Last Week Recap: D Prime Exits Cyprus; Finfluencers Charged in UK; Charlie Kirk Murder; Centroid and Cboe Partnership

Fazzaco continued extensively covering the latest trends in forex, crypto, fintech, and prop trading last week. The below is the selected highlights of last week.

Backpack Exchange Launches Perpetual Futures in EU After Acquiring FTX's European Unit

Backpack Exchange has officially introduced perpetual futures trading for European Union users, its first major product rollout since acquiring the European arm of the collapsed FTX exchange earlier this year. The service, operating under Backpack EU, is currently in Beta, requiring prospective users to register for a waitlist.

Fireblocks and Circle Announce Stablecoin Infrastructure Partnership

Fireblocks, a digital asset custody and settlement platform, has entered into a collaboration with an affiliate of Circle Internet Group, Inc., a global fintech firm best known for issuing the USDC stablecoin. The partnership is intended to help financial institutions build and scale secure digital asset services.

D Prime Winds Down Cyprus Marketing Team

Retail FX and CFDs broker D Prime has shut down its entire Cyprus-based marketing department, marking a significant organizational change for the group's European operations.

The team was led by Chief Marketing Officer Marilena Iakovou and Head of Marketing Mariliza Karrera, both of whom have now departed. The two executives had built a long-standing professional partnership, having first worked together at Tickmill during its launch in 2020, before moving to M4Markets in 2023 and later to D Prime. Their careers also span other well-known industry names, including Orbex, IronFX, and PrimeXM.

Finfluencers Charged Over Unauthorized Investment Promotions

Three self-styled financial influencers — Charles Hunter, Kayan Kalipha, and Luke Desmaris — have been charged in the UK with unlawfully promoting high-risk investment products through their social media platforms.

Appearing separately at Westminster Magistrates' Court, the individuals faced accusations of encouraging their followers to trade in contracts for difference (CFDs), a leveraged product widely regarded as high risk. Prosecutors allege that none of them held the required authorization to make such promotions.

Kalshi Shuts Down Charlie Kirk Prediction Markets After Fatal Shooting

Prediction market operator Kalshi has closed all markets related to conservative activist Charlie Kirk following his assassination on last Wednesday during a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University.

Kirk, 31, was shot in the neck while speaking on stage at "The American Comeback Tour" in Orem. Witnesses reported chaos in the auditorium as attendees rushed for cover.

Centroid Solutions Unveils Seamless Integration with Cboe Global Markets​

Centroid Solutions is delighted to announce the completion of its integration with Cboe Market Data, enabling seamless access to Cboe's expansive U.S. and European market data feeds. Through this collaboration, brokers leveraging Centroid's advanced multi-asset connectivity engine can now integrate real-time, high-fidelity market data streams for pricing across equities, options, indices, and derivatives directly into their trading platforms, including Centroid Solutions' Trading Ecosystem.