Politics, Legal & Regulation

December 2, 2022 @ 1:07 pm By JD Alois  |  

According to bankruptcy managers, FTX and most of its subsidiaries are resuming ordinary course payments of salary and benefits to employees worldwide as well as payments to certain non-US contractors and service providers. New FTX CEO John J. Ray III said: “With the Court’s approval… Read More

December 2, 2022 @ 12:30 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Technology Association (FTA) has selected Leigh Lytle, head of North American Policy at Plaid, as the 2023 Chair of the FTA Board of Directors. Before joining Plaid, Lytle spent more than 15 years at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. According to… Read More

December 1, 2022 @ 11:17 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has granted a license to MetaComp Pte. Ltd. (f.k.a. Cyberdyne Tech Services Pte. Ltd) “to provide digital payment token services as a Major Payment Institution.” Effective December 2022, MetaComp has been “granted a license under the Payment Services Act,… Read More

December 1, 2022 @ 5:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has taken action against Edgar Radjabli, operator of Loan Doctor, who allegedly took customer funds and placed them in risky ventures like Celsius Network – a crypto yield platform that is now bankrupt. The complaint filed by the CFPB… Read More

December 1, 2022 @ 11:16 am By JD Alois  |  

Senator Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, has sent a letter to the US Department of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressing his concerns following the bankruptcy filing of FTX. The crypto exchange, once one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world, filed… Read More

December 1, 2022 @ 10:08 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Gillian Lynch, Head of Ireland and EU at Gemini, notes that they are pleased to announce that Gemini has “registered as a Virtual Currency Operator with Italy’s payments services regulator, the Organismo Agenti E Mediatori (OAM), and as a custodial wallet provider and provider of exchange services… Read More

December 1, 2022 @ 7:45 am By JD Alois  |  

The Senate Committee on Agriculture will hold a hearing today (December 1, 2022) at 10 AM ET to review the failure of FTX. This Committee holds oversight on the commodities industry and, therefore on aspects of crypto markets that are deemed to be regulated commodities…. Read More

November 30, 2022 @ 4:47 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has published a report on money laundering from fentanyl and synthetic opioids. The report was co-led by the US and Canada and offers recommendations for countering the illicit drug trade. FATF is a global organization that aims to encourage… Read More

November 30, 2022 @ 10:47 am By JD Alois  |  

  The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC), has posted two letters advising the Commission on key policy goals that impact capital formation, especially for smaller – private firms. The Committee is the creation of the SEC Small Business… Read More

November 30, 2022 @ 10:36 am By JD Alois  |  

The European Central Bank (ECB) has published a blog post that predicts the demise of Bitcoin – the world’s most popular cryptocurrency. Authored by Ulrich Bindseil and Jürgen Schaaf, entitled “Bitcoin’s Last Stand,” the article claims that Bitcoin is in its “last gasp before the… Read More

November 29, 2022 @ 7:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

LBRY, a digital asset firm that was the target of a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement action, has taken to Twitter to predict its own demise stating it will “probably be dead in the near future.” Since any information given privately to the SEC… Read More

November 29, 2022 @ 4:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

  Senator Ron Wyden, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, has sent letters to several crypto exchanges which operate in the US pressing them on consumer protection concerns in the wake of the bankruptcy of FTX. Senator Wyden contacted the following crypto exchanges; … Read More

November 29, 2022 @ 11:22 am By JD Alois  |  

Crypto exchange Kraken has settled with the US Department of Treasury, which had alleged sanction violations. Falling under the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Kraken has agreed to pay $362,158.70 to settle a possible civil liability for claimed violations of the Iranian Transactions and… Read More

November 28, 2022 @ 11:24 am By JD Alois  |  

BlockFi has filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 in the US courts. The news has been widely rumored in the last few weeks as BlockFi’s destiny had been tied to the future of FTX, a crypto firm that filed for bankruptcy earlier this month. In… Read More

November 28, 2022 @ 9:45 am By JD Alois  |  

BVNK has reportedly gained a UK Electronic Money Institution (EMI) Licence via the acquisition of System Pay Services Limited (SPS Ltd). SPS has held an EMI license authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) since 2020. The deal was approved by the FCA. BVNK is… Read More

November 27, 2022 @ 11:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Investor Advisory Committee (IAC), has scheduled its next meeting for December 8, 2022. The IAC was created under the Dodd-Frank Act and holds a mission to protect investor interests but has tended to overweight investor protection over investor access… Read More

November 26, 2022 @ 9:01 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK and Singapore have agreed a new MoU “boosting fintech trade and cooperation at their 7th Financial Dialogue in Singapore.” The UK and Singapore agree a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) “on the UK–Singapore FinTech Bridge to remove barriers to fintech trade and boost cooperation.”… Read More

November 25, 2022 @ 4:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Sygnum, which claims to be the world’s first digital asset bank and first Swiss bank to open a hub in the metaverse, leverages its oversubscribed USD 90m Series B “to expand internationally into Abu Dhabi’s high-growth crypto-hub.” In addition to this, Sygnum is further strengthening… Read More

November 25, 2022 @ 8:21 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The European Banking Authority (EBA) recently published its final Guidelines on the use of remote customer onboarding solutions. These Guidelines “set out the steps credit and financial institutions should take to ensure safe and effective remote customer onboarding practices in line with applicable anti-money laundering… Read More

November 23, 2022 @ 3:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has published its Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2022 to 2026, The high-level document is required under the Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010. The brief outline declares three goals: Protect the investing public against fraud, manipulation,… Read More