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Gary Gensler, Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), called for compliance from an industry he has frequently tagged as “rife with fraud”. Gensler advised cryptocurrency operators and service providers to stop tricking investors in his message to the digital industry on the Bitcoin white paper’s 15th anniversary.  Rhetoric from the SEC’s Chairman has consistently painted virtual currencies akin to the wild west, where bad actors defraud unsuspecting customers with the guise of decentralized technology.  The regulator’s short address saluted Satoshi Nakamato’s brainchild as the progenitor of crypto while throwing aspersions on the so-called anonymity achieved through blockchain networks.  If Satoshi Nakamoto went as Satoshi Nakamoto for Halloween, would we be able to tell? Happy 15th anniversary to Satoshi’s famous white paper that started crypto . Any crypto companies that are tricking investors should start treating them to compliance with the ...

Some analysts say GBTC’s discount is narrowing because investors are pricing in the SEC’s approval on several pending spot Bitcoin ETF applications. Grayscale’s Bitcoin investment vehicle, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) is trading at its lowest discount in nearly two years, as spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to inch toward potential approval in the United States. The latest data from YCharts shows GBTC’s discount to Bitcoin net asset value (NAV) has narrowed to 15.87% as of Oct. 13. Discount to net asset value (NAV) is a percentage that measures the amount that a mutual fund or ETF is trading below its net asset value. The metric is used to track how far away a security is trading away from its true value. Data shows that GBTC’s discount began to narrow when BlackRock and several other financial institutions filed spot Bitcoin ETF applications in mid-June, where the discount fell from 44% on June 15 to 26.7% by July 5. Since then, the figure has continued to narrow. GBTC’s Discount to N...

The crypto-friendly U.S. Representative Patrick McHenry has become Speaker pro tempore of the House of Representatives following the recent ouster of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. According to Reuters, McCarthy lost his House seat after Congress voted 216-210, with eight of the 216 votes coming from McCarthy’s fellow Republicans. This marked the first time the Speaker of the House of Representatives has been removed from office in US history. “I fought for what I believe in. I believe I can continue to fight, but maybe in a different manner.” Kevin McCarthy, Speaker of the House of Representatives While McHenry’s appointment is temporary, it can be seen as a small win for the digital asset sector. The Speaker sets the legislative agenda, controls committee assignments, and schedules specific bills to be debated and voted on in the House. Further reports suggests that along with McHenry, there is a possibility that pro-crypto spokesman Tom Emmer could be a...

The latest delays came two weeks before the second deadline for many applicants. Despite United States Representatives Mike Flood, Wiley Nickel, Tom Emmer and Ritchie Torres calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to immediately approve the listing of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs), the agency once again delay ed its decision .  When it comes to spot Ether (ETH) ETFs from VanEck and ARK 21Shares, the SEC delay ed making decision s until Dec. 25 and Jan. 10, respectively, while GlobalX will have to wait until Nov. 21 for the commission’s decision . It also delay ed deciding on the spot Bitcoin ETF applications of Invesco, Bitwise and Valkyrie until mid-January. The latest delays came two weeks earlier than the scheduled second deadline date for many applicants, who had been expecting to hear from the securities regulator by Oct. 16–19. The timing of the delays may have been related to the narrowly avoided U.S. government shutdown, which would have disr...

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused Binance US of non-cooperation in a probe into alleged federal securities law violations. The SEC has raised concerns over using Ceffu, a custody service facilitated by the international arm of Binance. They believe this breaches a prior agreement designed to prevent the transfer of assets abroad. The holding company of Binance US, BAM, has reportedly been less than cooperative during the discovery phase, the process where evidence is gathered. According to the SEC, BAM has only submitted around 220 documents, many of which are either undated or unsigned and, in some cases, are incomprehensible screenshots. Moreover, the company has been reluctant to present vital witnesses for deposition, consenting to only four depositions of individuals they have selected as suitable. “It has responded to requests for relevant communications with blanket objections and has refused to produce documents kept in the ordinary course of...

Rapper Soulja Boy, real name DeAndre Cortez Way, and singer Austin Mahone have lost against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a lawsuit filed in March against the pair, crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, and Sun’s company BitTorrent. The suit is wide-ranging, making claims from market manipulation to not disclosing paid advertising. Soulja Boy and Mahone sat on the less troubling of these charges, being accused of promoting Sun’s cryptocurrency TRON without disclosing that they were paid posts. However, the main defendants in the case who are facing the most serious charges are Sun and BitTorrent. They will respond next week if they choose to fight the SEC. It’s expected that a filing will be made by September 20. In a final judgment against Mahone, the singer was ordered to not accept SEC urities-related compensation for three years, to pay back the $7,507 he was paid (plus $682 in interest), and to cough up a $37,535 fine to the SEC . In total, the singer has just und...

Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius Network, a bankrupt crypto lender, has been arrested in New York, reports on July 13 show. The arrest follows an investigation into the collapse of the crypto firm in Q3 2022. Mashinsky will be arraigned on Friday, July 14. However, people aware of the arrest reveal that the former CEO has denied any wrongdoing. Following the arrest , the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also suing Celsius and the former CEO for allegedly providing false information to creditors and information and lying about the firm’s financial health. Read more: Bitbuy relists XRP amid improvements in Ripple vs. SEC case Celsius was among prominent crypto firms collapsed last year. The crypto lender gained attention by offering high-interest rates on digital-asset deposits. However, following the TerraUSD stablecoin’s (UST) failure and a decline in crypto prices in 2022, Celsius found themselves in a financial hole and cou...

With the market maturing, accredited investors are demanding more pathways in the crypto industry. Major institutions have been chasing an approved Bitcoin spot ETF, but the SEC has been dismissive in the past. Now, brokerage firm Bernstein feels that the probability of the SEC approving the spot vehicle is fairly high at this stage. The SEC has time and again rejected spot BTC ETF s in the past indicating that they do not meet sec urity standards to prevent fraudulent practices. Right now, exchanges are not leaving any stone unturned. A day back, CBOE Global Markets filed amended applications revealing its tie-up with Coinbase on market surveillance.   Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein , acknowledged the efforts of BlackRock, Fidelity , and other asset managers for venturing into the crypto industry. Commenting on BlackRock’s decision to file for a spot in Bitcoin ETF , Sonnenshein said in a recent CNBC interview, “It’s [it is] a moment of validation. To ...

In the wake of the Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC )’s lawsuit against Coinbase , many are wondering why the crypto exchange was allowed to go public if it was offering unregistered SEC urities. Coinbase went public in April of 2021, with opening bids for shares climbing to over $400. But the enthusiasm was short-lived – the price halved within two months. Issues regarding future revenue, trading fees, and competition seemed to nip at Coinbase’s heels, despite glowing documentaries and a broader market rally by the end of 2021. However, these were only the financial and fiscal problems the company was facing. Regulatory scrutiny and the S-1 All companies planning to go public are required by law to file an S-1 with the SEC. This form discloses basic financial information, risks, and concerns for the company going forward. One of the most important paragraphs in Coinbase’s S-1 can be found between pages 29 and 30, when it openly admits it could find itself in hot water w...

The crypto community has been eagerly awaiting the final verdict in the SEC v. Ripple lawsuit. The case was initially filed by the regulatory agency back in December 2020. According to Attorney John E Deaton, the Judge’s ruling could come down “within the next few weeks.” In fact, he also pointed out that a ruling be passed as early as “this week” too. XRP has the most attractive risk/reward ratio IMO. The Judge’s ruling is coming down w/in the next few weeks (maybe this week). If the SEC wins, what’s the downside from .45? Ripple appeals and we get the status quo. Ripple wins and its made clear XRP isn’t a sec urity? Upside? — John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) March 26, 2023 Also Read – Ripple’s Policy Director: ‘Clickbait Headlines’ From Regulators Is Not Enough Over the past few days, XRP has been defying the broader correction spree and has been registering green candles on its price charts. In fact, it emerged to be a top gainer a couple of times last week. Alongside...

The Binance CEO claimed that algorithmic USD stablecoins may become more popular as well, although they “have risks.” The crypto industry will “probably” start using euro, yen, or Singapore dollar based stablecoins in the future, reducing its reliance on US dollar based stablecoins, according to a Feb. 14 statement on Twitter Spaces by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, also known as “CZ.” CZ gave the statement in answer to a question about the crypto industry using gold as a standard of value instead of the US Dollar. CZ agreed that it “makes sense” to use gold. However, “most people’s costs are still in fiat currencies.” For this reason, most people calculate their investment returns in dollars, which is why US Dollar backed stablecoins are “still important.” However, CZ argued that the US government’s recent actions against US dollar stablecoins will probably lead the global crypto industry to rely on other currencies such as the Euro, Yen, and Singapore Dollar to back stablecoins, as he ...

SEC’s acting chief accountant Paul Munter said that investors shouldn't place too much confidence in a company holding up a proof-of-reserves audit. A senior official from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission has warned investors to be “very wary” about relying on a crypto company’s “ proof -of- reserve s.” “We’re warning investors to be very wary of some of the claims that are being made by crypto companies,” said SEC’s acting chief accountant Paul Munter in a Dec. 22 interview with The Wall Street Journal. A number of crypto firms have commissioned “proof-of-reserves” audits since the collapse of crypto exchange FTX, aiming to quell concerns over their own exchange’s financial soundness. However, Munter said the results of these audits isn’t necessarily an indicator that the company is in a good financial position. “Investors should not place too much confidence in the mere fact a company says it’s got a proof-of-reserves from an audit firm.” He further added ...