Connect with us

Crypto

What is FTX? A gigantic, collapsed cryptocurrency exchange that has users fearing the worst

Published

on

What is FTX? A gigantic, collapsed cryptocurrency exchange that has users fearing the worst

NEW YORK — Simply days after cryptocurrency’s third-largest trade collapsed, the general public is beginning to get an concept of how messy FTX’s chapter case may very well be. Different crypto companies are failing because of FTX’s unraveling, occasions harking back to the domino-like meltdowns of the 2008 monetary disaster.

Customers remained frustratingly at midnight Tuesday about after they would possibly get their funds again, if in any respect, directing a lot of their anger towards FTX’s founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried.

In a courtroom submitting, FTX’s legal professionals mentioned there have been already greater than 100,000 claims towards the corporate and estimated that determine might develop to greater than 1 million, most of them prospects, as soon as the case is full. The courtroom ordered FTX to offer at the very least a listing of the corporate’s 50 greatest collectors by Nov. 18.

The legal professionals mentioned the corporate is involved with the Division of Justice, the Securities and Alternate Fee, the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee in addition to dozens of different state, federal and worldwide authorities, confirming earlier experiences that the U.S. authorities is probing the chance that Bankman-Fried and his lieutenants violated U.S. securities legislation.

FTX filed for chapter safety Friday, sending tsunami-like waves by the cryptocurrency business, which has seen a justifiable share of volatility and turmoil this yr, together with a pointy decline in worth for bitcoin and different digital belongings. For some, the occasions are harking back to the failures of Wall Road companies in the course of the 2008 monetary disaster, significantly now that supposedly wholesome companies like FTX are failing.

Advertisement

The Wall Road Journal reported that BlockFi, which had halted withdrawals over the weekend following FTX’s chapter, is now actively contemplating chapter and plans to put off its employees. In earlier public feedback, BlockFi’s administration made it clear that FTX’s failure had pushed the corporate in direction of being out of enterprise. FTX had offered monetary help to BlockFi this summer time, together with a $400 million credit score facility backed by its personal stability sheet.

“We’re shocked and dismayed by the information relating to FTX and Alameda,” BlockFi mentioned Saturday, referring to FTX and Bankman-Fried’s hedge fund Alameda Analysis. “Given the dearth of readability on the standing of FTX.com, FTX US and Alameda, we aren’t in a position to function enterprise as regular.”

One other crypto agency, crypto lending agency SALT Blockchain, additionally seemed to be on the verge of failure. The corporate Bnk to the Future pulled out of its settlement to purchase SALT, citing its publicity to FTX. In tweets, SALT’s CEO Shawn Oren mentioned he’s “totally dedicated nonetheless to get better from the damages as victims.”

In an indication of how fearful traders are that the cascading results might do long-term injury, cryptocurrency trade Binance proposed the creation of a rescue fund that might save in any other case wholesome crypto firms from failure. Binance’s founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao successfully laid out the opportunity of a crypto-like central financial institution or deposit-insurance pool to be a lender of final resort to maintain wholesome companies from failing.

In the meantime, FTX’s customers bemoaned their losses in Telegram discussion groups for merchants who used the FTX trade, writing that they’d misplaced entry to quantities starting from hundreds to hundreds of thousands of {dollars}.

Advertisement

Some pleaded for info. Others speculated on the probability of getting again their funds, whereas others recommended that they need to settle for that their investments had been gone.

Moderators for one group posted intermittently, saying issues like, “No demise threats please.” They wrote that they’d no details about the whereabouts of Bankman-Fried or what would occur to his firms.

“No information,” posted one moderator.

Lots of FTX’s customers pointed to Bankman-Fried as accountable, making puns on his title like “Sam Bankrun-Fried” and calling for him to be prosecuted.

On Tuesday, a support account for FTX US was responding on Twitter to posts from individuals asking about their funds and directing them to ship messages to the Twitter account to get help.

Advertisement

Mohit Sorout, 30, mentioned he has misplaced entry to 95% of the worth of his cryptocurrency holdings when FTX halted its companies final week, posting on Twitter, “The ache is f(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)ing actual.”

{An electrical} engineer primarily based between New Delhi and Dubai, he began buying and selling in 2017 and stop his job in 2018 to work full time buying and selling cryptocurrencies. Together with a enterprise companion, he constructed a customized algorithm, and grew an funding of a pair thousand {dollars} right into a sum many instances that measurement, although he didn’t wish to disclose the worth of his holdings when he misplaced entry to them.

It’s not clear what’s going to occur to the funds of retail traders like Sorout, that are locked inside the FTX ecosystem. His requests to withdraw the funds weren’t honored final week and now he can’t even log onto the trade, he mentioned on Monday.

Sorout didn’t intend to maintain all of his investments on a single platform, he mentioned, however the instruments that FTX had constructed for merchants like himself had been very efficient and his algorithm labored effectively there. He additionally trusted Bankman-Fried partly due to his excessive profile.

“The issue was the founder, who’s donating eight figures in presidential campaigns, he’s assembly with the highest bureaucrats, he’s sponsoring chess tournaments, he’s on the market sponsoring stadiums,” Sorout mentioned. “You don’t actually count on such an enormous enterprise, particularly the CEO of that enterprise, to defraud its prospects, you realize?”

Advertisement

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Crypto

Kenya Appoints Marathon Digital as Consultant for Cryptocurrency Regime and Mining Energy Needs

Published

on

Kenya Appoints Marathon Digital as Consultant for Cryptocurrency Regime and Mining Energy Needs

Last updated:

| 2 min read

Kenya Appoints Marathon Digital as Consultant for Cryptocurrency Regime and Mining Energy Needs

Kenyan President William Ruto announced a major policy shift in the country’s approach to cryptocurrency on May 3, revealing that his government has appointed U.S.-based Bitcoin mining company Marathon Digital as its consultant.

