Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

SEC Investigates Whether FTX Investors Followed Due Diligence Procedures

According to reports, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has asked several FTX investors whether they did adequate research on the cryptocurrency exchange before becoming clients.　　Remember that the platform (considered one of the industrys behemoths) failed in November, triggering multi-billion dollar losses and rocking the entire market to its core.　　According to Reuters, before investing in FTX, the American financial regulator requested information from several firms regarding their due diligence processes.　　The SECs investigation attempts to establish why investors chose the crypto platform and whether they used any techniques at all.　　The review does not imply that such businesses are the targets of the investigation into FTX and its former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF).　　However, it may imply that investment funds and venture capital businesses exposed to the exchange may face regulatory scrutiny despite being considered victims of the alleged swindle.　　Previously, US officials sought information from FTX investors regarding their interactions with the companys executives.　　The fall of the trading platform is one of the worst chapters in cryptocurrency history. In November, the firm, which was previously valued at $32 billion, encountered serious liquidity troubles and refused to satisfy consumer withdrawal requests.　　It declared bankruptcy, and its former CEO, SBF, was arrested and detained in the

2023-01-08Deep Dive

FTX's US Leadership, Bahamas Liquidators Say They've 'Resolved' Most of Their Issues

According to a press release issued Friday, FTXs U.S. leadership and the companys Bahamas wings court-appointed liquidators have created a cooperation agreement covering how assets may be inventoried and disposed of, among other concerns.　　FTX Trading, the company behind the FTX.com exchange, declared bankruptcy in the United States last November, while FTX Digital Markets, based in the Bahamas, went into liquidation the same month. The joint provisional liquidators in the Bahamas and the leadership of FTX Trading in the United States had clashed in recent weeks, alleging interference with their respective proceedings and disputing over jurisdictional problems. When it filed for bankruptcy, FTX, which has dozens of subsidiaries and affiliated businesses, started a complex bankruptcy case with branches in multiple countries. So far, the United States and the Bahamas have taken the lead in actually moving through the bankruptcy procedure.　　Attorneys for FTX Trading urged a U.S. bankruptcy court judge that the liquidators should not have access to FTXs Amazon and Google cloud services or other IT tools.　　“We simply dont trust the JPLs to keep this information and not provide it to the Bahamian government,” Sullivan assets. The Bahamas Securities Commission reported last month that it had secured around $3.5 billion in

2023-01-08Deep Dive

Crypto Exchange Binance Not Unlikely to Fail, According to Bernstein

According to a study report released by Bernstein on Monday, Binance is solvent, liquid, and steady as evidenced by the exchanges and over $55 billion in confirmed cold wallet addresses.　　The report claimed that the cryptocurrency exchange could “pass the test of withdrawals,” as it had after $6 billion in client cash were taken on Dec. 13.　　The research continued, adding that the exchange had made clients whole amid hacking and regulatory issues. “Binances unassailable market leadership has not been an accident, it has a long history of doing right by the customer,” it said. Currently, the exchange controls nearly 75% of the worldwide cryptocurrency trading market.　　Bernstein claims that Binance has two difficulties. The corporation has an offshore holding company with its headquarters in the Cayman Islands, thus it is required to take “progressive steps moving towards an on-shore structure,” even at the expense of short-term revenue.　　Second, due to the closure of crypto exchange FTX, there is now a “virtual monopoly in global crypto trading”; nonetheless, this situation may lead to the emergence of rivalry from decentralized exchanges as investors shift their focus to self-custody and decentralized trading systems.　　Binance will keep looking for permits in many other countries. France, Italy, Spain, Canada,

