Author: Derek Andersen

‘It isn’t just criminals who want privacy’

Derek Andersen

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is challenging United States President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination in the 2024 presidential election, has taken to Twitter again to share more of his thoughts on cryptocurrency. Kennedy criticized Biden on May 2 for calling the U.S. banking system “safe and sound” the previous day. “Today, bank stocks are crashing. The American people deserve more than glib assurances and perception management,” he tweeted. On May 3, Kennedy condemned the Biden administration’s proposed tax on crypto mining. An environmental lawyer, Kennedy called the proposed…

Crypto financial services provider Januar receives full Danish payments license

Derek Andersen

Danish startup Januar announced April 19 that it has received a Payment Institution License from the country’s Financial Supervisory Authority (DFSA). The license will allow Januar to conduct business in the 30 European Economic Area markets, whereas it only served Danish companies under its previous limited permission. Januar provides International Bank Account Number (IBAN) business accounts to crypto businesses. Linking to IBAN infrastructure gives crypto companies access to compliant fiat banking services, such as payments and settlement, which crypto companies may have trouble finding otherwise. Januar co-CEO Simon Ousager said:…

Coinbase teams up with Brazilian central bank’s Pix to offer expanded services

Derek Andersen

Coinbase is expanding its services in Brazil through partnerships with local services, the company announced March 21. Round-the-clock customer support in Portuguese and easier onboarding are among its upgrades. Coinbase has inked deals with Brazilian payment solutions provider Ebanx and Pix, the instant payment app operated by the Central Bank of Brazil. The new partnerships will make it easier to purchase crypto using the Brazilian real, as well as enable deposits and withdrawals from Coinbase accounts in real. Brazilians will also have easier access to opening a Coinbase account.  Coinbase has…

FTX influencers face $1 Billion class-action lawsuit over alleged crypto fraud promotion

Derek Andersen

A class-action suit led by Edwin Garrison has been filed against “FTX influencers,” mostly on YouTube, seeking $1 billion because they “promoted FTX crypto fraud without disclosing compensation.” The suit was filed March 15 in the Southern District of Florida Miami Division. Kevin Paffrath, Graham Stephan, Andrei Jikh, Jaspreet Singh, Brian Jung, Jeremy Lefebvre, Tom Nash, Ben Armstrong, Erika Kullberg and Creators Agency LLC were named as respondents.  The defendants are eight YouTubers, the talent management company that handled promotion of FTX and agency’s founder. According to the suit: “Though…

FCA officials tell UK parliamentary committee crypto regulation is unavoidable

Derek Andersen

Officials of the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) appeared before the House of Commons’ Treasury Committee on March 8 to discuss the agency’s work. Among the issues raised was cryptocurrency regulation, which the officials approached with a clear lack of enthusiasm. FCA chair Ashley Alder, who took that position in February after serving as CEO of Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission, told the committee that the FCA is “midway through a quite ambitious reset” as the Financial Services and Markets bill makes its way through the Parliament. He…

Crypto.com continues its worldwide registration push with Brazilian EMI license

Derek Andersen

Crypto.com has received a Payment Institution License (EMI) from Banco Central do Brasil, the central bank of Brazil. The license will allow it to “continue offering regulated fiat wallet services for customers in Brazil,” according to an announcement on the company’s website. Crypto.com has offered a Visa card in Brazil for purchases in cryptocurrency or fiat since last year. The Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange recently added a proof-of-reserves page to its website. It has received approvals in several countries in recent months, including France, the United Kingdom and South Korea, the announcement states.…

Indictment against SBF unsealed, contains 8 counts of financial and elections fraud

Derek Andersen

The indictment against Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was unsealed Dec. 13. The indictment, signed by U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams, is 14 pages long and containe eight counts.  The charges listed against SBF in the indictment are: Conspiracy to commit wire fraud on customers, wire fraud on customers, conspiracy to commit wire fraud on lenders, wire fraud on lenders, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering anconspiracy to defraud the United States and violate the campaign finance…

Celsius’ co-founder Daniel Leon follows Mashinsky out as crypto exec flight continues

Derek Andersen

S. Daniel Leon, who cofounded Celsius with Alex Mashinsky in 2017, has quit his job as the bankrupt crypto lender’s chief strategy officer, CNBC reported Oct. 4, citing unnamed sources and an internal memo seen by the outlet. Bloomberg later reported receiving confirmation of Leon’s resignation from the company. Leon’s resignation comes one week after Mashinsky’s and is part of an apparently growing trend. Celsius filed for bankruptcy July 13, while it was under investigation by six American states and a month after freezing withdrawals. The company was reportedly $1.9…

Coinbase is facing class action suits over unstable stablecoins GYEN, TerraUSD

Derek Andersen

A class-action suit was filed against Coinbase on Thursday claiming the trading platform was negligent in its listing of the TerraUSD stablecoin and alleging that it failed to disclose its financial relationship with Terraform Labs. This is the second class-action suit outstanding against Coinbase. A suit was filed last month in connection with the depegging of GYEN in November.  Thursday’s suit alleges Coinbase was negligent for failing to conduct due diligence of Terraform Labs before it listed TerraUSD and misrepresenting TerraUSD’s risk as an algorithmic stablecoin. The suit compares the…

Basel Committee presses on with restrictive requirements for banks’ crypto holdings

Derek Andersen

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision met Friday and discussed cryptocurrency, among other topics. The committee stated that it would soon publish its second consultative paper with the intention of finalizing guidelines on the prudential treatment of crypto exposure by banks by year-end.  In a Tuesday press release, the committee issued the following statement, which was likely in reference to the recent collapse of the Terra ecosystem: “Recent developments have further highlighted the importance of having a global minimum prudential framework to mitigate risks from cryptoassets.” The committee began consultations…