Politics, Legal & Regulation

September 13, 2018 @ 2:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

According to a post on the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS), the group is gearing up for more litigation pertaining to the renewed push by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and their Fintech Charter. The CSBS is a national lobbying… Read More

September 13, 2018 @ 9:01 am By JD Alois  |  

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has signed an agreement to collaborate on Fintech innovation. MAS has signed many of these types of agreements over the past several years. The CFTC is unique in the US as… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 11:14 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Ivan Semagin, Deputy Director of the Financial Market Development at the Bank of Russia, told attendees at a finance and trade conference in Vladivostok this week that the Bank of Russia’s first “sandbox” trial of an ICO (intitial coin offering) blockchain system went well technically, though… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 4:37 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House of Representatives has approved the “FinCEN Improvement Act of 2018,” sponsored by Rep. Ed Perlmutter (HR 6411). The bill was passed on a voice vote indicating strong bi-partisan support in the House. The legislation requires the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (or… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 4:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

FINRA has published a white paper on regulatory technology or Regtech developments within the securities industry. Regtech is a hot sub-sector of Fintech as it has the potential to make the job of financial regulators easier while saving time (and money) for the firms they… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 3:36 pm By JD Alois  |  

The United Kingdom and Singapore held their 4th joint meeting of financial services regulators and policymakers. The meeting took place in London yesterday where officials discussed regulatory initiatives and standards of conduct in the financial sector. Both the UK and Singapore have pursued Fintech innovation… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 3:23 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier today, the Parliament of Australia finally legalized the ability of “proprietary firms” to use “Crowd-Sourced Funding” (CSF) or investment crowdfunding. The change in the existing law has been a nagging concern for some time now as the previous law only allowed “unlisted public companies”… Read More

September 12, 2018 @ 11:36 am By Cali Haan  |  

Authorities in the state of Gujarat, India have been asked by representatives from Illinois and Arizona states to seize the property of Indian citizens accused of promoting Bitconnect, a “wide-ranging Ponzi scheme” that allegedly bilked investors out of an estimated $5.6 billion before it collapsed in… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 7:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

This past February, RECoin initial coin offering (ICO) Creator Maksim Zaslavskiy filed a motion to dismiss pertaining to a lawsuit brought against him by the federal government and his allegedly fraudulent offering. Zaslavskiy, via his attorney, argued in US District Court that tokens are not securities and… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 2:25 pm By Cali Haan  |  

FINRA announced today that it has charged the Massachusetts creator of the “HempCoin” ICO (initial coin offering) with securities fraud and, “the unlawful distribution of an unregistered cryptocurrency security…” FINRA, a Washington, DC-based self-regulatory organization of considerable might that presides over American securities brokers, claims that,… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 12:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) says that TokenLot, a self professed ICO Superstore, will settle charges regarding allegations the firm operated as an unregistered broker dealer. The SEC notes this is the first case charging unregistered broker-dealers for selling digital tokens after the SEC… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 12:41 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken its first-ever enforcement action against a hedge fund manager based on its investments in digital assets. The SEC has issued an Order finding Crypto Asset Management LP (CAM) as operating as an unregistered investment company. The SEC… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 12:09 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The Marshall Islands could end up putting its one remaining relationship with a US bank at risk if it moves forward with plans to issues a national cryptocurrency, the International Monetary Fund warns. The advice comes after the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 10:50 am By JD Alois  |  

At the meeting of EU financial ministers in Vienna last week, Austria’s Minister of Finance Hartwig Löger said that Europe is working on rules and regulations for crypto assets to support the development of the sector. The meeting included all of the economic and financial affairs… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 8:55 am By JD Alois  |  

Speaking at the FCA Annual Public Meeting today, Financial Conduct Authority Chief Executive Andrew Bailey delivered a wide-ranging speech on the state of the FCA.  Within prepared remarks, Bailey briefly mentioned innovation in financial services, and specifically cryptoassets. Bundling up “operational resilience” and the consequences… Read More

September 11, 2018 @ 7:53 am By JD Alois  |  

At the request of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of England, has seen his term extended until January 2020. In publicly published letter, Chancellor Philip Hammond officially extended his request that Carney remain at the Bank; “Further to… Read More

September 10, 2018 @ 10:21 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Uzbekistan is taking comprehensive steps, with the help of Korean partners, to enshrine the region as a friendly one for crypto industries and hopes to become, “a new coin special zone after Malta,” ETNews reports. The venture is being led cooperatively by KOBEA, the Economic Committee of Korea… Read More

September 10, 2018 @ 7:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) says they are continuing to foster responsible growth in the Fintech sector following the authorization of stablecoins issued by both the Gemini Trust Company and Paxos Trust Company. The Gemini Dollar will be pegged to the US… Read More

September 10, 2018 @ 9:22 am By JD Alois  |  

Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ: RIOT), a crypto company that engages in mining, development of exchange and mining pool platforms, and other investments within the sector, has announced a restructuring following the departure of CEO and Chairman John O’Rourke. O’Rourke departed the firm following an enforcement action by the… Read More

September 10, 2018 @ 7:29 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a temporary suspension of trading of two cryptocurrency related securities. Both the Bitcoin Tracker One (CXBTF) and Ether Tracker One (CETHF) traded on OTC Markets saw trading halted as ordered by the SEC. The temporary suspension went into effect… Read More