Regulation

Hot on the heels of its Bitcoin (BTC) futures exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Hong Kong, Samsung Asset Management has indicated it’s considering the launch of a spot Bitcoin ETF on the city’s exchange if policies allow for it. In an interview with Bloomberg published on Jan. 13, Hong Kong chief executive for Samsung Asset Management,

Eight major media companies including Bloomberg, The Financial Times and Reuters have demanded public disclosure of the two individuals responsible for guaranteeing FTX former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s $250 million bond.  In a Jan. 12 letter addressed to New York District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan, attorneys from Davis Wright Tremaine LLP — acting on behalf of the

Having taught and studied token economics at the University of Nicosia, I’ve found that students often have some decidedly muddled beliefs about how what tokens are and how business and token economies work. Unlike microeconomics and macroeconomics — which are based on decades of research, debate and inquiry that have produced some commonly accepted principles

The judge handling FTX’s bankruptcy has reportedly slammed a joint letter from four United States senators calling for an independent examiner in the case. As reported by Cointelegraph, the senators sent a letter on Jan. 9 highlighting concerns about the ties between FTX and Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, which as the lead law firm in

The City of London has teamed up with a variety of trade associations to form the UK Forum for Digital Currencies, an alliance that will advocate for “better policies, practice and regulation around digital currencies,” according to a statement released by the five members.  Besides the City of London Corporation, the city’s municipal governing body,

The new licensing program, scheduled to take off in June, will restrict retail traders in Hong Kong to “highly-liquid” digital assets, according to the new CEO of Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Julia Leung Fung-yee. At the recent Asia Financial Forum, Leung pointed out that many digital asset platforms have thousands of products. However, the

Argentina’s Ministry of Economy, the country’s economic policy manager, has drafted a bill to encourage Argentines to declare their cryptocurrency holdings, using the inducement of discounted tax rates. Aimed at combating money laundering, the “Externalization of Argentine Savings” draft law was introduced by economy minister Sergio Massa, according to a Jan. 6 report by local

Digital rights advocacy group Fight for the Future has posted an open letter on its website encouraging the new members of the U.S. Congress to protect privacy. The letter has attracted dozens of companies and organizations as cosigners. “Increasingly, the incredible creative power of U.S. software developers is being chilled by clumsy, misguided legislative and regulatory

The South Korea-based cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is under a “special tax investigation” by the country’s National Tax Service (NTS), according to local reports. On Jan. 10, tax agents raided the exchange’s headquarters in the country’s capital city Seoul as a part of a compliance investigation. Authorities are verifying the possibility of tax evasion by examining

Nepal’s telecommunications regulator has ordered the country’s internet service providers (ISPs) to block all cryptocurrency trading websites, threatening legal action against those that fail to comply. In a Jan. 8 notice, the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) ordered ISPs and email service providers to prevent access to “websites, apps or online networks” related to crypto. It

The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed suit against self-described digital artist Avraham Eisenberg on Jan. 9, charging him with two counts of market manipulation in connection with an exploit of decentralized finance platform Mango Markets. Eisenberg was arrested on related charges on Dec. 27 and is currently in custody. The CFTC claimed

The United States Department of Justice has officially notified the court handling the bankruptcy of BlockFi that it has seized assets in accordance with criminal cases against crypto exchange FTX and its executives. In a Jan. 6 court filing, the Justice Department said it had seized 55,273,469 shares of Robinhood to which former FTX CEO

Australian crypto exchange Swyftx is set to shutter its crypto-interest product this week, citing a “constantly changing regulatory landscape” for crypto products in the country.  From Jan. 10, the crypto exchange will cease to operate the “Earn” program, with users having their entire Earn balances returned to their trade wallets. Swyftx said while the decision might

Fourteen years after Bitcoin’s genesis block launched a profound disruption in financial services and other industries through the rise of blockchain technology, United States authorities are finally becoming more interested in cryptocurrencies’ future and economic impact. On Dec. 14, the Financial Accounting Standards Board discussed new accounting and disclosure requirements for entities holding crypto assets in

The Bank of France’s governor has called for more stringent licensing requirements for crypto companies in France, citing the current turmoil in the crypto markets. During a speech in Paris on Jan. 5, Francois Villeroy de Galhau said France shouldn’t wait for upcoming EU crypto laws to enact obligatory licensing for local digital asset service

United States prosecutors are investigating hedge funds’ relationships with cryptocurrency exchange Binance for money-laundering violations. According to anonymous sources cited by the Washington Post, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Western District of Washington in Seattle subpoenaed investment firms to provide records of communications with Binance in the past months. The allegedly subpoenas do not