Regulation

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 United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, or FCA, has issued a warning to Binance Markets in response to Binance’s payment company Bifinity and investment firm Eqonex entering a strategic partnership. In a Monday statement, the FCA reiterated that Binance Markets Limited was not allowed to conduct certain regulated crypto-related activities in the United Kingdom without

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

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

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

With the concerns of Janet Yellen and Hillary Clinton notwithstanding, there isn’t enough cryptocurrency in the world to bail out Russia from the economic hole which it now finds itself to be settling into. Even if there were a large enough supply, it probably wouldn’t enable the state to escape the scourge of a Western

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 United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, or FCA, has announced it has 50 active investigations as part of its efforts to crack down on unregistered crypto businesses. In a Thursday announcement, the FCA said it had opened more than 300 cases on unregistered crypto firms in the last six months “many of which may be

New York state’s efforts to enforce sanctions against Russia have ramped up a gear with the Department of Financial Services, or DFS, expediting the procurement of additional blockchain analytics technology. According to a statement released Wednesday, the department will use the technology to help detect exposure to Russian individuals and entities subject to federal sanctions,

Federal Reserve Chair Pro Tempore Jerome Powell and some members of the United States House of Representatives called for congressional action on crypto in response to discussions about Russia potentially evading sanctions. In a Wednesday hearing of the House Financial Services Committee on “Monetary Policy and the State of the Economy,” California Representative Juan Vargas

Experts on crypto policy argue that concerns expressed by high profile politicians about Russia evading economic sanctions using cryptocurrency are “totally unfounded.” They say the crypto market is not nearly large enough nor deep enough to support the volume that Russia needs and that the country’s digital asset infrastructure is minimal. Former U.S. Secretary of

Indicted by the United States Department of Justice in a $2.4 billion Ponzi scheme, BitConnect founder Satish Kumbhani remains untraced following conviction. In a court filing on Monday, the Securities and Exchange Commission said that the whereabouts of Kumbhani remains unknown. The SEC noted that Kumbhani’s last known location was in his native country India, but

A set of 30 crypto wallets from 12 exchange accounts that have been linked to the terrorist group Hamas based in the Gaza Strip were seized on Monday by Israeli authorities. Crypto exchange al-Mutahadun held the wallets where 12 accounts were allegedly being used by Hamas leaders to fund terrorist efforts against Israel. The Times

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement director has reportedly said cryptocurrency companies will not receive amnesty for reporting themselves for possible violations of securities laws. According to a Monday report from Reuters, the SEC director of the agency’s division of enforcement, Gurbir Grewal, said the agency may view crypto companies’ conduct “more favorably” if

South Korea’s Ministry of ICT, Science, and Future Planning pledged 223.7 billion KRW ($186.7 million) to create a broad Metaverse ecosystem to support the growth of digital content and corporate growth within the country. The Ministry wrote in an official statement on Feb. 27 that funds will be spent on completing four main objectives in

The parliament of the European Union is delaying a vote on a framework aimed at regulating cryptocurrencies amid concerns over proof-of-work mining. In a Friday Twitter thread, European Parliament economics committee member Stefan Berger said the government body had canceled a vote on the Markets in Crypto Assets, or MiCA, framework scheduled to take place

The founder of the infamous crypto exchange BitConnect, Satish Kumbhani, has been charged for allegedly misleading investors globally and defrauding them of $2.4 billion in the process. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), a San Diego-based federal grand jury specifically charged Kumbhani for orchestrating the alleged Ponzi scheme via BitConnect’s “Lending Program”: “BitConnect operated

Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), has called on lawmakers to approve a regulatory framework on crypto, hinting at potentially preventing Russia from getting around economic sanctions. Speaking to reporters at an informal meeting of economics and finance ministers on Friday, Lagarde said the European Central Bank would be “decisively and rigorously”

For a state with a small-town feel, Wyoming moves with big-city alacrity when it comes to things crypto. According to the bipartisan bill introduced into its legislature last week, a Wyoming stablecoin could debut before the end of 2022. The announcement caught even Wyoming banker and cryptocurrency champion Caitlin Long by surprise.  “Didn’t know it