Launchy Regulatory Roundup #89 - Trump Orders Fed to Review Crypto Master Accounts

Galaxy and BitGo Clash Over $100M Fee

Marco Manoppo & Muhammad Reynaldi Ariananda Arkiang
May 24, 2026

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Welcome to our 89th edition of the regulatory roundup. If you know anybody who would benefit from this content, please help us spread the word!

In Today's Edition:

Headline: Trump Orders Fed to Review Crypto Master Accounts 👀
Global Legal Roundup
Case Study: Galaxy and BitGo Clash Over $100M Fee 👊

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HEADLINE

Trump Orders Fed to Review Crypto Master Accounts

State of play: Trump signed an executive order directing the Fed to assess giving fintech and crypto firms direct access to its payment rails, framing existing rules as "overly burdensome" to innovation.

The order gives the Fed 120 days to report on extending Reserve Bank account access to non-bank digital asset firms.
It also asks the Fed to clarify whether the 12 regional banks can independently grant or deny master accounts.
Master account access would let crypto firms connect directly to core US payment rails without intermediary banks.
It follows the Kansas City Fed's March approval of a limited-purpose account for Kraken parent Payward, which drew bank-industry backlash.
The Fed proposed a framework for restricted "skinny" master account

What’s Next: The Fed's 120-day report, the pending PACE Act, and the unfinished skinny-account framework will decide whether Kraken's approval was a one-off or the new template.

Why it Matters: Direct rail access strips banks of their gatekeeping role over dollar settlement, the single biggest structural edge they hold over crypto firms.

Our Take: Branding this as cutting "burdensome" rules is cover for a political push to pry open a door the Fed deliberately kept narrow, and the 120-day clock is the real pressure.

GLOBAL LEGAL ROUNDUP

America:

🇺🇸 SEC delays tokenized asset exemption.
🇺🇸 SEC reviewing implications of delayed prediction market ETFs.
🇺🇸 Galaxy's Novogratz & BitGo face off in court over $100M claim.
🇺🇸 Missouri AG sues CoinFlip, calls crypto ATMs 'getaway cars for fraud'.
🇺🇸 CFTC sues Minnesota over first explicit state ban on prediction markets.
🇺🇸 New BTC reserve bill drops 1M BTC target, adds 20-year lockup period.
🇺🇸 Minnesota signs law allowing banks, credit unions to offer crypto services.
🇺🇸 Trump orders Fed to review giving crypto firms access to master accounts.
🇺🇸 Kalshi, Polymarket lose bids to halt Nevada and Washington gambling cases.
🇺🇸 House Oversight launches probe into insider trading on Kalshi & Polymarket.

Europe:

🇪🇺 EC launches MiCA review as global crypto regulatory landscape shifts.
🇪🇺 ECB warns EU ministers that easing stablecoin rules would weaken banks.
🇬🇧 Bank of England outlines tokenization, stablecoin vision for UK finance.

APAC:

🇰🇷 South Korea to review scrapping crypto tax plan.

CASE STUDY

Galaxy and BitGo Clash Over $100M Fee

State of play: Galaxy and BitGo faced off in court this week over a $100M reverse break fee tied to their collapsed $1.2B merger, roughly four years after Galaxy walked away.

BitGo claims Galaxy didn't use reasonable efforts to close and hid details of US authority probes that could have derailed the deal.
Galaxy terminated the acquisition in August 2022, citing BitGo's failure to deliver compliant audited 2021 financials on time.
Galaxy maintained at the time that it owed no termination fee.
BitGo has since sought either the $100M fee or greater legal damages.
The deal, first announced in May 2021, would have made BitGo CEO Mike Belshe Galaxy's deputy CEO and a board member.

Our Take: The audited-financials excuse always looked like a convenient exit from a deal Galaxy soured on as markets cratered, and BitGo's probe-concealment claim is a bet the timing tells a different story.

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Disclaimer: All the information presented in this publication and its affiliates is strictly for educational purposes only. It should not be construed or taken as financial, legal, investment, or any other form of advice.