1. Home
  2. United States

United States

SEC officials meet again with spot Bitcoin ETF filers

Meetings between asset managers and the SEC intensified over the previous weeks, with Gary Gensler’s team meeting with BlackRock and Hashdex representatives.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has held a new round of discussions with asset managers proposing a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the U.S., this time with officials from Gary Gensler’s office participating in the meetings.

Based on court filings, the regulator received representatives from BlackRock on Dec. 14 to discuss the proposed rule change that would enable the crypto investment vehicle to be traded on major exchanges. According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Jayme Seyffart, this is the third meeting between BlackRock and the SEC to review the application.

Meetings between asset managers and the SEC had intensified over the previous weeks. On Dec. 8, Grayscale and Franklin Templeton also sat down with regulators to go over their applications, a day after representatives of Fidelity appeared before the SEC.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

Binance, crypto firms optimistic about UAE amid potential US regulatory shift

Ghaf Capital managing partner Feras Al Sadek argued that the UAE’s “regulation by education” sets it apart from other jurisdictions.

Binance and other cryptocurrency firms based in the United Arab Emirates are optimistic that the country will remain a hotspot for virtual assets despite a potential shift to the United States should the Western superpower become a more crypto-friendly jurisdiction.

The “regulation by enforcement” regime in the U.S. has pushed global crypto firms to move to locations such as the UAE, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Singapore. However, the idea that companies could potentially return to the U.S. should there be a change in direction was floated during a panel discussion on Dec. 11 at the Global Blockchain Congress event in Dubai .

Highlighting the UAE’s approach toward technology and innovation, Alex Chehade, Binance’s general manager for the Middle East and North Africa, said the local government has built infrastructures around numerous initiatives that encompass not just AI but also Web3, sustainability and other verticals:

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

Coinbase introduces spot crypto trading for institutional investors outside US

Institutional clients on the Coinbase International Exchange will be able to trade Bitcoin and Ether against USD Coin starting on Dec. 14.

United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced that institutional investors on its international exchange can access spot crypto trading services.

In a Dec. 13 announcement, Coinbase said institutional clients based outside the U.S. will be able to trade Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) against USD Coin (USDC). The exchange said the services would launch on Dec. 14 and later expand to include retail investors, additional tokens and “features that enable new trading strategies and enhance capital efficiency.”

“We recognize the hesitancy among some asset issuers and members of the crypto community to engage with U.S. exchanges due to the evolving and uncertain regulatory landscape in the United States,” said Coinbase.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

IRS lists 4 crypto crimes among its top cases in 2023

The cases included investigations into the Silk Road marketplace, OneCoin, Oyster Protocol founder “Bruno Block,” and a money laundering scheme using Bitcoin kiosks.

The criminal investigation unit of the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has listed four crypto-related cases among the top ten of its “most prominent and high-profile investigations” in 2023.

In a Dec. 11 notice, the IRS unit said there were four significant cases in 2023 involving the seizure of cryptocurrency, fraudulent practices, money laundering and other schemes. Coming in at its third most high-profile investigation in the past year was OneCoin co-founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in September for his role in marketing and selling a fraudulent crypto asset.

Other cases included Ian Freeman, a New Hampshire resident sentenced to 8 years in prison for operating a money laundering scheme using Bitcoin (BTC) kiosks and failing to pay taxes from 2016 to 2019. The government body was also behind an investigation of Oyster Protocol founder Amir Elmaani, also known as “Bruno Block,” for tax evasion related to minting and selling Pearl tokens.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

Terra co-founder Do Kwon will stay in Montenegro until February: Report

The Terraform Labs co-founder had been awaiting extradition to either the U.S. or South Korea after a prison sentence in Montenegro for using falsified travel documents.

Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, expected to be extradited to the United States to face criminal charges, will reportedly stay in Montenegrin custody until February.

According to a Dec. 12 Bloomberg report, authorities with the U.S. and South Korea requested Montenegrin officials hold Kwon for an additional two months following the conclusion of his prison sentence. The Terraform Labs co-founder was arrested in Montenegro in March for using falsified travel documents and sentenced to four months behind bars.

Kwon, a South Korean national formerly based in Singapore, has been charged in the U.S. and South Korea for his alleged role in the collapse of Terra. The Wall Street Journal reported on Dec. 7 that the U.S. would be taking custody of Kwon before South Korea. Both countries have extradition requests pending at the time of publication.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

Democratic presidential candidate blasts Biden and Trump on crypto: ‘Not the right people to lead’

Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips was the sole Democratic presidential candidate to address the Crypto Presidential Forum after Republicans Vivek Ramaswamy and Asa Hutchinson.

