1. Tether appoints former PayPal executive Jesse Spiro as head of government affairs
Tether appoints Jesse Spiro as Head of Government Affairs. Jesse Spiro has over six years of experience in government and regulatory relations in the blockchain space. Prior to joining Tether, he served as Head of Regulatory Relations for the Blockchain and Digital Currency business at PayPal. Prior to joining PayPal, Jesse was Chief Government Affairs Officer at blockchain analysis firm Chainaanalysis.
2. MicroStrategy bought 18,300 Bitcoins for $1.11 billion in the past month
MicroStrategy bought 18,300 bitcoins between August 6 and September 12 for $1.11 billion in cash.
3. The US SEC updates its lawsuit against Binance, treating tokens such as AXS, FIL, and ATOM as unregistered securities
According to Cointelegraph, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has expanded the scope of its lawsuit against Binance. The SEC's updated legal documents list tokens such as AXS, FIL, ATOM, SAND, and MANA as unregistered securities. The SEC accused Binance and its U.S. subsidiary BAM Trading of providing trading for these tokens and promoting their potential investment returns to customers.
4. The SEC stated that the term “crypto-asset securities” does not mean that the token itself is a security
According to The Block, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated in a footnote in the revised complaint filed against Binance that when the term "crypto asset securities" is mentioned, it does not refer to the crypto assets themselves, but to a set of contracts, expectations and understandings when selling these assets. In fact, the SEC only uses this term as a "shorthand."
The SEC also claimed that it has always held this position, and mentioned that there was a similar supplement in the case against Telegram. However, in order to clarify the issue, the agency said that it will avoid using this abbreviation in future cases against Binance and "regrets any confusion caused."
5. a16z crypto invested $1 million to jointly create a legal defense fund for creators with OpenSea and others
a16z crypto is working with OpenSea, Stand With Crypto, Cooley, Fenwick & West, Goodwin Procter, and Latham & Watkins to provide legal support and consulting services to artists and creators who may face government intervention, or those who wish to avoid government sanctions. Build NFT projects in a legal and compliant manner.
To kick off this effort, Andreessen Horowitz will join Stand With Crypto and follow OpenSea’s lead in donating $1 million to a legal defense fund.
6. Nanhua Securities, a subsidiary of Nanhua Financial, has been approved to provide virtual asset trading services to professional investors in Hong Kong
Nanhua Securities, a subsidiary of Nanhua Financial, a Hong Kong-listed company, has upgraded its business license for Type 1 regulated activities. The upgrade enables Nanhua Securities to provide virtual asset trading services to professional investors in Hong Kong.
7. Stablecoin issuer First Digital CEO: Hong Kong should accelerate cryptocurrency regulation
According to Cointelegraph, Hong Kong-based stablecoin issuer First Digital Trust said that Hong Kong should speed up regulation in the digital asset field to avoid falling behind in the rapidly developing industry. Although Hong Kong is committed to becoming a global cryptocurrency center, there are currently only two virtual asset trading platforms with full licenses, Hash Blockchain and OSL Digital Securities, and many other exchanges are still waiting for full operating licenses.
In an interview with Cointelegraph, First Digital CEO Vincent Chok said that Hong Kong’s current more conservative and slow approach to trading regulation is understandable as it prioritizes investor protection. However, he noted that he hopes to see regulation accelerate to ensure that it does not lag behind the pace of development in the industry. First Digital Trust believes that Hong Kong is not yet ready to regulate dollar-backed stablecoins, while Dubai has taken a more global approach. Chok expressed his expectation that Hong Kong will introduce dollar-backed stablecoin regulation in the near future.
