Top news this week
Coinbase Could Face SEC Enforcement Action For “Potential Securities Law Violations”
Coinbase cryptocurrency exchange received a notice from Wells from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) suggesting upcoming enforcement action. According to Coinbase, the “legal threat” could potentially target its staking program, listed digital assets, wallet, or Coinbase Prime services. The exchange's legal director, Paul Grewal, said the warning "comes after Coinbase provided multiple proposals to the SEC on registration over the course of months, to which the SEC ultimately refused to respond." Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase renewed calls for crypto users to "choose pro-crypto candidates" after development.
FTX debtors agree to $95 million sale of stake in Mysten Labs
As FTX bankruptcy proceedings progress, debtors of the defunct crypto exchange have approved a deal that seeks to sell $95 million of its preferred shares in Mysten Labs, the company behind the Sui blockchain. Court approval is still pending, as is the possibility of other offers for the shares. In a related headline, FTX seeks to recover $460 million of funds from allegedly embezzled clients of venture capital firm Modulo Capital, which received a sizeable investment from Alameda Research last year. The investment was reportedly led by Sam Bankman-Fried, who is facing multiple charges in federal court related to alleged fraud during his time as chief executive.
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Do Kwon faces fraud charges from US prosecutors hours after arrest
Just hours after being arrested in Montenegro, Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon was indicted on eight separate counts by United States prosecutors in New York, including commodity fraud, securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to defraud and engage in market manipulation. Kwon is also reportedly facing criminal charges in Montenegro for allegedly forging travel documents. South Korean prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Kwon in September last year, followed by an Interpol red notice weeks later. The charges brought against him relate to his alleged role in the collapse of the $40 billion Terra Luna Classic token and TerraClassicUSD stablecoin in May 2022.
Mastercard to settle transactions for stablecoin wallet in APAC
Mastercard is launching a stablecoin digital wallet integration to allow retail customers in the Asia-Pacific region to spend stablecoins pegged to the US dollar anywhere Mastercard is accepted. The international payment company plans to convert the USDC stablecoin into fiat currency and establish itself on its network by partnering with Australian stablecoin platform Stables. The service will initially be available to users based in Australia before expanding to Europe, the United States, the United Kingdom and most of Asia-Pacific.
Celsius Custodial Account Holders Can Receive 72.5% Of Their Crypto, Bankruptcy Judge Says
The judge overseeing the bankruptcy case for crypto lending company Celsius Network has approved a liquidation plan that allows custodial account holders to recover 72.5% of their crypto assets. Holders will have 30 days to review the terms. If they choose to participate, the assets will be returned in two distributions: 36.25% up front and 36.25% at the time of plan resolution (or at the end of the year). The extinct platform announced in February that NovaWulf Digital Management would act as sponsor for its restructuring plan, claiming that more than 85% of Celsius's clients would recover approximately 70% of their cryptocurrencies.
Winners and losers
At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) I sat down $27,157Ether (ETH) in $1,734 and XRP in $0.41. Total market capitalization is $1.15 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Mask Network (FACE MASK) at 24.22%, Flare (FLR) at 22.23% and XRP (XRP) at 11.89%.
The top three altcoin losers of the week are Arbitrum (ARB) to -89.76%, unchanged (IMX) at -25.82% and Toncoin (TON) at -15.12%.
For more information on cryptocurrency prices, be sure to read Cointelegraph Market Analysis.
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most memorable quotes
“What is happening in these months just proves that the bitcoiners and Bitcoin maxis were right all along.”
Paul ArdoinoTether CTO
“It's not crypto versus Goldman Sachs or crypto versus institutions. It's a race to see who can make crypto better."
Oliver LynchBittrex CEO
"Stablecoins will play a critical role in the new financial system and will be instrumental in bridging the worlds of traditional and decentralized finance."
daniel listables director of operations
“What central bank digital currency is all about is policing Americans and controlling American behavior.”
ron desantisGovernor of the US state of Florida
“Bitcoin was designed in reaction to Lehman Brothers in the 2008 crisis. It was designed because central authorities cannot be trusted.”
Pascal GauthierCEO of Ledger
“We are at grave risk of an entire strategic technology domain slipping away from American leadership.”
jeremy allaireCircle CEO
prediction of the week
Bitcoin Likely to Outperform All Crypto Assets Post-Banking Crisis, Analyst Explains
The banking crisis could be the spark that will kick off the next cryptocurrency bull run, in which Bitcoin is likely to outperform all other cryptocurrencies, according to Mike McGlone, a senior commodity strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence.
According to McGlone, the US Federal Reserve's unwillingness to ease monetary policy despite the banking crisis is driving the US economy into a recession. This macro environment will ultimately favor Bitcoin, which will outperform all other cryptocurrencies.
“The more Bitcoin can be sustained above $25,000, the more potentially pushing the S&P 500 below 4,000, you have an indication that Bitcoin is going to take off,” McGlone noted. “I think Bitcoin will outperform virtually all cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum,” he concluded.
FUD of the week
US Senator Ted Cruz tries again with a new bill to block CBDCs
US Senator Ted Cruz has introduced a bill to prevent the Federal Reserve from launching a "direct-to-consumer" central bank digital currency, as it "could be used as a financial surveillance tool by the federal government." According to Cruz, the federal government "has no authority to unilaterally establish" the digital dollar. Cruz introduced a similar bill with other senators on March 30, 2022, which seeks to prohibit the Fed from issuing a CBDC directly to individuals. Nearly 12 months later, the bill has still not passed the submission phase.
Hindenburg Research Reports Block Short Position, Alleging Fraud Facilitation And Inflated Metrics
A report after a two-year investigation. of Hindenburg Research claims that digital payments company Block has "systematically taken advantage" of its users, alleging that the company inflated its user metrics and facilitated fraud. According to the report, Block's practices allowed users to set up fraudulent accounts, catering to many criminals who used the platform to steal funds. Block called the report "factually inaccurate and misleading," stating that he intends to take legal action against the research firm.
European banks face another weekend of uncertainty as default risks rise
European banks faced another weekend of renewed fears about its future, when shares of Deutsche Bank plunged on the New York Stock Exchange on March 24, after a day of decline in the Frankfurt markets. The German bank's shares were hit by a rise in the cost of insuring against its potential default risk, with its five-year credit default swaps rising for the week and closing at 222 basis points on Friday. Fears about European banks are not limited to Deutsche Bank. European shares of Commerzbank, Société Générale and UBS also fell in European trading.
Best Cointelegraph Features
Best and Worst Countries for Cryptocurrency Taxes, Plus Cryptocurrency Tax Tips
Resident tax expert Elias Ahonen looks at the best and worst countries in the world for crypto taxes. Where are the US and UK located?
Creating 'organic' generative art from robotic algorithms: Emily Xie, creator of NFT
When creating generative artthe world just disappears for this Harvard grad living in New York.
US Enforcement Agencies Are Increasing Pressure on Crypto-Related Crimes
Recent high-profile allegations by the Department of Justice and collaborating agencies suggest that the federal government intends to aggressively pursue suspected cryptocriminals in the United States and abroad.
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