Spain’s financial regulator has issued warnings to investors regarding 18 companies offering services in the country despite facing registration issues. The National Securities Markets Commission (CNMV) published a list of 18 financial firms operating without the regulatory nod on Feb 26. The list, which is comprised of several traditional finance firms, includes three cryptocurrency companies:...
Binance Labs, the venture capital arm of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, has demonstrated a significant vote of confidence in the future of Bitcoin by strategically investing in Babylon, a pioneering Bitcoin staking protocol. The $10 billion venture capital and incubator has invested strategically in Babylon, further signaling its interest in startups within the staking and restaking...
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will continue to “ramp up” its ruling-by-enforcement approach to crypto regulations in 2024, according to Norton Rose Fulbright’s 2024 FinTech Outlook released last week. The global law firm expects “to see even further ramp-up in enforcement and regulatory actions in respect to US securities laws in the...
A US appeals court has upheld the prior sentencing of “My Big Coin” fraud founder Russell Crater. Crater will serve over 8 years and pay $7.6 million for orchestrating a fraud from 2013 to 2017, facing charges including wire fraud, unlawful transactions, and running an unlicensed money business. He contended his Sixth Amendment rights were...
On February 25, renowned crypto attorney Steven Nerayoff expressed concerns that the legal challenges faced by former Binance CEO and founder Changpeng Zhao could cause trust issues in the crypto industry. Changpeng Zhao’s (CZ) trial has taken a new turn in the last few days. Reports indicate that the United States Attorney’s Office advocates for...
The RiskOnBlast project, a gambling platform based on the Blast layer-2 ecosystem, has come under suspicion following the disappearance of its funds, website, and social media presence, raising concerns of a potential rug pull—the first of its kind on Blast. According to Arkham Intelligence, balances on the RiskOnBlast platform suddenly plummeted to zero on February...
Grayscale’s flagship Bitcoin Trust GBTC has just recorded the lowest daily outflows since it converted to an ETF. According to data posted on X by the research arm of crypto exchange BitMEX, GBTC’s outflow on February 23 was just $44.2 million. Bitcoin ETF Flow – 24 Feb 2024 All data now in, except perhaps for...
Polygon spinoff Avail raised $27m in seed funding led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Dragonfly, the company announced Monday. The funding will go toward developing three key products within Avail’s platform: Data Availability (DA), Nexus, and Fusion. “These core components, which constitute the Avail Trinity, will allow the network to accelerate the unification of...
The Saudi Arabian government has launched a metaverse platform to display the country’s cultural heritage, including history, arts, and crafts. The Saudi Press Agency recently announced the launch of the metaverse initiative, which is supported by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative Media Intelligence. Saudi’s new metaverse will see users explore the country’s cultural heritage through...
On February 23, popular Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms issued a cautionary statement regarding potential profitability challenges in its business operations. The company cited various factors, including global supply chain disruptions, chip shortages, and increasing regulatory scrutiny around climate change, as key threats to its operations. Higher Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Requires Higher Hash Rate The top...