January 19, 2018 @ 9:09 am By JD Alois  |  

Following the announcement by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that it had undertaken two enforcement actions against Bitcoin / virtual currency related fraud, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CFTC issued a joint statement from SEC co-enforcement Directors Stephanie Avakian and Steven Peikin… Read More

January 19, 2018 @ 8:50 am By JD Alois  |  

The CFTC Division of Enforcement Virtual Currency Task Force has been rather busy. Today, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has shared two enforcement actions filed against Bitcoin / Cryptocurrency related fraud cases. The first was against the Entrepreneurs Headquarters Limited, the second was filed against Defendants Patrick… Read More

January 19, 2018 @ 8:33 am By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against Defendants Dillon Michael Dean of Longmont, Colorado. Dean’s company, The Entrepreneurs Headquarters Limited, is apparently registered in the UK. The documentation filed… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 10:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

The big crypto news all last week was the announcement that Kodak, a company that was founded in 1888, was launching an initial coin offering for a new photography rights platform. The news tripled the market capitalization of Kodak almost immediately as the cool blockchain… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 9:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

  There are several people in the online lending industry, inclusive of marketplace and balance sheet lending, that truly know just about everything going on in this evolving sector of finance. Ram Ahluwalia, CEO and co-founder of PeerIQ is one of these persons. His company… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 4:39 pm By JD Alois  |  

Worthy Peer Capital, a subsidiary of Worthy Finance, has received regulatory approval to raise funding under Reg A+. The crowdfunding round will be used to bring a new liquid peer-debt product to the entire investing ecosystem. Everyone knows that rates on Money Market accounts suck. But… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 9:56 am By JD Alois  |  

Is Amazon getting into insurance? This is a rhetorical question with a definitive yes. The only outstanding question is when. In a recent Facebook post, prominent Insurtech firm Lemonade complained about Amazon poaching their employees. Shai Wininger, Lemonade co-founder and “Chief Lemonade Maker,” said he… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 9:00 am By JD Alois  |  

Varo Money, a digital challenger bank, has closed a $45 million Series B funding round led by existing investor Warburg Pincus and The Rise Fund, a global impact fund led by private equity firm TPG. Varo said that 30 other investors participated in the round… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 8:24 am By JD Alois  |  

The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Securities Division has filed an administrative complaint against Kirill Bensonoff and Caviar, a Cayman Island company. Bensonoff is said to own a home in Brookline, Massachusetts and is described as attempting to avoid US securities laws by operating out… Read More

January 18, 2018 @ 8:00 am By JD Alois  |  

There is a rapid push to standardize and professionalize the initial coin offering (ICO) market. As competition heats up, you no longer can add Blockchain to your name and expect immediate token success. You need to have a reputable team in place and you need… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 8:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

The passing of the baton from former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray to acting Director Mick Mulvaney was rife with confusion and questions all driven by parochial politics. In a snub to the President’s prerogative of appointing a new Director, Cordray decided to… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 3:18 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is out with a paper on the “World of Cryptocurrencies.” Authored by  Aleksandr Berentsen and Fabian Schär, the article addresses possible applications of cryptocurrencies, and blockchain technology in general. Schär and Berentsen conclude that “Bitcoin has a wide… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 1:52 pm By JD Alois  |  

This should come as no surprise but the US Department of Treasury, Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), has established a working group to address the emergence of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple and more. The announcement came on the heels of a meeting of… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 1:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

In a speech delivered on January 15th at Bercy, Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of Economy and Finance, announced he has appointed Jean-Pierre Landau, former Deputy Governor of the Banque de France, to head a mission investigating cryptocurrencies. Le Maire stated (translated from French); “We want… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 12:14 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) testified before the House Small Business Committee on behalf of improving the environment for small business lending. Community banker and ICBA Chairman Cynthia Blankenship said she supported targeted reforms to ensure the Small Business Administration’s lending program continues… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 11:52 am By JD Alois  |  

As part of an ongoing strategic update, GLI Finance has renamed peer to peer lending platform FundingKnight to Sancus Funding Limited with immediate effect. GLI Finance, an AIM listed company, has also transferred ownership to Sancus BMS Group Limited. Andy Whelan, Sancus BMS Group CEO,… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 9:57 am By JD Alois  |  

Polymath Network is the first cryptocurrency related project to hit the 50,000 follower ceiling on Telegram. The highly popular company is the industry first security token launch pad. As initial coin offerings become professionalized and regulated you must have a service that can manage tokenized securities and… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 8:21 am By JD Alois  |  

Meeting a prediction from this past June set by Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, online lending platform Marcus topped $2 billion in loan originations. Additionally, Marcus reported online deposits of over $5 billion. Deposits and consumer lending have now been combined under a single brand, thus,… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 2:04 am By JD Alois  |  

Digital only challenger bank Revolut has released a new featured today – one that is designed to be simple to use and cost effective. Revolut has announced that users may now activate travel insurance for just £1 per day. The insurance is available at the… Read More

January 17, 2018 @ 12:02 am By JD Alois  |  

Goldbell Financial Services (GBFS), a subsidiary of Singapore’s largest commercial vehicle and industrial equipment distribution and leasing company Goldbell Group, has inked a new partnership with crowdfunding platform “New Union. Goldbell wants to provide SME clients new, innovative and alternative financial solutions, and crowdfunding is the… Read More