CFTC Charges Voyager Co-founder Stephen Ehrlich With Fraud (The Block)
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission charged Voyager Digital co-founder Stephen Ehrlich with fraud and for failing to register with the agency. Ehrlich and his firm lied to customers, and then, when Voyager began to collapse, kept lying in an effort to hide the crypto lender's true financial health, the CFTC said.
Coinbase Sounds Alarm on IRS Crypto Tax Proposal (CoinDesk)
Coinbase (COIN), the biggest U.S. crypto exchange, is arguing that a recent proposal from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will endanger the industry and Americans’ privacy. The IRS had proposed a rule recently to formally define crypto brokers and instruct them on how they and their customers can properly pay taxes. But Coinbase said in a comment letter to the agency on Thursday that the proposed rule represents “an unprecedented, unchecked, and unlimited tracking on the daily lives of Americans.”
Trezor Unveils New Hardware Wallets, Corrosion-Resistant 'Keep Metal' for Recovery (CoinDesk)
Crypto hardware wallet company Trezor has unveiled new wallet models and a "Keep Metal" corrosion-resistant stainless steel product for storing recovery-seed phrases. The new Safe 3 wallet comes with a "tamper-resistant hardware component providing extra protection," according to an announcement on Wednesday. The new Keep Metal product is used for backing up recovery seed phrases - a random string of words that the user needs to remember should they need to restore access to their wallet.
Parity Plans Partial Transition to Decentralized Teams in Polkadot’s Ecosystem, Impacting Staff (The Block)
Blockchain infrastructure provider Parity Technologies told The Block it is seeking to transition some of its existing go-to-market functions to multiple teams within Polkadot’s decentralized ecosystem, impacting staffing at the firm. Rumors had emerged that the company laid off around 300 employees at its off-site event in Mallorca, something Parity denies, stressing that any staffing changes connected to the decentralized transition to various ecosystem-funded entities would occur over a period of several months.
CoinList Launches Multi-Chain Staking Fund for US Accredited Investors (The Block)
CoinList is launching a fund which will allow U.S. accredited investors to earn returns from a product that generates returns from staking digital assets, the company said in a statement. CoinList's new financial instrument initially supports the staking of Ethereum and Near. Going ahead, the company plans to add support for several other chains including Flow, Sui and Mina. The fund appears to offer an alternative avenue for investors to earn passive income from staking without having to own the digital assets themselves.
JPMorgan Debuts Tokenized BlackRock Shares as Collateral with Barclays (CoinDesk)
JPMorgan has carried out its first live blockchain-based collateral settlement transaction involving BlackRock and Barclays, the U.S. banking giant said on Wednesday. JPMorgan’s Ethereum-based Onyx blockchain and the bank’s Tokenized Collateral Network (TCN) was used by BlackRock to tokenize shares in one of its money market funds. The tokens were then transferred to Barclays Plc for collateral in an OTC (over-the-counter) derivatives trade.
Alameda Bungled Security, Lost $190 Million from Hacks: Former Engineer (The Block)
A former employee of Alameda Research claims the sister trading firm to the collapsed FTX crypto exchange at one point lost $100 million after a trader clicked on a phishing link. And that wasn't the only time the firm, co-founded by the disgraced crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried, was duped and lost millions of dollars. Bankman-Fried "believed that the single most important thing for a startup like Alameda ... was being able to move very, very fast, so much so that he decided to ignore engineering and accounting practices that are considered standard at tech companies and financial services firms," Aditya Baradwaj posted to X.
EU Markets Regulator Warns of DeFi’s ‘Serious Risks’ (CoinDesk)
Real USD (USDR) Stablecoin Depegs and Price Crashes by 50% (The Block)
Real USD, a stablecoin largely backed by real estate assets, has depegged, causing its price to plummet by 50%. Issued by TangibleDAO, the stablecoin listed as USDR, had a market cap of about $45 million before its price began spiraling on Wednesday. The asset was meant to be "a new type of money backed by real estate, that yields 8-15% per year," according to TangibleDAO's website.
