Politics, Legal & Regulation

February 12, 2025 @ 4:14 pm By JD Alois  |  

The leadership chairs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) are moving once again. First, it was reported that Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent was acting Director. Then Russell Vought, the head of the OMB, became acting CFPB director last week. Yesterday, it was revealed that former FDIC Board… Read More

February 11, 2025 @ 3:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, was testifying before the Senate Banking Committee today. While typically targeting the Fed’s dual mandate of pursuing full employment and low inflation, the hearing provides an opportunity for the Members to query the Chair on other… Read More

February 11, 2025 @ 3:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) says it will hold a digital assets forum which will engage with some top digital asset firms. The CFTC in a release said that Ripple, Crypto.com, MoonPay, Coinbase and Circle have all committed to participate in the event. Final… Read More

February 11, 2025 @ 12:30 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced a change regarding rules enacted by the Commission during the Biden Administration that sought to target climate disclosure for reporting firms. As part of the controversial ESG initiatives launched by the previous Chairman of the SEC, Gary… Read More

February 11, 2025 @ 9:44 am By JD Alois  |  

The European Union (EU) has announced a commitment of €200 billion to boost development of artificial intelligence (AI). In a public statement at the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit in Paris, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the new funding to accelerate AI in… Read More

February 11, 2025 @ 8:16 am By JD Alois  |  

The US Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), has partnered with Australia and the UK to sanction Zservers as it is an enabler of LockBit, a Russian ransomware group. LockBit is said to be the culprit in the attack against the… Read More

February 10, 2025 @ 6:21 pm By JD Alois  |  

Rodney E. Hood has been selected as Acting Comptroller of the Currency. The US Department of Treasury said Hood’s leadership of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is effective immediately. Hood replaces Acting Comptroller Michael J. Hsu, who has been Comptroller since May… Read More

February 10, 2025 @ 2:45 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has halted all regulatory activity. The X account affiliated with the CFPB no longer exists, and the homepage is not updating correctly. The CFPB has been a controversial agency since its inception. The creation of the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFPB,… Read More

February 10, 2025 @ 2:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says it had almost 20,000 financial advertisements pulled or changed during 2023 – almost double the year prior. The FCA specifically mentioned promotions involving crypto, debt, and “claims management company” (CMC). CMCs came from 46 authorized CMC firms, affecting… Read More

February 10, 2025 @ 8:56 am By Tony Zerucha  |  

While the tumult over tariffs caused some market fluctuations this week, a pair of industry executives believe all signs point positive for cryptocurrencies. Galxe cofounder Charles Wayn said this week’s market volatility doesn’t detract from what has been a historic bull. “Certain geopolitical tensions and… Read More

February 9, 2025 @ 11:50 am By JD Alois  |  

After years of actively undermining digital asset innovation, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will take steps to recognize and enable new technology that will improve the securities ecosystem and potentially help create new asset classes traded around the world. During the Biden Administration,  the… Read More

February 8, 2025 @ 10:49 am By Omar Faridi  |  

A five-count criminal indictment was unsealed in federal court in New York charging a Canadian man with “exploiting vulnerabilities” in decentralized finance protocols to “fraudulently obtain about $65 million from the protocols’ investors.” According to court documents, from 2021 to 2023, Andean Medjedovic, 22, allegedly… Read More

February 8, 2025 @ 8:42 am By Tony Zerucha  |  

A roster of blockchain industry executives believes moving the United States’ records and treasury transactions onto a blockchain would bring a string of benefits. Jean Rausis, co-founder of the decentralized finance ecosystem SMARDEX, believes that moving the US Treasury’s transactions onto the blockchain would make… Read More

February 7, 2025 @ 9:25 am By JD Alois  |  

Acting Commodities Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Caroline Pham has issued a statement defending herself against claims made in a Bloomberg article. Pham was appointed Acting Chair as the Trump Administration took over the federal bureaucracy. In the minority during the Biden Administration, now… Read More

February 6, 2025 @ 3:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

Acting CFTC Chairman Caroline D. Pham says there will be no more “regulation by enforcement.” This term has been widely utilized to describe regulatory activity in financial services during the Biden Administration. More specifically, the rise of digital assets created policy hysteria with the government…. Read More

February 6, 2025 @ 3:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

This week, Congress is busy holding hearings on Debanking and other nefarious actions taken by federal regulators targeting the digital asset sector during the Biden Administration. Crypto firms have struggled in the US to gain regulatory clarity from the government, which sought to undermine crypto… Read More

February 6, 2025 @ 11:30 am By JD Alois  |  

The Bank of England has cut benchmark rates by 25 basis points to 4.5%, a move anticipated by markets. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England holds a similar target as the US of achieving a 2% inflation rate. In Q4 2024,… Read More

February 5, 2025 @ 6:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Federal Reserve is supposed to be an apolitical entity independent of the federal government seeking to achieve its low inflation and full employment mandate. The Fed also has oversight over the banking system as it aims to ensure a safe and secure banking… Read More

February 5, 2025 @ 5:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

Representatives Bryan Steil and Dusty Johnson have introduced a House resolution voicing support for digital assets. Digital assets, or crypto, cover a broad range of assets, including digital securities and commodities, stable assets, or assets with other types of value. The Resolution states: Whereas entrepreneurs… Read More

February 5, 2025 @ 10:08 am By JD Alois  |  

In advance of the Senate Banking Committee hearing on the nefarious debanking movement by the federal government, Anchorage Digital, a federally chartered digital bank, has shared its experience in prepared testimony. Today, Anchorage founder and CEO Nathan McCauley will testify how Anchorage became persona non-grata… Read More