Regulation

Lawyers representing the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have argued that the additional documents submitted by Dentons — the law firm representing Terraform Labs and Do Kwon — in support of its motion to dismiss the lawsuit lack adequate support for dismissing the case. The SEC’s counsel asserts that the Binance.US transcript and

Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance has terminated its services in the Netherlands, making an exit from the Dutch market after a bid to obtain a virtual asset service provider (VASP) license failed. The termination of services is effective immediately, and no new customers from the Netherlands can open an account with the crypto exchange. From July 17

Crypto Twitter was witness to a fierce debate this wee, with billionaire investor Mark Cuban accusing SEC’s Gary Gensler of throwing crypto under the bus while a former SEC official was quick to come to the regulator’s defense. In a spirited, back-and-forth exchange on Twitter with former SEC officer John Reed Stark that started on

BlackRock’s latest filing for a spot Bitcoin (BTC) trust will drive investors’ confidence in Bitcoin and may even be “the best thing that could happen” to BTC, according to some crypto industry observers — but others warn of a hidden cost. During an interview on June 16, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz said the approval

Crypto lending firm Abra, which once handled more than $116 million in assets, had allegedly committed securities fraud and has been insolvent since March 31, according to Texas regulators. In a June 15 enforcement action — including an emergency cease and desist order — the Texas State Securities Board accused Abra and its founder William Barhydt of

The final quarter of 2020 saw the launch of a precedent-setting lawsuit by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission against Ripple Labs, CEO Bradley Garlinghouse and co-founder Christian A. Larsen. The allegation: raising north of $1 billion in 2013 through the unregistered sale of a purported security, XRP (XRP). The implications of Ripple’s bold

The newly released Hinman documents relevant to the ongoing legal battle between Ripple and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have shed light on internal divisions within the SEC and raised questions about its motives. The Hinman documents pertain to internal SEC communications regarding a speech delivered by former director William Hinman in

The European Union’s financial watchdog will launch a three-part consultation process for the recently adopted Markets in Crypto-Assets framework, or MiCA. In a notice posted to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) website on June 12, regulators said the consultation packages would cover the authorization, governance, conflicts-of-interest and complaint-handling procedures of MiCA starting in

A United States federal judge is reportedly weighing a proposal to split former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) criminal charges into two trials following a filing from prosecutors.  According to a June 15 report from the Wall Street Journal, Judge Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York was considering whether to dismiss or

Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon will reportedly be taken into extradition custody in Montenegro, according to a report by the regional edition of Radio Free Europe (RFE). He also faces questions about ties to a local political figure. A spokesperson for the High Court of Montenegro told RFE that Kwon was ordered into custody for

Banco de la República, Colombia’s central bank, is partnering with Peersyst and Ripple to pilot blockchain technology on the XRP ledger.  The Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies (MinTIC) in Colombia will oversee the project, which will use Ripple’s recently launched central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform. Ripple and @Peersyst are partnering with Colombia’s @BancoRepublica

The middle eastern arm of cryptocurrency exchange OKX reported Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority had granted the firm a minimal viable product preparatory license as part of its plans to expand into the region. In a June 15 notice, OKX said amid the regulator’s licensing approval, the exchange planned to increase its staff to 30

Hong Kong-based crypto exchange CoinEx has been banned from operating in New York by Attorney General Letitia James. According to an announcement on June 15, over $1.7 million worth of the exchange’s funds were seized for allegedly failing to register as a securities and commodities brokerage. The agreement resolves a previous lawsuit against CoinEx from

While good actors within the crypto space channel their creativity toward building new things, bad actors use the same energy to devise more ingenious ways to hide their ill-gotten gains.  A new report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis shows how wallets involved in ransomware attacks are turning to crypto mining pools to launder the funds

Nigeria, known for its growing adoption of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin (BTC), on June 14, floated the nation’s naira currency to allow banks and other forex market actors to trade the currency freely. This new policy can have several implications for crypto traders.  Foreign currency buyers and sellers can trade at rates they feel comfortable with

Cryptocurrency brokerage Voyager Digital is preparing to reopen its app and allow customers to finally withdraw their funds — nearly one year after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Voyager’s bankruptcy plan administrator Paul Hage said in a June 14 court filing that around June 15 the Voyager app would be updated to show the

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), which serves as the region’s central bank and regulator, has reportedly put pressure on major banks including HSBC and Standard Chartered to accept crypto exchanges as clients. According to a June 15 report from the Financial Times, which cited three sources familiar with the matter, the HKMA questioned the

In just 22 years, generative AI may be able to fully automate half of all work activity conducted today, including tasks related to decision-making, management, and interfacing with stakeholders, according to a new report from McKinsey & Co. The prediction came from the management consulting firm report on June 14, forecasting 75% of generative AI

Paul Grewal, chief legal officer of United States-based cryptocurrency firm Coinbase, has pushed back against a proposed rule change from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) which could change the definition of an exchange and how digital assets are regulated. In a June 14 Twitter thread, Grewal said the SEC proposal “tries to fit a

Progress can have its drawbacks, as the French stock market regulator, the nongovernmental Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), has noticed. According to the AMF ombudsman, digital asset-related mediations rose sharply in 2022, as did the number of registered digital asset service providers (DASPs). In its newly released 2022 annual report, the AMF ombudsman included a