Politics, Legal & Regulation

May 19, 2022 @ 4:49 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed an enforcement action alleging that Sam Ikkurty (aka Sreenivas I Rao), Ravishankar Avadhanam, and Jafia LLC, a company Ikkurty owns in Florida, with fraudulently soliciting at least $44 million to invest in a “so-called income fund” that sought… Read More

May 19, 2022 @ 11:00 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has obtained final judgments on consent against Sohrab “Sam” Sharma, Robert Farkas, and Raymond Trapani in regards to Centra Tech and an initial coin offering (ICO) deemed to be an unregistered security by the SEC. The SEC states that Centra… Read More

May 19, 2022 @ 10:00 am By JD Alois  |  

As TerraUSD (UST), an algorithmic stablecoin imploded going to zero, reserve-based stablecoins rushed to stem the tide of concerns about contagion. Tether (USDT), the largest stablecoin in the market, has been hit with collateral damage due to the failure of UST. At the beginning of… Read More

May 18, 2022 @ 12:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler testified in front of the Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, part of the House Appropriations Committee, to justify the agency’s budget request. As part of the questioning from various members, Gensler answered several questions which were crypto-related. Chairman Gensler… Read More

May 18, 2022 @ 8:29 am By JD Alois  |  

After a painful drop where Bitcoin crashed below $30K and many other cryptocurrencies chased it down, GlobalBlock (TSXV:BLOK) sees light at the end of the tunnel – at least for now. Marcus Sotiriou, Analyst for GlobalBlock, operating in the UK has distributed a comment on… Read More

May 18, 2022 @ 3:18 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Nahmii AS are pleased to confirm that they have been chosen to work with Norges Bank (the central bank of Norway) on their upcoming experimental CBDC (central bank digital currency) sandbox project. This “prestigious” award confirms Nahmii AS’s position as “a global leader in the… Read More

May 17, 2022 @ 5:18 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tomorrow (May 18, 2022), SEC Chairman Gary Gensler will hike up to Capitol Hill to extoll the need for a slight budget increase for the SEC and its ~ 4800 employees. Chair Gensler, along with the Chair of the FTC, will address the Subcommittee on… Read More

May 16, 2022 @ 6:44 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

  Like everyone else, American consumers are looking for faster ways to make payments, the results of a survey by the Federal Reserve Banks suggest. Overall, 80% say they are interested in more immediate ways to pay businesses, with around 70% saying the option of… Read More

May 16, 2022 @ 7:30 am By David R. Burton  |  

Passed with large bipartisan majorities and signed into law by President Obama, the 2012 JOBS Act was a bipartisan achievement of consequence. The JOBS Act substantially improved the laws governing entrepreneurial capital formation and has had a measurable positive impact on entrepreneurial capital formation. But… Read More

May 15, 2022 @ 12:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested Eddy Alexandre, operator of the crypto and Forex trading platform EminiFX, regarding allegations of a $59 million fraud. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Alexandre allegedly committed commodities and wire fraud soliciting over $59 million from… Read More

May 15, 2022 @ 9:33 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Technology Association (FTA) has issued as statement on the confirmation of four nominees to the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, including Chair Jerome Powell, Vice Chair Lael Brainard, Dr. Lisa Cook, and Dr. Philip Jefferson. Penny Lee, CEO of the FTA, stated: “The… Read More

May 14, 2022 @ 5:46 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last month, Tennessee became the second state to allow decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) to register as LLCs, following pioneer Wyoming. HB2645 and SB2854 provide that the Tennessee Revised Limited Liability Company Act applies to decentralized organizations. The legislation became law on April 20, 2022. Chris… Read More

May 13, 2022 @ 11:45 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has posted another warning about digital assets or cryptoassets. The FCA points to “recent social media posts” promoting digital assets including NFTs. The FCA tells consumers to be ready to lose all of their money when participating in a… Read More

May 13, 2022 @ 11:36 am By JD Alois  |  

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has posted the “final technical standards” pertaining to European crowdfunding platforms. The release of the standards has long been anticipated and is affiliated with the European Union enacting pan-European securities crowdfunding rules. New regulatory standards were revealed in November of… Read More

May 12, 2022 @ 3:49 pm By JD Alois  |  

Jeremy Spence, aka Coin Signals, has received a judgment of 42 months in prison for defrauding over 170 investors. According to the US Department of Justice, Spence pled guilty with the sentence being handed down this past week. Charges were originally filed in early 2021… Read More

May 11, 2022 @ 10:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

FTX US, part of FTX global, has applied for a trust charter issued by the New York Department of Financial Services. Under state law in New York, a digital asset business may conduct activity under either a BitLicense or a charger under New York Banking… Read More

May 11, 2022 @ 11:53 am By JD Alois  |  

“Most crypto tokens are investment contracts under the Supreme Court’s Howey Test.” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler is not wavering from his view that most all crypto assets are securities. Gensler has consistently voiced this belief queueing up expectations for a growing number of enforcement actions… Read More

May 11, 2022 @ 7:52 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Peppermint Innovation (ASX: PIL) has reportedly been granted a license in order to operate as an Electronic Money Issuer (EMI) by the Central Bank of the Philippines, “in one of the biggest regulatory milestones achieved by the company.” The EMI license authorizes the company “to… Read More

May 10, 2022 @ 9:30 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Department of State is offering a reward of “up to $10,000,000 for information leading to the identification and/or location of any individual(s) who hold a key leadership position in the Conti ransomware variant transnational organized crime group.” In addition, the Department is also offering… Read More

May 9, 2022 @ 6:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Under the background of the Russian- Ukrainian War and sanctions in western countries, a global commodity crisis is “brewing” and the new global monetary system – Bretton Woods Ⅲ may be developing, said Zoltan Pozsar, an analyst at UBS. A recent report by Huobi Research… Read More