Regulation

A Greenland Holdings subsidiary is applying for a virtual asset trading license in Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post reported. It is the first state-owned Chinese company to do so.  Greenland Financial Technology Group CEO James Geng Jing told the Hong Kong newspaper that a new company dedicated to virtual asset trading would be

On May 15, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate of the People’s Republic of China, the national agency responsible for legal prosecution, shared its thoughts on the non-fungible token (NFT) market. In an article published, three authors laid out the prosecutors’ vision of the market risks and the following reasons to enforce it more actively. The article

The 2022 crypto bank runs — caused by the failure of multiple ecosystem giants — have had a lasting impact on the crypto industry. A new research report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (FRBC) has identified several key factors and catalysts that accelerated last year’s crypto crisis. The report identified that withdrawals by crypto whales

The United States Democratic Party has expressed its intent to back the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) total authority over crypto in a memo circulated among committee members before a hearing. The documents were shared on social media, causing backlash from crypto community members.  On May 10, the documents were shared on Twitter, highlighting key

Japan is the biggest loser of cryptocurrency to North Korean hackers, according to a study by blockchain analyst Elliptic. Asian countries make up three of the four top targets for the so-called Hermit Kingdom’s hackers, Elliptic found. The study, commissioned and reported on by Japanese financial publication Nikkei, looked at losses of cryptocurrency from cyberattacks

Major cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) could become a top three asset in the event of a theoretical debt default in the United States, according to a new survey. As U.S. President Joe Biden prepares to meet with Congress on May 16 to discuss the U.S. debt ceiling, investors are seeking hedges to protect their savings in

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill restricting the use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in the state, according to local news sources. The governor urged state lawmakers in March to draft the bill.  The new law prohibits the use of a United States federal CBDC “as money within Florida’s Uniform Commercial Code (UCC).”

Crypto mining firm Riot Platforms – formerly Riot Blockchain – is seeking to recover “more than $26 million” in alleged unpaid fees from Texas-based Bitcoin (BTC) miner, Rhodian Enterprises, according to its Q1 2023 report. Published on May 10, Riot’s Q1 2023 financial report stated that Whinstone, a wholly owned subsidiary of Riot, filed a petition on

Top Stories This Week Coinbase calls Pepe a ‘hate symbol,’ prompting calls to boycott the exchange An email sent out to Coinbase customers describing the Pepe the Frog meme as a “hate symbol” co-opted by alt-right groups has drawn significant ire from the PEPE memecoin community this week. Two hours after the email was sent,

Following some of its leadership team visiting the United Arab Emirates, crypto exchange Coinbase has announced the formation of an advisory council staffed with many former United States lawmakers and industry leaders In a May 12 blog post, Coinbase said its Global Advisory Council would aim to navigate the “increasingly complex and evolving” crypto landscape

Binance will withdraw from the Canadian market, the cryptocurrency exchange announced on Twitter on May 12. It called its withdrawal “proactive” as new guidance issued by Canadian regulators continues to take a toll on the country’s crypto industry. Binance is joining some of its smaller competitors in the Canadian exodus brought on by the introduction

Two United States Senators from opposite sides of the political aisle have reintroduced legislation from 2022 aimed at mitigating perceived risks posed by El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin as a legal currency. Congressional records showed Idaho Senator James Risch and New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez introduced “a bill to require reports on the adoption of

United States state legislators in Texas have voted to amend the state’s Bill of Rights and add a provision recognizing the right of individuals to possess, retain and utilize digital currencies. The decision was made on Wednesday, May 10. Bill HJR 146, introduced by State Representative Giovani Capriglione, declares that individuals have the right to

Countries around the world are beginning to grapple with the pervasiveness of artificial intelligence (AI). While some look to the emerging technology with concern, others, like Romania, are embracing it.  According to a report from the Financial Times, officials in Romania have introduced an AI-powered robot named Ion with the goal of enhancing the government’s

Montenegro has granted approval to the bail terms proposed by the lawyers of Terra Luna founder Do Kwon, who was charged with the criminal offense of document forgery under Montenegrin law. According to the official document released by local authorities on May 12, the court has accepted the proposed bail offer for Kwon and Han

FTX founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is seeking to have up to 10 criminal charges against him dismissed in court, arguing for several counts that there has been a failure to state an offense.  According to court documents filed in the southern district court of New York on May 8, SBF’s legal team

Coinbase legal chief has requested that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) make several revisions to its proposed regulation on the responsibilities of registered investment advisers (RIAs) to store client assets with qualified custodians. Although the U.S. SEC acknowledges Coinbase Custody as a “qualified custodian,” Coinbase contends that the updated RIA custody rule unfairly

Almost 400 Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPS) have voluntarily shut down or had their authorizations revoked in Estonia following the government’s recently enhanced Terrorist Financing Prevention and anti-money laundering laws (AML) that came into effect in March. The amended laws expanded the defined scope of VASPs, required firms to have legitimate links to Estonia, increased licensing

Last week brought several significant international developments in regulation. Argentina’s central bank banned payment providers from offering crypto transactions, adding that it intends to reduce the country’s payment-system exposure to digital assets. While local payment providers refuse to comment on the decision, Argentina’s fintech chamber urged the government to reconsider, claiming that “it limits access

The race to develop artificial intelligence (AI) continues as China pushes forward the development of home-grown AI without utilizing the latest technology from the United States due to current sanctions.  According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Chinese companies are studying methods to develop AI via weaker semiconductors and combinations of chips to