How Crypto Regulations Are Changing in 2026

Crypto laws around the world are changing in 2026, building on the momentum from 2025, which will impact crypto users in the United States, the United Kingdom and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a US banking regulator, published a proposal in December outlining a pathway for banks to be able to issue dollar-pegged stablecoins under the GENIUS stablecoin framework passed by Congress in mid-2025.

Under the proposal, banks must issue the stablecoins through a subsidiary, with both institutions subject to FDIC reviews and audits for financial soundness.

The US Federal Reserve, the country’s central bank, in December rescinded its guidance blocking banks from engaging in crypto activities, paving the way for them to custody customer assets and provide other crypto services in 2026.

Crypto investors can also expect US lawmakers to pass the CLARITY Act in 2026, a comprehensive crypto regulatory framework outlining taxation, asset taxonomy and issuance guidelines.

Crypto taxes in the US are calculated when digital assets are swapped or sold and taxed as ordinary income, with a 0%-20% tax rate for assets held over one year, while crypto held for shorter periods is taxed at 10%-37%.

Centralized crypto brokerages and service providers are also required to report cost basis, the original value of the crypto when it was purchased, to the IRS as of January 2026, but the new reporting rules do not apply to decentralized exchanges, according to Coinbase.

Related: US crypto legislation and policies to watch out for in 2026

UK to roll out final crypto rules in 2026 and begin enforcing tax policy

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), a government regulator, is expected to publish its final rules outlining regulations for the crypto industry in 2026.

These rules include anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) provisions, on par with traditional financial markets, consumer protections and licensing requirements for approved digital asset service providers in the country.

The UK and the EU implemented the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) on Thursday, standardizing data collection from crypto exchanges about users’ trades for tax reporting purposes.

Under CARF, covered crypto service providers must collect expanded customer data and submit annual reports on account balances and transactions to local tax authorities, which then exchange the information with foreign counterparts under existing data-sharing agreements.

Hong Kong advances stablecoin regulatory framework, China’s central government flip-flops

Hong Kong lawmakers advanced a stablecoin regulatory bill in December, which must go through three readings that include revisions, debate and negotiations, after which it will be sent to the chief executive, who, like the governor of a US state, can sign it into law.

The bill is expected to become law sometime in 2026, paving the way for a comprehensive stablecoin regulatory framework in Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China with its own financial system, regulations and currency.

Meanwhile, China’s central government has flip-flopped on crypto policy and stablecoin regulations for the mainland, issuing another ban on crypto in December.

Chinese regulators pushed for stablecoin reform in 2025, but quickly backtracked on any proposed policy changes, choosing instead to focus on the development of the digital yuan, a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

In one of its latest moves of 2025, the People’s Bank of China began allowing commercial banks to pay interest to digital yuan holders in January 2026 to broaden its role beyond a simple fiat replacement.

Magazine: How crypto laws changed in 2025 — and how they’ll change in 2026