Whose side are you on? The Ukraine-Russia war is forcing people to answer that question. For some in the crypto community, this can be uncomfortable because if an individual or project stands with the West against Russia, it also means it abides by sanctions. This can be tough to square with crypto/blockchain’s supposed decentralized system
Regulation
Amid global businesses boycotting the Russian residents over military conflict in Ukraine, some companies in the cryptocurrency industry stand up for the rights of non-sanctioned Russian citizens. Bitfinex, an affiliate firm of the world’s largest stablecoin provider, Tether (USDT), will not unilaterally freeze the accounts of ordinary Russian customers as part of the global sanctions
Amid the ongoing discussion between the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) and the nation’s Finance Ministry on the future of crypto, a State Duma (the lower chamber of Parliament) working group has voiced their support for regulating rather than banning digital assets. The working group called for the “clear regulation of the digital assets industry”
Centre, an open-source technology project developed by Coinbase and Circle, has onboarded crypto exchange FTX and Alkemi Network as its latest partners to collaborate on Verite. Verite is a set of shared decentralized identity protocols — developed by Centre — to empower crypto-centric individuals and businesses by granting total control of personal information. Supporting Verite’s
The European Commission has clarified that crypto assets will fall under additional sanctions targeted against Russia and Belarus in response to the military conflict in Ukraine. In a Wednesday statement, the European Commission said member states had agreed to amend regulations with the goal of ensuring “even more effectively that Russian sanctions cannot be circumvented,
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, prime minister and ruler of the United Arab Emirates, has announced a new law on virtual assets as well as the establishment of a crypto regulator. In a Wednesday announcement, Sheikh Al Maktoum said he had issued a law creating a legal framework for crypto in the Emirate of
Joe Biden has signed his 82nd executive order since being sworn into office in January 2021, directly addressing a regulatory framework for digital assets in a rare moment for the U.S. President. In a Wednesday announcement, the White House said President Biden’s executive order required government agencies to explore the potential rollout of a United
As the world of finance continues to transform, new forms of money are challenging traditional monetary infrastructures that have been around for a long time. Currently, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) have caught the eye of various countries, including the Philippines. In a joint event organized by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Alliance
The parliament of the European Union has scheduled a vote on a framework aimed at regulating cryptocurrencies after addressing concerns over proof-of-work mining. In a Monday Twitter thread, European Parliament Committee on Economics and Monetary Affairs member Stefan Berger said the committee will vote on the Markets in Crypto Assets, or MiCA, framework on March
The United States Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, a bureau of the Treasury Department, has warned financial institutions to consider crypto as a possible means Russia may attempt to use to evade sanctions related to the country’s military action in Ukraine. In a Monday alert, FinCEN reminded U.S.-based financial institutions “with visibility into cryptocurrency”
The global crypto derivatives and spot trading exchange FTX is expanding to Europe after receiving approval from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). The new venture called FTX Europe would offer leading products of the company to the European clients via a licensed investment firm across the European economic area. The new European venture
With crypto being in the sights of many regulators, many have wondered if regulation is good or bad for crypto. However, Christian Borel, Senior Executive Officer at SEBA Bank, says that if the laws are clear, it may push crypto adoption forward. In a Cointelegraph interview, the banking executive mentions that institutions are likely to
In the case of stablecoins, unfortunately, the name is so far a misnomer. The fact that stablecoins are pegged to a “real” asset does not equate to stability. Traditional underlying assets are not exempt from market fluctuations, and with the majority of stablecoins pegged to fiat, they can be just as unstable. What the name
Recently, Ukraine has called for “sabotage” of everyday Russians’ crypto assets due to an ongoing war between the two countries. Among many, its European allies have also voiced mounting concerns that Russia may use crypto to bypass Western sanctions. But ironically, it appears that one of the greatest proponents of barring everyday Russians and financial institutions
As the West and America tighten their economic sanctions on Russia, concerns have emerged about how this will affect the cryptocurrency market. The country has been largely cut off from the SWIFT international payment system, and businesses in the United States and other Western nations are banned from doing business or transacting with Russian banks
Interaction between the cryptocurrency industry and Capitol Hill is becoming ever more intensive as efforts to regulate crypto grow in tandem with its popularity. The surge in crypto industry lobbying last year was given some concrete parameters in February by crypto analytics startup Crypto Head. It released a report showing that the crypto companies that
The United States Senate unanimously approved a bill amendment request that now allows traditional banks operating in the Commonwealth of Virginia to provide virtual currency custody services. Delegate Christopher T. Head introduced the bill (House Bill No. 263) back in January 2022, seeking an amendment to allow eligible banks to offer crypto custody services: “A
Centralized exchanges (CEX) and CEOs from companies such as Binance, Coinbase and Kraken have all stated they would only freeze the assets of Russian clients specifically targeted by Western sanctions — not that of everyday Russian users. A few days prior, Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation, had called for “all major crypto exchanges to block
A New York State proposal to suspend fossil fuel-powered proof-of-work mining for three years across the state has gained support from two more Assembly members. Members Amy Paulin and Ken Zebrowski have thrown their names in along with 43 other cosponsors for bill A7389B. In addition to the three-year suspension of mining at former fossil
The Dogecoin Foundation announced on Twitter on Wednesday that it had registered “Doge,” “Dogecoin” and its associated logos as trademarks in the European Union. The certificate displayed in the tweet was dated Jan. 13, 2022. Foundation executive board member Jens Wiechers said in the tweet thread, “The issue isn’t (and has never been) use in