Bitcoin | $38,435 | 7 day: -0.5% | Ethereum | $1,181 | 7 day: -4.4% | All crypto | $1.03T | 7 day: -2.4% | Bitcoin dominance | 69.1% | 7 day: -0.1% | Prices as of 5:45 p.m. EST | |
Steven Mnuchin Sits Between Dignitaries The U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) conceded a delay of its Travel Rule expansion by several weeks. The language of the extension is quite specific: rulemaking will extend an additional 15 days for reporting transactions above $10,000, and 45 days for a requirement on certain recordkeeping and counterparty reporting requirements. More: - First submitted Dec. 18, the proposals requires cryptocurency exchanges like Coinbase, Kraken, Bittrex, Gemini, and other U.S.-based exchanges to store the name and address of customers transferring over $3,000 in cryptocurrencies per day to private crypto wallets.
- Exchanges must also file currency transaction reports for customers transactions over $10,000 per day in aggregate.
- We dedicated an entire edition to FinCEN's Travel Rule and its associated regulations in this previous edition of Inside Cryptocurrency.
Coindesk | |
Steven Mnuchin and Janet Yellen U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has just one week left to issue sign any paperwork regarding his ongoing digital currency regulation discussions with G7 finance ministers and central bank governors. Janet Yellen (pictured) will be Mnuchin's successor. Her senate confirmation hearing is scheduled for Jan. 19. More: - On Dec. 7, Treasury Secretary Mnuchin held his twelfth meeting with G7 members to discuss digital assets and cryptocurrencies.
- He has focused on the developments surrounding central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and the use of private cryptocurrencies for criminal activities.
- Central Bank Governors and Finance Ministers from Canada, France, Italy, Germany, the U.K, Japan, the Eurogroup, the European Commission, the head of the IMF, World Bank, and FSB have joined Mnuchin in these discussions.
- According to Mnuchin's office, G7 members support more transparent digital currency regulations.
U.S. Treasury | |
A message from CISCO WEBEX Steer clear of video meeting bombs and work more efficiently with the all-new Webex. Remote team collaboration is hard. Luckily, the all-new Webex’s security-first approach is designed to make remote teams more efficient. Think secure video calls free of meeting bombers, the ability to record and transcribe those sessions, and of course, messaging and calling too. Learn more | |
Cybercriminals were able to steal close to $3.8B in bitcoin — based on bitcoin values in mid-January 2021 — in 122 attacks last year, according to an analysis by Atlas VPN. The attackers targeted decentralized apps running on the Ethereum platform, cryptocurrency exchanges, and blockchain wallets. More from Atlas VPN: - The analysis used data provided by Slowmist Hacked, which aggregates data about disclosed attacks targeting blockchain projects, apps, and tokens.
- Around $3B was stolen from bitcoin wallets, $436M from Ethereum apps, and $300M from cryptocurrency exchanges.
- In addition, $10M was stolen from Tron apps, $5.9M from blockchains, and $2.8M from EOS apps.
This story first appeared in Inside Security. ZDNet | |
Riksbank, Sweden's Central Bank Swedish bankers are concerned about overnight repo markets and wholesale liquidity problems if the e-krona is adopted. Sweden's proposed central bank digital currency (CBDC) is the e-krona. More: - Sweden's Minister for Financial Markets and Housing, Per Bolund, Riksbank, commenced a central bank review of the e-krona, which will be completed sometime in 2022.
- According to a Reuters report, Swedish bankers' concerns have been growing since the e-krona's Feb. 2020 pilot, as Sweden is already among the world's least cash-dependent economies.
- By design, holders of e-krona could bypass commercial banks entirely and interact directly with the central bank.
- Many commercial bankers, such as Scandinavian Individual Bank CFO Masih Yazdi, expressed worries that e-krona might cause financial instability during "runs on the bank." As residents withdraw funds en masse from the CBDC and convert it to cash, those bills must be disbursed at physical bank branches.
- Similarly, banks require overnight repo markets, wholesale liquidity tools, and sophisticated institutional clearinghouses that do not exist in the CBDC ecosystem currently.
Reuters | |
Telegram app logo During the week of the Capitol building riot, 11.9M users downloaded the crypto industry's popular messenger app, Telegram. - Cryptocurrency played a not insignificant role in the events leading up to the riot on Jan. 6. Chainalysis reported on at least $500,000 of donations to alt-right celebrities the week prior to the riot.
- In June 2020, a judge ordered Telegram to return $1.2B to investors after the SEC charged it with an illegal securities offering targeting U.S. investors ⏤ one of the largest disgorgement orders in cryptocurrency history.
- Telegram is owned by Pavel Durov, a Russian citizen, and co-founded by Dr. Nikolai Durov, his brother.
Financial Times | |
QUICK HITS: - Was 2020 a rough year for you too? Send a Lift Up Note to appreciate someone who helped you get through it.*
- The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) published an updated fact sheet for Section 314(b) which clarifies safe harbors and liability protections for financial institutions sharing customer information to prevent money-laundering, terrorist activities, and other crimes.
- A group of hackers backed by a foreign government breached the U.S. Treasury Dept. last month and monitored internal email traffic. The U.S. government has resolved the issues and is attempting to identify the perpetrators.
- The U.S. Dept. of Justice issued a statement on the large-scale SolarWinds hack that affected multiple government agencies and involved access to Microsoft Office365 email accounts.
- President-elect Joe Biden plans to unveil a coronavirus stimulus package tonight that could be worth more than $1.9T.
- U.S-based Aegis Custody received a trust charter approval from the South Dakota Division of Banking.
- Did you know that shopping apps convert 3x more than responsive websites? Stay ahead of the competition and create yours with GoodBarber!*
*This is sponsored content. | |
| | Curated by Associated Press fanboy, eye-strained news terminal watcher, and bitcoin follower since $1, Aaron Wise. Temporarily listening to news squawk boxes in Florida while awaiting the construction of cryptopia. | | Editor | Charlotte Hayes-Clemens is an editor and writer based in Vancouver. She has dabbled in both the fiction and non-fiction world, having worked at HarperCollins Publishers and more recently as a writing coach for new and self-published authors. Proper semi-colon usage is her hill to die on. | |
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