The White House released a statement on Jan. 27 that provided the United States President Joe Biden administration a roadmap for mitigating risks associated with cryptocurrencies. Much of the document was addressed to the U.S. Congress with the administration’s legislative guidance. The authors of the statement outlined a two-pronged path forward. They wrote: “We have
Regulation
Federal prosecutors have requested that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) bail conditions are modified to prevent further alleged attempts at influencing witnesses’ testimonies. Court documents filed on Jan. 27 revealed that The Department of Justice (DOJ) have asked U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan to ban Bankman-Fried from communicating with “current or former employees”
The United States Federal Reserve Board announced Jan. 27 that it was issuing a policy statement on limitations on banks. The policy seeks to create a level playing field and limit regulatory arbitrage for state banks with deposit insurance, state banks without deposit insurance and national banks, which are overseen by the Office of the
The United State Federal Reserve Board has rejected Custodia Bank’s application to become a member of the Federal Reserve System. In its announcement, the Fed stated that the application was “inconsistent with the required factors under the law.” It also claimed Custodia had an “insufficient” management framework and cited an earlier joint declaration by the
According to a new report, the controversial law firm Sullivan & Cromwell is on track to reap a fortune from its work on the FTX cryptocurrency exchange’s bankruptcy case. Sullivan & Cromwell’s costs in the FTX case are estimated to reach hundreds of millions of dollars before the firm’s bankruptcy investigation is over, Bloomberg Law
Wendy Rogers, an Arizona state senator in the United States, has launched bills concerning cryptocurrency, including one that aims to make Bitcoin (BTC) legal tender in Arizona. In a recent tweet, Rogers cited data from investment firm Goldman Sachs that BTC is the best-performing asset in the world and announced that she launched a set
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been probing traditional Wall Street investment advisors that may be offering digital asset custody to its clients without the proper qualifications. A Jan. 26 Reuters report citing “three sources with knowledge of the inquiry” said the SEC’s investigation has been going on for several months already
Investors of crypto mining firm Argo Blockchain have filed a class action lawsuit accusing the miner of making untrue statements and omitting key information during its initial public offering (IPO) in 2021. A newly filed lawsuit on Jan. 26 is aimed at Argo and several of its executives and board members. It claims the firm
The chairman of the newly formed U.S. congressional subcommittee on digital assets has pledged for progressive crypto regulations to ensure that “America is the place for innovation in fintech and blockchain.” Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Jan. 26, Congressman French Hill offered some of his first insights into what is anticipated for crypto regulations
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Commissioner Kristin Johnson has urged Congress to adopt legislation that “closes the current gap in the oversight of crypto spot markets.” During a speech at a digital assets conference at Duke University on Jan. 21, Johnson proposed a number of amendments that would enable the CFTC to conduct “effective due diligence”
Crypto proponents would be wise to keep their eyes on nonfungible token (NFT) and metaverse trademark applications this year, which are “reliable signals” of future-use plans. Speaking to Cointelegraph, intellectual property lawyer Michael Kondoudis said while many people may think big corporations are just jumping onto the NFT trend as a novelty, “it is not
Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments. Bithumb in turmoil On Jan. 25, Yonhap Infomax reported that South Korean authorities had requested an arrest warrant for Kang Jong-Hyun, chairman and owner of cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, over embezzlement allegations. That same day, the Financial Investigation Second Division of the
Two United States senators have taken their questions about the performance of accounting firms active in the crypto space to a higher power: the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). Failure to uncover alleged criminality and poor recordkeeping at FTX has sullied the image of the PCAOB and the accounting profession, the senators said. In
The Web3 Foundation, which supports the Polkadot protocol, has again presented its argument that its native DOT (DOT) token is not a security. In a Twitter thread, the foundation emphasized its efforts to comply with U.S. securities laws, as well as Securities and Exchange Commission guidance on digital assets, and declared that DOT had successfully
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) is working on two papers to address fundamental legal risks in the crypto markets, such as the insolvency of crypto exchange firms, according to a statement released on Jan. 26. The initiative was motivated by the collapse of crypto exchange FTX and previous bankruptcy cases that “prompted a
Lawyers representing FTX in bankruptcy court have reportedly argued that former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s immediate family should face questioning regarding their personal wealth. According to a Jan. 26 report from Bloomberg, FTX’s lawyers requested Judge John Dorsey in the District of Delaware allow them to question Joseph Bankman, Barbara Fried and Gabriel Bankman-Fried — the
The World Economic Forum (WEF) convenes in Davos annually, taking over the Swiss skiing town. The main promenade is flush with events and companies renting out properties, with an increasing presence from companies in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space. The entrance to the WEF compound is restricted by cement barriers and security personnel, drawing an
Key figures from the wider cryptocurrency space painted a picture of increased dialogue and collaboration at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology remained but a small part of the projects and initiatives discussed and workshopped at the annual WEF conference high in the Swiss Alps. However, an increased number
Authorities in the United States might have discovered yet another possible component of Sam Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency empire. U.S. federal prosecutors have alleged that Bankman-Fried has used money from FTX exchange to invest in the venture capital (VC) firm Modulo Capital, according to The New York Times. As previously reported, SBF’s hedge fund and FTX’s sister firm,
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), the Dutch central Bank, fined cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase 3.3 million euros ($3.6 million), due to non-compliance with local regulations for financial service providers, according to a Reuters report on Jan 26. The exchange reportedly failed to obtain the necessary registration to offer services in the Netherlands prior to beginning operations in