Fireworks AI Seeks Funding at Valuation Up to $40 Billion

OKX-ICE Joint Venture Co-Chair Andrew Cuomo stated that issuers’ opposition to tokenized stock trading is a “normal reaction,” noting that it is expected for companies to adopt a wait-and-see approach. The growing number of firms refusing to allow their stocks to participate in tokenized transactions is a foreseeable scenario in the process of testing new market structures. Cuomo, who also serves on OKX’s board of directors and is a former New York State Governor, made the remarks during a Tuesday media conference call, after Microsoft, Alphabet, and Goldman Sachs joined the opposition. “This is a very normal reaction. The model is designed to give companies the right to decide for themselves whether to participate, and they can choose to join or opt out,” he said. He added: “We have always anticipated that, as this is a transformative, impactful change, many companies will choose to wait and see how things develop rather than be among the first participants.” A public notice released Monday shows that a total of 16 companies oppose the trading of tokenized versions of their stocks on the OKXICE platform, a planned joint launch by crypto exchange OKX and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), parent company of the New York Stock Exchange. The seven newly disclosed opposing firms include Microsoft, Alphabet, Goldman Sachs, Qualcomm, Caterpillar, McDonald’s, and Western Digital. Earlier, companies such as Broadcom, Verizon, and UnitedHealth Group had also raised objections.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday. Prior to this, U.S. and Ukrainian delegations held talks in Oslo, Norway, which the U.S. described as "highly constructive." Ukraine put forward a new peace plan concept, and all parties made progress on approaches to engage with Russia. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump again urged Kyiv to end the war by reaching an agreement, noting that Moscow wants to resolve the conflict as soon as possible. After meeting with Zelensky, U.S. envoy Witkoff will submit the peace plan to Russian President Putin. According to BIT (bit.com) market data, U.S. stocks closed on Tuesday: the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.06%, the S&P 500 fell 0.29%, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.02%. SK Hynix (SKHY.O) dropped 2%, General Motors (GM.N) fell 6.8%, Western Digital (WDC.O) gained 3%, and Apple (AAPL.O) declined 1%. According to HTX market data, Bitcoin remains range-bound, currently trading at $82,992, with a 24-hour gain of 1.03%.

According to Axios, after meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff will present a peace plan to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Bitcoin yield platform HoneyB’s developer Nectar Group has raised $5 million in a seed funding round led by Portal Ventures, with participation from Peer Venture Partners, Anchorage Digital Ventures, an unnamed family office, and angel investors. Nectar Group co-founder and CEO Josh Gordon disclosed that the company launched the financing round at the end of Q4 2025 and closed it in early Q3 2026. Gordon noted the round used a Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) structure, accompanied by a 1:1 token subscription warrant, and carried a post-money valuation of $30 million. He also stated that none of the investors secured board seats, board observer status, or advisory roles.

Utah Attorney General Derek Brown announced a lawsuit on Tuesday against prediction market platform Kalshi, its affiliates, and two Susquehanna trading firms, accusing the group of conducting illegal activities in Utah since 2024. Brown stated at a Tuesday press conference that Utah officials have filed a court motion seeking the companies to disgorge roughly $30 million to $60 million in profits from allegedly illegal event contracts. The Utah AG also alleged Kalshi illegally served more than 32,000 users in the state, causing significant losses. In September, an appeals court rejected Kalshi’s request for an injunction to block the platform from continuing operations during the appeal period.

As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s public comment period for its proposed Crypto Asset Regulation Rules draws to a close, digital asset firms, Wall Street institutions, and industry advocacy groups have put forward their respective proposals, seeking to influence the regulator’s future oversight direction for financial innovation. The SEC’s comment period for the proposed rules closed on Tuesday, with over 100 submissions received so far. The regulation aims to provide a compliant pathway for digital asset-related investment activities, enabling eligible offerings to be exempt from certain securities law requirements. These include a "Startup Exemption" that exempts offerings of up to $5 million from registration rules, as well as a "Financing Exemption" that permits issuers to conduct offerings of up to $75 million over a 12-month period. In its comment letter to the SEC, the Hyperliquid Policy Center (HPC) urged the regulator to adopt the Crypto Asset Regulation Rules, while noting adjustments are needed to the handling of airdrops. The center called on the SEC to formally incorporate its prior guidance into the rules: if an airdrop recipient obtains assets without any consideration, this does not constitute a monetary contribution, and thus the assets are not securities. HPC also argued that the SEC’s proposed safe harbor mechanism is too narrow in scope.