South African crypto platform “Africrypt” steals 3.6 billion USD

The two South African brothers behind the crypto investment platform “Africrypt” have disappeared along with 3.6 billion USD in bitcoin bought with investors’ funds. Regulators in South Africa are now looking to take action following what might be one of the world’s biggest crypto frauds. Two South African brothers, Ameer and Raees Cajee, have reportedly disappeared, taking […]

Thailand bans “meme tokens” and NFTs

Thailand has recently imposed restrictions on cryptocurrency trading. The South-east Asian nation’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has implemented a ban on various types of blockchain currencies such as meme tokens and NFTs. According to the Thai SEC, the new rules aim to protect traders and users from cryptocurrencies that have “no clear target or substance” and […]

Regulators looking into Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

After a boom in decentralized financial applications (DeFi) regulators are increasingly looking into the young subsector of the crypto industry. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chief has talked about DeFi in a critical manner and mentioned that some apps might be illegal. Commissioner Dan M. Berkovitz of the US CFTC made comments on […]

Hedge Funds Increasingly Interested in Cryptocurrencies

PricewaterhouseCoopers International (PwC) has published a comprehensive report on cryptocurrencies. The study provides an overview of how hedge funds and asset managers are dealing with the new asset class on a global scale. The PwC group has published its third annual report examining the global crypto hedge fund landscape. This is based on data from research conducted […]

Crime with Cryptocurrencies – Regulatory and Market Evidence

Two authoritative market intelligence reports on the illicit use of cryptocurrencies, released in February 2021, evidence a marked decrease in the phenomena during 2020 – compared to 2019 – but also new worrying trends in the areas of ransomware and Decentralised Finance (DeFi). The most recent market intelligence on illicit use of cryptocurrencies made available […]

Diem replaces Libra as Facebook stablecoin

Not much is left of the ambitious plans that Facebook presented to the public as Libra in the summer of 2019. The global corporation did not manage to dispel the concerns of critics. The evolution from currency basket “Libra” to the stablecoin “Diem”. Libra was a digital blockchain currency proposed by the American social media […]

Opposition to expanded FinCEN AML/KYC rules

A broad front of opposition is growing against FinCEN’s latest regulatory proposal regarding KYC/AML rules for digital assets. Opponents say the rules would destroy many of the benefits of the technology and create new, centralized data collection points. An overview. The U.S. Treasury Department under Steve Mnuchin proposed strict KYC rules for cryptocurrencies in December that go […]

MIT Blockchain Professor Gary Gensler appointed as SEC Chairman

The crypto-savvy Gary Gensler will be appointed to the position of SEC Chairman under the Biden administration. A move that could be advantageous for the industry, according to people in the space. He was previously the Chairman of the CFTC and taught at MIT. President-elect Joe Biden will appoint Gary Gensler as US Securities and […]

Tether regulation proposal “apocalyptic” for crypto

Unregulated stablecoins such as Tether face increasing regulatory pressure from the US government. A new bill called the Stable Act is stirring anxiety in crypto circles. It could effectively put an end to billions of dollars of transactions and throw the industry back several years. The Act calls for banking licenses for stablecoin issuers such as Tether. It […]