Last Week in Crypto May 20-26 Top Crypto News You Might Have Missed
What a week we have experienced between May 20 and 26, right? We probably have not seen such a carousel of events since BTC ETFs launched and Bitcoin hit a new all-time high.
The good, the bad, the surprising, and the concerning all met and reached new heights last week, leaving us with so much to discuss.
Thus, lets get started!
Table of contents
Top Crypto News
Last weeks top crypto news focuses on Ethereum ETFs (Spoiler alert: Yes, they were approved!), a new crypto bill, and a recent milestone for Bitcoin.
The US SEC Approved Ethereum ETFs
Summary
The US SEC (finally) has approved the sale of spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds on multiple exchanges.
Details
The US Securities and Exchange Commission approved the sale of spot Ethereum ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds) on May 23, 2024. The long-awaited decision was made by combining proposals from multiple prominent exchanges, including Nasdaq, NYSE, and CBOE.
This decision marks the second of its kind in the SECs case. On January 10, 2024, the US Securities and Exchange Commission approved the trading of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds after months of discussions and negative sentiments regarding the final decision.
Things were not easy for ETH ETFs, either. Several popular asset managers applied for spot Ethereum ETFs, while the SEC postponed its decision for multiple months. However, it is essential to note that the decision was made without Gary Genslers positive vote, as he voted against the proposals.
Source: Forbes
Bitcoin Hit $70,000 (Again)
Summary
Bitcoin recently hit $70,000 again, after more than 1 month since it reached a new all-time high.
Details
Bitcoin has passed the $70,000 mark for the first time since April 12, when it reached this price for the first time ever. After the new milestone, crypto liquidations also surged, with short positions dominating the market.
The recent rise of Bitcoin to over $70,000 came after a US Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed that inflation was not as high as some expected for last month.
Source: Decrypt
The US House Approved the FIT21 Crypto Bill
Summary
The US House of Representatives approved the FIT21 crypto bill, with 279 votes in favor and 136 against, sending it to be discussed in the US Senate.
Details
The US House of Representatives voted 279-136 to approve the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act. This approval marks the first major crypto-related bill to be cleared by Congress, and it is now heading to the US Senate.
The FIT21 bill aims to create a comprehensive federal framework for regulating digital assets and to establish jurisdiction between the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) and the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission).
The bill would also provide the criteria required to determine the status based on a projects level of decentralization, token supply, who it is owned by, and the blockchains susceptibility to influence by a single party.
The SEC and CFT are currently in a food fight for control of this asset class. Theyve created an impossible situation where the same firms are subject to competing and contradictory enforcement actions by the two different agencies, leaving consumers behind, leaving innovators behind. FIT21 fixes this, stated House Financial Services Committee (HSFC) Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-SC), one of the bills co-sponsors.
Source: Crypto Daily
Top Crypto News DeFi
The DeFi sector offered us pretty much to talk about since we have last discussed the crypto space, and the top events involve Grayscale and Worldcoin.
The CEO of Grayscale Stepped Down
Summary
Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein resigned and will be replaced by former head of strategy for asset and wealth management at Goldman Sachs, Peter Mintzberg.
Details
Asset investment firm Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein resigned after 10 years at the company. He became CEO in 2021. The former CEO will be replaced by Peter Mintzberg, a veteran in traditional finance (TradFi).
According to a statement by the asset investment firm, Peter Mintzberg, who was head of strategy for asset and wealth management at Goldman Sachs, will replace Sonnenshein as CEO of Grayscale on August 15, 2024.
Barry Silbert, CEO of Digital Currency Group, Grayscales parent company, stated, Michael guided the firm through exponential growth and oversaw its pivotal role in bringing spot Bitcoin ETFs to market, leading the way for the broader financial industry.
In January 2024, Grayscale was among the top applicants for a spot Bitcoin ETF, and since then, its Bitcoin exchange-traded fund has grown surprisingly and aims to continue its positive path.
Source: CoinDesk
Worldcoin Was Ordered to Stop Operations in Hong Kong
Summary
Hong Kong ordered Worldcoin to stop operations after it found that the project was collecting iris and facial data in the jurisdiction.
Details
Hong Kong authorities ordered the Worldcoin Foundation to cease all operations in the jurisdiction after they found the project contravened local privacy regulations.
According to a statement offered by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) in Hong Kong, the Worldcoin Foundation had collected facial and iris data from at least 8,302 users during its operations in the region.
The Hong Kong PCPD conducted 10 covert visits at 6 Worldcoin locations in December 2023 and January 2024. Afterward, it said that such information collection was unnecessary and excessive, contravening the requirements of the Data Protection Principles.
