Author: Hannah Lang
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US crypto industry lobby spending on track for new record in 2023
By Hannah Lang WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The cryptocurrency industry was on track to hit a new record for federal lobbying spending, after a year in which firms scrambled to repair their reputations and advance friendly legislation, according to data provided to Reuters by nonprofit research group OpenSecrets. Crypto companies spent $18.96 million in the first…
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Crypto bills to face congressional committee vote
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A key congressional committee is set to vote this week on several bills that would develop a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, a milestone for Capitol Hill in its efforts to codify federal oversight for the digital asset industry. The crypto industry has been in the regulatory crosshairs since investors were burned last…
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US SEC charges Bittrex with operating unregistered securities exchange
By Hannah Lang (Reuters) -The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday charged cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex Inc and its former CEO William Shihara with operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker and clearing agency. The SEC alleged in its complaint, which was filed in a U.S. district court in Washington, that Shihara coordinated with crypto…
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Robinhood to pay $10mln to settle operational deficiency charges
By Hannah Lang and Manya Saini (Reuters) -Robinhood Financial LLC will pay up to $10.2 million in penalties to several states related to platform outages the company experienced in March 2020 and deficiencies in the brokerage’s review and approval process prior to 2021. The settlement comes after an investigation by state securities regulators in Alabama,…
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Wells Fargo to pay $97 million for sanctions compliance failures
By Hannah Lang (Reuters) -Wells Fargo & Co will pay fines of about $97.8 million for inadequate oversight of its compliance risks, enabling the apparent violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran, Syria and Sudan, federal authorities said on Thursday. The Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the bank’s…
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U.S. regulators warn banks to be on alert for crypto-related liquidity risks
By Pete Schroeder and Hannah Lang WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Top U.S. banking regulators issued a fresh warning to banks to be on guard for any liquidity risks from cryptocurrency-related clients, cautioning some of their deposits could prove volatile. In a joint statement issued Thursday, the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the…
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Fintech threat to big banks fizzled in 2022 as rates rose – report
By Hannah Lang (Reuters) – The competitive threat of financial technology companies to big banks diminished over the past year as rising interest rates constricted funding, a new report from Moody’s Investor Service found. A decline in venture capital funding in 2022 particularly hurt fintech firms that rely on outside capital to fund their operations…
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Silvergate Capital shares sink as crypto-related deposits plunge by $8 billion
By Manya Saini, Niket Nishant and Hannah Lang (Reuters) -Silvergate Capital Corp reported a sharp drop in fourth-quarter crypto-related deposits on Thursday as investors spooked by the collapse of FTX pulled out more than $8 billion in deposits, sending shares down more than 42%. The crypto-focused bank also said it would cut its workforce by…
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Crypto exchange Binance plans to acquire major rival FTX
By Hannah Lang and Tom Wilson WASHINGTON/LONDON (Reuters) -Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has signed a nonbinding agreement to buy FTX.com, a unit of major rival FTX, to help cover a “liquidity crunch” at the cryptocurrency exchange, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said on Tuesday. FTX has come under pressure after Zhao said on Sunday…
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Biden welcomes crackdown on ‘junk’ banking fees
By Hannah Lang and Doina Chiacu (Reuters) -The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Wednesday issued guidance that surprise overdraft fees and unexpected depositor fees for bounced checks are likely unfair and unlawful practices, in a move the White House said could eliminate billions in banking fees. “These are junk fees. They’re unfair and they…