In the latest from U.S. Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) ongoing lawsuit against Telegram for its offering of Gram tokens, the commission bashes the messaging service’s blockchain and related token. In a lengthy filing with the court of the Southern District of New York the SEC responded to Telegram’s earlier motion for summary judgment. In it, the SEC disparaged the Telegram Open Network (TON) — Telegram’s blockchain — as well as the operation’s Gram (GRM) token. “Telegram Has Put Forth No Evidence Regarding the TON Blockchain’s State of Development at Launch,” the Jan. 21, 2020 document reads, adding, “Telegram Marketed …

Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of major encrypted messenger Telegram, argues that Apple’s cloud service iCloud is “now officially a surveillance tool.” Citing a Jan. 21 Reuters report, Durov claimed that applications like WhatsApp — which rely on iCloud to store private messages — are “part of the problem.” Telegram CEO delivered his verdict in a post on his official Telegram channel on Jan. 21: “iCloud is now officially a surveillance tool. Apps that are relying on it to store your private messages (such as WhatsApp) are part of the problem.” Apple dropped its end-to-end encryption plans for iCloud two …

The Blockchain Association has filed an amicus curiae brief in response to litigation against Telegram initiated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Blockchain Association, a collective of advocates involved with the blockchain industry, filed an amicus curiae brief with the court of the Southern District of New York on Jan. 21. An amicus curiae is an entity that does not participate in specific litigation, but has a right to advise the court regarding some matter of law directly concerning the lawsuit. Need for more clarity from the SEC In the letter, the association disputes the charges …

The Chamber of Digital Commerce has filed an amicus brief in the ongoing court case between encrypted messenger service Telegram and the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). Filed on Jan. 21, the document was authored by Lilya Tessler, a partner and the New York head of Sidley Austin LLP, counsel to the Chamber. In the amicus brief — a legal document that allows a non-litigant to submit its expertise or opinion in a case — the Chamber makes a number of arguments regarding how the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York should consider digital assets. …

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov gave a deposition regarding the company’s alleged violation of United States securities law by conducting $1.7 billion Gram token sale in 2018. In line with a relevant court order, the deposition was held on Jan. 7 and Jan. 8 before a court reporter designated by the court reporting service engaged by plaintiff represented by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). SEC uses the 18-hour deposition to continue grill Telegram on how it spent $1.7 billion According to the official transcript document, the deposition was held in Dubai and involved Telegram lawyer Alexander Drylewski and …

As the SEC lawsuit against Telegram Open Network (TON) forced it to postpone mainnet launch, working blockchain explorers are already available for the testnet. Blockchair announced the creation of a user-friendly alternative to Telegram’s own explorer. A stalled launch has not stopped blockchain explorers In 2018, TON raised more than $1.7 billion in a private initial coin offering (ICO). On a technological level, it aims to replace Bitcoin and Ethereum by featuring a transaction throughput that is reportedly competitive with Visa and MasterCard. As per its white paper, it will be a Proof-of-Stake network employing sharding technology to achieve high …

Telegram’s battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission became one of the most closely followed legal dramas of the crypto space in 2019. This was not only because it appeared to be the first time the Durov brothers’ relentless expansion faltered but also because the court case could have lasting implications for future fintech projects around the world. Although an initial court decision seemed to have allowed Telegram to maneuver around the request by the SEC to provide the company’s banking records, that decision has since been reversed. Telegram, however, confirmed that it would comply and issue the …

Liquid Exchange has canceled the sale of Telegram Open Network’s (TON) Gram tokens, according to a Jan. 10 company post. The exchange returned the funds of all investors who participated in the unofficial sale. The exchange reportedly canceled the sale due to the delay in the launch of TON’s mainnet. At the time of the sale in July 2019, it was believed that the network would be live on Oct. 31. However, the launch was impeded by the SEC’s investigation into the original Gram offering, which it argues was an unregistered sale of securities. Liquid’s terms of sale stated that …

The House Financial Services Committee has raised concerns over the use of cryptocurrencies to fund domestic terrorism in the United States. In a Jan. 15 hearing, the FSC Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy has examined how U.S. financial institutions can combat domestic terrorism, extremism and acts of hate. Titled “A Persistent and Evolving Threat: An Examination of the Financing of Domestic Terrorism and Extremism,” the hearing featured five witnesses reporting on various fundraising methods used by organized domestic extremists. Particularly, the officials and executives have outlined crypto as an important fundraising tool for hate crimes, emphasizing …

Telegram will release bank records that the United States Securities Exchange Commission believes will prove misconduct in the latter’s $1.7 billion offering of Gram tokens. International privacy laws and the new information Per a Jan. 13 filing with the court of the Southern District of New York (SDNY), Telegram will have until Feb. 26 to provide the court with the bank records that the court denied the SEC in an earlier ruling that was based on privacy concerns. Today’s ruling will allow Telegram to redact the information provided to the court in accordance with foreign privacy regulations. According to a …

The Securities and Exchange Commission is once again requesting that Telegram provide bank records on its Gram initial coin offering (ICO). The timing of the request, filed on Jan. 10, coincides with new evidence of alleged underwriters requesting commission fees for the sale of Telegram tokens. The reappearance of an earlier request The request for banking data comes four days after a similar filing was declined “without prejudice” — meaning that the SEC was free to try again. Telegram challenged the request arguing that doing so would be a violation of foreign data privacy statutes. The commission sought to refute …

Coming every Sunday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week Bitcoin on the verge of breaking seven-month downtrend It’s been another tumultuous week for the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, which is on the verge of breaking out of a long-running downtrend. Although BTC rallied to $8,400 a few days ago — which is the next resistance zone, according to analysts — prices have since retreated back …