Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX has announced a restructuring plan aimed at compensating affected users, the United Kingdom Treasury has amended a law to clarify that crypto staking does not fall under a “collective investment scheme” — clearing a potential compliance headache for proof-of-stake blockchains, and stablecoin issuer Circle has donated $1 million to US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration committee.Indian crypto exchange WazirX charts recovery path after $235 million cyberattackIndian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX, which suffered a $235 million cyberattack in July 2024, has announced a restructuring plan aimed at compensating affected users.The exchange, reportedly targeted by North Korea’s Lazarus Group, has developed the plan under the supervision of Singapore’s legal system.Zettai, the parent company managing WazirX, filed for a moratorium at the Singapore High Court in August 2024, proposing a restructuring plan under a Singapore Scheme of Arrangement. A Singapore Scheme of Arrangement is a court-approved legal process companies can use to restructure their debts and liabilities. It allows a company to propose a binding arrangement with creditors, ensuring resolution while avoiding liquidation.WazirX, in an affidavit shared with Cointelegraph, stated that it currently holds liquid assets amounting to $566.4 million USDt , exceeding the total claims of $546.5 million USDT filed by users in July 2024. The company has also introduced recovery tokens to settle outstanding claims, allowing creditors to benefit from profits generated by future platform operations and recovered assets.WazirX founder Nischal Shetty described the restructuring as a step toward restoring user trust.“Our swift filing for the moratorium and application to the court for a Scheme process was a decisive step taken for the benefit of users so they can receive distributions as soon as possible,” Shetty told Cointelegraph. “Token distributions will be made shortly after the Scheme is approved by creditors and sanctioned by the court [...] my number one goal is to add more value than what was stolen.”UK order clarifies crypto staking is not a collective investment schemeThe UK Treasury has amended a law clarifying that crypto staking — necessary for proof-of-stake blockchains such as Ethereum and Solana — doesn’t fall under the definition of a “collective investment scheme,” which is typically heavily regulated. A Jan. 8 order from the department amends a section of The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 about group investments, adding that “arrangements for qualifying cryptoasset staking do not amount to a collective investment scheme [CIS].”It clarifies that “qualifying cryptoasset staking” means validating transactions on a blockchain, a distributed ledger technology network “or other similar technology.”The updated law will come into effect on Jan. 31.Circle backs Trump’s inauguration with donationStablecoin issuer Circle donated $1 million worth of USD Coin (USDC) to Donald Trump’s Inauguration Committee, CEO Jeremely Allaire confirmed on Jan. 9.In a social media post, Allaire lauded the committee’s openness to take payment in USDC, signaling “how far we have come” in promoting the “power of digital dollars.”At $44 billion, Circle’s USDC is the second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization behind only Tether (USDT). Combined, stablecoins are valued at roughly $203 billion. Stablecoins are becoming a core crypto policy issue in the United States, with Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis co-sponsoring the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act in 2024.Meanwhile, former US House Speaker Paul Ryan opined in June that stablecoins could help Washington alleviate its debt crisis and protect the dollar’s reserve currency status.