BlockFi settles with the SEC, Russia’s CBDC trials begin and other news

SEC hits BlockFi with a $100 million penalty, gives 60 days to comply with a 1940 law

View this email in your browser A week in review: Feb. 13-19 We've selected the hottest materials of the past week for you to stay up to date with the latest crypto news: #1. SEC hits BlockFi with a $100 million penalty, gives 60 days to comply with a 1940 law BlockFi came to terms with regulators this week in response to resistance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which had labeled the BlockFi Interest Account as a securities product. Operating since 2019, the offering in question from BlockFi lets users loan crypto and receive notable interest in return. BlockFi agreed to pay the SEC $50 million as penalty. In addition, 32 U.S. states took action against BlockFi, resulting in a further $50 million that BlockFi must pay to those regions — tallying $100 million total in penalties. Moving forward, BlockFi has a 60-day period to align the product with the Investment Company Act of 1940. In the meantime, BlockFi will halt onboarding new users until it becomes compliant with the regulation. Continue reading #2. Digital ruble trial goes live as Bank of Russia insists on Bitcoin ban The Bank of Russia announced this week that initial testing for its central bank digital currency (CBDC) was successful after several transfers of the digital ruble were made to Russian citizens.  A total of 12 financial institutions participated in the digital ruble pilot program, putting the central bank on track to launch its CBDC program later this year. The CBDC news came after anti-crypto comments from the head of the Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, the prior week. Because CDBCs are under the direct control of governments, they differ from traditional cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Continue reading #3. Cointelegraph releases Top 100 in Crypto and Blockchain 2022 This week, Cointelegraph unveiled its 2022 list of the top 100 most influential figures in the crypto and blockchain space. The Top 100 includes profiles of people and trends that impacted the crypto and blockchain space in 2021. Each profile also includes an overview of what we can expect from each influencer or trend for the remainder of 2022. Cointelegraph will unveil the list over the course of the coming days, releasing 10 profiles per day until all 100 are shown. The first group of 10 was revealed on Thursday, with Rekt Capital starting off the list at number 100. Cointelegraph has released prior installments of its top 100 list in previous years. Continue reading #4. Prediction of the week. BTC price dips below $40K as Wall Street open spells pain for Bitcoin bulls Bitcoin turned lower in a somewhat turbulent week for markets. The asset tapped almost $45,000 on Tuesday before falling to around $39,500 by Friday, according to Cointelegraph's BTC price index. Twitter personality and trader Rekt Capital expects Bitcoin to continue range-bound price movement within the bottom half of a sizable "macro" price range spanning from about $30,000 to $69,000. "$BTC will continue to occupy the lower half of the macro range until further notice," Rekt Capital said in a tweet. Continue reading #5. FUD of the week. 4% of crypto whales are criminals, and they hold $25B among them: Chainalysis Over 4,000 big crypto players have allegedly amassed some of their wealth via questionable means, according to a new report from Chainalysis. The report noted 4,068 questionable crypto whales in the industry, as per 2021 and 2022 data. Chainalysis classifies criminal whales as private crypto wallets holding more than $1 million worth of digital assets, with more than 10% of their balances coming from illicit addresses.  The write-up from Chainalysis also included a bevy of additional information. Continue reading #6. FUD of the week. Canada invokes 'Emergencies Act' targeting crowdfunding and crypto On Tuesday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act in an attempt to block fundraising efforts by the self-styled "Freedom Convoy," which has been staging large-scale protests across the country. According to Chrystia Freeland, Canadian deputy prime minister, the move to block funds falls under the umbrella of protection against terrorist financing. Donors had contributed over $19 million to the protestors through online fundraising platforms GoFundMe and GiveSendGo. Since those funds have been blocked from reaching the protestors, some donors have resorted to funding the movement using Bitcoin. Continue reading Ready to wear your love for crypto? Check out our crypto merch including apparel, accessories and more. (You can even pay in crypto, of course.) Visit the Cointelegraph Store 2 million people follow us on social media Download our official app:

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