Court Slams Crypto Trader—And the CFTC’s Power Just Expanded A federal appeals court just handed the CFTC a major win against a crypto trader, ruling that his unregistered business violated federal law and that the agency has the authority to pursue such claims. The decision in CFTC v. Donelson signals that commodity regulators can target…
Crypto Worker’s Children Held Hostage in Latest French ‘Wrench Attack,’ $46,000 Taken A crypto worker in France was targeted in a so-called wrench attack, in which criminals use physical threats or violence to force someone to surrender digital assets or access to them. In the latest incident, the worker’s children were reportedly held hostage while…
Court Slams Coinbase’s SEC Challenge in One Sentence The Third Circuit Court of Appeals today refused to force the SEC to answer Coinbase’s petition for crypto-specific trading rules, effectively telling the exchange that courts cannot order regulators to write new policy. In one terse sentence the panel dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction, signaling…
Ethereum Price Clears $2,700 Behind Two Whales Pouring $106M Into ETH Ethereum traded above $2,700 for the first time since Jan. 31 after two large holders committed a combined $106.4 million to ETH over the past five days, according to the provided snippets. The move came as Ethereum stabilized above a closely watched technical support…
Zcash targets November upgrade to make private payments up to three times faster Zcash is targeting a November upgrade designed to improve the speed of its private payments. The change aims to make transactions process up to three times faster. The upgrade would focus on the performance of private payments, which are designed to protect…
The orange tie stays: Michael Saylor responds to venture capitalist’s bitcoin obituary Michael Saylor has responded to a venture capitalist’s description of bitcoin as effectively finished, signaling that he does not share that assessment. The exchange centers on the long-running debate over bitcoin’s durability and relevance. While the venture capitalist characterized bitcoin in obituary-like terms,…
Bitcoin’s price has cleared a key hurdle that has historically preceded major bull runs Bitcoin has moved above a key price threshold that has historically preceded major bull runs, marking an important development for the market. The significance of the move lies in its historical pattern. Similar breakouts have previously occurred before extended periods of…
Clarity Act, we hardly knew ye: What was in the bill, and what’s replacing it The U.S. effort to pass a sweeping crypto market structure law has stalled, leaving regulators to fill the gap with agency rules and guidance that were originally meant to be anchored by statute. The legislation in question, the Digital Asset…
How the Clarity Act’s Defeat Handed the SEC and CFTC the Wheel on Crypto Efforts to pass the U.S. CLARITY Act have stalled in the Senate, leaving crypto market structure policy increasingly in the hands of regulators. With Congress unable to finalize the bill, both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures…
KALSHI WINS ROUND ONE AS CFTC LOSES CONTROL A federal appeals court just refused the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s emergency bid to block election contracts on the Kalshi exchange, handing the agency a sharp setback in its effort to wall off political betting from regulated markets. The D.C. Circuit’s October 2 order leaves Kalshi’s contracts…
COURT BLOCKS TEXAS SEIZURE OF ENVY BLOCKCHAIN ASSETS Texas appeals court halts a lower court order that had frozen millions in crypto-mining hardware, handing Envy Blockchain a critical reprieve in its fight to keep assets out of state hands. The Eighth Court of Appeals in El Paso granted mandamus relief to Envy Blockchain, NV LandCo…
COURT HAMMERS CFTC OVER KRAFT DOCUMENTS The Seventh Circuit just slapped the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for trying to hide its own files from the very company it once accused of manipulating wheat markets. Kraft and Mondelez won a narrow but telling victory: judges ordered the agency to turn over internal communications and memos that…
COURT SNAPS SHUT BILZERIAN’S 23-YEAR LOOPHOLE A federal judge in Washington just closed the final escape hatch for notorious 1980s raider Paul Bilzerian, ruling that he and his family trusts can’t file new lawsuits without first clearing a legal gatekeeper. The decision matters because it hands the SEC a permanent enforcement lever over anyone who…
COURT SLAPS SEC ON WRISTS IN MAJOR CRYPTO CASE The Supreme Court just delivered a gut-punch to the SEC’s aggressive enforcement campaign against crypto exchanges, ruling that the agency cannot simply label every digital asset a “security” without proving it meets the economic reality test established in Howey. The decision, handed down yesterday, effectively curbs…
Scammers Use Fake USDT Tokens to Steal From Venezuelan Merchants Scammers in Venezuela are exploiting widespread stablecoin usage by paying merchants with counterfeit USDT tokens that have no real value, according to reports circulating in the local crypto community. The scheme targets merchants who accept USDT through self-custody wallets. In these cases, the merchant believes…
CFTC’s Conway Ruling: Seventh Circuit Hands Regulator a Sharp New Tool The Seventh Circuit just sided with the CFTC in a decision that could reshape how regulators police crypto-linked futures and margin calls. By ruling that the Conway Family Trust must post margin on its Bitcoin futures positions, the court quietly expanded the agency’s reach…
Robert Kiyosaki Says ‘Biggest Crash in History’ Has Started, Backs Bitcoin Robert Kiyosaki has warned that what he describes as the “biggest crash in history” has begun, while continuing to support Bitcoin. The statement links his broader concerns about economic conditions with a favorable view of Bitcoin. However, no further details were provided on the…
SEC Drops Appeal in Major Crypto Suit: Court Leaves Classification Question Unresolved The Fifth Circuit quietly ended the SEC’s appeal in a high-stakes crypto case on April 17, leaving the core legal question—whether certain tokens are securities—untouched. The agency simply withdrew, signaling it may prefer to fight elsewhere rather than risk an adverse precedent in…
Regal Commodities v Tauber: New York Court Hands Commodity Traders a New Shield New York’s Appellate Division just told commodity brokers they can’t collect on oral promises when the customer never signed the risk-disclosure forms the law requires. The decision hands retail traders a new defense and puts brokerages on notice that handshake deals will…
Arthur Hayes Calls CLARITY Act “Nonsense” as Bitcoin Tops $80K Arthur Hayes has criticized the CLARITY Act, describing the legislation as “nonsense” as Bitcoin rose above $80,000. Hayes’ comments place renewed attention on the debate over how digital assets should be regulated. The CLARITY Act is referenced in connection with that broader policy discussion, while…
