FTX’s former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, had his bail revoked by a federal judge on Aug. 11. The judge took this action after it was revealed that Bankman-Fried had shared information with The New York Times in an attempt to intimidate witnesses. As a result, Bankman-Fried was taken into custody and is expected to be held at the Putnam County Correctional Facility until his trial begins in October. Following that, he may be transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Bankman-Fried was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs. The judge believed that Bankman-Fried’s actions were intended to harm and frighten his former colleague and girlfriend, Caroline Ellison.
SEC Delays Decision on Bitcoin ETF, Fuels Expectations for Final Verdict
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed its decision on the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposed by ARK Investment Management and 21Shares. ARK filed for the ETF in May, giving the SEC until January 2024 to make a final decision. This delay has led to expectations that the verdict will come along with other applications from major players on Wall Street, such as BlackRock and Fidelity Investments.
SEC Appeals Court Decision in Ripple Labs Case
The U.S. SEC is moving forward with an appeal in its lawsuit against Ripple Labs. The commission believes that the decision made by Judge Analisa Torres, who presided over the case, should be reviewed by an appellate court. The SEC has asked Judge Torres to pause the case during the appeal, as the outcome could impact other pending court cases involving crypto firms like Binance and Coinbase. In July, Judge Torres ruled that Ripple’s native token, XRP, is not a security when sold to retail investors. The jury trial for this case is scheduled for the second quarter of 2024.
PayPal Launches PYUSD Stablecoin for Payments
PayPal has introduced a new stablecoin called PayPal USD (PYUSD). This U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin is built on the Ethereum network and is backed by U.S. dollar deposits, short-term treasuries, and similar cash equivalents. PayPal plans to use PYUSD as a mode of payment for various purchases. With over 350 million active users, PayPal aims to become a major player in crypto payments with the introduction of this stablecoin. PYUSD can be redeemed for U.S. dollars and exchanged for other cryptocurrencies on PayPal, as well as transferred between PayPal and Venmo accounts.
Venture Capital Firms Face Lawsuit Alleging Involvement in FTX Fraud
Eighteen venture capital investment firms, including Temasek, Sequoia Capital, Sino Global Capital, and SoftBank, are being sued for their alleged involvement in the FTX fraud. The class-action lawsuit claims that these firms aided and abetted the fraud, using their power and influence to contribute to FTX’s rise to a multibillion-dollar scale.
Weekly Performance of Major Cryptocurrencies
At the end of the week, the prices of Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and XRP stand at $29,379, $1,842, and $0.63, respectively. The total market cap is $1.17 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the biggest gainers of the week are THORChain (RUNE) with a 20.74% increase, Shiba Inu (SHIB) with a 20.16% increase, and dYdX (DYDX) with a 9.63% increase. The top losers are GMX (GMX) with a 12.47% decrease, Mantle (MNT) with a 10.10% decrease, and XDC Network (XDC) with an 8.09% decrease.
For more information on crypto prices, please refer to Cointelegraph’s market analysis.
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