The world’s largest digital asset exchange, Binance, is preparing to face fines and penalties in order to settle outstanding regulatory and law-enforcement investigations in the United States. According to a Feb. 15 WSJ report citing the firm’s chief strategy officer Patrick Hillmann, Binance has been working with regulators to remedy past compliance issues. Hillmann stated that Binance is “working with regulators to figure out what are the remediations we have to go through now to make amends for that.” He added that the outcome of ongoing investigations will likely be fines but could be more, stating “that is for regulators …

Galaxy Digital Holdings CEO, Mike Novogratz, believes there's a chance Bitcoin (BTC) could return to $30,000 or above before the end of March. According to a Feb. 15 Bloomberg report Novogratz spoke at a Bank of America conference the same day and said he would’ve been the “happiest guy” if 2022 ended with BTC at $30,000, but added: “When I look at the price action, when I look at the excitement of the customers calling, the FOMO building up, it wouldn’t surprise me if we were at $30,000 by the end of the quarter.” The prediction is much lower than …

A five-member panel of the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has voted 4-1 in favor of a proposal that may make it more difficult for cryptocurrency firms to serve as digital asset custodians in the future. The proposal, which is yet to be officially approved by the SEC, recommends amendments to the “2009 Custody Rule” will apply to custodians of “all assets” including cryptocurrencies, according to a Feb. 15 statement from SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. Gensler stated that currently, some crypto trading platforms that are offering custody services are not actual “qualified custodians.” According to the SEC, a qualified …

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of crypto exchange FTX may no longer be able to play League of Legends and other video games if newly proposed changes to his bail conditions from United States prosecutors are approved. In a Feb. 15 letter to United States District Judge Lewis Kaplan, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams asked the courts to further expand restrictions surrounding Bankman-Fried’s electronic device usage. They pointed to Bankman Fried’s recent device usage as cause for concern, and agreed with the court’s intuition that it was “shortsighted” by focusing only on apps, adding: “There is now a record before the …

Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network has chosen NovaWulf Digital Management as the sponsor for its proposed Chapter 11 restructuring plan which will see the investment advisory firm take over the operations of a new company, and most customers estimated to recover up to 70% of their funds. Celsius presented the plan on Feb. 15 in a filing to the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The proposed plan has the support of the Celsius Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors (UCC) — a body representing the interests of Celsius account holders. The plan sees the creation …

The settlement between Kraken (Payward Ventures) and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission set off alarm bells in the crypto community this month. Apparently, Kraken — one of the most compliance-minded crypto exchanges in existence — decided to buy its peace rather than fight with the SEC for years over whether it was offering unregistered “securities” through its staking program. The nature of the settlement is that Kraken neither admitted nor denied the SEC’s allegations, and the existence of the settlement, technically speaking, cannot be used as legal precedent for any argument either side of the issue might present. …

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville has reintroduced legislation aiming to allow United States 401(k) retirement plans to include exposure to cryptocurrencies. In a Feb. 15 announcement, Tuberville said the Financial Freedom Act — which he first introduced to the U.S. Senate in May 2022 — aimed to reverse policy from the Department of Labor directing what type of investments were allowed in 401(k) plans, including crypto. According to the senator, the bill would bar the DOL from pursuing enforcement actions for individuals “using brokerage windows to invest in cryptocurrency”. “The federal government shouldn’t choose winners and losers in the investment game,” …

The United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has sent a letter to executives of cryptocurrency exchange CEX.IO warning them that they are potentially in violation of federal law due to false and misleading statements about the exchange’s insurance status. The agency has given the exchange 15 days to make corrections. The statement in question is found in the small print details of the exchange’s state money transmitter license information. The information for Rhode Island reads, “U.S. dollars held in your CEX.IO fiat currency wallet are FDIC-insured up to $250,000 per account.” The FDIC letter also noted that, if the …

Abu Dhabi's technology ecosystem, Hub71, has announced a new initiative called "Hub71+ Digital Assets," with a capital backing of over US$2 billion. This project aims to advance Web3-based innovations, such as blockchain technology and metaverse applications. The initiative aspires to provide Web3 startups with access to a range of programs, and initiatives, as well as, corporate, government, and investment partners in both global markets and the UAE. The Hub71+ Digital Assets initiative said it intends to provide Web3 startups with access to a state-of-the-art blockchain and virtual asset infrastructure, as well as a progressive regulatory environment. This initiative will be …

In this week’s newsletter, read about how France’s top contemporary art museum will display nonfungible tokens (NFTs). Find out why a founder of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) copycat project, RR/BAYC, is opposing trademark applications from Yuga Labs. Check out how NFTs based on Ethereum lost 60% of their market capitalization, and learn how Bitcoin (BTC) non-zero addresses surged because of Bitcoin NFTs. And don’t forget this week’s Nifty News, featuring American socialite Paris Hilton launching a dating metaverse called Parisland. France’s top modern art museum to display CryptoPunks, Autoglyphs NFTs The Centre Pompidou, the leading modern art museum …

Bitcoin (BTC) is leading the cryptocurrency markets on the path to recovery. Although the United States Consumer Price Index (CPI) print for January was marginally higher than expectations, it did not dent the enthusiasm of bullish crypto trader. A positive response to seemingly negative data is a sign that the sentiment is bullish and traders are looking for buying opportunities. However, some analysts are cautious due to the strengthening of the U.S. dollar index (DXY). They believe that a sustained rally in the DXY could limit the upside in cryptocurrencies. Usually, long-term downtrends are followed by a base formation. During …

A federal judge has allowed identities of guarantors who signed on sureties for former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s $250 million bond to be made public following a request from several news outlets. Court documents released on Feb. 15 showed that the two previously unidentified individuals were Andreas Paepcke, a senior research scientist at Stanford University and Larry Kramer, a former dean of Stanford Law School. The two signed on as sureties for Bankman-Fried’s bail on Jan. 25 for $200,000 and $500,000, respectively. Eight major news outlets petitioned Judge Lewis Kaplan in a Jan. 12 letter, requesting the court disclose the …