Regulation

SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw has highlighted the benefits of Decentralized Finance while warning of the dangers of failing to embrace a protective regulatory framework in a Nov. 9 opinion piece. The article, DeFi Risks, Regulations, and Opportunities, is the first in the inaugural issue of “The International Journal of Blockchain Law.” In it, Crenshaw outlines

As global leaders discuss what needs to be done to address the concerns surrounding climate change at the COP26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, businesses throughout the world are looking to achieve carbon neutrality. Environmental impact has been a hot topic in the crypto sector with renaming it as being a top priority. Earlier this year,

The United States Department of the Treasury has announced it will impose sanctions on the cryptocurrency exchange Chatex and its support network for allegedly facilitating transactions for ransomware actors. In an advisory update issued on Nov. 8, the Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, added Chatex as well as IZIBITS OU, Chatextech

Even though crypto has long attained relevance as an independent political issue, at times it gets entangled with the broader dynamics of the political process. The notorious infrastructure bill — a major pillar of the Biden administration’s economic agenda — suddenly passed in the U.S. House last Friday despite congressional Democrats’ original agreement to vote

The word “stablecoin” may have a pleasant ring to it — isn’t it nice to have something stable in the volatile cryptoverse? — but for critics, they are nothing short of a ticking time bomb. Whether that’s true or not, the push for regulating stablecoins is gaining momentum. The United States and the European Union

The Financial Services Commission (FSC) in South Korea reaffirmed in a public statement today that nonfungible tokens (NFT) are not virtual assets, and will not be regulated. The confirmation of the decision to keep NFTs unregulated came after a review of the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) updated guidelines. The October 28 guidance report from

European central banks ramp up their efforts to utilize distributed ledger technology (DLT), the foundation of blockchain, in central bank money settlements. Banca d’Italia and Deutsche Bundesbank, central banks of Italy and Germany, respectively, joined forces to work on settlements in central bank money of DLT-based asset exchanges. The official announcement stressed that the primary

Lawyers for major fast food chain Jack in the Box have filed a lawsuit against crypto exchange FTX US for copyright and trademark infringement of its “Jack” mascot. According to federal court documents filed in the Southern District of California on Nov. 3, Jack in the Box’s legal team is requesting a jury trial, claiming FTX

The stablecoin market has been growing exponentially — from only $21.5 billion in mid-October of last year to $130 billion at the start of November; a six-fold increase — so it was only reasonable to expect that the United States government would have to come to grips with these digital assets that are designed to

Legal experts have warned that a section of the Infrastructure Bill, which is due for a vote today, amends a part of the tax code and makes a failure by businesses and individuals to report digital asset transactions a criminal offense. University of Virginia School of Law lecturer Abraham Sutherland said it is a separate

According to Iran’s main blockchain organization, authorities have been remiss in their enforcement of cryptocurrency laws. The association is concerned about the government’s inactivity, offering its help to regulators that it feels are inadequately prepared to handle such a challenging task.  Abbas Ashtiani, head of the Iran Blockchain Association (IBA), said that Iranian regulators such

Congressmen Todd Emmer and Darren Soto sent a bipartisan letter to Securities & Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler on Wednesday, strongly questioning why the agency has denied approval for the creation of a Bitcoin spot ETF while allowing Bitcoin Futures ETFs to begin trading. In a spot ETF, the fund holds the actual commodity (in

On Nov. 1, the United States President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG) released its long-anticipated report and policy recommendations on stablecoins. The document’s main focus is on prudential risks that “payment stablecoins” — or those meant to maintain a stable value against a reference fiat currency — could pose to users and financial stability.

The Laos government’s pilot project to explore cryptocurrency mining and trading is expected to bring in roughly $194 million towards the country’s total domestic revenue projected for 2022. According to a Nov. 2 report from Malaysian news outlet The Star, the Laotian government’s recent bid to capitalize on China’s crypto mining crackdown may be netting

Nick Clegg, Vice‑President for Global Affairs and Communications at Meta Platforms, spoke at Lisbon’s Web Summit 2021 during a panel on Facebook and innovation in Europe. The world’s biggest tech conference has returned to a physical setting following a two-year, Covid-induced virtual hiatus. The event is showcasing an illustrious list of entrepreneurs, organizations and influencers

The rollout of the world’s second central bank digital currency, or CBDC, is off to a rocky start. Last week, Nigeria rolled out its eNaira CBDC after the Bahamas became the first country in the world to launch theirs, known as The Sand Dollar, the year prior. In a statement quoted by local news outlet

Digital assets have recently become more and more prevalent in our daily lives — in the news, popular culture and our personal interactions. In the first quarter of 2021, the number of global daily Bitcoin (BTC) transactions hit 367,536. Bitcoin alone now accounts for around $20 billion of daily online transactions. Not only this, but

Crypto and taxes may not be a match made in heaven, but taxes seem inevitable, and the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has made it clear it is going after people who don’t report. With IRS summonses to Coinbase, Kraken, Circle and Poloniex, plus other enforcement efforts, the IRS is on the hunt. The

Major cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has ended futures and other derivatives trading in mainland China today, as planned. Earlier this month, cryptocurrency exchange announced on its website that it will settle all futures, contracts, and other derivatives activities for all Chinese consumers today, as part of the larger plan to cease operations in the country. According

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty (R-VA), who was elected in 2020 to represent Tennessee after a stint as Ambassador to Japan, spoke to newly appointed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra regarding cryptocurrencies in a banking committee hearing, saying “I just want to make certain as you exercise those oversight responsibilities that we don’t stifle