2023-01-06Deep Dive

Huobi, a cryptocurrency exchange, will reduce personnel by 20%

With the current status of the bear market, a very lean team will be maintained moving ahead, Huobi said in a statement in response to questions from Reuters. “The planned layoff ratio is about 20%, but it is not implemented now.”　　The announcement supported a prior post from Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, in which Sun stated that Huobis “structural adjustment” has not yet begun and is anticipated to be finished by the first quarter.　　In an official message to Huobi personnel, Sun, a Chinese cryptocurrency pioneer who is also a part of the businesss worldwide advisory committee, said that despite the deteriorating macro climate, the company has been “a fire in the (crypto) cold.”　　In the previous three months, the site has attracted 20,000 new members on average each day, he continued.　　　　As per analytics platform CoinGecko, Huobi was listed as the eighth-largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of volumes as of late November.　　The restructure, according to Sun, will only cause “short-term discomfort” and may ultimately benefit the exchange. It wasnt immediately known how many employees Huobi has at the moment.　　Following the failure of FTX and a number of other bankruptcies last year, there are larger concerns regarding the resources and liquidity at

2023-01-06Deep Dive

Genesis Trading, a cryptocurrency lender, fires 30% of its employees.

20% of Genesis workers had previously been let go, and the CEO was changed in 2017. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is a part of Silberts crypto conglomerate. (GBTC) and mining firm Foundry were impacted by the 2022 market turbulence and the collapse of cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.　　Based on the insider, who requested not to be identified since the figures are private, about 60 jobs were cut. At this time, the company employs about 145 people. Within a day of interim CEO Derar Islim telling clients that Genesis required additional time to resolve its economic meltdown, the latest cut was announced.　　Prior to this, the Wall Street Journal covered the cuts.　　Soon after the demise of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX and its sibling hedge fund Alameda Research, Genesis hired bankruptcy experts. According to the Wall Street Journal, immediately after Alameda, a significant Genesis client, collapsed, Genesis requested an urgent loan of $1 billion. Genesis stopped all redemptions when FTX sought bankruptcy proceedings on November 11.　　The atonement freeze has brought criticism on Silbert. A Genesis customer and the head of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, Cameron Winklevoss, accused Silbert of using “bad faith” stalling strategies previously this week and urged that Genesis find

2023-01-06Deep Dive

Mutant Ape Planet NFT developer charged with fraud for selling ‘worthless asset’

On January 5, the Department of Justice for the Eastern District of New York unsealed a criminal complaint against Mutant Ape Planet developer Aurelien Michel, accusing him of scamming investors.　　Michel was arrested on January 4 at JFK Airport and will appear before a magistrate within 24 hours.　　This is the first time such charges have been filed in the Eastern District of New York against an NFT project.　　Furthermore, the complaint stated that “none of the promised benefits were supplied” to holders of Mutant Ape Planet NFTs. Instead, Michel allegedly failed to meet the projects timeline and diverted monies to his personal accounts. The complaint further described NFTs that did not provide the “promised benefits” as a “worthless asset.”　　Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, stated,　　“As alleged, the defendant engaged in a classic criminal plan to deceive people anxious to participate in a new digital asset market. All consumers and investors, especially those involved in the rapidly evolving market for NFTs and other crypto assets, are protected from fraud and manipulation.”　　Miche “falsely promised several prizes and benefits aimed to build demand for, and the value of, their newly acquired NFTs,” according to the allegations. Following the alleged

2023-01-06Deep Dive

A national cryptocurrency exchange will debut in Indonesia in 2023.

According to a Bloomberg article, Indonesia has declared intentions to launch a national cryptocurrency exchange in 2023. The government also intends to subject cryptocurrency to regulation examination by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).　　The Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, also referred to as Bappebti in Indonesia, is presently in charge of overseeing digital assets. Didid Noordiatmoko, the interim chairman of Bappebti, stated on Wednesday that the Indonesian exchange will be online by 2024, when the FSA will assume control of cryptocurrency regulation.　　The Indonesian government has made it clear that it views cryptocurrencies as a possible threat to its banking markets, even though this action appears to be largely supportive of the growth of cryptocurrency in the fourth most populous nation in the world. The central bank of Indonesia, Bank Indonesia (BI), published a white paper on December 1 outlining their strategy for a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC) in reaction to the increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies in the nation.　　　　“The future of the central bank is at a crossroads,” noted by BI Governor Perry Warjiyo. “Digital innovations may not only disrupt the banking system, but on a more pervasive scale, the possible disruptions on official currencies and central banking triggered by

