El Salvador has passed landmark legislation providing the legal framework for a Bitcoin-backed bond — known as the “Volcano Bond” — which will be used to pay down sovereign debt and fund the construction of its proposed “Bitcoin City”. The bill passed on Jan. 11 with 62 votes for and 16 against, and is set
Regulation
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has begun the process of getting a default judgment in its case against Ooki DAO after the latter missed the deadline to respond to the lawsuit. According to a Jan. 11 court filing, the regulator has requested the court for an “entry of default” against the decentralized autonomous organization (DAO),
The City of London has teamed up with a variety of trade associations to form the UK Forum for Digital Currencies, an alliance that will advocate for “better policies, practice and regulation around digital currencies,” according to a statement released by the five members. Besides the City of London Corporation, the city’s municipal governing body,
When the new licensing program that is scheduled to take off in June arrives, retail traders in Hong Kong will be limited to “highly-liquid” digital assets, according to the new CEO of Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Julia Leung Fung-yee. At the recent Asia Financial Forum, Leung reportedly pointed out that many digital
The cryptocurrency exchange Zipmex is the focus of a new probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand for a breach of local rules. A Bloomberg report revealed that local authorities are looking into activities that they believe may violate business rules for digital asset service providers. This includes its offerings of certain
Argentina’s Ministry of Economy, the country’s economic policy manager, has drafted a bill to encourage Argentines to declare their cryptocurrency holdings with the inducement of discounted tax rates. Aimed at combating money laundering, the “Externalization of Argentine Savings” draft law was introduced by economy minister Sergio Massa according to a Jan. 6 report by local
Bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital received initial court approval for its proposal to sell its assets to Binance.US for $1.02 billion. The approval comes amid a national security probe concerning Binance.US that Voyager is seeking to speed up. On Jan. 10, Judge Michael Wiles in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of
Digital rights advocacy group Fight for the Future has posted an open letter on its website encouraging the new members of the U.S. Congress to protect privacy. The letter has attracted dozens of companies and organizations as cosigners. “Increasingly, the incredible creative power of U.S. software developers is being chilled by clumsy, misguided legislative and regulatory
The United Kingdom remains committed to becoming a world crypto industry hub in spite of the recent negative events that have occurred on the market. It is “the sector I have dedicated the most time to,” Member of Parliament and HM Treasury Economic Secretary Andrew Griffith told a meeting of the UK Parliament Treasury Committee
A group of four United States senators have criticized one of the law firms involved in the bankruptcy case of crypto exchange FTX for conflicts of interest. In a Jan. 9 letter to Judge John Dorsey of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, Senators John Hickenlooper, Thom Tillis, Elizabeth Warren, and Cynthia
The South Korea-based cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is under a “special tax investigation” by the country’s National Tax Service (NTS), according to local reports. On Jan. 10, tax agents raided the exchange’s headquarters in the country’s capital city Seoul as a part of a compliance investigation. Authorities are verifying the possibility of tax evasion by examining
As one of the world’s pioneers in adopting its own central bank digital currency (CBDC), Nigeria declares its readiness to accept the existence of private stablecoins as well. The necessity to create a legal framework for stablecoins is marked in the latest central bank strategy paper. Published under the headline “Nigeria Payments System Vision 2025”,
Terraform Labs (TFL), the firm behind the defunct algorithmic stablecoin TerraUST (USTC), and its co-founder Do Kwon is back in the limelight again for allegedly running a smear campaign and issuing threats against one of their own community members. It all started in the month of May with the genesis airdrop that was planned after
As the investigation into FTX continues, the crypto exchange’s former engineering chief, Nishad Singh, followed former FTX and Alameda Research executives Gary Wang and Caroline Ellison by reportedly meeting with federal prosecutors to cut a deal. Singh attended a proffer session during the week of Jan. 2 at the office of the United States Attorney
Nepal’s telecommunications regulator has ordered the country’s internet service providers (ISPs) to block all cryptocurrency trading websites, threatening legal action against those that fail to comply. In a Jan. 8 notice, the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) ordered ISPs and email service providers to prevent access to “websites, apps or online networks” related to crypto. It
Sanctions aimed at decentralized crypto mixer Tornado Cash weren’t able to completely cut off its usage, though it has hamstrung the service, a blockchain analytics firm has shared. On Aug. 8, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against the crypto mixer for its role in the laundering of crime proceeds. In a
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has pled not guilty to all criminal charges he’s facing, including wire fraud, securities fraud and violations of campaign finance laws. In total, the entrepreneur faces eight criminal counts, which could result in 115 years in prison should he be convicted. Meanwhile, Daniel Friedberg, the controversial lawyer who served as
The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed suit against self-described digital artist Avraham Eisenberg on Jan. 9, charging him with two counts of market manipulation in connection with an exploit of decentralized finance platform Mango Markets. Eisenberg was arrested on related charges on Dec. 27 and is currently in custody. The CFTC claimed
Xiao Yi, the former Chinese Communist Party secretary of Fuzhou, has confessed to “acting recklessly” in support of crypto mining during a state-run television broadcast. In an interview released by state-run media on Jan. 8, Xiao seemed to speak with a very subdued voice from what appeared to be prison, apologizing for being a “sinner”
The last year proved to be another turbulent year for the crypto industry. From a lasting market downturn and exploits in decentralized finance (DeFi) to the FTX scandal, no area was left unscathed. For some, the happenings in the space proved unsustainable for business. The Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp, the holding company for New York-based