What Still Needs to Happen Before Spot Ether ETFs Can Trade
There’s a lot of excitement over the possibility that a spot ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) may be around the corner. Here’s what still needs to happen before one may launch.
State of Crypto
When Do Secondary Token Sales Violate Howey?
A federal judge overseeing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s case against Binance ruled that most of the case can proceed, but dismissed charges tied to the sale of BUSD and secondary sales of BNB.
Patrick McHenry Explains FIT21’s Passage
Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) chairs the powerful House Financial Services Committee, and has been the leading Republican on the panel for years. Last year, he spent a few weeks as the Speaker Pro Tempore of the House of Representatives, after lawmakers voted to oust then-speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). McHenry announced his retirement in December and will leave office when his term expires this coming January. He spoke virtually at Consensus 2024 in Austin at the end of May.
The Crypto Lawsuit State of Play
Last month, Ethereum incubator ConsenSys sued the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for an injunction asking a federal court to block the regulator from investigating its MetaMask offering or from declaring Ether (ETH) a security. It’s the latest company to follow a growing trend of preemptive litigation against the SEC.
Distilling the Tornado Cash and Samourai Suits
There was a lot of news last week, but maybe the biggest news came Wednesday when the U.S. Department of Justice arrested two co-founders of Samourai Wallet, a bitcoin wallet that offered mixing services. The arrest ramps up the federal government’s efforts to tamp down on what it sees as money laundering enabled by privacy tools, and sets up a continuation of that broader conversation on where the right to transact in privacy fits within national security interests.
Looking at Sam Bankman-Fried’s Appeals Process
As expected, Sam Bankman-Fried’s legal team filed a notice of his intent to appeal his conviction on fraud and conspiracy charges. So far all we have is just the notice – the actual brief won’t come for some time yet.
Is the Sam Bankman-Fried Story Over?
Last month, I attended Sam Bankman-Fried’s sentencing hearing. Not that anyone asked, but I have some thoughts.
What a Judge Said About the SEC’s Suit Against Coinbase
Coinbase and Custodia both lost early and preliminary court fights. The Coinbase loss was more or less expected – companies rarely win much on a motion for judgment at such an early stage – but still pretty enlightening.
Binance Is Having an Odd Time
Binance is having a weird moment, perhaps most clearly illustrated by the fact that a national government detained two of its executives for a month now – and one is only free because he seemingly escaped custody.
How the SEC’s Recent Win May Play in Its Coinbase, Binance Cases
A federal judge ruled that secondary-market transactions for certain cryptocurrencies violated securities law. The catch: This was a default judgment. The defendant never showed up, and no one filed amicus briefs to oppose the Securities and Exchange Commission’s motion for a default ruling.