Custodia Bank founder Caitlin Long had a strong reaction to the news that BNY Mellon has launched a digital custody platform for Ether (ETH) and Bitcoin (BTC) holdings. Speaking at DC FinTech Week on Oct. 11, she made a comparison between the Federal Reserve’s actions and policies. BNY Mellon is the first large United States
Regulation
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and a group of six other U.S. lawmakers have requested information from the head of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, on the energy usage and potential environmental impact of crypto miners. In an Oct. 12 letter, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Sheldon Whitehouse and Edward Markey and Representatives Al Green,
Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, the finance minister of Norway, has suggested the government abolish a scheme that allows crypto data centers to pay a reduced rate on electricity. In an Oct. 6 announcement, the government of Norway proposed that data centers operating in the country be subject to the same electricity tax rates as other industries,
In a statement released on Oct. 6, the European Union introduced another set of sanctions against Russia due to the prolonged and recently escalated conflict in Ukraine. The new sanctions include a complete ban on cross-border crypto payments between Russians and the EU. This statement includes the prohibition of, “all crypto-asset wallets, accounts, or custody services,
After a build-up of multiple memorandums of understanding (MoU) and an initial “in-principle” approval to operate in Kazakhstan, Binance received a permanent license to operate in the country. As of Oct. 6, Kazakhstan’s AIFC Financial Services Authority (AFSA) granted the permanent license to both manage a digital asset platform and provide custody services at the
South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday issued an order for Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon to surrender his passport. The fugitive co-founder must hand over his Korean passport to authorities within 14 days of the said order. A failure to comply with the order will result in the cancellation of his passport altogether.
After months of investigation without any single arrest and the main offender on the run teasing the enforcers on Twitter, South Korean police have reportedly captured the first person involved in the Terra blockchain ecosystem collapse. The news about the arrest of Yoo Mo, the head of the business team of Terraform Labs, appeared in
Republican members of the House Financial Services Committee have requested the Department of Justice provide its assessment and legislative proposals around a digital dollar within ten days. In an Oct. 5 letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, 11 Republican lawmakers asked the Justice Department for a copy of its “assessment of whether legislative
Curtis Loftis, the treasurer for the U.S. state of South Carolina, spent five days in El Salvador as part of an “exploratory trip” on cryptocurrencies. According to an Oct. 5 announcement, Loftis was part of a delegation including South Carolina business leaders, rural health officials, and individuals “interested in the expansion of cryptocurrency and blockchain
The website of crypto exchange OKX was blocked in Russia by the state media monitoring service Roskomnadzor on Oct. 4. The agency told the TASS news agency that the website was blocked at “the request of the Prosecutor General’s Office for the dissemination of unreliable socially significant information of a financial nature.” Roskomnadzor told local
Representatives from a committee with the European Council have moved forward with regulating digital assets in the European Union through the Markets in Crypto-Assets, or MiCA, framework, sending the finalized text to parliament for a vote. According to an information note on Oct. 5, the European Council’s Permanent Representatives Committee approved the MiCA text and
Nasdaq, the United States stock exchange, has no immediate plans of launching a crypto exchange until there’s better regulatory clarity from policymakers, said Tal Cohen, the company’s executive vice president. In an interview with Bloomberg, Cohen said that the retail side of the crypto market is fairly saturated and there are enough crypto exchanges catering to
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Miami Field Office has warned that crypto ATMs are emerging as a popular method that scammers use to receive funds from defrauded victims. The information was revealed as part of an Oct. 3 public warning about “pig butchering scams” where scammers pose as long-lost friends or potential romantic partners
The legal team behind nonfungible token firm DataVault Holdings has requested an advisory opinion from the United States Federal Election Commission on using NFTs for fundraising efforts. In a Sept. 21 letter to FEC acting general counsel Lisa Stevenson, DataVault’s lawyers proposed sending NFTs as “souvenirs” to individuals who contributed to political committees, as well
The United States Commodities Futures Trading Commission can serve members of the Ooki decentralized autonomous organization, or DAO, with summons through online communications, according to a federal judge. In an Oct. 3 order granting a CFTC motion, U.S. District Judge William Orrick said the commission could provide a copy of its summons and complaint through
Members of the parliament of the European Union voted in favor of a non-binding resolution aimed at using blockchain to fight tax evasion and coordinate tax policy on cryptocurrencies. In an Oct. 4 notice, the European Parliament said 566 members out of 705 voted in favor of the resolution originally drafted by member Lídia Pereira.
The comments period has ended for the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) “Second Consultation on the Prudential Treatment of Cryptoasset Exposures,” a document published in June 2022. International financial associations had a lot to say in response to it. Several did so at once in a joint 84-page comment letter released Oct. 4. In
Terra co-founder Do Kwon, wanted by South Korean authorities, seems to live in a digital-era James Bond movie. The businessman, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, reacted via Twitter to Interpol issuing a Red Notice on him. Kwon told his followers that he calmly writes code in his living room, “making zero effort to hide.” Active
The crypto community reacted with a mix of disbelief and amusement after reality star Kim Kardashian was fined for promoting the cryptocurrency EthereumMax (EMAX). The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) fined Kardashian $1.26 million on Oct. 3, for “touting on social media” about the EMAX without disclosing she was paid $250,000 to post
Stablecoin issuer Tether (USDT) has nearly completely slashed its commercial paper holdings, with less than $50 million worth of commercial paper units as of Sept. 30, 2022. Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino made the announcement in an Oct. 3 tweet, adding also that Tether’s United States Treasury bills increased to 58.1% of its total portfolio, up