• Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong considers China’s digital payments industry an ‘ambitious adversary’.
• The CFTC issued a digital asset clearing warning and a member of the agency calls for rulemaking.
• Binance is considering allowing investors to hold collateral in banks.
Coinbase CEO’s Opinion on China’s Digital Payments Industry
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong recently stated that he considers China’s digital payments industry an ‘ambitious adversary’. He believes that China has made a significant effort to stay ahead in the global fintech race, with its payment processing systems becoming increasingly more sophisticated over time and the country developing several major projects such as Alipay and WeChat Pay.
CFTC Warning and Agency Member Calls for Rulemaking
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued a warning about digital asset clearing activities. A member of the agency also called for rulemaking to ensure proper implementation of regulations pertaining to cryptocurrency trading platforms.
Bybit Exits Canada
Bybit, one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, recently announced its exit from Canada due to regulatory uncertainties in the country. Bybit was one of many other crypto exchanges who have exited Canada in recent months due to unclear regulations and increasing scrutiny from Canadian regulators.
SEC Settles Coinbase Insider Trading Scheme Charges With Wahi Brothers
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settled charges against two brothers for allegedly engaging in insider trading related to Coinbase’s initial public offering (IPO). Vikas Wahi and his brother Gaurav Wahi were accused by SEC of using their prior knowledge about Coinbase’s plans to go public when they purchased shares before its IPO announcement last April 2021. The SEC has now reached a settlement with them requiring them to pay back all profits gained from their illegal trades plus interest.
Binance Considers Allowing Investors To Hold Collateral In Banks
Binance is exploring the possibility of allowing some of its institutional clients to hold their trading collateral for margin trading at banks instead through a tri-party agreement between Binance, FlowBank, and Bank Frick located in Switzerland or Liechtenstein respectively. This arrangement would enable Binance investors access money market funds which could be used as compensation for lending stablecoins as margin trading collateral while also earning interest on deposits held at the bank itself. However, no final decision has been made yet regarding this proposal by Binance so far.