Crypto ads face stricter rules, referral bonus ban by UK FCA

In a June 8 announcement, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that from Oct. 8, advertisers of crypto services in the U.K. would be subjected to stricter regulations. The watchdog has mandated that crypto companies in the U.K. implement a “cooling-off period” for first-time investors. Additionally, as part of measures to enhance investor awareness of risks, the FCA has prohibited using “refer a friend” bonuses by firms in the sector. Sheldon Mills, executive director of consumers and competition at the FCA, said in the written statement that while…

Cosmos-based DeFi lending protocol Nolus joins Cointelegraph Accelerator

Crypto lending has become an essential part of decentralized finance (DeFi), allowing people to lend and borrow digital assets via specifically designed protocols. With crypto lending, users can lock their crypto assets as collateral and then borrow a fiat or stablecoin loan. Instead of traditional intermediaries, like banks and credit unions, DeFi lending protocols operate directly on a blockchain. Smart contracts facilitate each loan or borrowing, and on-chain supply and demand decide the interest rates. Reports expect a $231 billion DeFi market by 2030, with lending protocols being a key…

$1,280,000,000 in Crypto Yanked Out of Coinbase Amid SEC Lawsuit Against the US Exchange: On-Chain Data

Blockchain data and research firm Nansen says that hundreds of millions of dollars exited the Coinbase group in the wake of a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to Nansen, Coinbase and the exchange’s custodial arm recorded negative netflows, the sum of deposits and withdrawals, of approximately $1.28 billion after the SEC move. “As we write, the SEC has announced that it is suing Coinbase. Looking at on-chain centralized exchange data, it shows that Coinbase + Coinbase custody have negative netflows of $1.28 billion.” Source:…

SEC’s crypto actions surged 183% in 6 months after the FTX collapse

Cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions undertaken by the United States securities regulator significantly increased in the six months following the bankruptcy of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. An analysis of press releases from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and news reports on its actions found that in the six months preceding FTX’s collapse — the SEC undertook approximately six enforcement actions. In the six months after FTX’s bankruptcy on Nov. 11, 2022, SEC crypto-related enforcement actions jumped to at least 17, an estimated increase of 183% from the preceding period. Graph showing the…

SEC is killing innovation in the United States — 1inch co-founder

The United States could risk an exodus of major Web3 and cryptocurrency service providers as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) takes action against Coinbase and Binance. Sergej Kunz, a co-founder of decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol 1inch Network, believes the SEC’s enforcement action against the two centralized exchanges could have a negative effect on the growth of Web3 in the United States. Related: SEC lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase unify the crypto industry Speaking to Cointelegraph during Money 20/20 in Amsterdam — a popular global fintech event focused on payments and financial service providers…

Australia’s Top Bank Blocks Payments to Crypto Exchanges

In a proactive move to enhance customer safety, the Commonwealth Bank (CBA) today (Thursday) announced it has implemented new measures aimed at protecting customers from fraudulent activities tied to cryptocurrency exchanges. In practice, this means that the bank will be able to block some outgoing transfers to selected cryptocurrency exchanges. However, the institution has not specified which platforms may be specifically concerned. In an attempt to minimize scam risks, from today onwards, the bank will decline or hold for 24 hours certain payments Payments One of the bases of mediums…

Binance Attorneys Say SEC Boss Offered to Be Advisor to Crypto Company in 2019

At the time Gensler was offered to be an advisor to Binance, he was teaching at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management. According to the lawyers of Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao, SEC chair Gary Gensler was offered to be an advisor to Binance’s parent company in 2019. Interestingly, Gensler has been spearheading the crackdown against the crypto industry over the past year. Binance and other crypto companies are currently under the radar of the US regulator over violations of securities laws. The SEC chair has repeatedly expressed…

Two energy firms fined combined £250,000 for making unlawful marketing calls

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has fined two energy companies a total of £250,000 for bombarding people and businesses on the UK’s ‘do not call’ register with unlawful marketing calls. Maxen Power Supply Ltd, an energy supplier from Ilford, Essex, and Crown Glazing Ltd, a green energy firm based in Preston, Lancashire, both made unsolicited marketing calls to people and businesses while falsely claiming to represent other organisations – such as the National Grid, other energy suppliers or the UK Government. It is against the law for organisations to make…