Amber Group co-founder Tiantian Kullander has died. He passed away in his sleep on Nov. 23. Known as TT, Kullander helped found Amber in 2017 and turn it into a major crypto market maker worth a...
Tag: The Block
Lemon Cash CEO expects more fintech layoffs in LatAm amid its own: Exclusive
Argentina-based crypto app Lemon Cash has laid off about 100 people, 38% of staff, marking the latest round of cuts in the region. Several other Latin America-based crypto companies have announc...
Binance targets $1 billion for ‘industry recovery fund’
Crypto exchange operator Binance is aiming to amass around $1 billion for its recently announced “industry recovery fund.” CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao discussed the plan on B...
Crypto prices pare initial gains after Fed minutes show a slow down ‘soon’
Crypto prices rose and quickly came back down upon the release of the minutes showing that the Fed is going to “slow” down its hikes. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) — which decid...
El Salvador lawmakers to consider regulation for issuing digital assets
A committee within El Salvador’s Legislative Assembly is considering a long-awaited law aimed at regulating digital asset service providers and issuers in the country. The so-called ̶...
Coinbase, Silvergate rise in pre-market trading, GBTC lifts off fresh lows
Most major cryptocurrencies were lower on Tuesday morning, but some altcoins bucked the downward trend. Bitcoin was down 0.9% over the past 24 hours, trading at $16,003. Meanwhile, ether droppe...
FTX collapse leads to contagion, equities hit hardest
Crypto markets and equities tied to the industry felt the pressure last week as the situation around crypto exchange FTX continued to unravel. Bitcoin was changing hands at around $16,550 at 2:1...
The Block: Binance had ‘at minimum ill-intent’ in revoked FTX proposal: Sen. Ted Cruz
Sen. Ted Cruz said that Binance showed “at minimum ill intent” regarding the offer it made and quickly took back to buy FTX last week. Noting the speed of Binance’s public offe...
Crypto prime broker FalconX will no longer use Silvergate’s SEN network
Crypto prime broker FalconX will no longer use the Silvergate Exchange Network (SEN), according to an email sent by FalconX to clients and obtained by The Block. “Out of an abundance of caution ...
Bahamas seized FTX Digital Markets’ assets on Nov. 12, regulator now says
The Securities Commission of the Bahamas on Nov. 12 transferred FTX Digital Markets’ assets to a digital wallet it controls, the regulator said on Twitter Nov. 17, further complicating a legal s...
The Block: Silvergate CEO sees silver lining for bitcoin: ‘There are always buyers’
Silvergate CEO Alan Lane said that bitcoin stands out from other digital currencies even amid the ongoing turmoil in crypto markets. He pointed, as evidence, to the breakdown of volumes of the S...
Genesis sought emergency loan of $1 billion: WSJ
Genesis sought an emergency loan of $1 billion from investors before telling clients it was suspending redemptions in the wake of the collapse of FTX, The Wall Street Journal reported. Genesis s...
The FTX bankruptcy filings are a doozy. We bring you the highlights.
Bankruptcy lawyers for crypto exchange FTX filed 41 pages of legal documents full of fresh details about how ex-CEO Sam Bankman-Fried ran — or didn’t run — the company and the myriad of flaws in the f...
CFTC Commissioner Johnson defends agency approach to FTX, crypto
Kristin Johnson, a commissioner at the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, defended the agency’s approach to digital asset regulation in the wake of FTX’s collapse, saying the agency l...
FTX bankruptcy filings highlight ‘complete failure of corporate controls’
Fresh FTX bankruptcy filings called out Sam Bankman-Fried and the rest of the failed crypto exchange’s leadership for a “complete failure of corporate controls” and cited the former ...
Crypto firms rush to allay Genesis contagion fears as stocks crater
Crypto-related stocks plunged as Genesis became the latest victim of the FTX fallout. Bitcoin was trading at $16,593, up 0.7% from $16,479 earlier in the day. Ether gained a modest 0.5% to trad...
TSM drops FTX logos, halts $210 million sponsorship deal
What was at one time the largest deal in the esports industry has been dashed as TSM will pull the plug on a partnership with FTX, the gaming and entertainment platform announced. The partnershi...
Bitget starts operations in Brazil: InfoMoney
Singapore-based crypto exchange Bitget has started operating in Brazil, financial publication InfoMoney reported. Bitget will start enabling deposits in Brazilian reais today, InfoMoney said. T...
Elon Musk will find someone else to run Twitter: WSJ
Billionaire Elon Musk said he will likely find a different executive to run the social media platform he’s owned less than month, according to The Wall Street Journal. “I expect to reduce my ti...
Gemini Earn unable to meet customer redemptions as Genesis unit pauses withdrawals
Crypto exchange Gemini said its Earn program “will not be able to meet customer redemptions within the service-level agreement of five business days” following the announcement that lendin...
FTX was custodian for majority of tokens on DeFi lending platform Oxygen
DeFi prime brokerage Oxygen said FTX acted as the custodian for the majority of the tokens on its ecosystems, adding that it has sought legal help. “Whilst FTX Group did not hold any equit...
Australia suspends FTX’s financial services license
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has suspended FTX Australia’s financial services license in the country until May 15, 2023. “Until [December 19] 2022, FTX Austra...
Crypto-friendly Emmer wins key House leadership post
An outspoken proponent of digital assets just won a high-ranking post in Congress. Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., won the race for House GOP whip, according to multiple reports. The Minnesota congres...
Paradigm founder feels ‘deep regret’ over FTX investment, marks it down to zero
Paradigm co-founder Matt Huang said that the VC firm wrote down its investment in the bankrupt FTX exchange to zero, confirming what The Block had previously reported. The executive also said th...
Silvergate stock sinks 12% on FTX links
Crypto bank Silvergate shares tanked 12% as the ripple effects of FTX’s collapse continue. Last week, the La Jolla-based crypto bank said its exposure to FTX was limited to deposits, but ...
Lawyer who beat Microsoft, repped Theranos, eyes suit against FTX’s celeb backers
High-profile FTX promoters like Tom Brady and Steph Curry could have a lawsuit on their hands. Famed lawyer David Boies is talking to clients about a possible class action lawsuit against celebr...
BlockFi preps possible Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing: WSJ
Crypto lending firm BlockFi is preparing for a possible Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing, according to the Wall Street Journal. The firm also plans to conduct layoffs, the journal reporte...
Crypto lender Salt halts withdrawals citing FTX impact
Crypto lending platform Salt paused withdrawals and deposits, according to a company email sent to customers. The firm said in a message attributed to CEO Shawn Owen that “the collapse of ...
SEC enforcements and remedies reached $6.4 billion last year
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that penalties, as well as remedies to investors affected by criminal or civil wrongdoing, reached a total of $6.4 billion during the last federal fisc...