In a historic victory for Ripple, the SEC has officially withdrawn its allegations against the top two executives of the company.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had accused Chris Larsen, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Ripple, and Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO, of assisting the company in violating federal securities laws in connection with XRP transactions.

However, the regulator has chosen to dismiss the case with prejudice, indicating that it cannot bring the same charges again. While the SEC will continue to pursue compensation for damages, this abandoned legal action represents a substantial success for the embattled crypto company.

Brad Garlinghouse expressed his thoughts on the dropped charges, saying that, in his view, he and Chris were singled out by the SEC in a ruthless effort to personally harm both them and the broader crypto industry in general.

The dismissal of these charges marks the third consecutive legal victory for Ripple against the SEC. Back in July, a judge ruled that the SEC had failed to conclusively demonstrate that XRP transactions violated securities laws. Additionally, the appeal made by the SEC to reverse this decision in October was also unsuccessful.

Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stu Alderoty described the actions taken by the regulatory agency as not a settlement but rather a surrender, before further claiming that this abandoned lawsuit stops any chances of a trial happening next year.

In summary, this development is highly significant as not only had the lawsuit been going on for years, but the fact that a crypto firm has actually won against an official governmental institution speaks volumes. Experts believe that the battle is not yet won however, and that the SEC is not going to truly go down without a fight.

Amidst the ongoing technological revolution powered by artificial intelligence, several experts recently provided insights into the strategies and hurdles that banking institutions encounter while harnessing the potential of AI.

Numerous banks are strategically adopting various forms of Generative AI. Michelle Grimm, Senior Director of Conversational AI at Fifth Third, advocates for a cautious approach, emphasizing the need to test the waters first. Initially, the focus is on internal applications, with plans to use AI to enhance recruiting processes.

Navigating the landscape of fintech partnerships is another critical aspect for many banks, especially smaller institutions, as it is often a necessity for implementing AI. Lance Senoyuit, a financial services executive consultant at SAP, emphasizes diligence in the decision-making process, considering the highly regulated nature of the banking sector.

Generative AI also identifies patterns and produces valuable insights by analyzing massive amounts of data. These insights can then be stored safely and verified by multiple parties thanks to the immutability of blockchain. This transparency makes it easier to make data-driven decisions based on accurate and reliable data.

AI plays a dual role in fraud detection, serving both as a tool for developing new forms of fraud, such as deep fakes, and as an additional security layer for banks. However, it is not foolproof, and banks must diversify their approach to fraud prevention.

As banks wrestle with the challenges of demonstrating ROI and fine-tuning AI for fraud detection, it is important to remember that innovation and responsibility must go hand in hand. The future of banking is undeniably intertwined with the possibilities and challenges that AI brings.

Cointelegraph, a popular crypto-oriented news media outlet, recently shared a message on X without obtaining prior editorial approval, falsely claiming that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had granted approval for a Bitcoin ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) to BlackRock. The fake news announcement has since resulted in over $60 million in losses for traders around the globe.

This erroneous information stemmed via an unverified screenshot posted by a user on X. Cointelegraph published a story about the alleged endorsement of the iShares Bitcoin ETF, which garnered over 500,000 views and triggered heightened volatility in the cryptocurrency market shortly after being disseminated.

An internal inquiry determined that Cointelegraph failed to follow its standard procedure of verifying sources before posting breaking news on social media. In response, they are now conducting a comprehensive review and audit of their social media management processes, particularly focusing on the authentication of breaking news prior to publication.

When Cointelegraph initially reported on the BTC ETF, Bitcoin saw its value surge to $30,000 for the first time in months, but it subsequently receded after confirmation that the announcement was indeed false.

More worryingly, there is significant concern that federal regulators may utilize this blunder as a prime example of market manipulation and use it to fuel their crackdown on the crypto industry.

On behalf of the Web3 community, we would like to extend our warmest congratulations to the companies that announced their success in fundraising between 10th October and 16th October 2023. We are thrilled to see such tremendous support from all involved. Well done! 

OrdinalsBot raised $1M - The startup was founded in February 2023 by Brian Laughlan and Toby Lewis. It recently launched its Software Developer Kit (SDK) providing developers with the tools to seamlessly integrate ordinals functionality into their projects.

Neutral raised $3.2M - In building advanced market infrastructure for the environmental asset markets of the future, Neutral stands at the intersection of these two global trends.

