Despite some good signs of recovery in crypto prices, the past week could hardly be called a bright one for the market, as the major news came from law enforcement, not regulators. According to a New York Times report, the United States Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) investigated the crypto exchange Kraken for allegedly allowing users based in Iran and other countries to buy and sell crypto in potential violation of US sanctions.
In the other hemisphere, the Filipino think tank Infrawatch PH filed a twelve-page complaint calling on the local Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to crack down on Binance’s activities in the country. The news comes shortly after the Philippine Department of Commerce and Industry (DTI) backed down from a proposed Binance ban in early July, citing a lack of regulatory clarity, as one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges indeed still does not hold a license in the Philippines.
These developments constitute an alarming trend, given the ongoing investigation by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in alleged trading in securities not registered by Coinbase. Michael Bacina, an Australian digital asset lawyer at Piper Alderman, told Cointelegraph that the impact on exchanges could occur whether or not the tokens ultimately turn out to be securities. And that would be serious and chilling for these exchanges and token projects.
Cathie Wood Sells Coinbase Stock Amid Insider Trading Allegations
One of the largest shareholders in cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has sold a massive amount of shares due to an investigation reported by the SEC. Cathie Wood’s investment firm, Ark Investment Management, sold a total of more than 1.4 million Coinbase shares, or 0.6% of the exchange-traded fund’s (ETF) total assets. Based on the closing price on the day of the sale, the value of the shares sold was just over $75 million.
No US stablecoin bill until September
Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have reportedly pushed back the deadline for considering a bill addressing the potential risks of stablecoins. According to a Wall Street Journal report, people familiar with the matter said House members would likely delay voting on a stablecoins bill until September after they were unable to complete a bill in time for a committee meeting. Unresolved issues in the bill would have included provisions on Treasury Department custody portfolios and SEC concerns.
IMF suggests dark clouds ahead for crypto
The IMF’s July World Economic Outlook update titled “Gloomier and more uncertain” points to “higher-than-expected inflation” and a contraction in global output as indicators of weak economic growth ahead. And, unfortunately for the crypto industry, in that sense it is still strongly tied to the global financial market – the report cites the crypto bear market as one of the global macro factors.