The U.K. outline of the future financial services regulatory regime for crypto covers a broad range of topics, from the troubles of algorithmic stablecoins to nonfungible tokens and initial coin offerings. And it’s certainly good news for the industry, as the upcoming regulation doesn’t propose a ban on algorithmic stablecoins or excessive requirements on data sharing for digital asset operators. The Australian consultation paper on “token mapping” is a foundational step in the government’s multistage reform agenda to regulate the market. Based on the “functional” and technology-neutral method, the paper proposes several basic definitions for all things crypto. Its taxonomy …

John Ray, who took over as chief executive officer of crypto exchange FTX, has described some of the chaotic experiences at the firm following the company declaring bankruptcy. In testimony for FTX’s case in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on Feb. 6, Ray said he and other professionals had “carefully” been conducting an investigation into FTX’s activities, due to the company having no physical office. The FTX CEO seemed to be pushing back against a motion to assign an independent examiner to the bankruptcy case, claiming that “inadvertent errors” could result in “hundreds of millions …

Troubled cryptocurrency lending firm Hodlnaut is reportedly working with several potential investors to sell its business and other assets. A number of potential buyers have inquired about purchasing Hodlnaut and its claims against the collapsed crypto exchange FTX, Bloomberg reported on Feb. 6. Hodlnaut’s interim judicial managers have received multiple proposals to acquire its Singapore-based crypto business after the company sought protection from creditors. Citing an affidavit, the report notes that the judicial managers are now in the process of signing non-disclosure agreements with the potential investors. The affidavit reportedly indicated that as of Dec. 9, Hodlnaut Group owed a …

FTX's new management is seeking to recover political donations made by Sam Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives until February 28, according to a statement disclosed on Feb. 5. The move is part of bankruptcy proceedings and an effort to repay the crypto exchange creditors. According to FTX attorney Andy Dietderich, the defunct firm has “recovered $5 billion in cash and liquid cryptocurrencies” by Jan. 11. Total liabilities amount to nearly $9 billion. As noted in the statement: "FTX Debtors are sending confidential messages to political figures, political action funds, and other recipients of contributions or other payments that were made …

Google Cloud has reportedly invested $300 million into artificial intelligence (AI) startup firm Anthropic, which also happened to receive over $500 million in funds from former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried about six months before FTX catastrophically collapsed. While the $300 million figure was reported by Financial Times on Feb. 4, Anthropic confirmed the investment partnership with Google Cloud on the same day despite not disclosing any figures: We're excited to use Google Cloud to train our AI systems, including Claude! https://t.co/IaqQ5lpJrP https://t.co/vOn5Cj4sPt — Anthropic (@AnthropicAI) February 3, 2023 In the same announcement, Anthropic also confirmed that they previously raised capital …

A property linked to Sam Bankman-Fried's political spending was pulled off the market by the seller as a sign of "good faith" after being linked to FTX customer funds, the Wall Street Journal reported. The townhouse - located a few blocks from the United States Capitol, in the Capitol Hill neighborhood - is owned by Guarding Against Pandemics, a nonprofit organization established by Gabriel Bankman-Fried, brother of the bankrupt exchange's former CEO. In court filings from January, FTX's new management claimed that customer funds were misappropriated to purchase the property for $3.3 million. The Guarding Against Pandemics pulled the listing …

United States lawmakers with the Senate Banking Committee have scheduled a second hearing exploring the impact of a crypto market crash. In a Feb. 3 announcement, Senate Banking Committee chair Sherrod Brown said senators would convene on Feb. 14 in a hearing titled ‘Crypto Crash: Why Financial System Safeguards are Needed for Digital Assets’. The hearing will come two months after lawmakers met and discussed the collapse of crypto exchange FTX in a Dec. 14 hearing. As the second hearing scheduled for the Senate Banking Committee following the start of the 118th session of Congress, there will be some changes. …

Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX has acknowledged a recent spate of third-party scams and frauds aimed at swindling its already-embattled customers. On Feb. 3, FTX issued an alert to its customers regarding recent attempts by fraudsters to scam their customers, including asking them for money, fees, payments or account passwords. “We are aware of active third-party scams and frauds seeking to take advantage of FTX customers,” the company warned. FTX added that its debtors and agents will never ask customers to pay fees or provide account passwords in connection with the “return or prospective return of customer assets,” and encouraged potential …

The Australian government is bolstering its market regulator's digital asset team as part of a “multi-stage approach” aimed at clamping down on crypto and ensuring proper risk disclosures from crypto firms. A Feb. 2 joint statement by Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones explained that the new measures are aimed at protecting consumers dealing with cryptocurrency. The treasurers said the multi-stage approach would involve three elements, including strengthening enforcement, bolstering consumer protection, and establishing a framework for its token mapping reform. This is why we're taking action on crypto. pic.twitter.com/17HG5nhsTz — Stephen Jones MP (@StephenJonesMP) February 2, …

Crypto bank Silvergate is reportedly being probed by the United States Department of Justice fraud unit over its involvement with the bankrupt FTX exchange and its affiliates. The probe is investigating Silvergate’s hosting of accounts linked to former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s businesses, according to “people familiar with the matter” as reported by Bloomberg on Feb. 3. The California-based crypto bank is not accused of any crime, but investigators are attempting to discover how deep the dealings with FTX and Alameda went. Silvergate was heavily impacted by the collapse of FTX in November, reporting a $1 billion loss last quarter. …

Nearly $13 million has been moved into the consolidation wallet of bankrupt crypto trading firm Alameda Research in just 24 hours, revealed data from blockchain security firm PeckShield on Feb. 2. The address received $6 million in Tether (USDT) and $2.5 million in Ether (ETH) from crypto exchange Bitfinex’s hot wallet, along with $4.5 million worth of USD Coin (USDC) from an anonymous source and 30,000 Lido tokens worth roughly $65,500. #PeckShieldAlert ～$13M worth of cryptos have been transferred to Alameda consolidation-labeled address, including ~6M $USDT & 1,545 $ETH ($2.5M) from Bitfinex, ~4.6M $USDC from 0x7889 Wondering why Bitfinex transferred …

Solana decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Everlend Finance is closing down its operations and urging clients to withdraw funds from the platform. The company announced the decision on Twitter on Feb. 1, stating that despite having "enough runway" to continue operating, it would be a gamble under current market conditions. In particular, Everland's team noted: "Unfortunately, rn liquidity is just not there and this is so not just about Solana and the B/L market (on which Everlend is 100% dependent) keeps shrinking. In these conditions pressing forward is a gamble. And even though we had enough runway, we decided to stop …