Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, CFTC Chair Michael Selig suggested a future where AI-powered refrigerators could stake Ether and launch memecoins, highlighting the regulatory challenges posed by autonomous financial agents. Meanwhile, Strategy shareholders approved daily dividend payments across four preferred stocks and Coinbase disclosed that some customer contact information was exposed through a third-party analytics provider.

Your fridge could one day stake Ether, launch memecoins: CFTC chair

Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig says it is “no longer science fiction” to imagine one’s refrigerator autonomously purchasing groceries with money earned from staking Ether — or even launching its own memecoin, raising questions about how regulators should oversee autonomous AI agents.

The colorful comment came during Selig’s remarks at the CFTC’s inaugural Frontier Forum in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, where he argued that regulators must adapt to a financial system where AI agents can hold assets and execute trades autonomously.

“We’re gathered here today to discuss a technology that’s rapidly transforming the financial markets. President Trump calls it ‘super intelligence,’ or SI, because ‘it’s not artificial.’ It’s as real as the printing press, the steam engine, and the internet,” he said.

The regulatory questions come as younger investors embrace AI tools for managing money. An eToro survey published in September found that 79% of US millennial investors and 77% of Gen Z investors already used or were open to using AI to select or adjust their investments, highlighting the potential reach of rules governing automated finance.

Strategy shareholders approve daily dividends across four preferred stocks

Strategy shareholders have approved a proposal to introduce daily dividend payments across the company’s four preferred securities, with 99.3% of votes cast supporting the changes.

The amendments cover STRF, STRC, STRK and STRD, replacing existing semi-monthly or quarterly payment schedules with distributions every business day. Dividends will continue to accrue over weekends and holidays, while annual dividend rates remain unchanged.

Strategy expects STRC to begin daily payments on Nov. 2, followed by the other three securities on Jan. 4, 2027. The company said the shorter payment cycle could improve liquidity and reduce price fluctuations in its preferred shares.

The securities currently offer annual dividend rates ranging from 8% to 12%. STRC carries a variable rate of 12%, while the remaining three offer fixed rates.

The move follows similar efforts by rival Bitcoin treasury company Strive, which introduced daily dividends on its SATA preferred stock in June. Strive also recently raised $630 million through a second preferred offering, SATS, which carries a 15% annual dividend rate.

Strategy remains the largest corporate Bitcoin holder, with 848,517 BTC, compared with Strive’s 43,000 BTC.

Coinbase denies systems breach, says vendor exposed customer data

Some Coinbase customers’ contact information was exposed in a security incident at analytics vendor Amplitude, the exchange said Wednesday.

The incident impacted a “small subset” of Coinbase customers, along with other Amplitude clients, Coinbase Support said on X.

Coinbase denied that its own systems had been breached and said customer funds were not affected.

The disclosure adds to Wednesday’s reports of cyberattacks affecting both crypto exchanges and traditional financial firms. In South Korea, Bithumb is investigating whether a breach of its internal work platform exposed customer information, while brokerage Daishin Securities reported a leak of personal and credit information belonging to 38,490 customers.