Why Binance’s US plea deal could be positive for crypto adoption
Many predicted that Binance would never embrace regulation — it would only pretend to comply in jurisdictions like the United States. No more. Binance pleading guilty to money laundering and other federal charges on Nov. 21 means it’s giving up its free-booting ways ...
Blockchain Association files support in suit to lift Tornado Cash sanctions
The Blockchain Association has thrown fresh support behind six plaintiffs suing the United States Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) over its sanctions on the crypto mixer Tornado Cash.In a Nov. 20 amicus curiae brief to a U.S. appellate court, the crypto advocacy group argue ...
China AI chip market finds expansion paths despite US export restrictions
The Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) chip market has been subject to ongoing export restrictions which imposed by the United States from October 2022, which prohibited the sale of certain U.S. products to China. The U.S. initially blocked the export of the highest level of chips p ...
Maine state treasurer to focus on handling abandoned cryptocurrency accounts
A report issued by the Office of the Maine State Treasurer highlighted the U.S. state’s interest in officially managing the abandoned and recovered crypto assets.The program evaluation report of Maine uncovered the state’s lack of preparedness when it comes to handling cryptocurrencies. It ...
Can blockchain solutions disrupt US inflation forecasting?
So much of the world’s economic steam depends on interest rates, which in turn are tied to inflation, i.e., the rate at which producer and consumer prices are rising. But measuring inflation isn’t easy. It is as much art as it is science. The world’s number one inflation index, ...
Expect new IRS crypto surveillance to come with a surge in confiscation
As the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) pushes forward with its proposal to increase cryptocurrency surveillance, a past report might offer a clue for how this information may be used in practice. In short, with the IRS set to keep tabs on Americans’ cryptocurrency usage through an expected 8 billi ...
Biden AI executive order ‘certainly challenging’ for open-source AI — industry insiders
Last week the administration of United States President Joe Biden issued a lengthy executive order intended to protect citizens, government agencies and companies through ensuring AI safety standards. The order established six new standards for AI safety and security, along with ...
UK AI Safety Summit: Musk likens AI to ‘magic genie,’ says no jobs needed in future
The United Kingdom’s global summit on artificial intelligence safety, the AI Safety Summit, concluded on Nov. 2 with a one-on-one chat between U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and billionaire Elon Musk. Musk was one of the many big names to attend the summit, including heads of O ...
NIST establishes AI Safety Institute Consortium in response to Biden executive order
The United States National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Department of Commerce are soliciting members for the newly-established Artificial Intelligence (AI) Safety Institute Consortium. Participate in a new ...
UK AI Safety Summit begins with global leaders in attendance, remarks from China and Musk
The United Kingdom’s global summit on artificial intelligence (AI) safety, “AI Safety Summit” began on Nov. 1 and will carry on through Nov. 2 with government officials and leading AI companies from the world in attendance, including from the United States and China. U.K. Prime Minist ...
CFTC pays whistleblowers $16M this year for mostly crypto tips
The United States commodities regulator has paid $16 million this year to whistleblowers who gave information leading to successful enforcement actions with a majority of the tips involving crypto.In an Oct. 31 statement, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) commissioner Christy Gol ...
‘Sodl’ too soon: US gov’t missed Bitcoin gains now total $6B
Bitcoin (BTC) worth over $7.2 billion is still controlled by the United States government — but its losses are mounting.Data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode shows that Washington’s seized bitcoins total 210,429 BTC as of Oct. 31.195,000 BTC sold, $6.3 billion downThe U.S. Dep ...
Biden administration releases executive order for new AI safety standards
The administration of United States President Joe Biden released an executive order on Oct. 30 establishing new standards for artificial intelligence (AI) safety and security. Biden’s address said it is building off previous actions taken, including AI safety commitments from 15 leadi ...
Terrorist fundraising: Is crypto really to blame?
The ghastly events of this past month raise again some troubling questions: Does crypto have a terrorist fundraising problem? Are its networks really being exploited by terrorists to wreak global havoc? If so, what must it do better?On the other hand, maybe the problem is one of perception ...
Wall Street Journal corrects article misciting Hamas’ crypto terrorism funding data
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has partially corrected an article which mischaracterized the extent to which Hamas and other militant groups have been funding its terrorism activities with cryptocurrencies.The Oct. 10 article — titled “Hamas Militants Behind Israel Attack Raised ...
