive recording devices.

The direction of travel is clear. Security work is becoming more predictive, interconnected and immersive.

Organisations most likely to benefit are those that prioritise integration, simulation and augmentation, while measuring outcomes through KPIs such as response speed, false-positive reduction and decision confidence instead of chasing technological novelty.

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Indian banks turn to AI for revenue growth

Indian banks and financial institutions are deploying AI at scale to increase revenue generation. Post-pandemic digitisation has accelerated adoption beyond pilot projects.

Executives say AI deployment now focuses on customer engagement, credit decisions and risk management. Indian revenue growth is replacing cost reduction as the primary objective.

Industry leaders highlight a shift towards agentic AI, where autonomous systems perform complex business tasks. Banking workflows are increasingly handled with minimal human intervention.

Cloud providers say Indian finance is entering a mature AI phase. Digital infrastructure investments are expected to deepen competitive advantage across the sector.

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Digital rules dispute deepens as US administration avoids trade retaliation

The US administration is criticising foreign digital regulations affecting major online platforms while avoiding trade measures that could disrupt the US economy. Officials say the rules disproportionately impact American technology companies.

US officials have paused or cancelled trade discussions with the UK, the EU, and South Korea. Current negotiations are focused on rolling back digital taxes, privacy rules, and platform regulations that Washington views as unfair barriers to US firms.

US administration officials describe the moves as a negotiating tactic rather than an escalation toward tariffs. While trade investigations into digital practices have been raised as a possibility, officials have stressed that the goal remains a negotiated outcome rather than a renewed trade conflict.

Technology companies have pressed for firmer action, though some industry figures warn that aggressive retaliation could trigger a wider digital trade war. Officials acknowledge that prolonged disputes with major partners could ultimately harm both US firms and global markets.

Despite rhetorical escalation and targeted threats against European companies, the US administration has so far avoided dismantling existing trade agreements. Analysts say mounting pressure may soon force Washington to choose between compromise and more concrete enforcement measures.

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EU crypto tax reporting rules take effect in January

The European Union’s new tax-reporting directive for crypto assets, known as DAC8, takes effect on 1 January. The rules require crypto-asset service providers, including exchanges and brokers, to report detailed user and transaction data to national tax authorities.

DAC8 aims to close gaps in crypto tax reporting, giving authorities visibility over holdings and transfers similar to that of bank accounts and securities. Data collected under the directive will be shared across EU member states, enabling a more coordinated approach to enforcement.

Crypto firms have until 1 July to ensure full compliance, including implementing reporting systems, customer due diligence procedures, and internal controls. After that deadline, non-compliance may result in penalties under national law.

For users, DAC8 strengthens enforcement powers. Authorities can act on tax avoidance or evasion with support from counterparts in other EU countries, including seizing or embargoing crypto assets held abroad.

The directive operates alongside the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which focuses on licensing, customer protection, and market conduct, while DAC8 ensures the tax trail is monitored.

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ChatGPT becomes more customisable for tone and style

OpenAI has introduced new Personalisation settings in ChatGPT that allow users to fine-tune warmth, enthusiasm and emoji use. The changes are designed to make conversations feel more natural, instead of relying on a single default tone.

ChatGPT users can set each element to More, Less or Default, alongside existing tone styles such as Professional, Candid and Quirky. The update follows previous adjustments, where OpenAI first dialled back perceived agreeableness, then later increased warmth after users said the system felt overly cold.

Experts have raised concerns that highly agreeable AI could encourage emotional dependence, even as users welcome a more flexible conversational style.

Some commentators describe the feature as empowering, while others question whether customising a chatbot’s personality risks blurring emotional boundaries.

The new tone controls continue broader industry debates about how human-like AI should become. OpenAI hopes that added transparency and user choice will balance personal preference with responsible design, instead of encouraging reliance on a single conversational style.

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