Dean Phillips, a member of the United States House of Representatives running against Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination in the 2024 Presidential Election, said there are currently “very few” people in Congress who understand digital assets.

Speaking at the Crypto Presidential Forum in New Hampshire on Dec. 11, Rep. Phillips said he didn’t “know it all” about financial technology and cryptocurrency but criticized U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump for their positions. The U.S. lawmaker was the third presidential candidate to address the New Hampshire crowd after Republicans Vivek Ramaswamy and Asa Hutchinson.

“The two leading candidates right now, on both the left and the right, for the U.S. Presidency, are absolutely not in positions to understand it, prepare us for it, anticipate it, and lead us into the next century,” said Rep. Phillips, referring to crypto. “Joe Biden and Donald Trump, at their age and stage of life, are simply not the right people to lead us forward.”

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

More US senators back Elizabeth Warren’s AML bill targeting crypto

The legislation, reintroduced in July, already has the support of several U.S. lawmakers, but critics have suggested it could threaten financial freedom and privacy.

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, an outspoken critic of digital assets in the United States government, has announced that five more senators have agreed to cosponsor one of her bills aimed at cracking down on money laundering.

In a Dec. 11 announcement, Sen. Warren said Senators Raphael Warnock, Laphonza Butler, Chris Van Hollen, John Hickenlooper and Ben Ray Luján had backed her Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, reintroduced in July. According to Warren, the legislation specifically targeted illicit uses of crypto assets for money laundering and financing terrorism.

“I’m glad that five new senators are joining the fight to take action, including three members of the Banking Committee,” said Sen. Warren. “Our bipartisan bill is the toughest proposal on the table cracking down on crypto’s illicit use and giving regulators more tools in their toolbox.”

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

CZ must stay, Do Kwon to be extradited: Law Decoded

A Seattle district court ruled out CZ’s departure to the UAE, and the Montenegrin justice minister plans to grant the United States request for Do Kwon’s extradition.

Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has been ordered to stay in the United States until his sentencing in February 2024, with a federal judge determining there’s too much of a flight risk if the former exchange CEO is allowed to return to the United Arab Emirates. Seattle district court Judge Richard Jones wrote in his order:

“The defendant has enormous wealth and property abroad, and no ties to the United States [...] His family resides in the UAE and it appears that he has favored status in the UAE. Under these circumstances, the Court finds that the defendant has not established by clear and convincing evidence that he is not likely to flee if he returns to the UAE.”

Jones accepted Zhao’s guilty plea to one count of Bank Secrecy Act violations, which the Binance founder submitted over two weeks ago on Nov. 21 alongside a $4.3 billion settlement with U.S. agencies. Now, the ex-CEO of Binance faces up to 18 months in prison.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

DOJ unveils extensive monitorship over Binance operations

Binance’s new compliance obligations include cooperation to grant U.S. authorities access to all documents, records and resources upon request.

Binance compliance commitments with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) were unsealed on Dec. 8, revealing a significant government oversight of the crypto exchange operation and business activities.

In an analysis shared on X (formerly Twitter), John Reed Stark, a former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) official, classified the “exhaustive list” of Binance’s new compliance commitments as a “consulting firm’s wish list” that will likely shut down the platform.

Binance’s new obligations are described in an 11-page document and include cooperation to grant authorities access to documents, records and resources at their request, including access to information related to its “former employees, agents, intermediaries, consultants, representatives, distributors, licenses, contractors, suppliers, and joint venture partners," noted Stark.

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit

Tether announces wallet-freezing policy for OFAC-sanctioned persons

Tether is expanding control sanctions to the secondary market in an effort to cooperate with regulators in the United States.

Stablecoin issuer Tether has announced another step toward cooperation with law enforcement and regulatory agencies by initiating a voluntary wallet-freezing policy, according to a blog post on Dec. 9. 

Since Dec. 1, Tether has been offering on the secondary market controls to freeze activity connected with Sanctioned persons on the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) List. Companies and individuals controlled or owned by sanctioned countries are included on the list.

According to Tether, the policy will supplement existing security protocols and is a “proactive effort to work even more closely with global regulators and law enforcement agencies.”

Read more

Bitcoin price slips to $93K as liquidations soar and long-term BTC holders take profit