U.S.
Clarity Act failure gives Asia and Middle East a competitive edge, says Apex Group CEO Apex Group CEO Peter Hughes warned that the failure of the U.S
Clarity Act will drive digital asset businesses toward faster-moving jurisdictions in Asia and the Middle East. – The U.S. risks losing digital asset business to faster-moving jurisdictions in Asia, the Middle East and Bermuda after the Senate failed to advance the Clarity Act, Apex Group CEO Peter Hughes said. – Hughes said Europe’s crypto rules remain restrictive, while Saudi Arabia is emerging as a tokenization hub by opening its real estate market to digital assets and greater foreign investment. – Tokenized money market funds and regulated, yield-bearing stablecoins could accelerate institutional adoption by offering higher returns, collateral utility and broader access than traditional financial products, Hughes said. The U.S. risks losing digital asset business to Asia and the Middle East if it continues to delay crypto legislation or fails to implement a clear, certain regulatory framework for digital assets, said Peter Hughes, founder and CEO of Apex Group, a global financial firm. Hughes said, however, that Europe will not benefit from Washington’s setback despite having its own rules in place since July 1. “I think that the Clarity Act and the delay around that will lead to people finding other solutions elsewhere,” Hughes told CoinDesk in an interview.
Hughes singled out Europe’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), describing it as slow to evolve and restrictive. “But I do think there’s opportunities in Asia, which are moving quickly; the Middle East; even places like Bermuda are moving quickly around having the right regimes to really produce the product for the future, and they’ll step into this gap,” he said. The U.S. Senate last month failed to pass the Clarity Act, which would have established clearer federal rules for digital assets and divided oversight between the Securities and…