The move signals a departure from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and other government entities’ previously defiant stance on cryptocurrencies.

Advertisement

Marathon Digital to Collaborate with the Kenyan Government


The announcement was made during the AMCHAM Business Summit, where notable figures such as U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Kenya Investment and Trade Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano were present.

President Ruto explained that Marathon Digital will partner with the National Treasury and the Energy Ministry to address the energy requirements associated with cryptocurrency mining.

“Marathon Digital has been ushered to consult with the Treasury on the cryptocurrency regime and ministry of energy to discuss the energy needs in connection with the cryptocurrency mining,” stated President Ruto during the meeting with American investors.

Ruto’s decision departs from the previous cautious stance on crypto taken by institutions like the CBK under former governor Patrick Njoroge. Njoroge had strongly warned against crypto involvement, suggesting that considering Bitcoin as a reserve asset would be absurd. He even stated that he should be imprisoned if such a proposal were entertained.

Following Njoroge’s tenure, Kenyan authorities have shown a willingness to explore regulation of cryptocurrencies rather than outright prohibition. Collaborative efforts with organizations like the Kenyan Blockchain Association have been initiated to draft regulatory frameworks. The current government has also appointed a working group to develop a comprehensive regulatory and monitoring framework for virtual asset service providers.

Advertisement

Kenya Takes Strides Towards Cryptocurrency Regulation

Kenya’s crypto adoption momentum culminated in December 2023 when the Kenyan National Assembly’s committee approved the Capital Markets Bill. If passed into law, this bill would introduce taxation on cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets, mirroring the taxation framework applied to traditional banking transactions.

On April 23, NTV Kenya reported establishing a multi-agency working group tasked with developing rules and oversight for crypto, also known as virtual assets, and the entities dealing with them, such as Virtual Asset Service Providers.

Kenyan National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u disclosed the formation of this group to the National Assembly. He cited concerns raised by regulators regarding unlicensed virtual asset products and the findings of a Central Bank risk assessment. This assessment highlighted the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing associated with virtual assets.

Kenya’s 2022 anti-money laundering report further highlighted the need for regulatory measures, identifying virtual assets and virtual asset service providers as areas requiring attention. Additionally, Kenyan authorities uncovered suspicious M-Pesa withdrawals totaling at least $20 million in 2023, linked to the now-suspended iris-scanning project Worldcoin.

Advertisement

Continue Reading

Crypto

Why Self-Custody Is Vital for Bitcoin Security- Casa CEO Nick Neuman – Interview Bitcoin News

Published

on

Why Self-Custody Is Vital for Bitcoin Security- Casa CEO Nick Neuman – Interview Bitcoin News
Casa helps people store bitcoin and other digital assets by empowering them to own, secure, and manage their private keys safely and easily. Founded in 2016, the company helps its members take self-custody of their assets with multi-key vaults for greater protection against single points of failure, such as hacks, theft, and accidents. Nick Neuman […]
Continue Reading

Crypto

Russia's Crypto Clampdown: Tight Regulations Aim to Curb Cryptocurrency Activities – TokenPost

Published

on

Russia's Crypto Clampdown: Tight Regulations Aim to Curb Cryptocurrency Activities – TokenPost

Russia is poised to enact stringent regulations on cryptocurrency trading, aiming to curb the mass trade of digital assets like Bitcoin within its borders. This move, driven by geopolitical tensions and sanctions, signals a significant shift in the country’s approach to digital finance.


Russia’s Cryptocurrency Policy Shift: Centralized Control and Regulatory Uncertainties


In a recent report by CryptoPotato, the government’s decision to control the bitcoin industry is a significant step. Only miners and projects sanctioned by the Central Bank will be permitted to operate. Importantly, any creation of cryptocurrency exchanges and over-the-counter (OTC) services outside the experimental legislative framework will be deemed illegal.

Advertisement


Anton Gorelkin, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, has clarified that he does not support a complete ban on bitcoin circulation in Russia.


In a Telegram post, he clarified that the restriction is not intended to prohibit all Bitcoin use but rather to govern the formation of cryptocurrency exchange platforms within Russia’s legal framework.


Advertisement

Gorelkin further claims that geopolitical circumstances, including considerations of international relations impact the establishment of a legitimate Russian crypto infrastructure. He said that allowing such infrastructure would expose Russian enterprises to Western sanctions.


Gorelkin further stated that the limitation may be lifted and that customers can continue to use foreign crypto exchanges and OTC services as previously. However, the impact on several OTC crypto services in Moscow remains undetermined.


Anatoly Aksakov’s Agenda: Bolstering Ruble with Stricter Cryptocurrency Regulations

Advertisement


Gorelkin’s latest article needs to clarify Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, who stated that the controversial measure aims to limit non-Russian cryptocurrency operations to reinforce the ruble’s dominance.


Aksakov stated that the law would provide exemptions for crypto miners and Central Bank-backed pilot projects under a trial legal framework, citing that crypto mining contributes significantly to Russia’s tax revenue.


Advertisement

Meanwhile, Russia’s Finance Minister, Anton Siluanov, has urged for a more balanced approach, arguing for regulation permitting the use of cryptocurrencies in local and foreign transactions.


Photo: Microsoft Bing

TokenPost | [email protected]

Advertisement

<Copyright © TokenPost. All Rights Reserved. >

Continue Reading

Trending