The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused two companies, their executives, and a supposed international gold trader, of running a fraudulent scheme to boost demand for their digital token. The false promotion of the token netted proceeds of over $36 million for the defendants, the agency said. A Fake $10 Billion Gold...Read More
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is objecting to a motion by troubled cryptocurrency lender Celsius, seeking to reopen withdrawals for selected customers. Since Celsius halted withdrawals in June, the company has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, while the CEO recently resigned from his position. A United States Trustee for the DOJ, William Harrington, on Friday...Read More
California’s regulator has targeted 11 crypto-related entities which allegedly violated the state’s securities laws. The watchdog also claimed that their business model was in the manner of a Ponzi or pyramid scheme. The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI), in an announcement on Tuesday, stated that while all the accused companies offered unregistered securities...Read More
An analysis carried out by the financial services company – Bankrate – determined that US millennials are not as enthusiastic about cryptocurrencies as they were last year. Around 30% said they feel comfortable investing in digital assets compared to 50% in 2021. The Latest Change in Trends Younger generations, including millennials and Generation Z, are...Read More
Two weeks ago, Celsius filed a motion asking for approval to sell stablecoins currently in its possession. At the time, a preliminary investigation did not find any reasons to deny the request outright – even though the cash generated by the sale would be used to fund Celsius’ operations, not pay back creditors. Further deliberation...Read More
The Delaware Department of Justice’s Investor Protection Unit halted the operations of 23 entities and individuals involved in cryptocurrency romance frauds, known as “pig butchering” scams. A recent analysis conducted by Bankless Times estimated that Americans lost around $185 million between January 2021 and March 2022 due to such schemes. Crypto Scammers Again in the...Read More
The American asset manager that specializes in cryptocurrencies – Pantera Capital – is looking to raise $1.25 billion for its second blockchain fund. Not long ago, the head of the company – Dan Morehead – argued that the digital asset market had hit its bottom in June and a bull run is on the horizon....Read More
Leading cryptocurrency lender Nexo has acquired a stake in Hulett Bancorp (DBA Mode Eleven) and its subsidiary federally chartered bank Summit National Bank, regulated under the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The deal will allow the crypto lender, which has around $4 billion in assets under management, to further scale its financial...Read More
The IRS is going after crypto owners who fail to report gains on their taxes. The US tax authority got a court order Thursday enjoining an NYC bank to turn over records on potential crypto tax dodgers. While crypto markets appear in the throes of “winter” against buys made last November to date, half of...Read More
The authorities of Colorado announced that state residents can now pay their taxes in cryptocurrencies instead of fiat. Among the supported digital assets are the two biggest by market capitalization – Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). Still, Colorado’s Revenue Department is not allowed to accept direct crypto payments, which is why it partnered with PayPal,...Read More
The lawsuit filed in 2019, which claims crypto exchange Bitfinex and its sister company Tether manipulated the crypto market to issue USDT to inflate Bitcoin’s price, has taken a new turn. United States District Court for the Southern District of New York has now ordered stablecoin issuer Tether to produce financial records of USDT to...Read More
Jim Messina – one of Barack Obama’s closest advisers during his presidency reign in the USA – has taken an executive role at the popular cryptocurrency platform – BlockhainCom. The veteran politician is responsible for the firm’s government relations and policy strategy. Another American official who transitioned to the world of crypto is Brian Brooks....Read More
The United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against prominent crypto influencer, investor, and entrepreneur Ian Ballina over an initial coin offering (ICO) dating back to 2018. The SEC accused Ballina purchased $5 million worth of SPRK tokens from Sparkster Ltd. and received 30% bonus tokens before he started promoting it on...Read More
The Department of Justice (DOJ) of the United States created a unit consisting of over 150 federal prosecutors whose goal will be to combat cryptocurrency-related criminal activities. In addition, the government plans to introduce a set of regulatory frameworks that should aid the development of the local digital asset sector. Earlier this year, the DOJ...Read More
Chainalysis’ recent report, called “The 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index,” revealed that digital asset adoption has slowed down in the past 12 months due to the crypto winter but remains above pre-bull market levels. The leader from 2021 – Vietnam – was placed first again, while the Philippines and war-torn Ukraine followed shortly after. Interestingly,...Read More
