With a mere fortnight left in the year, Stuart Alderoty, the Chief Legal Officer of Ripple, has provided perspectives on what lies ahead for the cryptocurrency landscape in 2024. The exec has predicted setbacks for the US SEC and even a possible Supreme Court confrontation. Despite these bullish prognoses, Alderoty anticipates difficulties on the legislative...Read More
After consistently denying approval for a spot Bitcoin ETF for American investors over the years, there are indications that SEC chair Gary Gensler might be reconsidering his position in light of Grayscale’s legal triumph. While he has not explicitly acknowledged any change in stance, he admitted taking a new look at the approval process of...Read More
It’s nearly guaranteed that regulators will force Bitcoin (BTC) ETF applicants to adopt a “cash-create” model before launching their highly anticipated investment products, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. The decision, if true, would have major implications for the cost of managing each fund – and by extension, the fees passed down to customers....Read More
Bitwise Asset Management has joined the list of companies aiming for a spot Bitcoin (BTC) Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) approval in the United States. The firm’s ETF has been officially listed on the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) under the ticker BITB, signaling a growing optimism within the sector. Bitwise Optimistic Following Listing Bitwise’s...Read More
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has extended its decision on whether to approve or disapprove a spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) application by investment management company Invesco and crypto financial services firm Galaxy Digital. The SEC gave a 45-day extension, allowing itself until February 6, 2024, to make its decision on the product....Read More
With the United States struggling to bring about regulatory clarity for the crypto space, the ongoing discord between two pivotal watchdogs sparks concerns about potential implications. The head of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Rostin Behnam, has once again indicated that most crypto assets are considered commodities according to existing laws. He also acknowledged...Read More
In the ongoing legal dispute between Binance Holdings and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the former has filed a new submission to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Binance, along with its former CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), asserts that the SEC’s reliance on its prior settlement with the U.S. Department...Read More
Conversations about launching spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States have moved to advanced stages, Reuters reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources. According to the report, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has begun to ask potential spot Bitcoin ETF issuers detailed and technical questions about the products, a move the sources said indicated...Read More
After being at the center of the debacle that sent Terra and Luna spiralling to near absolute zero, former Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon fled his home country of South Korea and disappeared off the map for a good several months. He did not, however, disappear off of Twitter, where he continued posting diatribes blaming...Read More
Bitcoin has gained recognition in the financial sector within two decades after its launch. This is evident in the increasing number of times the leading digital asset has been mentioned in official filings over the past years. According to recent research, the world’s largest cryptocurrency was mentioned in more than a thousand filings with the...Read More
Elon Musk – who was also one of the founders of OpenAI back in the day – has been working on xAI for a while now, a firm launching another chatbot named Grok whose selling point is being “quirky” and having access to the Twitter API in order to stay up to date with current...Read More
The largest US-based crypto exchange experienced a threefold increase in law enforcement requests in the current year compared to 2020, as revealed in its latest transparency report. The total number of requests during the reporting period amounted to 13,079, marking approximately a 6% rise from the previous year. Notably, the United States maintained its position...Read More
Michael Novogratz, the founder and CEO of Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., anticipates that Bitcoin will reclaim its previous peak within a year, fueled by the growing expectation that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will greenlight the first American exchange-traded fund (ETF) directly holding Bitcoin. Meanwhile, there has been a surge in Bitcoin ETF...Read More
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has outlined the next steps in evaluating the proposed Franklin Templeton and Hashdex spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications. Observers speculate that the SEC’s actions may set the groundwork for potential approvals of spot Bitcoin ETFs in early January 2024, following earlier delayed decisions on applications from...Read More
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has remained persistent in its search for evidence that the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange uses a backdoor to access user assets on its American arm, Binance.US. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, attorneys for Binance.US in the exchange’s court battle with the SEC asked...Read More
