Politics, Legal & Regulation

September 12, 2023 @ 2:58 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Inclusion has posted the witnesses on its forthcoming hearing on a digital dollar. Entitled the Digital Dollar Dilemma: The Implications of a Central Bank Digital Currency and Private Sector Alternatives, the hearing is paired… Read More

September 12, 2023 @ 9:26 am By JD Alois  |  

NASAA (North American Securities Administrators  Association) says there has been a decline in “top reported violations” in regard to the most recent state registered investment advisor review. NASAA collects the data every two years provided by state securities regulators. NASAA President Andrew Hartnett says the… Read More

September 12, 2023 @ 7:57 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Bitfinex and Tether Chief Technical Officer Paolo Ardoino will be deposed as part of a class-action lawsuit against both firms and their related executives. This past Monday, a New York judge reportedly made the decision to deny Ardoino’s request to further delay his deposition until… Read More

September 12, 2023 @ 7:55 am By Omar Faridi  |  

  The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has published its joint report on Project Sela. The initiative focused on the cybersecurity, technical, and policy aspects of a retail CBDC implementation. The HKMA is working with the Bank of Israel (BOI) and the Bank for International… Read More

September 11, 2023 @ 7:50 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) have advanced policy and regulatory recommendations “to identify and respond to macroeconomic and financial stability risks associated with crypto-assets.” Crypto-assets have been in existence “for more than a decade and have displayed significant volatility…. Read More

September 9, 2023 @ 3:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

As momentum for crypto builds around the world, Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) is executing on Phase II of their “Go Broad, Go Deep” strategy for international expansion. Coinbase says that it sees the following: 1) enactment of clear rules; 2) innovation of more efficient, more accessible products… Read More

September 8, 2023 @ 5:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has ordered that Jacob Orvida, a Utah man, pay restitution and a penalty of $2.5 million for allegations of fraud in a leveraged Bitcoin ploy. According to the CFTC, Orvida solicited investors to join a commodity pool to trade… Read More

September 8, 2023 @ 10:33 am By JD Alois  |  

In a speech delivered at the Annual Fintech Conference in Philadelphia, US Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael S. Barr spoke about the Fed’s role in supporting innovation. Barr noted that not that long ago, cash in trucks was the preferred method of moving… Read More

September 8, 2023 @ 10:04 am By JD Alois  |  

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced charges targeting three DeFi, or decentralized finance, operations yesterday. These included Deridex, ZeroX, and Opyn. The CFTC alleges the offering of illegal derivatives trading. The CFTC charged Deridex and Opyn with failing to register as a swap… Read More

September 8, 2023 @ 8:41 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has settled charges against Linus Financial, Inc. for failing to register the offers and sales of its retail crypto lending product, the Linus Interest Accounts. The SEC decided against having Linus pay penalties as the company took “prompt remedial actions”… Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 4:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Financial Services Committee has announced a hearing on the digital dollar or Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), held by the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology (Fintech), and Inclusion. Scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 14 at 2PM ET, the hearing is… Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 3:48 pm By JD Alois  |  

Multiple reports have indicated that Ryan Salame, a former FTX executive, has pleaded guilty today in Federal Court for his activities surrounding the failure of FTX, which saw billions of dollars lost. Salame was at one point the co-CEO of the FTX subsidiary that operated… Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 3:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

At a speech delivered to the pro-market Cato Institute, CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham has called for a Regulatory Sandbox. The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) pioneered the Sandbox concept. The approach was to allow innovative Fintech firms to test products and services under the watchful… Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 11:59 am By JD Alois  |  

Qualification to Impact Crowdfunding, Digital Assets. The Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) and the Autorité de Régulation Professionnelle de la Publicité (ARPP) have partnered on the “Responsible Influence Certificate” designed to create a seal of approval for social media influencers. The AMF says the partnership… Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 9:59 am By JD Alois  |  

The Canadian Securities Administration (CSA) has published its year in review, and one of the sectors discussed is crypto. The CSA is the association that represents all of the country’s securities regulators, which operate largely independently of one another based on the province or territory…. Read More

September 7, 2023 @ 9:28 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has indicated its willingness for a certain amount of leeway for registered crypto firms to adhere to forthcoming rules. The regulator says that registered or authorized firms may “apply for flexibility”  on implementing a cooling off period when other… Read More

September 6, 2023 @ 3:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

A report on WSJ.com claims that more executives at Binance are departing the firm. Binance remains the largest crypto exchange in the world by a significant amount of activity, with Coinbase a distant second. The report says that Regional head Gleb Kostarev and Russia chief… Read More

September 6, 2023 @ 9:59 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced that the Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) has scheduled a meeting to take place on September 19th. This is only the second meeting following the Commission’s change of members on SBCFAC. An agenda is not… Read More

September 5, 2023 @ 3:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

European Central Bank (ECB) Member of the Executive Board, Fabio Panetta, has issued a speech on a central bank digital currency (CBDC) advocating on behalf of issuing a digital Euro. Europe, like many other jurisdictions around the world, is reviewing the pros and cons of… Read More

September 5, 2023 @ 10:01 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) indicated it is moving forward with a review of the treatment of “politically exposed persons” (PEPs). The FCA distributed today a list of areas it will review in regard to the treatment of accounts at financial services firms, including:… Read More