The crypto industry has seen a significant shift toward regulatory compliance since its early days, according to James Smith, co-founder of Elliptic, a crypto compliance firm established in 2013. “In the early days, only a few companies approached compliance in a serious way,” Smith told Cointelegraph at the Token2049 event. “Coinbase was our first customer…
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Governments outside the US, including Singapore, are increasingly interested in stablecoins not tied to the US dollar, despite their currently limited liquidity, Fireblocks director of policy Dea Markova told Cointelegraph at Token2049. In an exclusive interview, Markova described the competition with dollar-pegged stablecoins as “all about sovereignty.” She compared the situation to earlier tensions between…
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South Korea is expanding a ban on digital asset firms’ applications servicing its citizens. On April 11, the country’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced that 14 crypto exchanges were blocked on the Apple store. Among the affected exchanges are KuCoin and MEXC. The report, which was made public on April 14, says the banned exchanges…
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West Virginia’s Bitcoin (BTC) strategic reserve bill would give the state more sovereignty from the federal government and freedom from a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC), State Senator Chris Rose told Cointelegraph in an exclusive interview. “You hear these rumors that there are people at the federal government that will want to have a…
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The US dollar could lose its status as the world’s reserve currency to Bitcoin or other digital assets if the United States does not get its debt under control, according to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink. Fink wrote in his Annual Chairman’s Letter to Investors that “decentralized finance is an extraordinary innovation” that makes “markets faster,…
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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said in a March 28 letter that institutions under its oversight, including banks, can now engage in crypto-related activities without prior approval. The announcement comes as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced that digital asset derivatives wouldn’t be treated differently than any other derivatives. The FDIC letter rescinds…
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The US Justice Department (DOJ) seized more than $200,000 in cryptocurrency intended to benefit the militant group Hamas it said in a statement on March 27. The cryptocurrency with a total value of $201,400 was traced to fundraising addresses allegedly controlled by Hamas and used to launder more than $1.5 million in digital assets since…
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US Senator Ted Cruz introduced a bill on March 26 to prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The “Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act,” would prohibit the Fed from offering certain products or services directly to American individuals, a key component of any CBDC. The Texas Republican’s bill can be considered…
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The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, an independent agency of the federal government, is reportedly moving to stop using the “reputational risk” category as a way to supervise banks. According to a letter sent by the agency’s acting chairman, Travis Hill, to Rep. Dan Meuser on March 24, banking regulators should not use “reputational risk”…
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The Bhutan government moved $63 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) on March 24 to three wallets, according to Onchain Lens, which analyzed data from Arkham Intelligence. One of the wallets now holds 600 BTC worth approximately $53 million at time of writing. Bhutan has leveraged its abundant hydroelectric power to mine Bitcoin since 2019. In…
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