Regulation

The United States Federal Reserve has confirmed a July launch date for its long-awaited instant payments system, seen by some as an alternative to central bank digital currencies and stablecoins. The instant payment network will settle payments in seconds and can support transactions between consumers, merchants and banks. It does not rely on blockchain technology.

The United States Justice Department announced on March 15 that it was pressing charges against a resident of Hanoi, Vietnam, in connection to the operation of the ChipMixer. The announcement came shortly after it became known that a Europol action led by German law enforcement had closed down the Vietnam-based crypto mixer. The U.S. Attorney’s

United States officials want to remove a provision included in bankrupt lender Voyager Digital’s plan to sell its digital assets to crypto exchange Binance.US that would prevent them from legally pursuing anyone involved with the sale.  In a motion filed on March 14 in a New York bankruptcy court, U.S. trustee William Harrington and other

The cryptocurrency-friendly Signature Bank was reportedly being investigated by two United States government bodies prior to its collapse. According to a March 15 Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter, investigators with the Justice Department were examining whether Signature took adequate measures to detect potential money laundering by its clients. It was noted the

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase filed an amicus brief in support of a motion to dismiss the case brought by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against former Coinbase product manager Ishan Wahi and other for insider trading. Coinbase condemns the defendants conduct, it said in the brief, but supports the defendants’ motion because of

Amid multiple ongoing investigations, FTX continues to move funds. Addresses related to the failed crypto exchange reportedly transferred around $145 million in stablecoins to various platforms.  As Lookonchain spotted on March 14, three wallets associated with FTX and its subsidiary, Alameda Research, have moved 69.64 million Tether (USDT) and 75.94 million USD Coin (USDC). The

The United States should lead the development of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) away from being “surveillance coins” and towards being “freedom coins,” says the former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). In a Mar. 13 op-ed in The Hill, Christopher Giancarlo, nicknamed “Crypto Dad” for his pro-crypto outlook, said the U.S. “must

Barney Frank, a former member of the United States House of Representatives, has reportedly suggested New York regulators closed the crypto-friendly Signature Bank as part of a seeming show of force. According to a March 13 CNBC report, Frank — also a board member of Signature Bank — said the only indication of problems at

The broader cryptocurrency community continues to debate the ongoing fallout following the closure of three major American banks, with calls for neobank services for the industry on the cards. Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which has traditionally served startups across several innovation sector industries, was shuttered by California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation on March

The United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FIDC) started an auction process the night of March 11 for Silicon Valley Bank, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. Bids were to be only open for just a few hours before the process closes on March 12.  According to Bloomberg’s sources, the FDIC is seeking a buyer for

United States authorities are working on “material action” over the weekend in an attempt to limit the ripple effect across the country’s banking system after the Silicon Valley Bank abruptly collapsed on March 10. According to a Reuters report citing unnamed sources, officials in the Joe Biden administration assessed the impact of the bank failure

Billionaire Bill Ackman has urged the United States government to “guarantee” all deposits held by Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) within the next “48 hours,” or it risks the “destruction” of many financial institutions. In a March 11 tweet, Bill Ackman, CEO of hedge fund management firm Pershing Square Capital Management, said a “giant sucking sound”

The Bank of England (BoE) has halted the operations of Silicon Valley Bank’s U.K. branch (SVB UK), stating that it has a “limited presence” in the United Kingdom (UK) and no “critical functions” supporting the financial system. BoE issued a statement on Mar. 10, declaring that SVB UK will “stop making payments or accepting deposits,”

Almost immediately after USD Coin (USDC) issuer Circle revealed it could not withdraw $3.3 billion of its $40 billion reserves from Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the resultant sell-off caused the price of the stablecoin to fall below its $1 peg. On March 9, Circle initiated a wire transfer to remove its funds from SVB as

United States Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden asked the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) to hold auditors accountable for failed crypto projects.  The PCAOB — a nonprofit overseeing the audits of public companies and other issuers — recently stated that proof-of-reserves (POR) are not equivalent to audits conducted under PCAOB auditing standards. POR

On March 10, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ruled against a change that would allow investment manager VanEck to create a spot Bitcoin (BTC) trust. Commissioner Mark Uyeda joined his colleague Hester Peirce in releasing a statement criticizing the commission’s decision not to approve the listing and trading of the financial product.  The commissioners