New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a lawsuit against Alex Mashinsky, alleging the Celsius founder and CEO made numerous “false and misleading statements” which led to investors losing billions. In a Jan. 5 announcement, the New York Attorney General’s office announced the lawsuit, which allegedly involved defrauding more than 26,000 residents of the U.S. state out of billions of dollars worth of crypto. According to James, Mashinsky’s actions leading up to Celsius declaring bankruptcy contributed to investor losses by misrepresenting the platform’s financial condition and failing to personally register as required by state law. “As the former CEO …

A class action lawsuit has been filed against password management service LastPass following a data breach from Aug. 2022. The class action was filed with the U.S. district court of Massachusetts on Jan. 3, by an unnamed plaintiff known only as “John Doe” and on behalf of others similarly situated. It alleges that the data breach of LastPass has resulted in the theft of around $53,000 worth of Bitcoin. The plaintiff claimed he began accruing BTC in Jul. 2022 and updated his master password to more than 12 characters using a password generator, as recommended by the LastPass “best practices.” …

Effective regulations are one of the key gateways to cryptocurrency’s mainstream adoption. Due to greater compliance, crypto businesses saw broader acceptance from regulators worldwide. While the crypto ecosystem was awarded countless operational licenses and exposure to new markets, the fall of Terraform Labs, FTX and Celsius, among others, had a negative impact on the industry's reputation with investors and regulators alike. As we look back on 2022 and all it brought for the cryptocurrency industry, we're highlighting how the regulatory landscape has changed for cryptocurrencies and the blockchain industry as a whole. North America China’s blanket ban on crypto mining …

New York regulators announced on Jan. 4 that cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase will pay a $50-million fine and invest a further $50 million in its compliance program, following a settlement with the New York State Department of Financial Services. The fine was issued after regulators found the company had allowed customers to open accounts without conducting sufficient background checks, potentially violating anti-money-laundering laws. The company's failure to properly identify customers and monitor their activity for suspicious activity was initially identified during a routine examination in 2020, but regulator's determined that the company's problems persisted, leading to a formal investigation in 2021. …

The Israeli Securities Authority (ISA) proposes a framework for regulating digital assets as an increasing number of Israeli investors are exposed to digital assets, and over 150 companies operate in Israel, according to the regulator. The regulator released a proposal in January 2023, outlining its purpose to achieve the “double value” of responding to the risks associated with investing in digital assets alongside giving the authority means to adopt a regulation. The authority has established multiple committees over the past several years to examine and regulate the issuance of cryptocurrencies and promote the development of digital markets in Israel. The …

It’s no secret that the crypto market was gripped by bearish pressure for the entirety of 2022. However, amid all the volatility and chaos, many positive news stories appeared as well — especially regarding the global adoption of digital assets and crypto-related technologies in general. Looking back at 2022, here are some key adoption-related events that helped drive the industry last year. Polygon accrues 200 million addresses despite challenging 2022 Even though an air of financial uncertainty has shrouded the crypto market since the end of 2021, Polygon — a layer-2 scaling solution running alongside the Ethereum blockchain, allowing for …

Former FTX chief executive officer Sam Bankman-Fried has pled not guilty to all charges he’s facing including wire fraud, securities fraud, and violations of campaign finance laws. Multiple observers in the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York on Jan. 3 reported that Bankman-Fried’s attorneys had entered a not guilty plea on SBF’s behalf in his first court appearance since December. Bankman-Fried faces eight criminal counts which could result in 115 years in jail should he be convicted. Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon, one of the prosecutors in the case against the former FTX executive, reportedly …

When it comes to the “crypto” part of cryptocurrencies, David Chaum’s work predates the crypto ecosystem. His efforts as a renowned cryptographer date back to 1989, long before Bitcoin (BTC) was a thing. Chaum developed the protocols that act as the basis of DigiCash — the world’s first digital currency secured by cryptography. As the CEO of privacy-focused network developer Elixxir, David Chaum is working with the Swiss central bank to develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC) that could also attract the crypto ecosystem due to its privacy features. Named eCash 2.0, the new project aims to develop digital …

The legal team behind former FTX chief executive officer Sam Bankman-Fried has petitioned a court to redact certain information on individuals acting as sureties for his $250-million bond, citing threats made against his family. In a letter dated Jan. 3 filed to Judge Lewis Kaplan for the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York, Bankman-Fried’s legal team requested the court order “names and other identifying information” of two bail sureties not be disclosed to the public and redacted from bonds once they were signed on Jan. 5. Mark Cohen of the law firm Cohen & Gresser …

Many United States lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have at one point expressed support for legislation banning members from investing in stocks or crypto — an initiative the 118th Congress could address following a shift in leadership. Beginning on Jan. 3 as the next session of the U.S. Congress opens, Republicans will take control of the House of Representatives with a slim majority following the 2022 Midterms, while Democrats will maintain a majority in the Senate. Kevin McCarthy, a Republican representative in contention to be the next Speaker of the House, reportedly said in January 2022 he would …

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is reportedly cashing out large amounts of cryptocurrency soon after being released on bail, on-chain data suggests. SBF has cashed out $684,000 in crypto to an exchange in Seychelles while being under house arrest, according to the on-chain investigation by DeFi educator BowTiedIguana. Decentralized finance (DeFi) analyst BowTiedIguana took to Twitter on Dec. 29 to report on a series of obfuscated wallet transactions allegedly linked to SBF, suggesting that the former FTX CEO could have violated release conditions to not spend more than $1,000 without permission from the court. According to BowTiedIguana’s analysis, SBF’s public address …

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) may not be able to offset the two counts of wire fraud and six counts of conspiracy he faces with the credits to be received for entering a guilty plea instead of going to trial. Set to appear in court in the first days of January to enter a plea deal, Bankman-Fried is "unlikely to receive a favorable deal from prosecutors," argued Mark Kasten, counsel in Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney’s Blockchain and Crypto Assets practice group. Speaking with Cointelegraph, Kasten explained the government often requires defendants to assist in the prosecution of others in …