Apex Group warns U.S. crypto delays could shift digital asset business to Asia and Middle East

Traders Union
All News
Crypto
US crypto delays could shift business

Highlights

Senate's failure to advance the Clarity Act in September leaves U.S. digital asset firms without federal regulatory certainty, increasing pressure from faster-moving jurisdictions.
Apex Group, managing over $3.5 trillion in assets, announces a partnership with droppRWA and Tokeny to launch regulated blockchain-based investment products in Saudi Arabia.
Tokenization and recent regulatory changes position Saudi Arabia as a rising hub for institutional adoption, but legal-technical infrastructure remains a scaling challenge.

Regulatory gap widens competitive pressure

As reported by CoinDesk, Hughes says the Senate's failure last month to advance the Clarity Act leaves companies without a clear federal framework for digital assets in the U.S. The bill would have set clearer rules for the sector and split oversight between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, but it falls short of the 60 votes needed in September after disputes over ethics provisions, stablecoin rewards and other regulatory concerns.

Hughes says the delay is likely to push market participants toward jurisdictions that are moving more quickly to build workable regimes for future financial products. He argues Europe is unlikely to benefit despite having its own crypto framework in force since July 1, describing the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, or MiCA, as restrictive and slow to evolve.

The SEC and CFTC move soon after with their own proposed crypto rules, seeking to address part of the vacuum left by lawmakers' failure to reach agreement. Even so, Hughes says the lack of certainty continues to weigh on companies developing blockchain-based financial products in the U.S.

Saudi Arabia emerges in tokenization race

Apex Group, which services more than $3.5 trillion in assets across 50 jurisdictions, is expanding its focus on tokenized finance as regional opportunities develop. Earlier this month, the company announces a partnership with droppRWA and Tokeny to convert real-world assets into regulated blockchain-based investment products, starting in Saudi Arabia.

Hughes says tokenized money market funds and regulated, yield-bearing stablecoins could speed up institutional adoption by offering higher returns, collateral utility and wider access than traditional products. He also points to Saudi Arabia as an emerging hub after regulatory changes open its real estate market to tokenization and greater foreign investment.

Faisal Monai, CEO and founder of droppRWA, says the remaining challenge is infrastructure that links each digital token directly to the legal record of the underlying asset. That legal and technical connection is likely to be critical if tokenized property and other real-world assets are to scale in the region.

Our earlier coverage of sovereign borrowing risks in a higher-rate environment noted that prolonged geopolitical tensions and elevated fiscal spending are testing governments’ financial resilience as refinancing costs rise. We highlighted that emerging and frontier markets are especially exposed because debt-service burdens are high relative to limited revenue bases, while persistent shocks such as conflicts can keep inflation pressures elevated and strain credit outlooks.

This material may contain third-party opinions, none of the data and information on this webpage constitutes investment advice according to our Disclaimer. While we adhere to strict Editorial Integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners.