Regulation

This column’s goal has never been to provide investment advice on cryptocurrencies or other digital assets, nor has it been to provide individualized legal advice. It has mostly been about my desire to freely set forth in writing my thoughts on the state of the crypto market and the legal affairs surrounding it. Powers On…

US government officials who privately own cryptocurrencies are now banned from working on regulations and policies that could affect the value of digital assets. A new advisory notice released by the US Office of Government Ethics (OGE) on Tuesday stated that the de minimis exemption — which allows for the owners of securities who hold

The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), the Belgian regulator, is seeking comments on its communication on the classification of crypto assets as securities, investment instruments or financial instruments. Aimed at issuers, offerors and service providers, the agency’s communication will serve as guidance to the existing order until European regulatory harmonization is achieved.  The communication

Despite the Chinese government banning all kinds of cryptocurrency transactions last year, some firms apparently still use stablecoins like Tether (USDT) to pay their employees. Beijing’s Chaoyang District People’s Court has ruled that stablecoins like USDT cannot be used for salary payments, the local news agency Beijing Daily reported on July 6. The Chinese court

UK regulator the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has recruited almost 500 additional staff members this year as part of its new three-year strategy. Among the new hires are six directors, whose appointments were announced July 5. Two of them come from backgrounds in policing. Director of payments and digital assets is newly created position that

The Ministry of Economic Development of Italy has announced that certain blockchain projects will qualify to apply for up to $46 million in government subsidies starting from September. In a Tuesday announcement, the Ministry said companies and public or private research firms will be able to apply for funding from the government for the development

The government of the United Kingdom is asking the public for input on the taxation of crypto asset loans and staking in the context of Decentralized Finance (DeFi). DeFi is an umbrella term that refers to financial applications that are built on top of blockchain technology. This could include anything from lending to borrowing and

Trading volume on three major Indian crypto exchanges plummeted 72.5% on average since July 1, when a 1% tax per transaction was enforced in the country. The Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) came into effect on July 1 and appears to have negatively affected traders as exchange volumes dropped from 37.4% on BitBNS and 90.9%

The Monetary Authority of Singapore, or MAS, has been “carefully considering” adding restrictions that could affect how retail investors handle crypto, according to one of the government’s senior ministers. According to parliamentary records published on Monday, Singapore senior minister and MAS chair Tharman Shanmugaratnam said the financial watchdog may consider “placing limits on retail participation”

Major European digital asset manager CoinShares is finalizing the acquisition of the French fintech firm Napoleon Group despite the ongoing market decline. CoinShares announced on July 4 that the firm has acquired Napoleon Asset Management, a digital asset management subsidiary of Napoleon Group. CoinShares previously entered into a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) to acquire the

A new report has indicated that crypto exchange Coinbase has provided Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents with a “suite of features” intended for tracking the company’s customers. According to the report, ICE has been granted access to an intelligence-gathering application, called Coinbase Tracer, that provides a variety of forensic data tracking capabilities. U.S. Immigration

According to some United States lawmakers in the House Financial Services Committee, the lack of diversity in the financial technology space could be hurting many companies’ bottom lines. In a Thursday virtual hearing on “Combatting Tech Bro Culture,” U.S. lawmakers and witnesses discussed how women and people of color were underrepresented in leadership positions in

A new financial system; a more democratized, even more inclusive, financial sector; the future of the internet — the crypto ecosystem has been described as all of these things. However, as is evidenced by digital assets’ inherent correlation with the Nasdaq 100, most people fail to conceptualize blockchain as anything other than an extension of

The ongoing crisis of cryptocurrency lending and the associated crypto market decline once again confirms the importance of self-custody or the “true ownership” of crypto by its holder, according to several industry experts. In June, the cryptocurrency market capitalization plummeted below the $1 trillion mark, with Bitcoin (BTC) nearing its worst monthly losses since 2011.

Argentina’s tax authority has seized more than 1,000 cryptocurrency wallets linked to delinquent taxpayers in the country. According to a report from local media outlet iProUP, courts across Argentina authorized the seizure of 1,269 cryptocurrency wallets belonging to citizens with outstanding debt to Argentina’s Federal Administration of Public Income (AFIP). AFIP signaled its intent to

Officials from the European Union (EU) have agreed on a landmark law that will make life tougher for crypto issuers and service providers under a new single regulatory framework.  Stefan Berger, European Parliament member and rapporteur for the MiCA regulation — the person appointed to report on proceedings related to the bill — broke the