Tezos news

The CFTC chairman has named Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, Stellar, Tezos, and XRP as digital commodities, placing them under CFTC oversight rather than SEC securities rules. This classification stems from a joint SEC-CFTC interpretive release from March 2026 that identified 16 major digital assets as digital commodities, separating them from securities. The guidance also created five asset categories and clarified rules for mining and staking, without new legislation. XRP's inclusion follows the end of Ripple's litigation with the SEC, after appeals were dropped in August 2025, with regulators concluding programmatic sales are not securities. Digital commodities still face CFTC anti-fraud and anti-manipulation oversight in spot markets. The CFTC plans to propose new rules for leveraged retail trading by October 2026, partly because congressional efforts like the CLARITY Act have stalled, though comprehensive market structure rules still require legislative action.

Tezos developers launched a testnet prototype called TzEL for private blockchain payments using post-quantum cryptography and zk-STARK proofs. It aims to protect against 'harvest now, decrypt later' attacks from future quantum computers. The system uses Tezos' Data Availability Layer to handle large proof sizes (approx. 300KB). The crypto industry is ramping up post-quantum security efforts, with Solana validators testing Falcon signatures, MARA Foundation researching quantum resistance, and Coinbase noting progress on Algorand and Aptos. Estimates for when quantum computers could threaten Bitcoin range from 3-5 years to 20 years, according to different experts.

Trilitech, a Tezos-focused development company, launched Metals.io, a platform for trading tokenized commodities like uranium and gold. The platform expands on its earlier Uranium.io initiative and aims to make uranium investing more accessible to retail investors. The launch responds to growing investor interest in strategic materials tied to industrial and AI infrastructure demand. Tokenized commodities have seen rising demand, with the market reaching around $7 billion, led by tokenized gold products like Tether Gold and Paxos Gold. Other crypto companies are also entering the tokenized commodities space, with platforms like Bitpanda and Coinbase launching related products, reflecting broader industry trends toward tokenized assets.

Bitnomial has launched the first U.S.-regulated futures contracts for Tezos’s native XTZ token, making the asset the first on a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)‑regulated exchange. The contracts, now live, allow both institutional and retail traders to hedge or gain exposure to XTZ without holding the token. The move satisfies a key SEC criterion for spot ETF listings and follows Bitnomial’s history of adding altcoin futures, such as Cardano, Aptos and XRP, amid regulatory challenges. Tezos, launched in 2018, has seen declining price levels and continues to evolve with upgrades like the 2025 Tallinn protocol.

Bitnomial, a U.S. regulated derivatives exchange, has launched the first regulated futures contract for Tezos (XTZ-2.40% XTZ) in the United States. The product is a milestone for the blockchain project, which was first proposed in 2014, went mainnet in 2018, and raised $232 million in a 2017 ICO. Tezos is a self‑upgrading, proof‑of‑stake blockchain that has attracted institutional interest; its co‑founder Arthur Breitman said U.S. futures would improve price discovery and risk transfer. The futures are available to institutional traders now, with retail access via Bitnomial’s platform. The exchange also plans perpetual futures and options for XTZ. Bitnomial, founded in 2014, has historically launched several first‑in‑U.S. crypto products, including XRP and Solana futures.

Tezos rolled out its Tallinn upgrade, its 20th protocol update, cutting base‑layer block times to 6 seconds and reducing storage costs while improving latency. The change speeds network finality and lowers transaction costs for users. The upgrade lets every baker attest each block using BLS cryptographic signatures that aggregate hundreds of signatures into a single one, lightening node load and paving the way for future time reductions. It also adds an address‑indexing mechanism that cuts redundant address data, boosting storage efficiency by a factor of 100.

BeInCrypto highlights three altcoins poised for a calm weekend as geopolitical tensions ease. Tezos (XTZ) awaits its Tallinn upgrade, which could trigger volatility and push the price beyond $0.59 toward $0.66 if the upgrade succeeds. Seeker (SKR) saw a 335% surge, peaked at $0.0597, and is now near $0.0390 after a 23.6% pullback. With sellers ahead, the token may drop toward $0.0205 unless buying sentiment reverses and pushes it back toward $0.0517. Canton (CC) shows bullish momentum with a strong Money Flow Index and sits near $0.142. A breakout above $0.148 could lift it to $0.164 and approach its $0.177 all‑time high, while failure to break resistance may cause a retreat toward $0.133.

TenX Protocols bought 5.5 million XTZ at an average of $0.5868 per token, using cash from a prior financing round, as part of a staking partnership with the Tezos Foundation. The company will stake the tokens through its validators, targeting an 8–10% annual yield and generating recurring revenue. The Tezos Foundation will delegate a portion of its holdings to TenX‑operated validators, while TenX cites Tezos’ governance model and technical maturity as reasons for its selection and hints at similar PoS partnerships in the future.

The third week of January 2026 is expected to see continued volatility in the crypto market, with three altcoins—PancakeSwap (CAKE), Stellar (XLM), and Tezos (XTZ)—highlighted for their upcoming developments and technical outlook. CAKE trades near $2.01 and faces bearish signals, but a community‑approved supply cut from 450m to 400m tokens could lift the price to $2.13. XLM sits at $0.215; a Protocol X‑Ray upgrade set for mainnet this week may reverse a 14% correction and push it to $0.23. XTZ is around $0.559 with potential downside to $0.517, yet the forthcoming Tallinn upgrade could support a rebound toward $0.626.