The Biden administration issued its first-ever paper on cryptocurrencies and how the asset class should be regulated within the nation on Friday. While some believe the guidelines require more clarity, Binance’s CEO asserted that the framework is a significant recognition of itself, and his company aims to work with global watchdogs. After issuing a few...Read More
The United States Treasury Department added five cryptocurrency addresses to its sanctions blacklist. All wallets are connected to the Russian neo-Nazi paramilitary group – Task Force Rusich – that has participated in the Ukraine war. Prior to that, the Department sanctioned the Ethereum-based cryptocurrency mixer – Tornado Cash – and Blender.io (a software tied to...Read More
In a series of reports, the Joe Biden administration on Friday has offered its response to the President’s executive order on cryptocurrencies – Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets – issued earlier this year, media reports said. Here is all that you need to know about the Biden administration’s Friday reports: The Joe Biden administration has...Read More
On September 13, the U.S. Treasury Department published a guide with a series of steps for U.S. citizens to follow in order to withdraw their funds from Tornado Cash. Tornado Cash was a mixing service shut down on August 8 by the U.S. Treasury Department. This happened after investigations showed that the platform was used...Read More
The California-based cryptocurrency exchange Abra plans to form two financial institutions, called Abra Bank and Abra International. The former will provide digital asset services to American customers and businesses, while the latter will expand outside the States. Abra Sets up Banks With Crypto Focus In a recent announcement, the company revealed that Abra Bank will...Read More
Joshua David Nicholas – a resident of Florida – pleaded guilty that he and other members of the cryptocurrency platform EmpiresX skimmed investors with $100 million worth of digital assets. He now faces a maximum penalty of up to five years in Federal prison. Last month, the US authorities brought to justice another criminal crew...Read More
The retail gaming giant – GameStop – said it partnered with US brand of the popular cryptocurrency exchange – FTX. Over the course of the agreement, the former will begin carrying FTX gift cards in select stores. In addition, GameStop revealed that its quarterly sales declined to $1.14 billion compared to $1.18 billion in Q2,...Read More
The attorney general of the District of Columbia (DC), Karl Racine, accused Michael Saylor of failing in his tax obligations while living in DC while also alleging that his company, business intelligence giant MicroStrategy, aided Saylor’s tax avoidance. The MicroStrategy executive is one of the biggest advocates of bitcoin and has remained bullish on the...Read More
A recent research conducted by Study.com revealed that 64% of US parents think cryptocurrencies should be a subject part of their children’s education. However, the moms and dads are not that supportive of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) since only 25% said they should be included in the school programs. The mayor of New York City –...Read More
A recent survey carried out by Pew Research Center estimated that 46% of American cryptocurrency investors think their entrance into the market has done worse than expected. Only 15% admitted their investments have turned more successful than initially thought. The study further disclosed that the share of crypto investors in the US had remained relatively...Read More
Global investment manager VanEck has once again been made to wait longer for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to decide on the company’s latest Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETF) application. The watchdog refuses to approve a spot Bitcoin ETF in the country, while it has granted a few futures-based ones. The SEC announced in...Read More
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) charged three residents of Miami – Esteban Cabrera Da Corte, Luis Hernandez Gonzalez, and Asdrubal Ramirez Meza – with defrauding banks and a cryptocurrency platform for over $4 million. The men used fake identification to buy digital assets, while later, they lied to financial institutions that the transactions were...Read More
Accused crypto money launderer Denis Mihaqlovic Dubnikov has been extradited to the United States from the Netherlands to face charges in the District of Oregon. The US Department of Justice (DOJ) said Dubnikov was charged by a federal grand jury in Portland for his alleged role in an international crypto money laundering conspiracy last August....Read More
Binance’s US subsidiary announced receiving its Money Transmitter License from the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, Financial Institutions Division. The latest move is part of the company’s plans to offer its fully regulated services in all of America’s 50 states and territories. Speaking about the license approval, Brian Shroder, Chief Executive Officer of Binance...Read More
The shutdown of Tornado Cash by the US Treasury Department on August 8 has made Kraken CEO Josse Powell question the constitutionality of the decision. In an interview with Bloomberg TV on Tuesday, Powell doubted if the Treasury’s move will withstand judicial scrutiny. Tornado Cash allows users to conceal sources and destinations of funds by...Read More