Source: The Block
Top Crypto News Regulation
With crypto crackdowns all over the world and various lawsuits in discussion, for last week, we will focus on a settlement for Genesis, a fine for NYSEs parent company, and an unexpected and concerning event in a Nigerian court.
New York AG Reached a Settlement with Genesis
Summary
The New York attorney general established a $2 billion settlement with bankrupt crypto company Genesis.
Details
New Yorks attorney general reached a $2 billion settlement with bankrupt crypto lending company Genesis Global over allegations that it had defrauded thousands of investors.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US in January 2023 and received court approval last week to return approximately $3 billion in cash and cryptocurrency to its customers in a liquidation.
The New York attorney general, Letitia James, announced a victims fund established through the settlement to help defrauded investors. According to James, the Genesis settlement was the largest one the New York state ever reached with a cryptocurrency company.
Source: The Guardian
The SEC Fined NYSEs Parent Company for Failing to Report Cyber Attack
Summary
NYSE parent company ICE was fined $10 million after failing to report a security breach in time.
Details
The New York Stock Exchanges parent company was fined $10 million for failing to properly inform the US SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) of a 2021 cyber breach.
The SEC published an order saying that Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the NYSE exchange, will pay the penalty to settle charges it caused nine subsidiaries (including NYSE) to violate its Regulation Systems Compliance and Integrity (Regulation SCI) reporting rules.
According to the US SEC, ICE was notified that it might be subject to a VPN zero-day and discovered it had already been attacked using the vulnerability, but the company failed to report the breach within 24 hours, as required by the agency.
Instead, ICE took the VPN offline, dissected it, and waited days before notifying anyone outside its infosec team that the company and its subsidiaries may have been compromised.
Source: The Register
Binance Executive Collapsed in Nigerian Court
Summary
A Binance executive collapsed in a Nigerian court after feeling unwell since the previous trial date.
Details
Binance executive Tigran Gambarayan, currently detained in Nigeria, collapsed in the Federal High Court in Abuja during his trial for alleged foreign exchange violations and money laundering offenses brought by the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Mark Mordi, Gambarayans legal representative, notified the court before the trial date that the Binance executive had been unwell since the previous trial date and his state of health was still affected.
Tigran Gambarayan failed to appear in court for his arraignment on tax evasion charges brought by the Nigerian Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). Still, he made it to court on the money laundering charges, but he collapsed shortly after and needed assistance from his lawyer.
After Mordi sought an adjournment for his clients medical treatment, the Nigerian court set June 20 and 21 for cross-examination and the trial.
Source: Cointelegraph
Top Crypto News Markets
Last weeks markets were as volatile as anyone would expect during these times. But good things happened, and last week the UK FCA gave us something to discuss.
Bitcoin and Ethereum ETPs Started Trading on London Stock Exchange
Summary
The UK FCA approved the sale of BTC and ETH ETPs, setting the date of May 28 to begin trading on LSE.
Details
The UK FCS (Financial Conduct Authority) allowed asset manager WisdomTree to list Bitcoin and Ethereum ETPs (Exchange-Traded products) on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
The FCAs approval for BTC and ETH ETPs comes with some quite strict conditions to ensure their integrity and security. To be eligible for approval, the exchange-traded products must be denominated in BTC and ETH, physically backed, and non-leveraged.
The BTC and ETH ETPs will start trading on May 28 and will be available to professional investors only, at least for the moment.
Source: BSC News
Top Crypto News Altcoins
We would like so much to come with good news in the altcoins section. Unfortunately, it is time to remember the good times when the doge meme appeared and commemorate Kabosu, the dog behind the iconic meme.
The Doge Meme Dog Passed at 18
Summary
Kabosu, the dog that inspired the doge meme and the Dogecoin meme cryptocurrency, passed away at approximately 18 years old.
Details
Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog behind the doge meme, passed away at 18 after approximately 14 years of online fame. The dogs owner, Atsuko Sato, said, She quietly passed away as if asleep while I caressed her.
Kabosu had been suffering from leukemia and liver disease and passed on May 24, 2024. She was a rescue dog, so her birthday was unknown, but her age was estimated at around 18.
In 2010, two years after Kabosu was adopted from a puppy mill, Atsuko Sato took a picture of her pet crossing her paws on the sofa. This way, Kabosu became a meme that became the source of Dogecoin, one of the most popular meme coins ever launched and probably the first such cryptocurrency.
I think Kabo-chan was the happiest dog in the world. And I was the happiest owner, stated Ms. Sato.
Kabosu also had a statue of her, and her sofa crowdfunded by Own The Doge, a crypto organization dedicated to the meme, unveiled in a park in Sakura in November 2023.
Source: BBC
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