Crypto News

“Congress Set to Bolster SEC Oversight and Stablecoin Regulations: What You Need to Know”

Published

8 months ago

April 16, 2023

SEC Chair Gary Gensler will be the star witness before the full U.S. House Committee on Financial Services on Tuesday to discuss “Oversight of the Securities and Exchange Commission.” The next day, the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion will take up draft legislation relating to stablecoins. Gensler has found himself under fire from within his own agency with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce filing a robust dissent against Gensler’s latest policy move which changes the statutory definition of a securities exchange to include cryptocurrency and digital asset exchanges. The dispute over the definition of an exchange is only one of the items on the Financial Services Committee agenda, which will also look into a SEC declaration from last March calling on digital asset custodians to change the way they report liabilities and assets. There will also be a review of a SEC proposal from February that called for registered investment advisors to include Bitcoin holdings among other assets held by “qualified custodians.” The Wednesday hearing agenda includes reviewing 72 pages of draft legislation “to provide requirements for payment stablecoin issuers, research on a digital dollar, and for other purposes.” Testimonies will be given by Dante Disparte, Chief Strategy Officer and global policy head at Circle, Jake Chervinsky, Chief Policy Officer at the Blockchain Association, Columbia Business School adjunct assistant professor Austin Campbell, and Adrienne A. Harris, sSuperintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services. Jeremy Allaire, Co-founder & CEO of Circle, has called the bill “a product of bi-partisan efforts” and “the first comprehensive proposed law for Payment stablecoins.” This hearing is important because it will review the regulatory developments and rulemakings that the SEC has undertaken, as well as the draft legislation which could potentially affect the SEC’s authority over digital asset trading platforms. The draft bill includes extensive definitions, establishes requirements at the federal and state level to issue stablecoins, and sets up standards for interoperability, reporting, and enforcement. It is clear that this bill still needs more work, and now is the time for US political leaders to really dig in and get this right, as the role of the dollar in the world is at stake. #SEC #DigitalAssets #FinancialServices #Stablecoins

You can read more about this topic here: Decrypt: U.S. Congress to Tackle SEC Oversight, Stablecoin Legislation

The post “Congress Set to Bolster SEC Oversight and Stablecoin Regulations: What You Need to Know” first appeared on Byte Syze Crypto.

Crypto News

Bitcoin Rockets to Record High of $41,000 – $166 Million in Shorts Liquidated

Published

2 hours ago

December 4, 2023

Bitcoin’s upward trajectory continued on Monday, with the cryptocurrency surging past $41,700 hours after hitting $40,000 on Sunday afternoon. Per data from CoinGecko, the price of Bitcoin currently stands at just over $41,600, up 5.6% on the day and over 11% on the week. Just one year ago, Bitcoin’s price stood at just under $17,000, with the cryptocurrency surging by over 144% in the past year. Bitcoin’s rally has seen its price reach levels not seen since April 2022, helping to boost the market cap of all cryptocurrencies to $1.61 trillion, up 3.6% in the past 24 hours. According to data from CoinGlass, Bitcoin’s price surge has seen over $166 million in short derivatives positions liquidated in the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin’s price movement over the weekend appears to be linked to renewed enthusiasm over the possible approval of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In recent weeks, the regulator has met with applicants including Grayscale and BlackRock to discuss amendments to their applications, while analysts have zeroed in on three key dates in January when a window would open for the SEC to approve multiple applications simultaneously. Bloomberg Intelligence analysts have put the odds of the SEC approving a Bitcoin ETF in January at 90%, prompting renewed optimism among everyone from Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong to JP Morgan analysts. Of course, the SEC could yet deny any or all of the pending applications; to date it has rejected every single spot Bitcoin ETF application to cross its desk.

This article outlines the recent surge in Bitcoin’s price and the possible approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF by the US SEC. Analysts have put the odds of the SEC approving a Bitcoin ETF in January at 90%, and the news has generated renewed optimism among many. However, the SEC could yet deny any or all of the pending applications, as it has done in the past. #Bitcoin #ETF #Cryptocurrency #SEC #Investment

You can read more about this topic here: Decrypt: Bitcoin Blasts Past $41,000 as $166 Million in Shorts Liquidated

The post Bitcoin Rockets to Record High of $41,000 – $166 Million in Shorts Liquidated first appeared on Byte Syze Crypto.

Crypto News

French Court Rules Platypus Hackers Not Guilty of $8.5M Heist

Published

7 hours ago

December 4, 2023

A French court cleared two brothers of criminal charges stemming from February’s $8.5 million Platypus Finance hack. Mohammed M., 22, orchestrated the complex flash loan attack and exploited a smart contract vulnerability to drain funds from the Avalanche-based automated market maker (AMM) project. However, the court ruled Mohammed’s unauthorized yet publicly accessible use of smart contracts did not constitute illegal computer system intrusion under criminal statutes. Furthermore, utilizing Platypus’s flawed emergency withdrawal mechanism to siphon tokens failed to pass legal tests for fraud in the judges’ view. The prosecution’s failure serves as a showcase for DeFi criminal enforcement’s emerging jurisdiction. Although defrauded protocols can still file a lawsuit for damages in a civil court, given the novelty and worldwide reach of decentralized networks, more clarification is needed under criminal regulations. This is good news for those involved, as they were able to avoid criminal charges. However, it highlights the difficulties enforcement agencies face in regulating decentralized networks. #CryptoCrime #DeFi #DecentralizedNetworks #SmartContracts

You can read more about this topic here: Watcher Guru: French Court Acquits Platypus Hackers of $8.5M Heist

The post French Court Rules Platypus Hackers Not Guilty of $8.5M Heist first appeared on Byte Syze Crypto.

Crypto News

ing the Implications Cryptocurrency Giant Bitcoin Reaches Record High of $40,000 – What Does it Mean?

Published

13 hours ago

December 3, 2023

Bitcoin’s recent rebound continued over the weekend, with the cryptocurrency passing the $40,000 mark on Sunday afternoon. It is the first time since April 2022 that Bitcoin has seen such a high price, representing a 15% climb over the past 30 days and more than doubling since this time last year. The increasing price reflects optimism surrounding the potential approval of a Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Ethereum is also trading above $2,200 today for the first time since May 2022, and various NFT projects have seen rising prices this weekend. This is good news for cryptocurrency investors, as the market is showing continued signs of growth. #Bitcoin #Ethereum #Cryptocurrency #NFTs

You can read more about this topic here: Decrypt: Bitcoin Hits $40,000 for First Time Since April 2022

The post ing the Implications

Cryptocurrency Giant Bitcoin Reaches Record High of $40,000 – What Does it Mean? first appeared on Byte Syze Crypto.