Politics, Legal & Regulation

January 20, 2020 @ 10:12 am By Cali Haan  |  

In its latest submission in a case against private messaging app provider Telegram, the SEC claims that, Telegram has been using funds raised to develop the TON blockchain to rather cover operating expenses at the messaging business. Telegram raised $1.7 billion USD from 171 purchasers… Read More

January 18, 2020 @ 5:54 pm By Xu Gao  |  

Tencent LiCaiTong Releases “Online Wealth Management Behavior and Security Report (2019)“ On January 14th, LiCaiTong, Tencent’s wealth management platform, and National Institution for Finance & Development (NIFD) jointly released the “Online Wealth Management Behavior and Security Report (2019)”. The report published the 2019 online wealth… Read More

January 17, 2020 @ 6:46 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Toronto lawyer Amy ter Haar has provided her take on the Ontario Securities Commission’s (OSC’s) CSA Staff Notice 21-327: Guidance on the Application of Securities Legislation to Entities Facilitating the Trading of Crypto Assets. In short, the guidance could render any cryptocurrency trading platform subject to… Read More

January 17, 2020 @ 4:13 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation, has scheduled a public meeting to discuss the state of access to capital for smaller firms. The “Capital Call” is described as being held similar to a public company’s earnings… Read More

January 17, 2020 @ 4:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tether, the stablecoin that has endured a good share of challenges, has issued a statement on pending lawsuits targeting the company. According to a release,  the plaintiffs in three class action proceedings against Tether filed a letter with the U.S. District Court for the Southern… Read More

January 17, 2020 @ 11:35 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced another enforcement action targeting a bogus initial coin offering (ICO). According to a release, the SEC has charged convicted criminal Boaz Manor, his business associate, and two businesses, CG Blockchain Inc. and BCT Inc. SEZC, with raising… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 11:14 pm By JD Alois  |  

Democrat members of the House Financial Services Committee have sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) inquiring about the usage of alternative data by lenders and credit agencies. Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the Committee, Congressman Al Green (D-TX), Chair of the… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 10:25 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently caught up with Shaun Djie, co-founder and chief operating officer at Digix, one of the first “smart-asset” companies leveraging blockchain tech to account for the authentication and provenance of 99.99% investment-grade gold bullions. Shaun currently serves as a board member for Singapore’s IT… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 10:11 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has made a major announcement regarding the regulation of cryptocurrency and “cryptoasset” trading platforms in the country, one that could add significant operational costs in the near term. Under the guidance, unless they have obtained an exemption, cryptocurrency trading platforms in… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 11:14 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Baltic region’s finance industry has been struggling and some of the area’s countries including Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have reportedly been indirectly involved in money-laundering scandals that were allegedly orchestrated by large Nordic banks. However, Lithuania’s capital has been able to develop its local… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 9:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Chainalysis, a leading blockchain analytics and cybersecurity firm, revealed on January 15, 2020 that it had managed to trace $2.8 billion in Bitcoin (BTC) being transferred to criminals via cryptocurrency exchanges in 2019, with the vast majority of these transactions going through Binance and Huobi,… Read More

January 16, 2020 @ 9:25 am By Cali Haan  |  

Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) plans to further reduce allowable limits on leveraged cryptocurrency bets, down from 4X of customer deposits to 2X. Japan’s Cabinet voted to greatly reduce leveraged crypto trades on local platforms last April. At that time, permitted leveraged trades were reduced… Read More

January 15, 2020 @ 10:44 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The new chair of the Commodity Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC) has told Chedder Media that his agency is continuing to work closely with the SEC to establish definitions and jurisdiction when it comes to cryptocurrencies- though these have not yet been set. Since he… Read More

January 14, 2020 @ 2:44 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) Investor Education and Advocacy division is warning the public that, because both Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOs) and the platforms selling them may be unregistered and unregulated, investing in IEOs may be high risk- and not much different than… Read More

January 14, 2020 @ 1:24 pm By Anthony Zeoli  |  

While it passed somewhat under the radar with the holiday season, on December 18, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released a proposal to significantly amend the existing “accredited investor” definition; which is integral in determining who can participate in private securities transactions. The… Read More

January 14, 2020 @ 8:26 am By JD Alois  |  

The Texas State Security Board (TSSB) has published its list of “Top Investor Threats in 2020 – and How to Avoid Them.” Included on the list are crypto offerings. The TSSB is the securities regulator for the state of Texas. The regulator has been active… Read More

January 13, 2020 @ 6:10 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US House Financial Services Committee, Chaired by Representative Maxine Waters, has adjusted this month’s schedule a bit. Crowdfund Insider published January’s schedule last week but on Friday several important changes were made. First, the Hearing for the Fintech Task Force has been moved up… Read More

January 12, 2020 @ 8:43 am By Cali Haan  |  

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seeking a default judgment against Nikolay Evdokimov and his Cayman Islands firm ICOBox. The agency is also seeking permanent enjoinment of Evdokimov and ICOBox, a $16,059,428.99 disgorgement and a civil penalty against Evdokimov of about $190 000… Read More

January 11, 2020 @ 12:04 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Indian banking institutions and Fintech firms have reportedly been given the green light to use video calls, in order to carry out know-your-customer (KYC) compliance checks, after a recent ruling by the nation’s central bank. The updated rules and guidelines will allow regulated entities to… Read More

January 11, 2020 @ 7:47 am By Cali Haan  |  

In the SEC’s January 2nd letter requesting compulsion of bank records from private messaging app provider Telegram, the regulator claimed it had documents showing that Telegram, “paid commissions to purchasers who were buying Grams to resell to other investors…” Brokered sales, the SEC wrote, “render… Read More