Regulation

Hester Pierce, commissioner of the United States Securities and Exchange (SEC), has raised concerns about the watchdog’s recent statement advising accounting firms against taking on non-audit work for crypto firms. In a July 28 tweet, Pierce challenged the recent statement made by the SEC’s chief accountant Paul Munter, proposing that accounting firms adopt an all-or-nothing approach

Lawyers representing former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, also known as ‘SBF’, have requested the court seal documents related to his interviews with a New York Times reporter revealing details about his relationship with Caroline Ellison.  In a July 27 filing in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Bankman-Fried’s legal team

Crypto.com is the latest cryptocurrency firm to receive a green light from the Netherlands Central Bank to offer its services in the country. The platform announced that it had registered as a cryptocurrency service provider with De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), following a comprehensive review of Crypto.com’s business and compliance with the country’s AML and terror financing

Crypto fund manager Grayscale is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve all proposed spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) at the same time to avoid one having an advantage. A July 27 post by Grayscale chief legal officer Craig Salm said its legal team submitted a letter regarding eight spot Bitcoin ETF

Tact was pervasive in the United States House of Representatives Agricultural Committee’s consideration of the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act on July 27. With many references to bipartisanship and self-congratulatory mentions of the members’ cooperation and hard work, the committee plowed through a series of amendments calmly and quickly.  The bill,

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has urged United States citizens to take action and email their representatives to vote “yes” on the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21 Century Act (FIT21), which may provide regulatory clarity for crypto.  On July 26, lawmakers voted in favor of FIT21 and the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act. The bills

Cryptocurrency payments platform CoinsPaid has pointed the finger at North Korean state-backed Lazarus Group as being behind the hacking of its internal systems, which allowed them to steal $37.3 million on July 22. “We suspect Lazarus Group, one of the most powerful hacker organisations, is responsible,” CoinsPaid explained in a July 26 post. While CoinsPaid

Canada’s financial watchdog is proposing changes to its capital and liquidity approach to crypto assets, according to an announcement on July 26. According to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), the proposed rules will simplify institutions’ approach to perceived crypto risks, defining four categories of crypto assets and their capital treatment. OSFI

On July 25, the United States Senate backed bipartisan legislation mandating U.S. companies to report any investments in Chinese technologies.  In an overwhelming vote of 91 to 6, the Senate supported the amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which is anticipated to be implemented later in 2023. The amendment will require U.S. companies

The government of Palau is set to begin a pilot project for a United States dollar-backed stablecoin on July 26. The new coin will be issued on XRP Ledger. The country will release the first Palau Stablecoins (PSCs) in the pilot project to government employees. This comes after several days of testing using volunteers to

The Abu Dhabi Global Market Financial Services Regulatory Authority has granted its Financial Services Permission for cryptocurrency firm Rain to offer brokerage and custody services to residents.  In a July 25 announcement, Rain said the regulatory approval will allow certain United Arab Emirates-based institutional and retail users to “buy, sell, trade, and store virtual assets”

Wyoming is beginning its work on the state’s stablecoin, or, as it’s called officially, the “stable token” project, by opening a job position for a head of the stable token commission. The potential executive will lead a team, responsible for making a proper legislative framework for the project.  The position was opened on the federal

Last week was marked by two new legislative initiatives for the crypto industry in the United States. Senator Jack Reed sponsored a bipartisan bill that would tighten Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations and sanctions requirements for decentralized finance (DeFi). The bill would subject DeFi operations to the same requirements as “other

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has reportedly said United States lawmakers have a renewed focus on regulatory clarity in the crypto space following talks with key officials. According to a July 24 Axios report, Armstrong met with U.S. lawmakers on July 20 ahead of discussions and votes on pieces of legislation aimed at providing regulatory clarity

The Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee (FSC), Patrick McHenry, announced a markup of a few legislations, three aimed at providing regulatory clarity for the digital asset ecosystem — cryptocurrencies, blockchain development and stablecoin payments. The Committee on Financial Services will meet on July 26 to markup H.R. 4763, the Financial Innovation and Technology

San Francisco’s Federal Reserve Bank is seeking a crypto architect for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, reveals an Indeed job posting. According to the role description, the employee will work on CBDC research and development. The position is full-time and hybrid, with an annual salary starting at $134,900, requiring candidates to have “knowledge of

Terraform Labs faces a “big hill to climb” as the progress of its various projects in development are constantly being impeded by frequent accusations, according to Terra’s new interim CEO Chris Amani. During a July 20 Twitter Spaces, titled A Terra Community Talk, Amani joined several Terra employees to discuss the challenges ahead for Terra

Amidst speculations that a potential appeal by the US SEC could negatively impact the crypto market, Pro-XRP lawyer, Attorney John Deaton has made it clear that even in the event of an appeal by the agency, it would not significantly affect XRP holders. After the judge’s ruling stating that the programmatic sale of XRP tokens

Top Stories This Week Chair Gensler says SEC reaction to Ripple decision is mixed, still under consideration U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler has commented publicly about the recent ruling on the agency’s suit against Ripple, saying the SEC is “still looking at it and assessing that opinion.” Gensler declined to comment further

Bankrupted crypto lender Celsius Network reached two settlements that allows it to return assets to customers and end its bankruptcy proceedings, according to court filings on July 20.  The settlements will be analyzed by Judge Martin Glenn at a hearing on August 10 and address $78.2 billion in unsecured claims. Any responses and objections should