Today in crypto, Polymarket and Circle partnered to bring native USDC payments to prediction markets; World Liberty Financial faces a House probe over a $500 million investment linked to an Abu Dhabi royal; and crypto companies are reportedly floating concessions to move the market structure bill forward.
Polymarket, Circle partner to move prediction market to native USDC settlement
Decentralized prediction market Polymarket has partnered with stablecoin issuer Circle to transition its platform to native USDC (USDC) settlement, replacing the bridged USDC.e currently used on Polygon.
The move will see Polymarket shift away from bridge-based settlement infrastructure toward Circle-issued USDC, which is fully backed and redeemable for US dollars. According to the companies, the change is intended to reduce the complexity and risk associated with cross-chain bridges while improving capital efficiency.
Polymarket founder Shayne Coplan said the transition supports a consistent, dollar-denominated settlement standard as the platform scales. The partnership reflects a broader trend in crypto toward native stablecoin settlement as onchain markets mature and infrastructure providers prioritize security and regulatory alignment.
Trump-linked WLFI faces probe over $500M UAE crypto deal
World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a crypto company linked to US President Donald Trump’s family, is facing scrutiny from House Democrats over a reported $500 million investment by an entity linked to an Abu Dhabi royal in the UAE.
California Representative Ro Khanna, a Democrat who has criticized public officials’ exposure to the crypto market, said on X on Thursday that he has launched an investigation into the UAE investment in WLFI.
“This is about public trust and transparency,” Khanna said, linking to a Wall Street Journal report detailing that he urged a US attorney to probe the deal as well.
The investigation comes after Trump denied knowledge of the $500 million stake on Monday. “My sons are handling that — my family is handling it,” he said.
According to the WSJ, the investment was backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, an Emirati politician who has been serving as the National Security Adviser of the UAE since 2016.
Crypto firms offer ideas to break market structure gridlock: Report
Crypto companies are reportedly floating concessions relating to stablecoin yields in an attempt to unfreeze the delayed crypto market structure bill.
The legislation passed the House but has stalled in the Senate as negotiations continue over whether stablecoin issuers should be allowed to offer yields, with banks arguing it will compete with and take money away from traditional savings accounts.
Anonymous sources told Bloomberg that crypto firms are now making new proposals, such as giving community banks a bigger role in the stablecoin system, to ease the bill through the Senate.
Other proposed compromises include requiring stablecoin issuers to hold reserves at community banks and helping community banks issue their own stablecoins through partnerships.
