SEC settles charges against TrueCoin, TrustToken over TrueUSD 

The securities regulator claims the token is undercollateralized and its backing funds are in a risky overseas investment.

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Bitfarms and Riot Platforms Reach Settlement Agreement

Bitfarms Ltd. and Riot Platforms Inc. announce a settlement agreement ahead of the Special Meeting of Bitfarms Shareholders, with significant changes to the Board of Directors. (Read More)

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Riot Platforms Announces Settlement Agreement with Bitfarms, Board Changes Enacted

Riot Platforms and Bitfarms Ltd. reach a settlement agreement, resulting in board changes and withdrawal of a shareholder meeting requisition. (Read More)

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SFC Achieves Landmark Settlement for Combest Holdings Shareholders

The SFC has secured a groundbreaking settlement to compensate public shareholders of Combest Holdings Limited, marking a significant regulatory milestone. (Read More)

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eToro US to cease nearly all crypto trading following SEC settlement

The trading platform agreed to pay $1.5 million as part of the settlement with the SEC.

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BREAKING: XRP Price Rallies 27% As Ripple Secures Major Win In SEC Lawsuit

In just one hour, the XRP price rallied 27% to a one-week high of $0.6406 on Wednesday after Judge Analisa Torres ordered Ripple Labs to pay only $125 million of the $2 billion fine sought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the blockchain payments company after a four-year legal battle.  Ripple’s Legal Victory In the ruling, the court, applying a test derived from the Supreme Court, determined that Ripple’s Institutional Sales constituted offers or sales of investment contracts.  However, the Court differentiated Ripple’s Programmatic Sales and Other Distributions, finding that they did not fall into this category. Additionally, the Court clarified that the individual sales conducted by Ripple co-founders Chris Larsen and Brad Garlinghouse did not qualify as offers or sales of investment contracts for reasons akin to those outlined for Ripple’s Programmatic Sales. Related Reading: Bitcoin Funding Rates Turn Negative: Shorts Turn To Get Squeezed? When deliberating on the penalty, the Court concluded that a first-tier penalty was fitting in this instance, noting the absence of allegations related to fraud, deceit, or manipulation, along with the lack of established deliberate or reckless disregard for regulatory requirements.  Moreover, the Court noted that the SEC had not proven that Ripple’s failure to register the Institutional Sales resulted in significant losses or risks to investors.  Consequently, the SEC’s motion for remedies and the entry of final judgment were partially granted and partially denied. The Court’s decision mandates an injunction against Ripple to prevent future securities law violations and imposes a civil penalty amounting exactly to $125,035,150. In this regard, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse stated that the court reduced the $2 billion penalty sought by the SEC by 94%, recognizing that the SEC had “overplayed their hand”. Garlinghouse further stated, This is a victory for Ripple, the industry and the rule of law. The SECs headwinds against the whole of the XRP community are gone.  XRP Price Predictions Point To Mega Bull Run With XRP not considered a security by the court, the tokens price saw one of its best rallies of the year in a matter of hours, surpassing Monday’s pre-market crash price resulting from global economic uncertainty.  Related Reading: Analyst Says Bitcoin Bottom Is Not In, Will Price Crash Below $50,000 Again? Further demonstrating the bullishness of this development, crypto analyst CrediBULL contends that now that Ripple secured this win, the stage is now set for an inevitable mega run for the XRP price. Another analyst under the pseudonym “360 Trader” on social media platform X, also claimed that now the XRP’s “chains are off,” arguing that the XRP price will fly this cycle with a target ranging between $4 and $8.  Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com

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SEC and Ideanomics settle crypto revenue reporting fraud charges

According to the report, all parties involved have agreed to settle the charges without admitting or denying the SECs findings

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Bank of England to experiment with wholesale CBDC, synchronization

The BOE is considering applying DLT to its existing settlement system and introducing a wCBDC.

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XRP Rises as New SEC Meeting Date Leads to Ripple Settlement Speculation

XRP embarks on a major price recovery as community members speculate that the upcoming SEC closed-door meeting could lead to…

The post XRP Rises as New SEC Meeting Date Leads to Ripple Settlement Speculation first appeared on The Crypto Basic.

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Terraform Labs to reopen Shuttle Bridge, destroy LUNA tokens

These developments indicate TFLs proactive efforts to tackle Terras challenges and restore trust and stability within the ecosystem.

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XRP Massive Limitations: BIS Caps Bank Holdings at 1%

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has laid down new rules for banks holding Group 2 cryptocurrencies like XRP. Known as the bank for central banks, the BIS sets standards and fosters cooperation among global financial institutions. Group 2 assets, as defined by the BIS, include unbacked cryptocurrencies such as XRP, Bitcoin (BTC), and Ethereum […]

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FTX and CFTC Settle 19-Month Lawsuit for $12.7 Billion, Pending Court Approval

FTX, a bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange, and the United States CommoditiesFutures Trading Commission (CFTC) have agreed to a $12.7 billion settlement.This agreement resolves a 19-month lawsuit. The settlement follows months ofnegotiations and now awaits court approval, as shown in a July 12 filing.

Settlement Includes Restitution

The CFTC sued FTX, its former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, and FTXs sistertrading firm Alameda Research in December 2022. The lawsuit claimed the firmcommitted fraud and made misrepresentations by marketing FTX.com as a digitalcommodity asset platform.

