The United Kingdom is a step closer to launching a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) after releasing a consultation paper explaining the proposed digital pound, which the public has nicknamed “Britcoin.” The 116-page consultation paper was jointly released on Feb. 7 by the Bank of England (BoE) and His Majesty’s Treasury. A technology working paper
Regulation
The names of two guarantors who signed off on part of Sam Bankman-Fried’s $250 million bail bond will continue to remain a secret for now. A judge has also rejected an agreement that would have permitted Bankman-Fried to use certain messaging apps. Bankman Fried’s lawyers filed an appeal to block the release of the guarantors’
United States Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm were the recipients Feb. 6 of another letter on the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining. Eight Democratic lawmakers headed by Elizabeth Warren reached out to the officials this time. The eight lawmakers acknowledged previous replies to official correspondence asking about the agencies’
ConsenSys issued a statement Feb. 7 in support of the appeal of the of Jarrett v. United States case concerning the taxation of staking rewards. The case originated in a dispute over a refund of about $4,000 that Joshua and Jessica Jarrett claimed on XTZ tokens they validated in 2019. The Jarretts claimed their staking
Three financial watchdogs in the United States have issued a warning to investors considering certain individual retirement accounts with exposure to cryptocurrencies. In a Feb. 7 notice, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, the North American Securities Administrators Association, and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority said self-directed individual retirement
Japanese financial software firm Soramitsu has announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Bank of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic Payment Systems Department on the launch of a proof-of-concept project for a Laotian central bank digital currency (CBDC). Under the agreement, a digital form of the Lao kip, called the DLak, would
Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, has petitioned the court to delay civil proceedings against former FTX chief executive officer Sam Bankman-Fried “until the conclusion of the parallel criminal case”. In Feb. 7 filings, Williams requested that the court issue an order staying civil proceedings as well as discovery
A federal judge has denied a joint agreement between Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried’s legal team and prosecutors that would have allowed the former FTX CEO to use certain messaging apps. In a Feb. 7 filing for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Lewis Kaplan denied a motion proposing Bankman-Fried
In January, the brother of a former Coinbase product manager was sentenced to 10 months in prison for wire fraud conspiracy in what prosecutors called the first case of insider trading involving cryptocurrencies. In September 2022, Nikhil Wahi entered a guilty plea for executing trades based on private data obtained from his brother, Ishan Wahi,
The Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA), the regulator in charge of overseeing cryptocurrency laws within Dubai, has issued new guidelines for virtual asset service providers (VASP) operating within the emirate. According to information sent by Irina Heaver, a crypto and blockchain lawyer based in the United Arab Emirates, VARA has issued the “Full Market Product
The CEO of crypto miner Layer1 Technologies has filed a lawsuit against the firm’s two other board members — including co-founder Jakov Dolic — for allegedly commandeering Layer1’s operations for their own gain. Chief executive John Harney and DGF Investments Inc — a British Virgin Islands-based investment firm — filed the lawsuit against Dolic and
A former product manager at cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has moved to dismiss charges of alleged insider trading, with his lawyers arguing the tokens he allegedly traded were not securities. Lawyers representing ex-Coinbase employee, Ishan Wahi, and his brother, Nikhil Wahi, filed a motion on Feb. 6 in the United States District Court for the Western
The Bank of England (BoE) and U.K. Treasury are gearing up plans to create a digital currency that could “provide a new way to pay” without necessarily replacing cash. On Feb. 7, a joint consultation paper on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) is set to drop, with the BoE and Treasury seeking feedback on how,
Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF’s) lawyers have reached an agreement with federal prosecutors concerning his use of messaging apps. According to a Feb. 6 court document, both parties have agreed SBF “shall not use any encrypted or ephemeral call of messaging application, including but not limited to Signal.” However, under the agreement, the former FTX CEO will
The U.K. outline of the future financial services regulatory regime for crypto covers a broad range of topics, from the troubles of algorithmic stablecoins to nonfungible tokens and initial coin offerings. And it’s certainly good news for the industry, as the upcoming regulation doesn’t propose a ban on algorithmic stablecoins or excessive requirements on data
The Bank of Italy is looking for new ways to apply distributed ledger technology (DLT) and is preparing for the advent of Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, bank governor Ignazio Visco told a congress of Assiom Forex, the Italian financial markets association, on Feb. 4. DLT may offer benefits such as cheaper cross-border transactions and
John Ray, who took over as CEO of crypto exchange FTX, has described some of the chaotic experiences at the firm following the company declaring bankruptcy. In testimony for FTX’s case in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on Feb. 6, Ray said he and other professionals had “carefully” been conducting
Regulators in Hong Kong are stepping up their game when it comes to monitoring the activities of the crypto industry. According to a Securities and Futures Commission report filed on Feb. 6, it plans to hire four additional staff to “better supervise” the activities of local virtual asset (VA) providers. Moreover, the extra oversight will help
South Korea established guidance that specifies which types of digital assets will be considered and regulated as securities in the country. In a press release, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) highlighted that digital assets that fit the characteristics laid out in the country’s Capital Markets Act will be treated as securities. This law considers securities
The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO), or Interpol, is investigating how it could police crimes in the metaverse. However, a top Interpol executive believes there are issues with defining a metaverse crime. According to BBC, Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock revealed the agency’s intent to oversee criminal activities on the metaverse. Stock highlighted the ability