Federal Reserve Maintains Federal Funds Rate Target Range
According to PANews, the US Federal Reserve has decided to keep the federal funds rate target range unchanged between 5.25% and 5.5%, in line with market expectations.
According to PANews, the US Federal Reserve has decided to keep the federal funds rate target range unchanged between 5.25% and 5.5%, in line with market expectations.
According to Blockworks, the Ethereum Foundation, a non-profit organization supporting the Ethereum ecosystem, removed the warrant canary from its website on February 26. The removal indicates that the foundation has received a government subpoena. Ethereum web developer Pablo Pettinari wrote, "[W]e have received a voluntary enquiry from a state authority that included a requirement for confidentiality," alongside a code commit removing the canary. The Ethereum Foundation is responsible for handling grants and providing research for the Ethereum ecosystem, but it does not control or lead Ethereum. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin serves on its executive board. In 2019, the Ethereum Foundation mistakenly removed its warrant canary, but this time it appears to be a genuine removal. The price of ether (ETH) fell more than 2% immediately after the news broke, contributing to a bearish week for the token. Some industry watchers believe that the Ethereum Foundation's "voluntary enquiry" may not be a significant issue. Mike Selig, partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher, said, "It's extremely common for crypto protocol foundations to receive voluntary requests for information from federal and state regulators. And subpoenas are about as sure as the sunrise for a crypto entity." The Ethereum Foundation has not yet responded to a request for comment.
According to PANews, advisors overseeing the gradual liquidation of Celsius Network LLC have requested the return of over $2 billion from major clients before the platform files for bankruptcy to avoid potential lawsuits. A supervisory committee established in Celsius' Chapter 11 bankruptcy case has begun contacting clients who withdrew more than $100,000 from the platform before the company's bankruptcy in July 2022. The assets recovered through this process will be used to repay creditors who have not withdrawn funds from Celsius. The committee stated that the recovery process would only affect about 2% of Celsius users, who collectively withdrew approximately 40% of the platform's assets within 90 days before the company filed for bankruptcy protection. At the time of filing for bankruptcy, Celsius reported having approximately $6 billion in assets, 1.7 million registered users, and 300,000 active users with account balances exceeding $100. The committee said that if clients who could potentially become targets of clawback lawsuits choose to settle, they will be offered 'preferential rates,' while clients who choose not to settle may be forced to return much higher amounts through potential litigation.
According to Foresight News, Grayscale has expressed on platform X that if the federal debt stock significantly increases in the coming years, overseas investors may lose interest in US government bonds. They may begin to shift from the US dollar to other currencies, such as Bitcoin. Bitcoin can be considered a macro asset, an alternative currency system, and a 'store of value' competing with the US dollar. Grayscale believes that the potential decrease in interest for US government bonds could lead to investors seeking alternative assets like Bitcoin. As a macro asset, Bitcoin offers a different currency system and store of value that could attract investors looking for options outside of the traditional US dollar-backed investments.
According to PANews, the Ethereum Foundation is reportedly under investigation by an unnamed 'national authority,' as per the organization's GitHub repository. The scope and focus of the investigation remain unclear at the time of writing. A document submitted to GitHub on February 26, 2024, states, 'We have received a voluntary investigation from the national authority, which includes confidentiality requirements.' The Ethereum Foundation has not responded to requests for comment. Previously, the Ethereum Foundation's website contained the following disclosure: 'The Ethereum Foundation has never been contacted by any institution in any part of the world without disclosing contact information. The Ethereum Foundation will publicly disclose any investigation by government agencies outside the normal scope of business operations.' According to the change log, this footer was removed on February 26, along with the GitHub website's Warrant Canary security statement.
According to PANews, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to announce its latest interest rate decision and release the quarterly outlook report (SEP) at 2:00 AM Beijing time on Thursday. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will hold a routine post-meeting press conference at 2:30 AM.
According to PANews, the US House Financial Services Committee's Republican Capital Markets Subcommittee held a hearing titled "SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) Overreach: The Necessity of Reviewing Reforms" at 22:00 Beijing time on March 20th. The hearing was reported by Fox News journalist Eleanor Terrett.
According to CoinDesk, a Montenegro appeals court has rejected Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon's bid to reverse a ruling approving his extradition to South Korea. The decision comes after a high court in the Balkan nation ruled earlier this month that Kwon can be extradited to face criminal charges related to the collapse of his multi-billion dollar crypto enterprise in May 2022. Kwon's attorney, Goran Rodic, stated that the extradition is now final and neither the U.S. nor Kwon can further appeal the decision. However, there is no timeline yet for when the extradition might take place. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is also seeking Kwon's extradition and has said it will appeal Montenegro's decision to send him to South Korea. Kwon was arrested in Montenegro and charged with carrying falsified official documents. He had previously successfully appealed high court decisions approving his extradition to the U.S. The appeals court rejected previous extradition decisions by the high court, stating that the extradition requests approved were not legally sound. The DOJ has stated that it will continue to seek Kwon's extradition to the U.S.
According to CryptoPotato, the legal battle between Ripple and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is nearing its trial on April 23. The lawsuit, launched in December 2020, accuses Ripple of illegally raising over $1.3 billion in an unregistered securities offering by selling XRP. Ripple maintains that its native token is a currency, not a security, and therefore does not fall under the SEC's jurisdiction. Before the trial, both parties must comply with certain court rules. The SEC was recently granted an extension on the deadline to provide essential data related to the schedule for remedies briefing. Its opening brief is due on March 22, while Ripple's opposition should come no later than April 22. American attorney James Filan revealed that the parties have filed a joint letter seeking the magistrates' approval "to govern sealing issues relating to the upcoming remedies-related briefing." The outcome of the lawsuit is eagerly anticipated by industry participants, as it could trigger significant volatility for XRP and the entire cryptocurrency market. XRP's price spiked by over 70% when Ripple secured its first partial court win last year and saw further increases following two additional victories in subsequent months.
According to CoinDesk: Genesis Global Capital, the bankrupt crypto lender, has agreed to a final judgement to pay $21 million to settle charges with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This settlement emerges in response to Genesis and affiliates allegedly violating securities laws through their involvement with the discontinued Gemini Earn program. The agreement comes after a New York judge denied motions from Genesis and crypto exchange Gemini to halt the SEC case, leveled against them in January 2023. Genesis and its affiliates filed for bankruptcy shortly following the initiation of SEC charges. Genesis disclosed in court documents in February 2024 that it reached an agreement with the SEC to settle the charges for the sum of $21 million, a move which now appears to be finalized. Notably, the settlement stipulates that the SEC will not receive any portion of the penalty until all other claims approved by the bankruptcy court are paid. The SEC Chair, Gary Gensler, emphasized that the settlement underlines the necessity for crypto lending platforms and other intermediaries to comply with securities laws.