The settlement agreement includes $8.7 billion in restitution and $4 billionin disgorgement. The CFTC did not seek a civil monetary penalty. FTXacknowledged, Given the conduct, guilty pleas, and convictions of the FTXInsiders, the Debtors face very substantial potential liability to the CFTC.The commodities regulator is the most significant single creditor" inChapter 11 bankruptcy cases, FTX added.

The Proposed Settlement is an integral and valuable component of theDebtors proposed chapter 11 reorganization plan, said Commodity FuturesTrading Commission senior trial attorney Carlin R. Metzger and FTXs CEO JohnJ. Ray III. It resolves ongoing litigation and disputes with one of thelargest creditors of the Debtors, avoids the cost and delay of furtherlitigation, and mitigates a significant risk of diminution of the assetsavailable for distribution to creditors.

FTX and CFTC agree to $12.7 billion settlement following months of negotiations https://t.co/18sLFikd7Y

Settlement Hearing Scheduled August 6

A hearing on the settlement is set for August 6 in the Bankruptcy Court forthe District of Delaware. FTXs proposed reorganization plan would see a 118%return for 98% of the creditors with claims under $50,000, based on the USdollar value of asset prices at the time of FTXs bankruptcy filing in November2022.

Many FTX creditors have expressed apreference for a cryptocurrency payout in-kind, considering the markets 166%increase in market cap since FTXs bankruptcy filing. Creditors are currentlyvoting on their preferred payout method. They have until August 16 before USBankruptcy Court Judge John Dorsey makes a final decision on October 7.

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State Street eyes blockchain leap with stablecoin, deposit token: Report

The global asset manager may be on its way to the forefront of settlement technology.

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Pro-XRP Lawyer Debunks Ripple-SEC Settlement Rumor For Tomorrow

A rumor claiming a potential settlement between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) scheduled for a closed meeting on July 18 has been debunked by former SEC regional director and pro-XRP lawyer, Marc Fagel. According to Fagel, the likelihood of a settlement being discussed in this particular meeting is highly improbable, despite the community’s hopeful speculations. Ripple-SEC Settlement Is Highly Unlikely The rumor was initially fueled by Brett Hill, an ambassador for the cryptocurrency exchange Bitrue, who suggested via the social media platform X that the SEC’s private meeting might finalize the long-standing legal battle between Ripple and the regulator. Hill cited “reliable sources” and pointed to a screenshot of the SEC’s official meeting announcement, which, however, did not explicitly mention the Ripple case. Related Reading: Expert Foresees XRP Soaring To $250: Technical Analysis Explained Reacting to the speculation, Marc Fagel humorously commented on X, saying, I mean, they’ve had about 150 of these nearly-weekly meetings since the case was filed, and Crypto Twitter was convinced a settlement was being discussed at every one of those meetings, but this is DEFINITELY the one! [Narrator: It’s not the one.] According to the SEC’s announcement, the meeting’s agenda will cover topics such as the institution and settlement of injunctive actions, administrative proceedings, resolution of litigation claims, and other matters related to enforcement proceedings. Although the agenda does include topics that could theoretically encompass a settlement with Ripple, there is no direct evidence to suggest that this is planned for discussion. In contrast, another pro-XRP lawyer, Fred Rispoli, has outlined a potential future date, July 31, for a possible resolution, albeit noting that a “pre-judgment settlement is unlikely.” Rispoli’s prediction includes a possible penalty not exceeding $25 million for Ripple, without any disgorgement. Related Reading: XRP & Litecoin See Social Media FOMO: Bad Sign For Prices? The SEC has been engaged in a legal tussle with Ripple since December 2020. Following the summary one year and 4 days ago, both parties are currently waiting for a remedy and penalty ruling by Judge Analisa Torres. The SEC is pursuing a penalty of $102.6 million against Ripple, markedly lower than the almost $2 billion initially demanded. Ripple has suggested capping the penalty at $10 million, citing the Terraform Labs case as a precedent. Nonetheless, the SEC has dismissed this proposal in its reply brief, stating that such a minimal amount would not align with the objectives of civil penalty statutes. XRP Price Gains Momentum Over the past 12 days, the price of XRP has surged from $0.38 to over $0.61, marking a 61% increase. Although Bitcoin spearheaded the broader recovery in the cryptocurrency market, XRP has emerged as one of the top performers during this period. While no specific news can be directly linked to this price movement, the favorable technical chart setup for XRP, along with potential influence from settlement rumors, have likely contributed to the significant uptick. At press time, XRP traded at $0.61551. Featured image from YouTube, chart from TradingView.com

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Galaxy tokenizes violin to secure loan, NFT sales volume tumbles: Nifty Newsletter

NFTs recorded a 54% drop in sales volume, from over $1 billion in April to $624 million in May.

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Private firms to join global central bank CBDC project

As Project mBridge enters its MVP phase, the BIS is inviting private sector firms to propose new solutions and use cases to further develop and showcase the platforms potential.

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MicroStrategy and Michael Saylor settle tax case for $40M

In August 2022, Michael Saylor faced allegations of tax evasion. He has since reportedly made the largest income tax fraud settlement in the history of the District of Columbia.

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Abra, CEO Barhydt settle with 25 US states over licensing violations

Other states can join in the settlement, which will see up to $82.1 million returned to customers.

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Big banks rush in to test ECBs wholesale distributed ledger tech

The new participants in the European Central Banks DLT tests include major financial institutions.

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Terraform Labs to end operations, Terra community will take over

Terraform Labs is ceasing operations after a $4.47 billion settlement with the SEC, transferring control of the Terra blockchain to the community.

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