As the federal government of the United States (acting through its Securities and Exchange Commission) continues to courageously protect investors and the public interest from the grave dangers of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, one major American city after another begins to adopt or at least explore the potential of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to improve various aspects of the city’s finances, administration, and the monetary well-being of residents. Following the example of Miami, New York, Tampa and Jackson (Tennessee), it is now Philadelphia that is studying how to implement blockchain solutions in the city government.
The hope is that a series of successful forays by city governments into the cryptocurrency space will cause the federal government to take a more perspective. “municipal”.
Below you will find the condensed version of the latest “Law Decoded” newsletter. For the full summary of the political news of the last week, sign up below to receive the full newsletter.
Bitcoin spot ETF was rejected
Last Friday, after two extensions of the deadline, The SEC formally rejected VanEck’s application for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, first filed in March 2021. The regulator argued that the applicant did not demonstrate the existence of a “Comprehensive shared surveillance agreement with a regulated market of significant size related to the underlying or reference Bitcoin assets”, which is essential to prevent tampering and fraud.
In the SEC’s opinion, Shared vigilance is sufficient in the case of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s BTC futures market, but falls short when it comes to the spot markets that underlie most of the CME’s Bitcoin futures prices. . A recent letter from Representatives Emmer and Soto highlights the limitations of the agency’s argument.
Commissioner Crenshaw on DeFi
In an article published in the International Journal of Blockchain Law, the SEC commissioner Caroline crenshaw He has shared his views on some of the policy issues around the decentralized finance arena. At the most fundamental level, believes that DeFi products can be securities and should be considered in accordance with applicable securities laws.
The commissioner’s key thesis boils down to the need for DeFi market participants to step up and voluntarily comply with securities laws, specifically those relating to risk disclosure. He also warned that those who do not comply could be subject to enforcement action by the SEC and incur heavy penalties.
CBDC Advances
People’s Bank of China Governor Yi Gang discussed plans for cross-border expansion of the digital yuan, while the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore revealed a strong retail focus on the country’s future CBDC. In Russia, an updated timetable for the launch of the digital ruble test was revealed, with a prototype platform expected to be ready for testing in early 2022. At the same time, Russian lawmakers have started to prepare the legislative basis for the adoption of digital currency across the country. Meanwhile, ehe Bank of England was given ample time to consider all the pros and cons of implementing the digital pound, marking “the second half of the decade” as the earliest time for a possible launch.
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