#SEC

The SEC accuses Paxos Trust, the Pax Dollar, and BUSD stablecoins issuer, of illegal trading securities. You sound like a broken record, Mr. Gensler! The Commission seems to have a hard time in court: Paxos has been authorized by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS); it operates under its supervision, and its stablecoins are actively used by institutional investors in the United States. The crypto community will see an epic battle between SEC prosecutors and NYDFS lawyers! We’re wondering who has more powerful attorneys: Paxos or Ripple?

This time the SEC hits the crypto exchange Kraken over a possible violation of the Securities Act. Incoming CEO Dave Ripley has refused to delist tokens determined as securities under the Howey test and is now having troubles with the SEC. This case may be settled in the coming days and will make a decisive difference for the entire crypto community. It is also rumored that the SEC intends to ban retail staking. Genesis and Gemini keep their fingers crossed, as they have already stepped into Kraken's shoes once before.

Markus Thielen, Head of Research at Matrixport, believes that the SEC is not targeting stablecoins. The charge against Paxos is indirect. The regulators are planning an attack on Binance, which stored customer funds in the same wallet with its collateral for some in-house tokens. The regulations require that exchanges' corporate assets must be recorded in separate accounts and cannot form part of the proof-of-reserves calculations. That's simple: Binance cannot confirm its BUSD reserves. Paxos Trust Company, which is the only issuer of the exchange's stablecoin, serves as a witness in this case, not a defendant. Has CZ fallen into curly-haired Sam’s trap by mixing up customers' wallets with his own? We find it hard to believe. Hopefully, his accounting skills are way better.

Yesterday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission demanded that Kraken shut down its staking service. And today, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce lashed out at her fellow regulators over their decision on the crypto exchange. According to Peirce, the SEC should develop transparent registration rules, instead of banning a program that served both investors and companies well. "Using enforcement actions to tell people what the law is in an emerging industry is not an efficient or fair way of regulating," the commissioner said. What title is after commissioner? Start a petition!

Since MS started investing in cryptocurrency, this is the first bitcoin sale. According to a report filed with the SEC, the company liquidated 704 BTC worth about $11.8 million on December 22. The document states: "MicroStrategy plans to carry forward capital losses resulting from this transaction against prior capital gains to the extent such carryforwards are available under applicable federal income tax laws." Additionally, between November 1 and December 21, 2022, MicroStrategy bought another 2,395 BTC at an average price of $17,871, according to the report.