The China state-owned media outlet, the Economic Daily, has signaled that the Chinese government may introduce even tighter regulations on cryptocurrencies and stablecoins due to the collapse of the Terra ecosystem. In an article published May 31, the outlet detailed the collapse of TerraUSD (UST) and LUNA, explaining the workings of the algorithmic stablecoin. It used the so-called black swan event to praise the Chinese government’s decision to ban cryptocurrency. “My country has been cracking down on virtual currency trading speculation and a large number of trading platforms,” reporter Li Hualin wrote before adding, “this has effectively blocked the transmission …

Australian consumer advocacy group CHOICE has called on the federal government to provide better protection for crypto investors while submitting a proposed regulatory framework for cryptocurrency exchanges operating in the country. The regulatory framework was submitted in response to the federal Treasury’s consultation paper for crypto asset secondary service providers, or CASSPs, defined as firms providing custodial crypto wallets and exchange services. CHOICE commented: “As it stands, enforceable protections in the unregulated cryptocurrency market are somewhere between negligible and non-existent.” Outlining four main areas in its framework, the group called for a single definition of crypto for better regulation, a …

The collapse of the Terra ecosystem, which subsequently depegged its algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD (UST) value and crashed it to an all-time low of $0.30, has cast doubt over the future of not just algorithmic stablecoins but all stablecoins in general. UST’s success and stability were intertwined with its sibling, LUNA, which creates arbitrage opportunities that, in theory, should keep UST’s price steady. If UST’s price drops below $1, it can be burned in exchange for LUNA, which lowers the supply of UST and raises its price. Conversely, if UST’s price goes above a dollar, LUNA can be burned in exchange …

The World Bank has signaled its concerns over the Central African Republic (CAR) adopting Bitcoin (BTC) as a legal currency and says it won’t support the newly announced “Sango” crypto hub. At the end of April, CAR president Faustin-Archange Touadéra established a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency in the country and adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender. On May 24, he announced a plan to launch the country’s first crypto hub called “Sango.” Sango is described as the country’s first “crypto initiative” — a legal hub for crypto-related businesses encompassing economic policies including no corporate or income tax and the creation …

The regulation of cryptocurrencies across the world is a constant battle for investors in a rapidly expanding and constantly changing ecosystem. Various regulatory agencies around the world view digital assets in a different light that vary significantly from one another. Recently, executive board member of the European Central Bank (ECB) Fabio Panetta mentioned in a written statement for a speech to Columbia University that regulators should follow a globally coordinated approach while regulating digital assets. He said that the world should have digital assets regulated by the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) rules of the …

In April, the United Kingdom’s Economic and Finance Ministry, also known as Her Majesty’s Treasury, announced its intention to put the United Kingdom at the forefront of technology by bringing stablecoins under the country’s payments regulation — a bold move that looks especially intriguing in contrast to the recent shock, caused by TerraUSD’s (UST) depegging. Later, in May, during the annual Queen’s Speech, Prince Charles informed the Parliament about two bills that will support “the safe adoption of cryptocurrencies” and “create powers to more quickly and easily seize and recover crypto assets.” Taken together, these initiatives give an impression of …

Self-sovereignty is a core principle in the cryptocurrency space: Investors need to rely on a trustless, decentralized network instead of a central entity that has been known to devalue the holdings of others. One shortcoming associated with self-sovereignty, however, is inheritance. An estimated 4 million Bitcoin (BTC) has been lost over time and now sits in inaccessible wallets. How many of those coins belong to HODLers who passed away without sharing access to their wallets with anyone else is unknown? Some believe Satoshi Nakamoto’s estimated 1 million BTC fortune hasn’t been touched for this very reason: No one else had …

Sarah Pritchard, the executive director of markets at the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, or FCA, reportedly said that the regulator will look at the recent volatility in the crypto markets when creating rules for the space in 2022. According to a Friday Bloomberg report, Pritchard said the financial regulator will “absolutely” take into account stablecoins like TerraUSD (UST) and Tether (USDT) depegging from the United States dollar in drafting regulatory guidelines with Her Majesty’s Treasury for release later this year. While the USDT price only briefly dropped to $0.97 on May 12, UST has fallen more than 93% since …

Laurentino Cortizo, the president of Panama, has said he won’t sign off on a crypto bill recently approved by the country’s National Assembly without additional Anti-Money Laundering rules. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Latin America conference on Wednesday, Cortizo said the bill recently passed by Panama’s legislature must go through legal checks before reaching his desk, but added he needed more information before potentially signing it into law. Describing the legislation as an “innovative law” and a “good law,” the president said he approved of certain aspects of the bill but hinted at possible illicit uses of cryptocurrencies …

Fallout from the collapse of the Terra ecosystem continues to unfold with the United States-based yield generation application Stablegains facing potential legal action over its losses from the event. Users believe that Stablegain has allegedly lost up to $44 million worth of deposited funds, based on a post on a Terra forum by co-founder Kamil Ryszkowski asking for relief funding. He disclosed that a day before TerraUSD (UST) had lost its peg with the U.S. dollar, its users’ funds totaled over 47.6 million UST from 4,878 depositors. Currently, the price of UST is trading at $0.075, according to data from …

Indian crypto businesses are struggling with the new tax policies as trading volumes have dried up and many established crypto firms are looking to relocate to more crypto-friendly jurisdictions. While many developed countries and even several of its Asian counterparts are actively studying and formulating better crypto regulations, the Indian government has maintained a “blockchain, not crypto” stance. It might seem like the government is taking a cautionary step to focus on the underlying technology while keeping its distance from the volatile and risky crypto market. However, going by the recent policies and statements from the finance minister as well …

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has created a “crypto native think tank” in an attempt to help shape the global conversation around policies for digital assets. The newly formed Coinbase Institute will also publish research on crypto and Web3. Coinbase tapped its director of policy Hermine Wong to head the institute. She previously served in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and before that worked at the Department of State. The related Coinbase Institute Advisory Board has also been formed and will feature academics across law and finance from top universities such …