Section
Regulation
DOJ charges 30 in global insider trading ring spanning three continents
US prosecutors unsealed criminal charges against 30 individuals in a decade-long insider trading scheme that allegedly generated tens of millions of dollars in illicit profits by front-running approximately 30 merger and acquisition deals. Two attorneys are accused of exploiting law firm access to steal confidential deal documents.
Estonia regulator warns Zondacrypto over missing MiCA white paper
Estonia's Financial Supervision and Resolution Authority issued an investor warning against Zondacrypto operator BB Trade Estonia OÜ for failing to publish a required MiCA white paper for the TeamPL token. The action comes as the exchange faces a missing cold wallet containing 4,500 bitcoin and a Polish investigation into withdrawal difficulties.
US judge declines to rubber-stamp Musk's $1.5M SEC settlement over Twitter stake
A US federal judge has declined to immediately approve the SEC's $1.5 million settlement with Elon Musk over his late Twitter stake disclosure, demanding briefs on whether the deal is fair to investors who allegedly lost about $150 million. A 13 May hearing has been set.
Senate Banking schedules May 14 CLARITY Act crypto markup
The Senate Banking Committee will mark up the CLARITY Act on 14 May, the first committee vote on crypto market-structure legislation in 10 months, though an ethics dispute over Trump family crypto holdings threatens the bipartisan coalition.
CME targets 1 June launch for bitcoin volatility futures, pending CFTC review
CME Group will list cash-settled bitcoin volatility futures from 1 June, pending Commodity Futures Trading Commission clearance, becoming the first US exchange to offer regulated contracts that trade implied volatility independent of bitcoin's spot price. CME (CME) shares slipped 1.2 per cent on the announcement.
Lagarde rejects euro stablecoins, warns $300bn market threatens ECB policy transmission
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde rejected calls for the euro area to promote euro-denominated stablecoins, warning that the $300 billion market risks financial stability and would narrow the channel through which ECB rate decisions reach the real economy.
Atkins pushes formal SEC rulemaking for on-chain markets and crypto vaults
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins on Friday set out four areas for formal rulemaking on crypto: on-chain trading, broker-dealer definitions, clearing and settlement, and vaults. The speech at the SCSP AI+ Expo broke from his predecessor Gary Gensler enforcement-led approach.
BlackRock files for tokenized money-market funds on Ethereum, targets stablecoin reserves
BlackRock filed paperwork with the SEC on Friday to issue two new tokenized money-market funds, including an Ethereum-native digital share class of its $6.1bn Select Treasury Based Liquidity Fund. The move pulls the world's largest asset manager deeper into onchain finance.
Kraken parent Payward files for OCC charter to offer regulated crypto custody
Kraken parent Payward has filed an application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish Payward National Trust Company, seeking federal oversight for digital asset custody services.
SEC's Atkins calls on Congress to pass CLARITY Act, modernize crypto rules
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins called on Congress to pass the CLARITY Act and announced a comprehensive overhaul of how securities regulations apply to blockchain-based financial systems, including exchanges, brokerages and crypto vault yield protocols.
Ex-Willkie M&A counsel pleads guilty as DOJ charges 30 in BigLaw insider-trading ring
Federal prosecutors charged 30 people in what they called a global insider-trading ring that used stolen merger files from three major New York law firms. A former Willkie Farr & Gallagher M&A counsel is among the cooperating witnesses.