Bitcoin Might Get Ethereum-Style Smart Contracts Under ‘BitVM’ Plan (CoinDesk)
A research paper published this week outlined a new paradigm to bring Ethereum-style smart contracts to the Bitcoin network. BitVM, as it is known, was laid out in an Oct. 9 whitepaper by Robin Linus, a core contributor to ZeroSync, which is building tools for developers to use zero-knowledge proofs on Bitcoin.
Billionaire Paul Tudor Jones Backs Bitcoin and Gold as Geopolitical Risks Rise (CoinDesk)
Hedge fund giant Paul Tudor Jones said on Tuesday that the combination of extensive geopolitical risk and rising U.S. government debt levels make it difficult to own stocks, but that bitcoin (BTC) and gold are attractive options. “This might be the most threatening geopolitical environment I've ever seen,” said Jones on CNBC’s Squawk Box. He also took note of the U.S. fiscal position, calling it the weakest since at least World War II.
Bitfinex Crypto Exchange Owner Makes $150 Million Share Buyback Offer to Hack Victims (Bloomberg)
The owner of crypto exchange Bitfinex is exploring a $150 million share buyback that would provide it with greater control over the private company’s dealings, particularly as regulatory scrutiny on the industry heats up. iFinex Inc., the Hong Kong-based firm which shares directors with crypto’s largest stablecoin issuer Tether Holdings Ltd., wrote to shareholders on Sept. 22 with an offer of $10 per share for 15 million shares, according to a document seen by Bloomberg News. The deal, which represents around 9% of iFinex’s outstanding capital and values the business at $1.7 billion, would depend on the business receiving an influx of cash from at least one of its subsidiaries, the proposal said.
WOO Network Buys Back Shares and Tokens From Bankrupt Three Arrows Capital (CoinDesk)
Taiwan-based liquidity provider WOO Network has agreed to a deal with Teneo, the liquidator of bankrupt hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), to repurchase shares and tokens it sold in 2021. According to a press release, WOO agreed to cancel shares purchased by 3AC in 2021's Series A fundraise and repurchase 20 million WOO tokens, worth around $3.4 million at current prices. The tokens have been sent to a burn address or crypto wallet that cannot be accessed by anyone.
Amazon and Immutable Want to Make it Easier to Launch Crypto Games (Decrypt)
Blockchain gaming firm Immutable is working with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to develop infrastructure solutions for the crypto gaming industry, Immutable announced Tuesday, in an effort to make it easier for developers to launch and scale their blockchain games. Immutable has joined AWS’s ISV Accelerate Program, a sales program for companies that use AWS services in their products. Game developers using the Ethereum-compatible Immutable X blockchain can now join AWS Activate, a program for startups that offers technical support, up to $100,000 in AWS credits, and other resources.
Worldcoin’s Sam Altman Tells Joe Rogan That US Government Is Waging War on Crypto (The Block)
Worldcoin founder and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman voiced his concerns about what he said are the U.S. government's escalating attempts to regulate and control the cryptocurrency market, suggesting that the government's actions are tantamount to waging "war" on the industry. "There are many things that I'm disappointed that the U.S. government has done recently, but the war on crypto — which I think is a like, we can't give this up, like we're going to control this and all that — that's the thing that makes me quite sad about the country," Altman said in a wide-ranging episode of Joe Rogan's podcast.
Binance Introduces Copy Trading Feature for Futures Markets (The Block)
Crypto exchange Binance has introduced a copy trading feature for futures products in selected markets. This addition is aimed at simplifying the trading process by allowing users to emulate the strategies and portfolios of experienced or “lead” traders. Users registered with Binance can act as both copy and lead traders. When a copy trader opts to copy the trades of a lead trader, the latter receives a 10% profit share.
