SEC Coming For Crypto | U.S. Crackdown | China Opening

SEC Authoritarian Shadow Enforcement Beginning To Show

Last year, the SEC bulked up its newly named Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit by 20 positions, signaling the enforcement push we’re seeing now. Setting aside the bulk of the agency’s crypto cases, which were chasing old-fashioned crooks stealing people’s money or pursuing a crackdown on so-called initial coin offerings, the list of consequential cases is still considerable.

The agency piled onto the litany of civil and criminal accusations against fallen crypto platform FTX by saying its exchange token, FTT, is an investment contract that should be in the hands of SEC oversight. The regulator then pursued cases against Gemini Trust and Genesis Capital for yield products it also considers securities (like BlockFi’s), and against Kraken, arguing the firm’s staking service fit that same bill. (Genesis is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, CoinDesk’s parent company.)

U.S. Digital Asset Crackdown Has Money Running

On Feb. 20, institutional crypto fund manager CoinShares reported that digital asset investment products saw outflows totaling $32 million last week, the largest outflow of the year.

The majority of those outflows, or 78%, were from Bitcoin related investment products and there was an inflow of $3.7 million to Bitcoin short funds. The firm blamed the regulatory crackdown for the increased outflows.

FBBA Special Notice

Web3 Day At The Capitol May 2nd 2023

The Florida Blockchain Business Association will be hosting its Third Annual Blockchain Day at the Capitol on May 2nd, 2023 in Tallahassee. Stay tuned as more information will be presented in coming news letters. If you are interested in attending please click here and type "Blockchain Day At The Capitol" in the message. This event is limited.

FBBA Featured Member

HeightZero Announces First State Approved Tokenization Real Estate Course - Florida Blockchain Business Association
Laura Pamatian, founder of Height Zero a expert advisory firm for blockchain and AI application in Real Estate and Development, has partnered with Joshua
fbba.io

In The Know

Former FTX Executive Nishad Singh Planning to Plead Guilty to Fraud: Bloomberg
Singh, the former engineering director for the collapsed crypto exchange, was a member of Bankman-Fried’s inner circle.
coindesk.com

Bitcoin Ordinals Can Lift the Entire Crypto Ecosystem
The arrival of the Ordinals Protocol, which allows for the creation of Bitcoin NFTs, has coincided with a big jump in the price of Bitcoin. Add that to the SEC's exemption of Bitcoin from the label of security, and we see a bullish bitcoin picture emerging.
coindesk.com

Green consumers want supply chain transparency via blockchain – Cointelegraph Magazine
The products we buy contribute to issues like forced labor and deforestation. Supply chain tracking can play a crucial role in the solution.
cointelegraph.com

Paxos is engaged in ‘constructive discussions’ with SEC: Report
Charles Cascarilla, chief executive officer of Paxos, reportedly said the firm was “engaged in constructive discussions” with the SEC and would continue to speak in private.
cointelegraph.com

Analytical Data

Pakistan Defense Minister acknowledges country has already gone bankrupt. Many of the country's biggest companies have halted operations due to forex shortages. The country faces a crippling economic crisis, with decades-high inflation and critically low foreign exchange reserves depleted by continued debt repayment obligations.

Bitcoin Is now worth more than Visa.

The Chinese central bank injected $92bn USD into the market on Friday!

On June 1st, 2023, Hong Kong will officially make crypto trading fully legal for all of its citizens

Events

Click here for events & meetups inFebruary 2023

Crypto News Heard Around the State

Tampa News

Chicago’s Fastest Growing Company, CoinFlip Prepares For Its Crypto Future
How the largest crypto company headquartered in Chicago is navigating these challenging times.
forbes.com

Orlando News

Orlando Mayor Offers 2,500 Open Positions To Build Metaverse In The MetaCenter | ARPost
Mayor Buddy Dyer has announced that there are 2,500 open positions in Orlando, all of which are intended to bring the metaverse to life in the nation’s MetaCenter.
arpost.co

Orlando: Driving Toward A Digital Future
Central Florida is emerging as a nucleus of the budding "metaverse" with unlimited potential to transform the economy—and much of life.
chiefexecutive.net

Miami News

Feds fine ex-NBA star $1.4M on crypto violations
NBA Hall of Famer Paul Pierce has agreed to pay about $1.4 million to settle charges that he touted EMAX tokens on social media without disclosing the payment he received
miamitimesonline.com

Miami’s Mayor Went All In on Cryptocurrency. His Constituents Suffered.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez made outlandish claims about the boon of MiamiCoin, but it's lost 99 percent of its value.
truthout.org

Disclaimer: Crypto Flo DOES NOT provide financial advice. All content is for informational purposes only. Crypto Flo is not a registered investment, legal, or tax advisor or a broker/dealer. Trading any crypto-related asset is extremely risky and could result in significant capital losses.