Regulation

The long-awaited digital currency Libra could finally see the light of day as soon as January 2021, according to a new report. Following more than a year of scrutiny from global financial regulators, Libra will launch in a form of a United States dollar-backed digital currency, the Financial Times reported on Nov. 27. Citing three people

A comprehensive survey from India’s CoinDCX exchange has found that most local investors don’t see an “easy way” to access exposure to crypto assets. That’s despite the country reversing a ban on financial institutions providing services to digital asset businesses earlier this year. According to the OKEx-affiliated exchange’s findings, 56% of respondents under the age

Russian prime minister Mikhail Mishustin has appeared to express support for the further development of the local cryptocurrency market. At a recent governmental meeting held on Nov. 26, Mishustin proposed the introduction of legal protections for crypto holders in the country in order to contribute to the growth of the new industry. According to Mishustin,

The Australian government is trialing the use of blockchain technology for inter-government document exchanges with Singapore as the latest action in a series of pro-blockchain efforts. It follows hot on the heels of the establishment of a new network promoting blockchain to public servants.  On Nov. 23 the Australia Border Force launched a blockchain trade

With 55 days until his inauguration as President of the United States, Joe Biden is reportedly considering the former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for a permanent position in his administration.  According to a Nov. 25 report from CNBC, the president-elect is floating Gary Gensler for a position as Deputy Treasury Secretary starting

Per an announcement and series of filings on Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice is calling shenanigans on Intuit’s ambitions, at least in part. Intuit owns a stable of user-facing finance software, including budgeting app Mint, digital DIY tax software TurboTax, and QuickBooks, for business accounting. The firm initially announced its acquisition of Credit Karma back

President-elect Joe Biden is reportedly considering crypto-friendly Andrew Yang as his future Secretary of Commerce. According to a CNN report “based on conversations with Biden allies and advisers and Democrats with knowledge of the matter,” the president-elect may be tapping Yang, a former presidential candidate and entrepreneur, for a position in his cabinet. Many considered

Nigeria’s Finance Ministry is reportedly in talks with the country’s securities regulator to develop a new framework for blockchain and cryptocurrencies — a move that could accelerate adoption in Africa’s largest economy.  Business Day, a Nigerian market intelligence publication, reported Tuesday that the Ministry of Finance is working with the Abuja-based Securities and Exchange Commission, or

The Lithuanian government has reportedly sold a batch of cryptocurrency seized by local enforcement agencies. The State Tax Inspectorate, or STI, the country’s tax authority, sold confiscated crypto assets worth 6.4 million euro ($7.6 million) and subsequently added the funds to the state budget. According to an official announcement on Nov. 24, the seized crypto

Facebook’s proposal for its digital currency, Libra, was a wake-up call for international regulatory agencies, finance ministries and central bankers. All these actors recognized that the company’s reach across its three platforms had the potential to accelerate adoption of a global stablecoin to an unprecedented extent. In a new paper from the Bank of International

As President-Elect Biden continues to round out his roster of appointees, he has tapped an Obama-era chair of the Federal Reserve to lead his administration’s economic policy. According to a Wall Street Journal exclusive published on Nov. 23, the Biden team plans to nominate Janet Yellen to serve as Treasury Secretary. Obama originally appointed Yellen

Cash usage has lost a ton of ground to digital payments as the pandemic has changed the way people transact worldwide. Some experts have recently argued that central bank digital currencies could solve the problem of leaving that payments data in the hands of major tech platforms. In a blog post published Monday morning, Federal

Lawyers representing the United States government have filed a legal memo opposing the dismissal of charges for Virgil Griffith, a former Ethereum Foundation researcher accused of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or DPRK. According to court records filed Nov. 19 in the Southern District of New York, prosecutors’

As a burgeoning industry less than 13 years old, cryptocurrency has seen its fair share of regulatory crackdowns and changes, especially in the United States. Jake Yocom-Piatt, co-founder of Decred, however, sees the nation as the most crypto-friendly. “Cryptocurrencies are treated as personal property in most jurisdictions, so their tax treatment is relatively uniform,” Yocom-Piatt

Per a Friday announcement, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, or OCC, is looking for public comments on rule-making that would stop banks from denying services to businesses based on sector. In the words of Comptroller Brian Brooks, “Blanket boycotts of entire industry sectors have to stop.” The OCC’s announcement points to political

Every once in a while, the crypto community crowns a new king for secure transactions, and thelatest king seems to be multiparty computation, or MPC. This year, MPC adoption by custodial and noncustodial players has progressed and gained market traction at a rapid pace. However, it could come at a price. MPC providers offer regulators