| Bitcoin | $36,565 | 7 day: +7.6% | | Ethereum | $1,416 | 7 day: +31.1% | | All crypto | $1.04T | 7 day: +12.8% | | Bitcoin dominance | 65.1% | 7 day: -3.2% | Prices as of 4:45 p.m. EST
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I am aware of the viral post about Tether and the implications of its ongoing $1.4T lawsuit. This lawsuit is the largest in cryptocurrency history and, indeed, among the largest lawsuits in human history. Although I have covered developments regarding this lawsuit for months here at Inside Cryptocurrency, I am looking into this important story. Fake volume on exchanges funding real cash withdrawals is a story that stretches across the full arc of cryptocurrency history ⏤ trillions of dollars transacted over a decade. When something happens that is larger than the entire market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies, readers of this newsletter can trust that I am paying attention! Although the blog post is interesting, it covers only part of the whole story. Stay tuned for a future report on this all-encompassing topic. | |  Aaron |  |
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 AliPay Chinese media reports that Alibaba's affiliate, Ant Financial, is conducting small-scale tests of China's CBDC via its mobile payment app, AliPay. Ant Financial was days away from a $310B IPO before Xi Jinping reportedly disappeared its founder, Jack Ma. - Terminology: Chinese fiat has three interchangeable names: renminbi (RMB), Chinese yen (CNY), and yuan (¥). The People's Bank of China (PBoC) issues China's central bank digital currency (CBDC) called "digital yuan'' or its preferred name, Digital Currency/Electronic Payment (abbreviated DC/EP or DCEP).
What happened: - According to some Chinese media outlets, Ant Group recently completed a digital yuan test within Shanghai's Lujiazui financial district via its AliPay mobile app.
- The news reports suggest that AliPay users utilized DCEP in two bubble tea stores within a shopping center in Lujiazui.
- Alibaba's (NYSE:BABA) Ant Group says that it will follow the rules established by the People's Bank of China during its digital yuan tests.
- In addition to tea stores, Shanghai Tongren Hospital staff report testing DCEP since Jan. 5. They used a smart card to buy beverages and food from the cafeteria in an offline environment.
- Ant Group's founder Jack Ma is currently missing amid scrutiny by the Chinese government.
The Block Crypto 
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The U.K. Court of Appeal will allow Craig Wright's libel case to proceed against Magnus Granath, who questioned Wright's claims about being Satoshi Nakamoto on Twitter. The court confirms jurisdiction to hear the libel suit, case number A2/2020/0367. More: - On Jan. 18, The Court of Appeal (Civil Division) in London granted Craig Wright, a computer scientist who asserts himself as the inventor of bitcoin, to file a libel case against Magnus Granath (@hodlonaut) for defamation.
- Magnus Granath's lawyers had attempted to convince The Court of Appeal to stay the case in order to allow a related case to proceed in Norway. However, based on Article 27 of the Lugano Convention treaty, two British appellate court judges ruled that the Norwegian court proceedings do not sufficiently resemble English proceedings, denying that jurisdictional plea.
- This decision nullified the English High Court's previous decision, which dismissed Wright's appeal due to Granath's Norwegian court proceedings.
- Using his Twitter account by the name of Hodlonaut, Granath disputed Wright's claims of being Satoshi Nakamoto.
- In May 2020, the Court of Appeal dismissed a similar lawsuit against podcaster and investor Peter McCormack, who said Wright falsely claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto.
- Since 2015, the Australian entrepreneur has unconvincingly attempted to definitively prove that he and his deceased colleagues created bitcoin.
Law360
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 SolidX Management LLC has sued VanEck in New York state court alleging breach of contract to create its proposed bitcoin exchange traded fund (ETF) using SolidX technology. - SolidX Management LLC sued VanEck Securities Corporation, cutting long-standing ties between the companies that have been co-applying for SEC approval of a bitcoin ETF since 2018.
- The two companies, both located in Manhattan, also collaborated on a non-ETF financial product called the VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust, which later gained some approvals for institutional, private placement offerings.
- According to the lawsuit filed by SolidX earlier this month, VanEck abruptly terminated a contract to build and register a rival product, using SolidX's work.
- The suit suggests that SolidX Management LLC aimed to obtain SEC's approval first but chose to partner with VanEck, which has minimal expertise in bitcoin and digital assets, yet a good brand and credibility.
Law360
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A judge sentenced Steve "Li" Chen to ten years of prison for defrauding investors and promoting a cryptocurrency-related gemstone scam worth $147M. - A U.S. District Judge issued a 10-year federal imprisonment sentence for Steve Chen, a.k.a. "Boss" of Bradbury and other aliases like "Li," who defrauded investors out of $147M in an extensive Ponzi scheme.
- Li Chen acted as the owner and chief executive of U.S. Fine Investment Arts, Inc. (USFIA) and six other companies (registered to USFIA's Arcadia address), according to the Dept. of Justice's statement.
- Chen issued "Gem Coins," a cryptocurrency backed by non-existent assets.
- Between July 2013 to Sept., Chen falsely advertised USFIA as a multi-level marketing company that extracted gemstones from non-existent mines throughout the U.S.
- Chen misled 72,000 investors into buying USFIA investment packages worth between $1,000 to $30,000 each, garnering about $147M from his victims with promises of luxury cars, travel, and accommodations in the Los Angeles area.
- Chen also committed tax evasion, for which the judge ordered him to pay $1.8M to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
- Chen's subordinate, Leonard Stacy Johnson, pled guilty in July 2019 for evading taxes and lying on immigration documents.
- Steve Chen also pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges and tax evasion on Feb. 19, 2020.
- The court assigned a receiver to maintain a liquidation process for Chen's victims.
Law360
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 Dubai The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has released a regulatory framework for digital assets in its 2021-2022 business plan. - Dubai's financial regulator has announced plans for 2021-2022, including regulatory changes concerning digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and tokenized securities.
- Its 16-page "Digital Assets Regime" describes how the DFSA will enhance regulations of digital asset issuers and digital asset trading platforms.
- A local news report dated Jan. 18 suggests that the regulators would initially release two consultation papers and accept public comments and feedback on new regulations.
- Nearby Abu Dhabi, which conducts a significant amount of commerce with Dubai, has issued its own cryptocurrency rules for participants in its financial center, Abu Dhabi Global Market.
The Block Crypto
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- Trading services provider BCB Group partnered with Seychelles-based Huobi exchange to allow customers using its OTC platform to settle transactions in euros and British pounds through its "BLINC network."
- The recent weekly threat report by the U.K's National Cybersecurity Council (NCSC) claims that around 4M bitcoins worth roughly $146B remain inaccessible.
- During an interview with the Cambridge House International Inc., the 22nd prime minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, expressed his doubts concerning the U.S. dollar, saying that alternatives such as central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are inevitable.
- The Shenzhen Municipal People's Government completed a second run of a city-wide digital yuan test. Municipal authorities claim to have distributed $3M to 100,000 residents over ten days as of Jan. 17, according to local media.
- The New York Police Department (NYPD) released a document describing the impact of cryptocurrency analysis tools that collect, process, or share data regarding cryptocurrency transactions.
- A digital asset management company with $4B in assets under management (AUM), CoinShares, will launch an exchange-traded product (ETP) for bitcoin on SIX Swiss Exchange under the symbol "BITC" in collaboration with Ledger and Nomura Holdings Inc. (8604.T). The companies' joint venture is known as Komainu.
- An underground marketplace for stolen credit cards named "Joker's Stash" is closing. Revenues across the market reached $1B, according to research from Jan. 15.
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 |  | 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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