The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
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Ridgewood NJ, in September of 2022 MeWe announced plans to become the world’s largest decentralized social media platform. MeWe, a 20-million-user global social network, is doubling down on its values of privacy and putting control in the hands of its users by integrating groundbreaking decentralized technology.
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Ridgewood NJ, SEC Chair Gary Gensler faced criticism from lawmakers regarding his crypto regulation approach during a House hearing. He was questioned about the classification of bitcoin, how that compared to other assets like Pokemon cards, and the approval of bitcoin ETFs. Lawmakers also expressed concerns over Gensler’s transparency with Congress, especially regarding interactions with crypto exchange FTX.
Continue reading Congress Puts SEC Chair Gary Gensler Under the Gun
Blockchain technology is gaining popularity in every industry. This has significantly changed how companies interact and run in numerous ways, and the betting industry tops the list regarding this game-changing technology. The issues that have existed for years are taking on new forms as a result of the revolutionary force. Bettors can now enjoy more anonymity while trying their luck at crypto betting sites. Here is how blockchain’s arrival has favored the betting industry.
Continue reading How Blockchain Technology is Transforming the Betting Industry
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Ridgewood NJ, a US federal court ruled that the SEC acted unfairly in denying Grayscale’s request to turn its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust product into an ETF. The long-awaited decision gave a big boost to prices across the board in the crypto market and even to crypto-related public equities like Coinbase. While the ruling was favorable, it still doesn’t guarantee immediate ETF approvals. Not only does this help Grayscale’s case as it tries to launch an ETF, but it also likely increases the chances that the spot BTF applications from TradFi giants like Blackrock and Fidelity will go through as well.
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Newark NJ, a former New Jersey corrections officer was arrested today for orchestrating two different fraud schemes, including a cryptocurrency scheme that resulted in losses of more than $600,000, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
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Ridgewood NJ, in a significant breakthrough, Ripple won a longstanding dispute with the SEC, with a US judge ruling that Ripple didn’t breach federal securities law by trading its XRP token on public platforms. However, the SEC claimed a small victory, as Ripple’s XRP sales to institutional investors were considered unregistered security sales. Ripple’s CEO deemed the ruling to be a considerable win for the broader industry. The ruling sparked a wave of green in the crypto market, with crypto prices rocketing up.
Continue reading “This is a big deal”, Ripple Labs notches landmark win in SEC case over XRP
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Consumer Affairs today announced action taken by the Bureau of Securities to stop Abra, a California-based crypto company, and its associated entities from violating New Jersey’s Uniform Securities Law in connection with the sale of interest-bearing crypto accounts that have raised over $116 million nationwide, including from investors with nearly 300 New Jersey-based accounts.
Coinbase also charged for the unregistered offer and sale of securities in connection with its staking-as-a-service program
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Washington D.C., June 6, 2023 —The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Coinbase, Inc. with operating its crypto asset trading platform as an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The SEC also charged Coinbase for failing to register the offer and sale of its crypto asset staking-as-a-service program.
Charges include operating unregistered exchanges, broker-dealers, and clearing agencies; misrepresenting trading controls and oversight on the Binance.US platform; and the unregistered offer and sale of securities.
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Washington D.C., June 5, 2023 —The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Binance Holdings Ltd. (“Binance”), which operates the largest crypto asset trading platform in the world, Binance.com; U.S.-based affiliate, BAM Trading Services Inc. (“BAM Trading”), which, together with Binance, operates the crypto asset trading platform, Binance.US; and their founder, Changpeng Zhao, with a variety of securities law violations.
Continue reading SEC Files 13 Charges Against Binance Entities and Founder Changpeng Zhao
file photo SEC Chair Gary Gensler
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Ridgewood NJ, Coinbase has responded to the SEC’s Wells notice, asserting that they have not changed since being allowed to go public two years ago and still do not list securities. They seek SEC compliance to register for listing securities in the future. Coinbase makes clear that it will continue building its platform, seek legislation from Congress, and request SEC rulemaking for clearer crypto regulation.
Continue reading Coinbase Responds to the SEC’s Wells Notice asking for Clearer Crypto Regulation
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Ridgewood NJ, crypto markets whipsawed in dramatic fashion yesterday. The day started out with crypto rising sharply on strong earnings in the stock market. BTC then experienced a dramatic crash, dumping from $30,000 to below $28,000, retracing the day’s gains in a single hourly candle. Liquidations neared $200 million over four hours. Although the exact cause is unconfirmed, crypto news alerter “db” reported Mt. Gox and U.S. government wallets making transactions. Market intelligence platform Arkham responded but later deleted their reply, clarifying that the alert was due to a bug fix. After this was confirmed, Bitcoin then regained some ground, marching up above $29,000 again.
Continue reading Wild Day for Bitcoin Traders Amid Unconfirmed US Government Dump Rumors
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Washington DC, Tuesday’s hearing showed “a chasm a mile wide” between the Chairman and the experiences of American businesses, says Sheila Warren, CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler faced a barrage of criticism from House Republicans over his agency’s crackdown on cryptocurrency trading platforms.
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Bloomfield NJ, an Essex County, woman today admitted her role in fraudulently inducing victims to invest over $25 million in cash and cryptocurrency, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
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Ridgewood NJ, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced it has filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois charging Changpeng Zhao and three entities that operate the Binance platform with numerous violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and CFTC regulations. The complaint also charges Samuel Lim, Binance’s former chief compliance officer, with aiding and abetting Binance’s violations.
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Ridgewood NJ, Cryptocurrency fugitive Kwon Do-Hyung, also known as Do Kwon, was reportedly arrested yesterday by officials in Montenegro as he attempted to travel through the capital city of Podgorica’s airport with falsified documents. His detention comes almost one year after the company he cofounded, Terraform Labs, collapsed, leading to the loss of billions of dollars in digital currency markets last year.
