SEC, OCC Issue First Regulatory Clarifications for Stablecoins
“ The OCC has published fresh guidance, officially clarifying national banks can provide services to stablecoin issuers in the U.S.The OCC detailed how banks should handle stablecoin reserves, specifically referring to stablecoins backed by currencies like the dollar.
Senior Deputy Comptroller Jonathan Gould, explained that while banks should conduct due diligence and ensure they assess the risks of banking any stablecoin issuers, stablecoins are becoming increasingly popular .The OCC wants federally regulated banks to feel comfortable providing services to stablecoin issuers.
We’ve seen really robust demand from significant banking institutions to get involved in reserve banking stablecoin clients.
Further, the U.S.Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said certain stablecoins might not be securities under federal law, but advised issuers to work with the agency and legal counsel to ensure this is the case.
Whether a particular digital asset, including a so-called “stablecoin,” is a security under the federal securities laws is inherently a facts and circumstances determination.
This determination requires a careful analysis of the nature of the instrument, including the rights it purports to convey, and how it is offered and sold.
Monday’s statements would appear to apply to fiat-backed stablecoins only, not algorithmic ones like MakerDAO’s DAI.” FinCEN Files: Secret Documents Detail Failures of Global Banking Industry
“ Banks watched on as millions of dollars of dirty money was funneled through the global financial system .London is heavily implicated in the documents, with large amounts of illicit funds flowing through the capital.
Leaked documents detail how over $2 trillion worth of dirty money has been funnelled through the world’s biggest banks .Over 2,500 documents, including over 2,000 suspicious activity reports (SARs), document how authorities were provided with evidence and failed to act.
The FinCEN Files are unprecedented.
In 2016, the Panama Papers documented how the world’s wealthiest avoided tax with the help of law firm Mossack Fonseca.
A year later, the Paradise Papers revealed further offshore dealings to the benefit of politicians and other public figures.What makes the FinCEN Files different is that they reveal systematic evidence of global corruption, rather than the wrongdoings of a handful of actors.“ Former HSBC, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch Execs Start $50M Crypto Fund
“ Banking veterans who have steered divisions at HSBC, Citigroup and Merrill Lynch in the Asia-Pacific region are ditching traditional finance to invest in cryptocurrencies.
Liquibit is said to arbitrage a portfolio of bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ether, litecoin and eos.It is expected to expand to trading derivatives, options and futures on BitMex, Huobi, OkEx and Deribit.
Chang, now Liquibit Capital’s chief investment officer, said regulatory bloat and a surplus of middlemen at investment banks convinced him and his partners to switch to cryptocurrency markets .” World’s Largest Sovereign Wealth Fund Indirectly Holds Almost 600 Bitcoin
“The Norwegian Government Pension Fund , also known as the Oil Fund, has over $1 trillion in assets, including 1.4% of all global stocks and shares.
It is considered the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund.
The Norwegian Government Pension Fund [also] has a 1.51% stake in MicroStrategy.This puts the company’s portfolio in BTC at around $6.3 million.
In addition, two other major investment advisory companies, BlackRock Fund Advisors and the Vanguard Group, have a 15.24% stake (5829.30 BTC) and a share of 11.72% (4482.90 BTC), respectively.
The Vanguard Group is an American investment advisor with about $6.2 trillion in global assets under management (AUM) as of January 31, 2020.It is the largest mutual funds provider and the second-largest provider of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the world after BlackRock’s iShares.BlackRock Fund Advisors, on the other hand, has $7.3 trillion in AUM.” CIA’s New Research Lab to Study Blockchain
“That the CIA, one of the U.S.intelligence community’s two code-breaking hubs , would take an interest in researching a technology secured by cryptography should come as no surprise to observers.
MIT’s reporting notes the labs will give CIA a useful incentive to woo tech talent that might otherwise turn to Silicon Valley’s giants.Officers who develop tech inventions in the lab will be permitted to patent, disclose and partially profit from their work.” JD.com’s Fintech Wing Partners with PBoC on Digital Currency Projects
“China’s e-commerce giant will reportedly help develop apps that support the forthcoming digital renminbi.
JD Digital Technology and the Digital Currency Research Institute will promote the development of mobile applications and blockchain platforms that are in line with PBoC’s forthcoming central bank digital currency.
The two entities will also promote the creation of wallets that support China’s digital currency.”
“In an order signed on Monday, Judge Beth Bloom at the Florida court denied Wright’s motion seeking summary judgment that would have prevented the matter from proceeding to a full trial.
The trial involving Wright’s bitcoin fortune has now been moved to Jan.4, 2021 .” Share this:.
