SEC Approves Ether ETFs; Worldcoin Halted in Hong Kong and Binance.US Regains Florida License
Summary:
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs). These approvals came from various major companies, but the launch of these ETFs may still be weeks or months away. In other news, Hong Kong’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) has stopped Worldcoin from operating on the island due to privacy violations. Binance.US has successfully appealed the suspension of its business license in Florida, and the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act has passed the U.S. House of Representatives.
This year has seen the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) make a second historic decision, with the regulatory body giving a nod of approval for the exchange-trade funds (ETFs) of Ether to operate within the country. This approval came through 19b-4 filings from Grayscale, Invesco Galaxy, VanEck, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, BlackRock, Bitwise, and ARK 21Shares, which enabled changes to rules permitting the listing and trading of spot Ether (ETH) ETFs across their various exchanges. Notably, the spot Ether ETFs' approval was bestowed by the SEC's Trading and Markets Division, whereas spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs obtained approval through a five-member committee vote, which included SEC Chair Gary Gensler. There is a significant divergence in the approval processes of the two crypto ETFs too - while all ten BTC ETFs began their trade a day after gaining approval (following receipt of S-1 form clearance), the debut of spot Ether ETFs on exchanges may still be weeks or even months away, pending the receipt of their S-1 SEC registration.
In Hong Kong, Worldcoin has been commanded by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) to halt its operations on the island. The order follows the PCPD's inquiry into the Worldcoin project, which found the project's operations to be in contravention of the island's Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. Worldcoin was handed an enforcement notice by Privacy Commissioner Ada Chung Lai-ling, which requires the project to halt operations which collect public iris and facial images by utilising iris scanning devices instantly. The PCPD opined the collection of facial images was an unnecessary step, as the verification of participant humaneness was already possible through person-person engagements at operating locations.
On another note, Binance.US has secured a win with regard to the restoration of its money-services business license in Florida. Florida's First District Court of Appeal discovered that the state Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) didn't hold a valid legal reason for the emergency suspension order issued. The suspension order followed an admission of U.S. Anti-Money Laundering law violation in federal court by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, on November 21, 2023. The appeal court ruled that the OFR holds discretion to suspend a money-services business license following a fair procedure under the circumstance, given that justification is provided by the OFR for such a decision and the existence of less severe alternatives to suspension are discussed.
Lastly, the U.S. House of Representatives has witnessed the passage of the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act, albeit in a largely partisan voting exercise. The bill, slated for a Senate vote, presents an amendment to the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, intending to block Federal Reserve banks from "offering certain products or services directly to an individual" and to prevent the use of central bank digital currency for monetary policy, among other matters. While the Republican-backed bill saw few attendees for these discussions, those present from the Republican side emphasized potential misuse of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), Conversely, Democrat representatives focused on innovative ideas, the international competitive standing of the dollar, and critique of the bill's drafting, with Representative Brad Sherman labeling it a "word salad" that favors "crypto bros".
Published At
5/27/2024 10:05:00 PM
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