Politics, Legal & Regulation

December 28, 2020 @ 6:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

  Doug Ellenoff, the Managing Partner of Manhattan law firm Ellenoff, Grossman and Schole (EGS), has been involved with the Fintech sector since the early days of the JOBS Act – the legislation that eventually legalized investment crowdfunding. He is not only deeply engaged with… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 12:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

Virgil Capital LLC, directed by Stefan Qin, and its “flagship” cryptocurrency trading fund, Virgil Sigma Fund LP have been hit by fraud charges leveled by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Simultaneously, the SEC has obtained an emergency asset freeze related to the charges,… Read More

December 28, 2020 @ 8:20 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Chinese regulatory authorities have ordered billionaire Jack Ma’s Fintech firm Ant Group Co. to return to offering payments services, instead of attempting to expand its operations into consumer loans or wealth management. China’s reserve bank officials recently held discussions with Ant Group’s management and instructed… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 10:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s reserve bank has issued the nation’s second license for collecting personal credit ratings to an initiative between a state-managed enterprise and two Internet companies. The move suggests that the Chinese government may want to get involved in deciding how technology interacts with finance (while… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 7:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this month, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced the first four digital banks approved by the regulator. The first digital banks out of the gate are the culmination of a multi-year process where MAS. In June 2019, MAS announced it would approve up… Read More

December 27, 2020 @ 2:31 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Kraken recently announced that crypto exchange pioneer Miha Grčar has joined the US-based digital assets exchange as its Head of Business Development. Kraken’s management confirmed that they’re looking forward to working with Miha Grčar, a pioneer of the digital currency exchange sector. As mentioned in… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 2:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

Jay Clayton officially stepped down as the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 23rd. His departure had been previously announced and anticipated for this month. In a letter sent to President Trump, Clayton said it had been the honor and privilege of… Read More

December 26, 2020 @ 10:03 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s banking and insurance regulator released draft guidelines on Friday (December 25, 2020) regarding the sales of wealth management products by local commercial banks’ wealth management divisions. Chinese authorities will reportedly allow these wealth management subsidiaries to serve as sales agents for such products for… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 4:08 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

This past Friday, the US Department of the Treasury published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to the Federal Register that may require financial institutions and cryptocurrency-related firms to submit updated reports, maintain records, and accurately verify the identity of customers in relation to transfers… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 12:23 pm By JD Alois  |  

Chinese regulators are said to be investigating whether Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) has been engaging in non-competitive practices. Simultaneously, Ant Group – a top Fintech, is receiving additional scrutiny. Ant Group is the parent company of Alipay, China’s largest mobile payment platform. Additionally, it has been widely… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 11:40 am By JD Alois  |  

The United Kingdom and the European Union have reached a trade deal just in time for Christmas. The UK government said they have agreed on a zero tariff-free trade deal including a commitment to maintaining high labor, environment, and climate standards without giving the EU… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 11:19 am By JD Alois  |  

While stating that stablecoins may serve to improve efficiencies in payments and transfers, the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG) says responsible innovation must exist in line with existing law. Treasury Deputy Secretary Justin Muzinich issued the following statement: “The statement reflects a commitment… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 9:28 am By JD Alois  |  

A Blast from the Past. Bitgrail, a bankrupt crypto exchange that previously operated in Italy, has surfaced in the media once again. Back in 2018 news emerged of a significant crypto theft of around $150 million in Nano (XRB). At that time a post on… Read More

December 24, 2020 @ 8:32 am By Omar Faridi  |  

MoneyGram International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MGI), a major cross-border P2P payments and money transfers service, has issued a statement after a lawsuit was filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Ripple Labs Inc. MoneyGram stated that it had not “been notified or been… Read More

December 23, 2020 @ 2:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple is the largest enforcement action attacking the sale of a cryptocurrency to date. The SEC alleges the sale of an unregistered security in the issuance of XRP, Ripple’s native token. Ripple has been quick to defend… Read More

December 23, 2020 @ 12:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued a statement and request for comment regarding the custody of digital asset securities by broker-dealers. The Commission states that this consultation is in order to encourage innovation around the application of Securities Exchange Act Rule 15c3-3 to digital… Read More

December 23, 2020 @ 10:40 am By JD Alois  |  

Following the announcement of an enforcement action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleging Ripple engaged in the sale of unregistered securities pertaining to XRP, Ripple has countered and executives have publicly countered the claims. Meanwhile, the lawsuit has caused several digital asset exchanges… Read More

December 23, 2020 @ 8:10 am By Omar Faridi  |  

A new regulatory policy has reportedly been introduced by Mexico’s financial industry regulator CNBV and it’s being referred to as “a death sentence” for firms that are providing Fintech-as-a-Service (FaaS) businesses, according to analysts. Carlos David Valderrama Narvaéz and Diego Montes Serralde from Legal Paradox,… Read More

December 22, 2020 @ 9:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) has filed a lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), as well as Acting Comptroller Brian Brooks, regarding the agency’s ability to issue federal bank charters to Fintechs. The complaint mentions Figure Technologies, a… Read More

December 22, 2020 @ 8:24 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

On December 19, 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) published a 72-page notice of proposed or suggested rulemaking, titled “Requirements for Certain Transactions Involving Convertible Virtual Currency or Digital Assets,” which could impose new and “onerous” reporting and recordkeeping requirements for virtual currency transactions,… Read More