REPUBLIK raised $6M - RepubliK is a Web3 content creation platform where content creators can connect with their audiences and utilize built-in smart contracts to handle monetization processes.

Untangled raised $13.5M - Untangled provides infrastructure to host blockchain-based credit pools, where investors &ndash in this case, certified investors, firms, and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) &ndash deposit funds to lend and earn a yield.

Membrane Labs raised $20M - Membrane is a technology platform offering enterprise-grade trading and lending applications for crypto. The capital will be used to help build the type of grown-up trading infrastructure the crypto space needs in order to avoid further disasters.

Beldex raised $3M - Beldex is more than simply a platform it is a trailblazing force transforming the blockchain world. Beldex is prepared to continue making waves in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector.

Parsec raised $5.25M - Parsec is designed to be your eyes and ears. It is the beating heart of the market, equipped with real-time data streams and rich high fidelity visualizations that paint a picture of an often opaque market.

KINO raised $2M - KINO Studio brings the power of technology to film through community building, royalties processing, and IP discovery. KINO's technology makes the entertainment industry faster, stronger, and more connected.

Silks raised $7M - Silks is the first derivative gaming platform that leverages a blockchain-enabled metaverse to parallel the real world of thoroughbred horse racing.

Initia raised an undisclosed amount - The founding team comprises former founders, staff-level engineers, and researchers from the Cosmos and Ethereum ecosystem.

Account Labs raised $7.7M - The strategic investment comes in tandem with the launch of their consumer-centric application, UniPass Wallet, a self-custody wallet focused on peer-to-peer (P2P) stablecoin transfers.

To stay updated with news about future Web3 Funding Rounds, Follow CryptoWeekly

 

California Governor Gavin Newsom has sanctioned a new cryptocurrency bill, introducing more stringent regulations for businesses engaged in crypto-oriented activities. The bill is set to take effect in 18 months on July 1st, 2025.

A New Era For Crypto Regulation

In a statement released on October 13th, Newsom announced the approval of the Digital Financial Assets Law, mandating individuals and companies to secure a Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) license for participation in digital asset-related endeavors.

In the legislative documentation, it draws a parallel to the money transmission statutes of California, which disallow operations associated with banking and transfer services if they lack a license granted by the DFPI Commissioner.

Nevertheless, this fresh crypto legislation empowers the DFPI to impose rigorous auditing requisites on crypto enterprises and compel them to maintain specific record-keeping mandates. The bill further underscores that businesses not adhering to the legislation will face strict enforcement measures.

The Reason For This Bill

Approximately a year ago, Newsom made it a point not to endorse a similar bill designed to create a framework for licensing and regulating digital assets in California. Despite the bill effortlessly passing through the California State Assembly, Newsom indicated that he would not sign it. He suggested that the legislation lacked the flexibility needed to adapt to the rapidly evolving crypto landscape.

At the time, Newsom conveyed his intention to collaborate with the legislature on crypto licensing initiatives once federal regulations were in place. Meanwhile, various reports indicate that the United States is exploring the possibility of applying the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) to cryptocurrencies as a measure to counteract fraudulent transfers and malicious activities.

In a recent address, Rohit Chopra, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), voiced his intent to authorize this approach to mitigate the harm caused by errors, breaches, and unauthorized transfers within the crypto sector.

Cardano currently lacks a stablecoin backed by traditional currency and relies on algorithmic stablecoins like DJED to support its DeFi ecosystem. The solution to this may have arrived in the form of USDM.

On October 12th, 2023, Mehen CEO Steven Fisher and CFO Matthew Plomin offered their insights into USDM, which is being touted as the premier stablecoin for Cardano. USDM was inspired by the acknowledgement of a significant flaw in DJED, the initial native stablecoin designed for Cardano.

Determined to follow a regulatory-compliant path, Plomin and the Mehen team chose a route akin to the meticulous legal framework employed by USDC, and they have been diligently pursuing it for an extended period.

Going forward, the protocol will collaborate with a prominent lawyer specializing in money transmitter laws to navigate the intricate web of US regulations. He disclosed that the protocol is in the process of securing regulatory approval by multiple states and is adhering to all the relevant anti-money laundering (AML) policies.