Crypto-friendly Rep. Tom Emmer pursues nomination for House speaker
Crypto-friendly Republican Congressman Tom Emmer is pursuing a nomination to become House speaker, with the 62-year-old receiving endorsement from multiple lawmakers. Congressman Patrick McHenry continues to oversee the position on an interim basis, following a first round of voting on Oct ...
US expands export controls for AI semiconductor chips to China
The United States Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released a notice on Oct. 17 expanding the already existing export controls of artificial intelligence (AI) chips to China. The BIS wrote that the newly released rules “reinforce” those put in place back ...
10 years later, still no Bitcoin ETF — but who cares?
The first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) application, filed in July 2013, was denied in both 2017 and 2018. A decade has passed since that initial application, and the Securities and Exchange Commission has rejected more than a dozen additional applications and repeatedly punted the date ...
AI usage on social media has potential to impact voter sentiment
Artificial intelligence (AI) usage in social media has been targeted as a potential threat to impact or sway voter sentiment in the upcoming 2024 presidential elections in the United States. Major tech companies and U.S. governmental entities have been actively monitoring the situatio ...
SBF releases memorandum asking court to block prosecutor filings
Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has filed a memorandum on Sep. 1 asking the court to deny the prosecutor’s in limine requests. The memorandum, penned by SBF’s lawyer Mark Cohen, calls the requests filed by the United States Departm ...
US regulators deny blocking AI chip exports to Middle East
The United States Department of Commerce said on Aug. 31 that the Biden administration has “not blocked chip sales to the Middle East,” according to a report from Reuters. This comes after disclosures were revealed in a Nvidia report that the U.S. government had expanded requirements ...
US officials extend export curbs on Nvidia AI chip to ‘some Middle Eastern countries’
Regulators in the United States have asked Nvidia to curb exports of artificial intelligence (AI) chips to “some Middle East countries,” according to its latest quarterly report. The report was released on Aug. 28, in which the company said the new regulations affect its A100 and H100 ...
US Copyright Office issues notice of inquiry on artificial intelligence
The United States Copyright Office issued an official request for comments and notice of inquiry on copyright and artificial intelligence (AI) in the Federal Register on Aug. 30. The Copyright Office issued a notice of inquiry in t ...
DOJ calls SBF’s fraud allegation defense ‘irrelevant,’ requests additional info
The lawyers representing the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a new court document late on Aug. 29 arguing that Sam Bankman-Fried should provide additional disclosures to his planned defense. The document called the current proposed argument, which claims his lawyers ap ...
DoJ wants to bar SBF’s expert witnesses from testifying in court
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion on Aug. 28 to have all seven of the expert witnesses for Sam Bankman Fried banned from testifying in court. In the motion, the DOJ claims SBF’s proposed experts and their accompanying disclosures “suffer from an array of def ...
Grayscale Bitcoin ETF decision could happen this week, pundits say
Grayscale Investments, which has been seeking to convert its Bitcoin (BTC) trust into a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, could be getting a decision on its lawsuit against the federal securities regulator before the week’s end.In an Aug. 11 tweet, Scott Johnsson, a general partner ...
Senator Lummis files Amicus Brief supporting Coinbase’s dismissal motion against SEC
Crypto-friendly Senator Cynthia Lummis has filed an Amicus Brief supporting Coinbase’s motion to dismiss the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's lawsuit against the firm. An Amicus Brief is a document filed in court by a party that is not directly involved with the related case ...
US gov’t debt downgraded — Huge news for Bitcoin?
On this week’s episode of Macro Markets, Cointelegraph analyst and writer Marcel Pechman explores the United States debt downgrade by Fitch Ratings. According to Pechman, this change signaled diminished confidence in the U.S. government’s ability to handle its fiscal responsibilities.The d ...
PayPal USD: Boon for Ethereum but not decentralization, says community
PayPal’s new Ethereum-based stablecoin, PYUSD, has been seen as bittersweet news for the crypto community. While it could finally see Ethereum find its place in mainstream adoption, it could also spell trouble for decentralization and personal control of assets, warns the community. ...
