Politics, Legal & Regulation

December 5, 2024 @ 5:03 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

With the aim of attaining “high” compliance standards within the financial service industry, including the investment sector, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) conducts a range of supervisory activities using a set of diversified tools, such as “on-site Inspections, off-site work and meetings.” As a… Read More

December 5, 2024 @ 12:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) has released a report on a proof of concept project pertaining to the tokenizstion of assets and distributed ledger technology. By leveraging blockchain, the hope is to improve the efficiency of asset issuance, distribution and management. This… Read More

December 5, 2024 @ 11:15 am By JD Alois  |  

Next week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Investor Advisory Committee (IAC) will meet to discuss several topics. Perhaps most interesting is the topic of “Mainstreaming of Alternative Assets to Retail Investors.” The second issue is Examining the Use of Mandatory Arbitration Clauses by Registered… Read More

December 5, 2024 @ 8:35 am By JD Alois  |  

  Bitcoin has finally topped the psychological barrier of $100,000 per BTC. The fuel was the selection of Paul Atkins to become the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Bitcoin is currently trading at over $103,000. In the past, Atkins has supported digital… Read More

December 4, 2024 @ 3:50 pm By JD Alois  |  

President-elect Donald Trump has selected Paul Atkins, a former SEC commissioner, to lead the nations top securities regulator as the Chairman of the Commission Announcing the appointment on Truth Social, Trump stated: “I am delighted to announce the nomination of Paul Atkins to be the… Read More

December 4, 2024 @ 11:59 am By JD Alois  |  

President-elect Donald Trump has emerged as the top advocate of digital assets and the need to enable crypto innovation. This contrasts with the outgoing President Joe Biden, whose administration sought to crush digital asset innovation at every opportunity. Today, during a House Financial Services Committee… Read More

December 4, 2024 @ 9:03 am By JD Alois  |  

The 180-degree transformation of the regulatory approach to crypto is just around the corner. The Joe Biden presidency has been exceptionally detrimental toward digital asset innovation. While the Securities and Exchange Commission took a regulation-by-enforcement approach to crypto, ignoring the profound opportunity to transform capital markets, other… Read More

December 4, 2024 @ 8:25 am By Omar Faridi  |  

At Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD), they claim to be committed to making investing more accessible and transparent for everyone. Robinhood Markets noted that this is why they’re introducing an important feature designed to help customers “manage their tax liabilities and give them flexibility when selling stocks” —Tax Lots…. Read More

December 3, 2024 @ 5:07 pm By JD Alois  |  

Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of failed crypto investment platform Celsius Network, has pleaded guilty to fraud, according to reports. WSJ.com reports that Mashinsky will now avoid a criminal trial. At the same time, a guilty plea means he will face a maximum… Read More

December 3, 2024 @ 2:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tomorrow, the House Financial Services Committee is holding a Hearing on Fintech. Entitled Innovation Revolution: How Technology is Shaping the Future of Finance, multiple well-known entities in the Fintech sector will share their knowledge with the Committee. Those scheduled to testify, include: Denelle Dixon, CEO &… Read More

December 2, 2024 @ 10:58 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has recently announced a considerable acceleration of its anti-money laundering (AML) regulatory guidelines for digital currency service providers. The Taiwanese authority has confirmed that it moved the registration deadline to November 30, 2024 from the initial January 1, 2025 date…. Read More

December 2, 2024 @ 10:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

ADGM, the international financial centre (IFC) of Abu Dhabi, announced another quarter of steady growth, with a number of key achievements for the third quarter (Q3) of 2024 across various metrics. The results are said to underscore ADGM’s role in Abu Dhabi’s strategic goal to… Read More

December 2, 2024 @ 10:12 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Hong Kong is reportedly planning to waive taxes on investment gains made from cryptocurrencies as well as other alternative assets for hedge funds, private equity funds and various family offices as the city-state aims to improve its attractiveness as a wealth management center. In a… Read More

December 2, 2024 @ 12:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK is expected to make some major tax changes in the coming year to ostensibly fill the budget “black hole.” The new Labour government has messaged its intent to levy a higher tax on capital gains and remove the so-called “non-dom” status, which allows citizens… Read More

December 2, 2024 @ 8:17 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Global Fintech Wise (LSE:WISE) has reportedly entered European remediation plans over AML (anti- money laundering) issues. The global money transfer company has been ordered by European regulatory authorities to initiate a formal remediation plan regarding issues with its AML controls. This, according to an update… Read More

December 1, 2024 @ 9:16 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Earlier this week, Russia reportedly approved a cryptocurrency-focused tax law which recognizes Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto-assets as property (somewhat similar to what Chinese courts has determined several years back). The legislation, which was reportedly approved on November 27, 2024, formally acknowledges Bitcoin / other virtual… Read More

December 1, 2024 @ 2:00 pm By Michael Wong  |  

US-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has withdrawn its pre-application to operate in Turkey, according to a report by Turkiye Today. The Capital Markets Board of Türkiye updated its list of companies requesting liquidation on November 29. The update revealed that Coinbase, which had initially filed its… Read More

November 30, 2024 @ 11:06 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The European Commission (EC) adopted rules for the core functionalities and certification of the European Digital Identity (eID) Wallets under the European Digital Identity Framework. As noted in the update shared by the EC, this is considered to be a major step towards Member States… Read More

November 29, 2024 @ 1:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) letter to Monzo focuses on issues related to the digital bank allegedly breaching Parts 3, 7, 8 and 12 of the Retail Banking Order. CMA finds breaches of Parts 3, 7, 8 and 12 of the Retail Banking… Read More

November 28, 2024 @ 12:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Estateguru noted that a new law expands options for Estonian investors to use investment accounts for crowdfunding. According to a blog post by Estateguru, the legislative amendment passed in the Estonian Parliament last week will now allow the “use of investment account funds for crowdfunding.”… Read More