2023-01-06Deep Dive

Crypto Lender Genesis Lays Off 30% More of Its Staff

Genesis Global Trading let off more staff on Thursday, a spokeswoman for the cryptocurrency trading firm revealed to WikiBIT in a statement.　　According to a source acquainted with the situation, Genesis laid off around 30% of its workforce, reducing it to 145 personnel. Genesis had laid off 20% of their 260-person workforce in August.　　The sales and business development departments have been particularly severely affected, according to the source.　　“As we negotiate unprecedented industry headwinds, Genesis has made the painful decision to cut its global staff,” a Genesis representative stated in a statement. “These steps are part of our ongoing efforts to advance our business. We truly appreciate the efforts of our brilliant and dedicated staff as we continue to seek the best long-term solution for Genesiss business, clients, and workers.”　　The layoffs came after the company informed its clients on Wednesday that it will be “cutting costs and driving efficiencies” amid a difficult environment for crypto firms.　　Genesis, a subsidiary of crypto giant Digital Currency Group, has suffered as a result of the worldwide market collapse caused by the failure of Sam Bankman-FTX Frieds exchange. Genesis disclosed in November that its derivatives division had $175 million in money that could not be withdrawn. Later,

2023-01-06Deep Dive

After "uncertainty", the cryptocurrency startup Juno advises customers to withdraw

Because of “uncertainty” over its crypto custodian partner Wyre, Juno, a supplier of fiat-to-crypto on-ramp solutions, has advised its customers to liquidate or self-custody the cryptocurrency on its platform.　　The company clarified in a tweet on January 4 that it relies on its “crypto partner” for those services and does not keep any cryptocurrency belonging to its users.　　“Due to uncertainty with our crypto partner, we have taken preemptive action in the interest of our customers,”　　It claimed that it is actively contacting customers to request them to take possession of their own property.　　It is believed that Wyre, a licensed money service company in the United States, is the “crypto partner” in question.　　According to reports, Wyre CEO Ioannis Giannaros told staff that the company “will need to unwind [...] over the next couple of weeks” earlier this week.　　Giannaros said in the email obtained by Axios that the company was “still running” but that it will be “cutting back to plan our next steps.”　　In its most recent Twitter thread, Juno stated that there were still $1.25 million worth of cryptocurrency funds owned on the service, and it has been contacting users to persuade them to take control of their investments themselves.　　Juno also converts stablecoins

2023-01-05Deep Dive

In light of the "imploding NFT market," Fanatic buys 60% of its shares in Candy Digital.

As trust in the investment portfolio dwindles, sports apparel manufacturer Fanatics is selling its shares in Candy Digital, a nonfungible token (NFT) startup.　　Fanatics, a sports company owned by Michael Rubin, was reportedly selling its 60% investment in the NFT startup on January 4.　　Fanatics, which was established in 2011 and is now estimated at $31 billion, is a well-known brand in sports merchandise and online shopping.　　However, the NFT industry has been severely impacted by the crypto bear market in 2022, and Rubins company appears to be aiming to move away from “standalone” NFT firms.　　According to CNBC, a group of investors led by Mike Novogratzs Galaxy Digital will buy a share in Candy Digital. Rubin stated in a message that was sent to the publication:　　“Over the past year, it has become clear that NFTs are unlikely to be sustainable or profitable as a standalone business.”　　According to him, selling off our stake in Candy Digital “enabled us to make sure investors were able to recuperate the majority of their investment via cash or new shares in Fanatics.”　　“Especially in a collapsing NFT market that has seen precipitous decreases in both transaction volumes and pricing for standalone NFTs,” he continued, this was a positive conclusion

2023-01-05Deep Dive

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