US Senate approves national defense bill that also targets crypto mixers
The United States Senate passed the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) worth $886 billion on July 27. The bill includes a provision targeting crypto mixers, anonymity-enhancing coins and institutions engaging in crypto trading.The NDAA is a bill that helps authorize how the cou ...
SEC adopts cyberattack disclosure rules, listed crypto firms included
Public companies in the United States, including listed crypto firms, will be required to disclose any major cybersecurity incidents within a four-day time limit, under new rules adopted by the United States securities regulator.The rules from the United States Securities and Exc ...
What criminal charges for Celsius ex-CEO mean for crypto industry
Celsius was one of the top lenders in the crypto ecosystem during the bull market in 2021. At its peak, it served 1.7 million customers and managed $25 billion in assets.All that came crashing down in June 2022 amid major flaws in the company’s working structure.The bear marke ...
US law protects institutions and exposes retail investors — Rep. Torres
On July 13, 2023, United States District Court Judge Analisa Torres ruled that Ripple’s XRP (XRP) token should not be considered a security when sold on retail digital asset exchanges.Stuart Alderoty, chief legal officer at Ripple, told Cointelegraph that last week’s ruling mak ...
SEC’s Gary Gensler believes AI can strengthen its enforcement regime
Gary Gensler, the chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, believes staff at its agency could benefit from greater use of artificial intelligence.During a July 17 speech before the National Press Club, where he later broke his silence about the recent Ripple cour ...
Ripple case: SEC appeal unlikely as agency gains from ‘current confusion’ — Haun Ventures CEO
A former federal prosecutor turned chief executive of a crypto-focused venture capital fund says she would be “surprised” if the United States securities regulator lodges an immediate appeal against the Ripple case ruling, as it currently benefits from lack of “legal clarity.&rd ...
BarnBridge DAO calls halt to ‘all work’ on DeFi protocol amid SEC probe
BarnBridge DAO members have been told to pause “all work” related to the project after a reported probe by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).In a July 6 post to the platform’s Discord channel, Douglas Park, a lawyer for the decentralized autonomou ...
The Supreme Court could stop the SEC’s war on crypto
When the leaders of the American Revolution signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, they had no guarantee of victory. The battle for independence was underway, and their prospects were uncertain. Despite occasional victories, these audacious freedom fighters were grossly outnumber ...
Hester Peirce: US crypto laws can’t assume ‘everything is a financial asset’
Cryptocurrency laws in the United States should be “reserved” and not regulate the technology as though every use is financial, a commissioner at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has argued.On June 29, Commissioner Hester Peirce — dubbed “Crypto Mom&rdquo ...
Gary Gensler is hurting the little guys for Wall Street
Even the most stalwart crypto supporters could see why the Securities and Exchange Commission might target the crypto industry for some enforcement. Events of the past year — from the failure of Three Arrows Capital to the fraud at FTX — were bound to bring some scrutiny, and the indust ...
US Treasury yields are rising — What does it mean for Bitcoin price?
United States Government bonds, or Treasurys, have a tremendous influence across all tradeable markets, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). In that sense, risk calculation in finance is relative, so every loan, mortgage and even cryptocurrency derivatives depend on the cost of capital attrib ...
Coinbase blasts SEC for ‘no straight answers’ following court order
Coinbase has slammed the United States securities regulator for failing to answer questions asked in the U.S. Court of Appeals as part of its ongoing legal battle with the regulator.In a June 17 letter filed in the Court, lawyers for the crypto exchange accosted the Securities Exchange Com ...
Pro-Bitcoin Miami Mayor Francis Suarez files for 2024 presidential bid
Francis Suarez, the mayor of Miami and a known crypto advocate, has filed paperwork signaling his intention to run for United States presidency in 2024.He will join the likes of former U.S. President Donald Trump and fellow Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — another Bitcoin (BTC) advoca ...
5 key highlights of the SEC’s lawsuit against Binance
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Binance on June 5, alleging that the exchange was involved in the sale of unregistered securities. In its 136-page complaint, the SEC accuses Binance and its founder, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, of participating in a c ...