Up to this point, the company has reached out to regulatory authorities in every state except New York, primarily due to the high fees and stringent rules in that state. Plomin also added that their aspirations extend beyond the United States, as they are planning to engage with authorities in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and other jurisdictions to facilitate a launch.

When asked about their progress, Fisher revealed that USDM has received the green light by 12 states, paving the way for a pre-production launch next month and a full mainnet launch by December 2023.

Real USD (USDR), a stablecoin backed by tokenized real estate, experienced a significant loss of its value, dropping to nearly $0.5 on Wednesday, breaking its peg to the United States Dollar (USD).

USDR no longer being connected to its peg can be directly attributed to a substantial redemption of its DAI reserve, which constituted up to half of the overall decline.

TangibleDAO, the issuer of USDR, reported that the liquid DAI reserve supporting the stablecoin was swiftly redeemed via its treasury. Given that DAI served as the primary backing, this sudden redemption resulted in the sharp decline. Additionally, a panic-induced sell-off occurred due to the absence of DAI redemptions.

Real USD (USDR) currently has a market capitalization of around $24 million and is accessible on various blockchain networks, including Polygon, Ethereum, Optimism, BNBChain, and Base, according to data by CoinMarketCap.

Going forward, TangibleDAO has unveiled plans to re-establish a dollar peg by leveraging protocol owned liquidity and the liquidation of insurance funds.

Bitcoin recently experienced a 1.2% decline, reaching slightly above $27,000. Investor confidence in riskier assets waned due to escalating tensions in the Hamas-Israel conflict.

As a result of the ongoing conflict, traders anticipated a decrease in prices as trader stopped investing in conventional equities and higher-risk investments in favor of commodities like gold and oil, which had surged by up to 6% over the past week.

On the other hand, the crypto markets suffered a 1.6% dip over a period of 24 hours. ETH saw a 2.2% drop, extending weekly losses to over 5%, while XRP tokens recorded the most significant decline among alternative currencies with a 3% reduction.

Among other significant tokens, DOT and MATIC both slumped by 3%, while XTZ experienced an 8% decline. The only large-cap token that saw gains within a 24 hours timeframe was RNDR, with a 3% increase.

FxPro market analysts, in their daily commentary, observed that Bitcoin recently attempting to breach the $28,000 level triggered a selling wave that pushed the price back to $27,000. This profit-taking activity indicated that investors were not yet willing to commit their funds to risky bets.

Prosecutors argue that Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, should not be allowed to mention the recent fundraising activities of Anthropic in his defense against charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The DOJ and the defense have come to an agreement on many aspects of witness testimony for the trial, but they disagree on whether the defense should be allowed to bring up any issues related to the Anthropic fundraising. The DOJ contends that the $500 million investment in Anthropic in 2022 was sourced via customer funds.

The filing asserts that using evidence concerning the current value of any investments Sam may have can only be employed to support the argument that FTX customers and potential victims will eventually be compensated, which the Court has deemed unacceptable.

Moreover, the DOJ filing emphasizes that the indictment accuses the defendant of wire fraud for misappropriating FTX customer deposits to make investments and other expenses. It is irrelevant whether some of these investments might ultimately yield profits.

Additionally, it would not serve as a defense to the charges if the defendant invested stolen FTX funds with the belief that these investments would eventually generate significant returns and allow him to repay the stolen money.

Regarding Anthropic, it has a substantial agreement with Amazon potentially valued at up to $4 billion, and there are ongoing discussions to secure an additional $2 billion in funding.
 

On behalf of the Web3 community, we would like to extend our warmest congratulations to the companies that announced their success in fundraising between 3rd October and 9th October 2023. We are thrilled to see such tremendous support from all involved. Well done! 

AirDAO raised $7.5M - AirDAO is an ecosystem of innovative, user-friendly dApps accessible through a single dashboard.

Paima Studios raised $1.4M - The Paima team, beyond building core infrastructure, also builds games too.With multiple games live already, Paima have been working on Tarochi.

Toncoin raised an undisclosed amount - Ton is the next generation network aiming to unite all blockchains and the existing Internet. TON blockchain was launched by the founders of Telegram.

Blackbird raised $35M - The funds give the company significant runway, and that the funding will go toward scaling up operations as well as marketing. Blackbird, which is built on Coinbase's Layer-2 Base blockchain.

