True Names Limited, the nonprofit behind distributed domain protocol Ethereum Name Service, announced it would be ending its contract with director of operations Brantly Millegan after many uncovered his previously posted anti-LBGTQIA tweets. On Feb. 6, the decentralized autonomous organization of Ethereum Name Service, or ENS, asked users to weigh in on what actions, if any, should be taken against Millegan in regards to a May 2016 tweet in which he said "homosexual acts are evil” and “transgenderism doesn’t exist.” The DAO said some had proposed suspending Millegan from his leadership roles at ENS, voting to remove him as a …

The latest bulletin covering the agenda for India's lower house of parliament includes “a lecture on understanding cryptocurrency” and its economic impact. According to a Monday publication from the Lok Sabha, the Parliamentary Research and Training Institute for Democracies group within the government has organized a training evening for lawmakers on Feb. 2 regarding crypto and its effects on the Indian economy. In addition, the legislative business calendar for the lower house of parliament no longer includes a bill which could potentially ban crypto in the country. The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill does not appear as …

On Friday, credit rating agency Fitch published a research piece about Russia's proposed ban on cryptocurrencies. Although the report agreed with the Central Bank of Russia's (CBR) position that the ban would limit its financial system's exposure to risks, it also cautioned that such proposal could "hold back the diffusion of technologies that could improve productivity." In addition, Fitch warned: Suppose this slows the spread of crypto-driven innovations that, for example, improve the speed and security of payments or asset liquidity via tokenization. In that case, it could over time weaken this aspect of the Russian banking sector's operational environment …

On Jan. 20, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) issued a report summarizing its position on digital assets and proposing a ban on any crypto trading and mining operations in the country. Although the CBR’s strict position on the matter was never a secret, such a bold statement triggered waves of fear, uncertainty, and doubt — otherwise known as FUD — across the board, given Russians’ high rates of involvement in the global digital assets market. Yet, there are reasons to doubt the ultimate effectiveness of the CBR’s hardline bidding, both in terms of its enforceability and its acceptance by …

In a new twist of the Russian crypto regulation saga, the country's Ministry of Finance has come forward with an initiative that stands in stark contrast with the Central Bank's hardline position. The Central Bank of Russia recently called for a ban on crypto trading and mining activities throughout the country. Citing volatility, environmental impact, and use in illegal activities, the central bank published a report calling regulators to implement a total ban and impose strict sanctions on violators. However, the proposal received opposition from the Russian Ministry of Finance. A few days after the central bank's call for a …

Last week, two central banks dropped public reports that can have a sizable impact on the crypto landscape in their respective countries and beyond. The U.S. Federal Reserve published a discussion paper entitled “Money and Payments: The U.S. Dollar in the Age of Digital Transformation,” which summarizes years of the Fed’s research on CBDCs. Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Russia released a report that called for a blanket ban on domestic cryptocurrency operations and mining. Both documents are framed as an invitation for public discussion, but the kinds of discussions that they will trigger are likely to be very different. …

On Sunday, Hayden Adams, CEO and founder of popular decentralized exchange, or DEX, Uniswap (UNI), claimed that his JP Morgan Chase bank accounts were shut down with no explanation. In addition, Adams stated that the incident was personal in nature as he knew "many individuals and companies who have been similarly targeted simply for working in the crypto industry." This week @jpmorgan @Chase closed my bank accounts with no notice or explanation ‍ I know many individuals and companies who have been similarly targeted simply for working in the crypto industry Thanks for making it a personal — hayden.eth (@haydenzadams) …

Russia’s recent ban on crypto has drawn criticism from a number of big names, including Alexei Navalny’s chief of staff Leonid Volkov, and Telegram founder Pavel Durov. On Jan. 20, Russia’s Central Bank published a report proposing a blanket ban on domestic crypto trading and mining. The report stated that the risks of crypto are “much higher for emerging markets, including Russia.” However, it appears that this proposed ban isn’t universally accepted in the former Soviet Union. A Jan. 22 post by the Telegram founder, Pavel Durov stated that the proposed ban on crypto would “destroy a number of sectors …

Bitcoin Magazine’s YouTube channel was restored around three hours after being shut down, with the publication attributing the short ban to the YouTube algorithm flagging the word “Kazakhstan.” In a Jan. 12 Twitter post, Bitcoin Magazine noted that its YouTube account with 56,600 followers was banned in the middle of a livestream with no prior warning from the platform. "Our @YouTube with 60,000 followers just got BANNED mid-livestream with no warning. DELETED. When will the aggression against #Bitcoin content end?" The livestream was focused on topics relating to Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey, Bitcoin (BTC) mining and the recent internet blackout …

The police in Kosovo have ramped up their efforts to crack down on crypto miners in the country, confiscating more than 300 mining machines on Jan. 8 alone. An announcement issued by the Kosovo police on Jan. 8 revealed that it had seized 272 “Antminer” Bitcoin mining machines in the municipality of Leposavic, and another 39 mining machines near Prishtina. Meanwhile, the police also stopped a driver carrying 6 crypto mining machines with 42 graphics cards (GPUs) near Druar, in Vushtrri. The driver has since been interviewed and released. The Minister for Economy Artane Rizvanolli tweeted her support for the …

The United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority, or ASA, has ruled to place an official ban on two mobile application advertisements from popular trading platform Crypto.com which promoted the ease of purchasing cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, as well as earning yield rewards on digital assets. Gaining notoriety within the industry for their strict legislation on the proposed implications of a cryptocurrency advert, the ASA flagged the marketing material for breach a number of financial watchdog rules, including not effectively stating the risk potential of the investment, abusing consumer’s lack of market understanding, as well as not specifying the limitations of purchasing …

Although 2021 was a good year for the cryptocurrency industry in terms of market performance, the number of jurisdictions banning crypto has more than doubled since 2018. A report by the Library of Congress (LOC) details the nine jurisdictions that have now applied an absolute ban on crypto and the 42 with an implicit ban. This is up from eight and 15 respectively in 2018 when the report was first published. The LOC is the research library for the United States Senate, acting as the national library for the country. In the context of the LOC report, an absolute ban …