Fear of blockchain will have ‘disastrous consequences’ — Ava Labs CEO testimony
Ava Labs CEO Emin Gün Sirer will be calling on United States officials to “nurture” and “support” responsible blockchain innovation, warning that they face “disastrous consequences” if they don't.Gün Sirer’s comments in defense of what he ...
eToro halts ALGO, MANA, MATIC and DASH purchases for US customers
Retail trading platform eToro has halted purchases of Algorand (ALGO), Decentraland (MANA), Polygon (MATIC), and Dash (DASH) for customers in the United States in response to the tokens being labeled as securities in recent SEC lawsuits.The move comes just a few days after competitor ...
Is Ron DeSantis good for crypto? Republican makes Bitcoin part of campaign
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis officially entered the United States presidential race on May 24. During a Twitter broadcast hosted by venture capitalist David Sacks, DeSantis pledged to lead a “Great American Comeback,” provoking accusations of plagiarism from ex-President ...
Meet the judges that will preside over Coinbase and Binance’s SEC lawsuits
Court filings have revealed the names of the two United States District Court Judges that will preside over the Coinbase and Binance lawsuits brought against them by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.The case of SEC v Coinbase will be heard by District Court Judge Jennifer H. Rea ...
Coinbase, Robinhood, CFTC to testify in Congress over draft crypto bill
Coinbase, Robinhood, and representatives from the United States commodities regulator are set to testify before Congress on June 6 to discuss a newly proposed crypto bill. The trio will be sharing their firm's, or agency’s views on a proposed bill that could see certain crypto t ...
US Government Reaches Tentative Agreement on Debt Deal, Reassuring Markets
The final bill will be introduced in Congress on May 31 Unconfirmed reports say Republicans have received assurances from the White House to cut spending So budget allocations for everything except defense will remain the same over the next two years ...
Binance’s Takeover of Voyager Digital Gets US Government Approval
As per Voyager's recent announcement, an agreement has been reached between the Unsecured Creditors Committee, the US government, and Binance, which will allow the US division of Binance to proceed with its acquisition of Voyager. The Voyager Digital Unsecured Creditors Committee has informed its ...
Donald Trump’s NFTs Could Have Earned Him $1 Million, Says Ethics Office
According to a recent report from the U.S. Government Ethics Office (CREW), Donald Trump's collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) could have earned him up to $1 million. The Trump Collection was launched on December 15, 2022, with a total of 45,000 copies available at a cost of $99 per piece. ...
Six Americans File Lawsuit Against US Government Sanctions on Tornado Cash Service
A group of six American citizens, supported by lawyers from Coinbase exchange, have initiated a legal action alleging that the American government's imposition of sanctions on Tornado Cash service breaches the US Constitution. The lawsuit argues that the very nature of the cryptocurrency mixing s ...
Voyager at Risk of Losing $100 Million Due to Legal Objections by US Government
According to court documents, Voyager and its creditors may be at risk of losing $100 million if the legal objections raised by the US government are not resolved by April 13. In a lawsuit, Voyager's creditors state that there is clear evidence that they will suffer significant losses if a $1 bil ...
Galaxy Digital CEO Michael Novogratz Claims US Government is Hostile to Cryptocurrencies
Galaxy Digital CEO, Michael Novogratz, has expressed his belief that the US government has taken a hostile stance towards the cryptocurrency industry. In an interview with Bloomberg, Novogratz stated that the Biden administration and the US Democratic Party don't like cryptocurrencies, largely du ...
US Government to Sell Confiscated Silk Road Bitcoin Amid Global Banking Crisis
The United States government has announced its plan to auction off more than 51,000 BTC, which were seized during the Silk Road case, in the midst of a global banking crisis. On March 14th, court documents revealed that the US government had already sold 9,861 BTC, valued at over $215 million. Th ...
Coinbase Urges US Government to Clarify Cryptocurrency Regulations to Retain Web3 Innovators
Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has urged the US government to establish clear regulations for the cryptocurrency industry to retain highly skilled Web3 developers in the country. According to a report by Electric Capital, the US share in the development of Web3 has declined from 40% ...
Judge Rejects US Government Proposal to Delay $1B Deal Between Voyager and Binance.US
In the Southern District of New York, a $1 billion deal between Voyager and Binance.US has been the subject of much legal debate. The US government had originally proposed a hold on the deal, citing concerns that the agreement would indemnify Voyager and its employees from potential tax or securi ...