Politics, Legal & Regulation

May 10, 2025 @ 4:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has recently unveiled a series of transformative updates aimed at strengthening bank supervision and embracing technological innovation, particularly in the realm of cryptocurrency. These changes, detailed in Bulletin 2025-9 and News Releases NR-OCC-2025-43 and NR-OCC-2025-44, reflect… Read More

May 9, 2025 @ 2:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has stated that the pending enforcement action with Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, and Christian Larsen has been resolved. The SEC noted that it would ask the court to dissolve the injunction against Ripple from the final judgment revealed in August 2024. An… Read More

May 9, 2025 @ 11:06 am By JD Alois  |  

While European Crowdfunding Service Provider regulation (ECSPR) was expected to fuel the growth of online capital formation in Europe, the actual results have been less than stellar. As Eurocrowd explains, the “patchwork” of rules and significant investment needed to support compliance, disclosures, risk management, and… Read More

May 9, 2025 @ 9:32 am By JD Alois  |  

Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of Celsius, was once the toast of the crypto town. At one point, Celsius claimed they were adding nearly $1 billion a month in new assets. Mashinsky’s mantra was that banks were not friends while claiming to be… Read More

May 9, 2025 @ 7:55 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius Network, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on May 8, 2025, for orchestrating a massive fraud scheme that defrauded investors of billions. The sentencing, handed down by U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl in Manhattan’s Southern District,… Read More

May 8, 2025 @ 5:45 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The United States under the Trump Administration making significant strides in shaping the future of digital assets, with recent legislative and regulatory developments signaling a decisive and transformative shift in how cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies are integrated into the financial system. From state-level initiatives to… Read More

May 8, 2025 @ 4:13 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Senate Stablecoin Bill, the Genius Act, or The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (S 1582), failed to get enough votes to gain cloture in the Senate. In effect, a cloture motion can quickly end debate and thus allow for a vote on… Read More

May 8, 2025 @ 9:04 am By JD Alois  |  

Today, the Bank of England cut its Bank Rate by 25 basis points. This is in contrast to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to hold rates steady due to stagflation concerns. The BoE decision was not unanimous with some wanting a more aggressive cut and… Read More

May 8, 2025 @ 8:25 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced a new executive to operate the Payments System Regulator (PSR), an entity that has been consolidated within the FCA. David Geale will become the Executive Director for Payments and Digital Finance Executive Director and the Payment Systems Regulator… Read More

May 8, 2025 @ 7:26 am By JD Alois  |  

The Bank of England has cut benchmark rates by 25 basis points (bps), setting the Bank Rate at 4.25%. This decision arrived the day after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady, primarily due to economic uncertainty. According to the Bank, the decision to cut… Read More

May 7, 2025 @ 7:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Loral L. Langemeier and her company Live Out Loud, Inc. have been ordered to pay a penalty and disgorgement following an enforcement action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The United States District Court for the District of Nevada has ordered Langemeier to pay… Read More

May 7, 2025 @ 4:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

The SEC’s Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) met this week to discuss Regulation A. Regulation A or Reg A+ is a securities exemption that received an update under the JOBS Act of 2012 – the legislation that legalized online capital formation (investment crowdfunding). Prior to the JOBS… Read More

May 7, 2025 @ 2:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) held rates steady today, as expected by the markets. The target range for the federal funds rate will remain at 4-1/4% to 4-1/2 %. The vote was unanimous in keeping rates the same. The Fed noted that the unemployment… Read More

May 6, 2025 @ 11:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has taken a pivotal step toward shaping the future of cryptocurrency regulation by issuing a discussion paper seeking views on the oversight of specific crypto-assets related activities. This move signals the FCA’s intent to address regulatory gaps, foster innovation,… Read More

May 6, 2025 @ 11:08 am By JD Alois  |  

In advance of today’s hearing, the House Financial Services Committee and the Committee on Agriculture have distributed draft legislation that seeks to outline the regulatory environment for digital assets. The draft legislation is extensive, currently sitting at 212 pages. An 8-page section-by-section description is viewable here. Iterations of this… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 5:38 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has thrown out another lawsuit targeting a digital asset firm. According to a release, Dragonchain and founder John Joseph Roets are now off the hook from civil litigation. In 2022, the SEC charged Dragonchain with raising $16.5 million in an “unregistered… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 5:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has announced that it has put staff on leave pending an investigation into unnamed transgressions. Last month, the  Acting CFTC Chairman, Caroline Pham, issued a statement on the CFTC Office of Inspector General (OIG) Investigation into Allegations of Telework Violations… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 4:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence and the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development will hold a joint hearing to discuss the future of digital assets. Tomorrow (May 6, 2025), the two Subcommittees… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 12:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tomorrow (May 6, 2025), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) will meet to discuss the Regulation A, or Reg A+, securities exemption. Reg A existed before the JOBS Act of 2012, but few issuers utilized the exemption. Following… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 12:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tokenization or digital securities may represent the most significant opportunity for distributed ledger technology and the financial services sector. While largely overshadowed by crypto that exists outside the securities realm, regulated digital assets that represent equity, debt, or another type of investment could be a… Read More