Month: January 2023

CZ predicts ‘existential implications’ for anti-crypto traditional finance

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As traditional institutions proactively reduce exposure to cryptocurrencies as a reaction to ecosystem collapses in 2022, Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao believes this move could potentially have a negative impact on such traditional financial players. The collapse of major crypto platforms, such as FTX and Terraform Labs, not only reduced trust among investors but also forced the traditional market to reevaluate their strategies for stepping into the crypto ecosystem. While the reluctance of traditional players stands as a deterrent to crypto’s adoption in the short term, CZ argues that the…

Matrixport Joins Growing List of Crypto and Blockchain Companies Letting Employees Go – Bitcoin News

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The crypto firm Matrixport, led by former Bitmain CEO Jihan Wu, is laying off 10% of the company’s staff, according to reports published on Friday. Matrixport’s COO, Cynthia Wu, cited a “shift in the regulatory climate” and “industry-wide capitulations” as reasons for the layoffs. Matrixport Lays Off 10% of Staff as Crypto Winter Continues Jihan Wu’s Matrixport is letting go of 10% of the firm’s employees, according to multiple reports on Jan. 27, 2023. Bloomberg details that unnamed sources say the company’s head of business development and investor relations has…

White House cryptocurrency ‘roadmap’ recommends against pension funds

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The White House released a statement on Jan. 27 that provided the United States President Joe Biden administration a roadmap for mitigating risks associated with cryptocurrencies. Much of the document was addressed to the U.S. Congress with the administration’s legislative guidance. The authors of the statement outlined a two-pronged path forward. They wrote: “We have spent the past year identifying the risks of cryptocurrencies and acting to mitigate them using the authorities that the Executive Branch has.” The first element in the road map is the administration’s “first-ever” comprehensive framework…

US prosecutors seek to ban SBF from Signal after alleged witness contact

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Federal prosecutors have requested that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) bail conditions are modified to prevent further alleged attempts at influencing witnesses’ testimonies.  Court documents filed on Jan. 27 revealed that The Department of Justice (DOJ) have asked U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan to ban Bankman-Fried from communicating with “current or former employees” of FTX or Alameda. The prosecutors have requested this after they alleged that Bankman-Fried had reached out to Ryne Miller, the current General Counsel of FTX US, over Signal and email on Jan. 15 attempting…

US Lawmaker Outlines Priorities to Regulate Crypto and Make America the Place for Blockchain Innovation – Regulation Bitcoin News

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The chairman of a newly formed digital assets committee, U.S. Congressman French Hill, has outlined some priorities to regulate the crypto sector and ensure America is the place for fintech and blockchain innovation. “We want a regulatory framework that’s transparent for developers, investors, and potential consumers,” the lawmaker emphasized. US Lawmaker Shares Priorities on Crypto Regulation U.S. Congressman French Hill (R-AR), who was recently appointed chairman of the newly formed subcommittee on “Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion,” discussed several crypto-related priorities for his subcommittee in an interview with CNBC…

Silvergate suspends dividends to preserve ‘highly liquid balance sheet’

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California-based crypto bank Silvergate has suspended dividend payouts to preserve its “highly liquid balance sheet.” In a Jan. 27 announcement, the firm stated that it is halting “the payment of dividends on its 5.375% Fixed Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A, in order to preserve capital.” The company outlined that it made the decision so that it can weather the storm of crypto winter, but did stress that it still maintains a “cash position in excess of its digital asset customer-related deposits.” “This decision reflects the Company’s focus on…

SEC Commissioner Calls for ‘Consistent Legal Framework’ for All Asset Classes, Including Crypto – Regulation Bitcoin News

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A commissioner with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has called for “a coherent and consistent legal framework that works across all asset classes,” including crypto assets. She warned that the SEC’s current enforcement-centric approach would take 400 years to go through all the crypto tokens that are allegedly securities. SEC’s Commissioner on Crypto Regulation A commissioner with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Hester Peirce, talked about crypto regulation in her speech at the “Digital Assets at Duke” conference on Jan. 20. Noting that the securities regulator…

DOJ Claims Sam Bankman-Fried Tried to Influence Witness Testimony, Asks for Communications Ban

“[Miller] participated in Signal and Slack communications with the defendant and a small group of company insiders during the relevant events of November 2022,” prosecutors said. “In those messages, among other things, [Bankman-Fried] gave instructions for liquidating Alameda’s investments to satisfy FTX customer withdrawals, and indicated that he transferred approximately $45 million dollars of Alamedas funds to FTX US to fill an apparent hole in FTX US’s balance sheet.” Source

Goldman Sachs Ranks Bitcoin Best Performing Asset so Far This Year – Markets and Prices Bitcoin News

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Goldman Sachs has ranked bitcoin the best-performing asset so far this year. The cryptocurrency also tops the global investment bank’s list as the asset with the highest risk-adjusted return — above gold, real estate, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq 100. Bitcoin Outshines Other Investments on Goldman’s Chart Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has reportedly ranked bitcoin the best-performing asset year-to-date (YTD). The Twitter account Documenting Bitcoin tweeted earlier this week: Bitcoin is the best performing asset in the world this year, according to latest data by Goldman Sachs. The…