Regulation

The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) has issued a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license to the crypto wallet Backpack, resulting in the launch of Backpack Exchange.  Backpack’s VARA license is limited to crypto exchange services in Dubai and does not allow the company to offer any other of its virtual asset products and

Crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) saw their largest weekly inflows in more than a year, according to an Oct. 30 report from asset management platform CoinShares. Inflows were $326 million for the week ending Oct. 27, dwarfing the $66 million recorded over the previous week.  Digital asset investment products saw inflows of US$326m, the largest single

United States President Joe Biden issued an executive order on Oct. 30 establishing new standards for artificial intelligence (AI) safety and security.  Biden’s order stated it is building off previous actions taken, including AI safety commitments from 15 leading companies in the industry. The new standards have six primary points, along with plans for the

United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Kraken said it will share the data of 42,000 users with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in compliance with a court order. The information will be sent to the IRS in early November.  On its support page, Kraken specifies that the summons to produce “a wide range of records and

The United Kingdom’s government is in danger of regulating nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in a way that doesn’t suit the true nature of the nascent technology, says Mintable CEO and founder Zach Burks.   In an interview with Cointelegraph, Burks said he believes a recent report from a U.K. parliamentary committee significantly exaggerates the role NFTs play in

Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried’s defense attorney Mark Cohen heard testimony from the former FTX CEO on his relationship with Caroline Ellison and political donations from the crypto exchange. According to reports from the courtroom on Oct. 27, Bankman-Fried claimed not to have discussed donations to U.S. politicians with former FTX engineering director Nishad Singh and former

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse strongly criticized former United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Jay Clayton’s remarks regarding the agency’s regulatory approach. Since the first quarter of 2023, the SEC has initiated various regulatory actions against crypto exchanges and companies. During an interview with CNBC on June 29, 2023, Clayton expressed his view that

Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini filed an adversary proceeding against bankrupt crypto lender Genesis Global Holdco in the Southern District of New York Bankruptcy Court on Oct. 27. At issue is the fate of 62,086,586 shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). They were used as collateral to secure loans made by 232,000 Gemini users to Genesis through the

Kraken will suspend all transactions related to USDT, DAI, WBTC, WETH, and WAXL in Canada in November and December, according to multiple customer emails shared with Cointelegraph. In response to a request for comment from Cointelegraph, a Kraken spokesperson said, via email, “we constantly monitor the assets on our platform to ensure we are meeting

Stuart Alderoty, the chief legal officer of Ripple Labs, as well as members of the XRP (XRP) community, have expressed their support on X (formerly Twitter) for United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce’s stance against perceived “injustice” in the LBRY lawsuit. Alderoty thanked Peirce and suggested that when ongoing injustices occur in non-fraud

Hester Peirce of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a dissenting opinion on the regulator’s lawsuit against blockchain firm LBRY. In an Oct. 27 statement, Peirce described feeling “unsettled” following the SEC’s enforcement action against LBRY in March 2021. In November 2022, a judge ruled in favor of the SEC, stating

The jury overseeing the criminal trial of Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried listened to the former FTX CEO’s testimony for the first time, which involved largely denying knowledge of fraudulent activities at the crypto exchange. According to reports from the New York courtroom on Oct. 27, Bankman-Fried suggested Wang, the former chief technology officer at FTX, had

On Oct. 25, Taiwanese legislators introduced the Virtual Asset Management Bill to the unicameral parliament, the Legislative Yuan. The bill aims to provide “better protection” for the customers and “properly supervise” the industry.  The 30-page bill appears moderate in its demands for the industry. It suggests some common sense obligations for the virtual asset service

Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments. Largest money laundering scandal in Australia unravels Changjiang Currency Exchange, a money transmitter business based in Australia, has beenbustedin a $145 million ($230 million Aussie dollar) money laundering scandal. On October 26 a 300-strong police operation spanning Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide,

Attorneys representing the United States Justice Department rested their case against Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried after more than three weeks of expert witnesses and testimonies from former FTX and Alameda employees.  According to reports from the courtroom on Oct. 26, the U.S. government’s last witness before resting was FBI agent Mark Troiano, who primarily testified on

Pro-Ripple lawyer John Deaton said he expects a lengthy legal process in the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) vs. Ripple case — possibly lasting a year. Deaton suggested that a settlement may only be considered if Coinbase’s motion to dismiss the SEC’s case against it is successful.  In a detailed post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Deaton

GTA and CoD veterans’ new studio collabs with Immutable Web3 gaming ecosystem Immutable is helping Random Games join the blockchain gaming world. The studio was founded by veteran developers and storytellers from famous franchises including Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty, Fortnite, Batman, Star Trek, The Walking Dead, Star Wars and South Park. The collaboration

Former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried will testify as part of his defense case, said his attorney Mark Cohen. In an Oct. 25 telephone conference between SBF’s lawyers, prosecutors, and Judge Lewis Kaplan, Cohen said following the prosecution completing the presentation of its case on Oct. 26, his team planned to call three witnesses as

The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has extended the commentaries period for crypto tax reporting rules proposed in August 2023. The public consultation will last until Nov. 13.  The “Gross Proceeds and Basis Reporting by Brokers and Determination of Amount Realized and Basis for Digital Asset Transactions” rules were made public on Aug. 29.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren is at it again. With mainstream press outlets including Germany’s Deutsche Welle running sensationalist headlines — “How cryptocurrency fueled Hamas’ terrorist attack” — Warren is using Hamas’ attack on Israel to fuel her own war on cryptocurrency. Crypto’s role in the conflict came into focus on Oct. 10, when Israeli police