ParaFinance raised $5M - ParaFinance offers a diverse range of collateral assets for users to choose from. With a wide selection of digital assets, including WBTC, ETH, UNI, and ARB, users can use these as collateral.

Convergence RFQ raised $2.5M - Convergence RFQ is currently building its platform on Solana and then wants to also support the Ethereum Layer 2 network Arbitrum.

Cicada raised $9.7M - Cicada aims to build non-custodial credit products on top of the Cambrian explosion in blockchain-based credit origination protocols.

L1 Advisors raised $1.6M - Through L1 Platform platform, wealth and asset managers will leverage the most powerful decentralized finance protocols and the benefits of self get access to products that aren't possible offchain.

Burnt raised an undisclosed amount - Burnt is building XION, the only layer-1 blockchain specifically built for consumer adoption. Burnt is the Web3 foundry behind XION.

Phaver raised $7M - Phaver is a Web3 social app that rewards users for creating and sharing quality content. The capital will be used to scale the team as well as for product development and additional partnerships.

Fairblock raised $2.5M - Fairblock's goal is to lower risks for average crypto users, adding that there are still many issues with transactions being front-run or having the contents of a transaction leaked.

Hadean raised $47.6M - Founded in 2015, Hadean are a venture backed startup, reimagining distributed, spatial and scalable computing for web 3.0 and the metaverse.

Ostium Labs raised $3.5M - Ostium Labs is currently developing a new protocol for digitized commodities perpetual swaps. Ostium Labs aspire for this platform to attract both traditional commodities traders.

To stay updated with news about future Web3 Funding Rounds, Follow
CryptoWeekly

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently defended cryptocurrencies in light of the challenges they have encountered this year, particularly the heightened scrutiny by the U.S. government. Despite Bitcoin showing an impressive performance in the first half of 2023, its momentum has been somewhat hindered.

A Harsh Environment

Altman, a visionary in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and the driving force behind OpenAI, has expressed his concerns regarding the aggressive stance of the U.S. government towards cryptocurrencies. He believes that the overly restrictive actions imply a larger agenda to establish control over the crypto industry.

Sam recently expressed his disappointment with the approach taken by the U.S. government. He mentioned that these recent developments, particularly an overall forceful stance on crypto, highlights an underlying intention to dominate and manage the crypto sphere. He also discussed the potential risks associated with an increasingly intrusive surveillance state, especially concerning financial transactions.

CBDCs May Not Be The Answer

Additionally, Sam is hesitant about the possible implementation of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), viewing them as instruments that could magnify state authority over individual financial liberties.

The concept of a digital dollar CBDC has been a topic of conversation among U.S. regulators for quite some time. Nevertheless, Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, believes that the realization of such technology remains a distant prospect.

Despite facing criticism by the crypto community due to his involvement with the Worldcoin project, which aims to create a user database using eye scans in exchange for its cryptocurrency, Altman maintains his optimism regarding Bitcoin. He sees the idea of a global decentralized currency as a pivotal technological advancement, and one that is desperately needed in this financial age.

Ledger, one of the most prominent crypto wallet providers worldwide, has become the latest player in the industry to reduce its workforce due to the deepening impact of the ongoing bear market. This decision follows a series of staff reductions at other prominent crypto and blockchain firms this month.

On October 5th, Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier communicated to the employees that the company had to make a challenging choice to cut 12% of its workforce. Gauthier emphasized the need for focus during these challenging times and pointed to macroeconomic factors, the ongoing crypto bear market, and the aftermath of multiple collapses last year as reasons for this decision.

Ledger reportedly employs approximately 734 individuals, which implies that up to 88 people might be affected by the layoffs. Gauthier expressed confidence that the company would emerge stronger going forward and highlighted the strong sales performance of its crypto wallets. In March, Ledger announced a successful $109 million Series C funding round, valuing the company at $1.4 billion.

Additionally, Ledger has faced a series of controversies and mishaps in recent years, including significant server breaches that exposed the personal information of several customers, leading to many hacks and digital exploits.

Elsewhere, Chainalysis, a blockchain analytics provider, laid off 15% of its workforce (approximately 135 employees) on October 3rd due to unfavorable market conditions and reduced demand for its commercial products.

Chia Network also reduced its workforce by a third, cutting 26 out of 70 employees this month. Binance.US let go of a third of its staff in September due to regulatory pressures and the winding down of its American operations.