Grayscale Investments, a prominent cryptocurrency asset manager, is making significant strides in its quest to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). The company recently held a crucial meeting with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to discuss potential listing matters related to the shares of the product. Grayscale...Read More
Bittrex Global, a leading regulated cryptocurrency exchange based in the UK, recently announced that it will cease all trading activity by December 4, 2023. The decision comes as the latest development in a turbulent journey for the exchange, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year. Bittrex Global to Shut Down Operations by December Bittrex...Read More
Celsius, a cryptocurrency lending platform, has revealed its intention to transform into a new entity with an exclusive emphasis on Bitcoin mining. This change, disclosed in a recent court filing, represents a departure from its initial reorganization strategy, including a focus on staking. Celsius Moves Towards Mining-Exclusive Entity Following feedback from the U.S. Securities and...Read More
Jesse Powell, the co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has slammed the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over the agency’s latest legal move. In a tweet, Powell referred to the SEC as “USA’s top decel,” stating that the regulator has returned with another assault on America. Kraken Co-Founder Slams US SEC Powell’s comments...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a 90-page lawsuit against cryptocurrency exchange Kraken on Monday, re-centering the firm among a handful of crypto giants in the agency’s legal crosshairs. The lawsuit accuses Kraken of a slew of securities law violations, and of commingling customer funds with corporate assets in ways that could risk...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in its latest report revealed that the number of enforcement actions filed in the fiscal year 2023 (FY2023) increased by three percent from the previous record in the financial year of 2022. Some of the enforcement actions involved heavyweights in the crypto industry, with various accusations against cryptocurrency...Read More
Ripple Labs and the SEC are in discovery for the remedies phase of the Ripple case until February. Meanwhile, Gary Gensler recently gave a speech in which he quoted the first SEC chair, Joseph P. Kennedy. That’s what started the X skirmish between the Commission and members of the crypto industry. Gary Gensler’s SEC Remarks...Read More
The United States has persistently stumbled in delivering clear regulatory guidance for digital assets. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) presides over instruments and assets deemed as securities, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulates the trading of derivatives on commodities. This landscape leaves a regulatory gap for digital assets that defy the categorization...Read More
XRP token prices pared back profits the week ending Sat, Nov 18. After a wild mid-October run-up from $0.49 to $0.72, XRP fell to $0.61 by Sunday morning Tokyo time. Meanwhile, the notorious XRP case attorney John Deaton took to X to remind readers that “XRP is a utility token at its core.” Amicus Lawyer...Read More
Began from Nov 9, the SEC has this unique “window” to give the thumbs up to all 12 spot Bitcoin ETF filings, even including Grayscale Investments’ conversion of its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust product by November 17. SEC Remains Silent Bitcoin enthusiasts and investors alike have been closely monitoring the Securities and Exchange Commission’s response to...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is struggling to recruit and retain crypto experts due to internal hiring restrictions, according to a new report from the agency’s Inspector General. The statement comes at a time when the SEC is highly focused on reigning in the blockchain industry, which its chairman Gary Gensler has described...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has fired back at Binance’s recent motion to dismiss the regulator’s lawsuit against the exchange, calling the latter’s arguments a “tortured interpretation of the law.” In an 88-page filing with the DC Circuit on Tuesday, the agency argued that Binance had ignored most of its core allegations in...Read More
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused two former CEOs of collapsed California-based tech company Bitwise Industries, of alleged misrepresentation and fraud, which they used to raise funds from unsuspecting investors. The defunct company is not associated with the major crypto asset manager, Bitwise, even though both entities bear identical names. Former Bitwise...Read More
The SEC has a brief window on November 9 to potentially approve all 12 spot Bitcoin ETF applicants in the U.S. This opportunity will last at least eight days. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may approve all 12 pending spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications within this timeframe. Bloomberg ETF analysts James...Read More
In an interesting X post from earlier this week, former SEC Chief John Reed Stark (Office of Internet Enforcement) issued a scathing rebuke of the SEC for its treatment of Ripple Labs in a years-long XRP lawsuit. Prediction: Expect a Big Win for the SEC in the SEC/Terra Litigation and a Gracious (Yet Scathing) Rebuke...Read More
