Politics, Legal & Regulation

November 23, 2022 @ 10:32 am By JD Alois  |  

Warwick Business School held an event in recent days that discussed central bank digital currency (CBDCs), according to a note from the school. The Gillmore Centre Policy Forum heard Antoine Martin, a Senior VP of Research at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where… Read More

November 23, 2022 @ 9:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Senator Elizabeth Warren, a member of the Senate Banking Committee and a longtime crypto-skeptic, has published an Op-Ed on WSJ.com, slamming the crypto industry and warning that crypto is poised to destroy the economy. The opinion follows a series of prominent crypto platform failures topped… Read More

November 22, 2022 @ 11:58 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is worried about investment apps that are designed to encourage trading. The regulator issued a statement and report yesterday, warning securities trading firms that offer apps to review the design of these services that are crafted to boost trading leveraging… Read More

November 22, 2022 @ 9:05 am By JD Alois  |  

Democrat members of the Senate Banking Committee have sent a letter to SoFi (NASDAQ:SOFI) inquiring about its activities in regard to digital asset trading. At the same time, the Senators have forwarded a letter to three bank regulators, the Office of the Comptroller of the… Read More

November 21, 2022 @ 5:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, the US Department of Treasury published a report entitled Assessing the Impact of New Entrant Non-bank Firms on Competition in Consumer Finance Markets. The report was delivered to the White House Competition Council. The 128-page document informed the White House that Fintech firms… Read More

November 21, 2022 @ 11:34 am By JD Alois  |  

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has issued a statement addressing the bankruptcy of FTX, saying it would like to address some questions and “misconceptions.” Singapore is recognized as the top Fintech hub in Asia and is generally viewed as digital asset friendly. That being… Read More

November 21, 2022 @ 11:20 am By JD Alois  |  

The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has issued a warning on trading crypto assets as they may not be suitable for some investors, “in particular retail investors.” The CSA noted that crypto tends to be a highly volatile asset. The CSA also cautioned that there are… Read More

November 20, 2022 @ 7:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

FTX Trading and the over 100 affiliated entities posted a release yesterday updating on the bankruptcy process. FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11th following a run on the bank where the company was unable to fulfill redemption requests. It has been widely reported that… Read More

November 20, 2022 @ 4:08 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Autumn Statement delivered by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, last week included some grim news – including the declaration that the UK economy is in a recession. Fiscal sobriety was the message, a sharp turn from the mini-budget under Truss that caused… Read More

November 20, 2022 @ 12:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Financial Conduct Authority has publicly censured Mohammad Ataur Rahman Prodhan, the former Chief Executive Officer of Sonali Bank (UK) Limited (SBUK) “for anti-money laundering (AML) failings.” Prodhan was “the senior manager at SBUK with responsibility for the establishment and maintenance of effective AML systems… Read More

November 18, 2022 @ 4:21 pm By JD Alois  |  

Senator Josh Hawley has sent a letter addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler, and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Rostin Behnam, demanding all correspondence between the three federal entities and the Democrat party. Following the bankruptcy of FTX –… Read More

November 18, 2022 @ 3:57 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has commenced administrative proceedings against American CryptoFed DAO LLC. The company is based in Wyoming and was established under the state’s DAO law in July 2021. The Order, available here, outlines the interaction between American CryptoFed and the SEC…. Read More

November 18, 2022 @ 11:51 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulatory agenda during the current leadership has changed little since it was first revealed in 2021. One item that has been near the top of the list is Reg D “improvements,” including an update to the Accredited Investor definition. Regulation… Read More

November 17, 2022 @ 7:31 pm By JD Alois  |  

Today, the Securities Commission of the Bahamas issued a statement that it has transferred all assets held by FTX Digital Markets Ltd., to a wallet controlled by the regulator. The Securities Commission said it took control of the assets under its powers as a regulator… Read More

November 17, 2022 @ 11:27 am By JD Alois  |  

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt delivered the Autumn Budget today, and once again, there is a bundle of adjustments and announcements aiming to improve the UK economy that is struggling with high inflation, unsustainable energy costs, and a recession. The UK government has already… Read More

November 17, 2022 @ 9:23 am By JD Alois  |  

New FTX CEO John J. Ray has filed a declaration in support of Chapter 11 proceedings, completely slamming the utter incompetence of management in what was once the second-largest crypto exchange in the world. To quote the filing: “Never in my career have I seen… Read More

November 16, 2022 @ 8:42 pm By JD Alois  |  

This week, Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle – issuer of a leading dollar-based stablecoin USDC, forwarded a letter to Congressional leaders urging action on stablecoin legislation, providing rules for the industry to develop with surety. Following the collapse of FTX and the collateral damage of… Read More

November 16, 2022 @ 10:52 am By JD Alois  |  

The House Committee on Financial Services has announced a hearing on the failure of FTX and its affiliated entities. The announcement was bipartisan in nature as the current Chair of the Committee, Maxine Waters, was joined by Ranking Member Patrick McHenry in announcing the hearing… Read More

November 15, 2022 @ 5:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Michael J. Hsu, testified in front of the Senate Committee on Banking today. In prepared testimony, the Acting Comptroller outlined his priorities for the bank regulator. In opening statements, the Chair of the Committee, Senator Sherrod Brown, took a… Read More

November 15, 2022 @ 12:27 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Division of Enforcement, has published its annual activity report for the fiscal year 2022. The Division of Enforcement is the largest section of the SEC and leverages the bulk of the agency’s budget. During the SEC’s fiscal year of… Read More