Huobi, KuCoin Among Crypto Firms Added to UK Watchdog’s Warning List (Bloomberg)
Crypto exchanges Huobi and KuCoin were among dozens of digital asset companies added to the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s warning list on Sunday for marketing their services in the UK without proper approvals, as the regulator tightens its grip on the industry. The UK’s rules on financial promotions were widened starting on Oct. 8 to include cryptoasset service providers — regardless of their location. All crypto platforms are now required by the regulator to display clear risk warnings to UK-based consumers and meet higher technical standards, including a 24-hour cooling-off period for new customers.
Bankman-Fried Seeks to Probe Lawyers’ Involvement in $200M ‘Sham’ Alameda Loans (CoinDesk)
Lawyers for Sam Bankman-Fried want to quiz FTX co-founder Gary Wang about his reliance on legal advice when agreeing to a series of loans from linked hedge fund Alameda Research, according to a legal filing made late Monday night. The letter, sent as Bankman-Fried’s trial enters its second week, seeks carve-outs from a judge who’s previously proved reluctant to let the crypto tycoon blame the alleged fraud on his lawyers.
Deribit to List XRP, SOL, and MATIC Options; Seeks License in EU (CoinDesk)
Deribit, the world's leading crypto options exchange by trading volume and open interest, will soon offer options tied to prominent alternative cryptocurrencies XRP, SOL and MATIC. The exchange announced its expansion plan on X soon before press time, adding that it is seeking a brokerage license in the European Union (EU).
Inside SBF’s Trial: FTX Numbers Checked Out, Except for an $8 billion mystery 'Friend' (The Block)
As customers began to withdraw assets from FTX in Nov. 2022, CEO and co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried asked his co-founder and CTO, Gary Wang, to calculate how much money Alameda Research would need to deposit on the exchange in order to cover the outflows. Wang found that, excluding the accounts of Alameda Research, the sum of FTX customer balances matched the assets in FTX's hot wallets, he testified on Friday under direct questioning from government prosecutors during the fourth day of Bankman-Fried's criminal trial in New York. But, unbeknownst to him, there was a problem with his math.
US Regulators Weigh Penalizing Bankrupt Crypto Lender Voyager’s Ex-CEO (Bloomberg)
Investigators at a key US regulator have concluded that the co-founder of Voyager Digital Ltd. broke derivatives regulations before the failed cryptolender plunged into bankruptcy last year, according to people familiar with the matter. Staff in the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s enforcement division recommended internally that the agency accuse Stephen Ehrlich of breaking its rules by misleading customers about the safety of their assets following a probe into Voyager’s conduct. CFTC commissioners are now voting on whether to approve an enforcement action against him within days, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing the confidential deliberations.
Tom Emmer’s Maneuver to Move Up in US House Leadership Could Be Good for Crypto (The Block)
Rep. Tom Emmer's maneuver to move up the ranks in House leadership amid a vacant House Speaker spot could bode well for cryptocurrency legislation. The Minnesota Republican and Majority Whip is reportedly vying for House Majority Leader or to the top position as Speaker, after the dramatic ousting of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., earlier in the week. That could be good for crypto as more seniority could mean a push to get crypto legislation across the finish line.
Avalanche Social App Stars Arena Drained of $3M in AVAX After Hack (CoinDesk)
Avalanche upstart Stars Arena was drained of nearly all locked funds earlier today as attackers exploited a smart contract that helped secure tokens on the social application. Some $3 million worth of Avalanche’s AVAX tokens were drained, leaving Stars Arena with just under $1 in funds after the attacker. X, formerly Twitter, user @0xLawliette seemed to first warn of the exploit in the early Asian hours on Saturday, but another user, @0xlilitch yesterday warned of potential security issues.
Yuga Labs Cuts Employees, Focuses on Metaverse Extension Amid Restructuring (The Block)
Yuga Labs CEO Daniel Alegre announced a company restructuring and workforce reductions in a Friday memo. "After a recent period of thoughtful consideration, I have decided that we need to restructure the Yuga Labs teams," Alegre wrote in a blog post. "The implication of these changes is that a number of roles have been eliminated across the company, impacting some of your colleagues."