Read in the digest:
Coinbase faces class action lawsuit for selling 79 unlicensed cryptos, including XRP, DOGE, and SHIB. ETH Exchange balance falls to 4 year low, Ethereum Classic jumps 60% in 7 days. FTX forms Australia unit to offer regulated crypto services, Australia to integrate crypto into payment system. Honduran president to declare Bitcoin a legal tender tomorrow. BlockFi and Swan Bitcoin affected by HubSpot data breach.Coinbase Faces Class Action Lawsuit for Selling 79 Unlicensed Cryptos, Including XRP, DOGE, and SHIB
The biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, Coinbase, has been slammed with a class-action lawsuit for selling as many as 79 unlicensed crypto assets on its platform.
Among the list of unlicensed crypto assets that Christopher Underwood, Louis Oberlander, and Henry Rodriguez claim were listed by Coinbase are Ripple (XRP), dogecoin (DOGE), and Shiba Inu (SHIB).
The plaintiffs claim that since October 8th, 2019, Coinbase has allowed its users to buy 79 unlicensed cryptocurrencies without clarifying if these assets are securities.
According to Underwood, Oberlander, and Rodriguez, the 79 cryptos were not registered with the SEC, nor is Coinbase registered to sell securities. They are seeking to collectively claim reimbursements for trading losses up to $5 million.
Flipsider:
Ripple maintains that its XRP is not a security. With the SEC not specifying which cryptocurrencies are securities, many have suggested that the case is unlikely to go to trial or get further than the initial filing.Why You Should Care
The nascent crypto industry requires a universal regulatory framework that clarifies its operations.
ETH Exchange Balance Falls to 4 Year Low, Ethereum Classic Jumps 60% in 7 Days
As the Crypto market continues to consolidate, the amount of ETH held on all exchanges has fallen to its lowest point since September 2018.
According to data from Glassnode, approximately 500,000 ETH, (worth approximately $1.61 billion USD) have been moved from exchanges since January 1st, 2022.
At the time of this writing, the net balance of Ethereum currently stands at 21.72 million ETH, down from its all-time high of 31.68 million ETH in June 2020.
As the balance of Ethereum on Exchanges drops, the price of one of its competitors, Ethereum Classic (ETC), has skyrocketed, gaining more than 36% over the last 24 hours, and 60% in 7 days.
The seven day price chart for Ethereum Classic (ETC). Source: Tradingview
Ethereum Classic stands as one of the biggest gainers in the top 30. After setting a new 90 day high at $40.63, ETC is now trading at $39.227 at the time of writing.
Flipsider:
With the approach of Ethereum’s transition from PoW to PoS, ETC may undertake some miners’ hashrate and become an object of capital speculation.Why You Should Care
The decline in ETH exchange reserves signals intention by investors to HODL the asset in 2022.
FTX Forms Australia Unit to Offer Regulated Crypto Services, Australia to Integrate Crypto into Payment System
Leading global crypto exchange FTX has established a division in Australia, continuing its global expansion. FTX will offer regulated crypto services in Australia after obtaining an Australian Financial Services License.
FTX Australia will offer exchange and over-the-counter (OTC) products and services, including derivatives. FTX’s expansion comes just weeks after establishing FTX Europe to offer crypto services in the European Economic Area (EEA).
The FTX Australia branch came to fruition as the Australian government announced its intention to establish a “world-leading” crypto regulatory framework as it looks to revamp the country’s payment system.
Australia’s Minister for the Digital Economy, Jane Hume, publicly stated that the government will “enable Australians to invest safely and securely in crypto assets” by introducing a market license framework for cryptocurrency exchanges.
Flipsider:
While Australia embraces crypto, other nations like China, Egypt, Iraq, and Morocco have opted to ban the use of digital assets outright.Why You Should Care
With its framework, Australia aims to foster “trust” between crypto investors and exchanges, and become a crypto hub.
Honduran President to Declare Bitcoin a Legal Tender Tomorrow
Confirming the earlier speculation that more countries would make Bitcoin a legal tender this year, President of Honduras Xiomara Castro is expected to declare Bitcoin as a legal tender in the country.
President Castro asserted, “We must not allow El Salvador to be the only country escaping dollar hegemony. Honduras has the right to move towards the First World countries.”
In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country to allow consumers to use the cryptocurrency in all transactions, alongside the U.S. dollar.
If Bitcoin obtains the status of legal tender in Honduras, it would be the second country in which the crypto asset is accepted as an official means of payment.
Flipsider:
The international monetary fund (IMF), after considering the economic implications, has urged El Salvador to reverse its decision to make Bitcoin legal tender.Why You Should Care
By adopting Bitcoin as a legal tender, countries benefit from a currency that isn’t influenced by another country’s economy, or even their own.
BlockFi and Swan Bitcoin Affected by HubSpot Data Breach
Hubspot, an enterprise customer relationship management (CRM) tool used for storing users’ names, phone numbers, and email addresses for marketing purposes, has reported a data breach.
According to a report released by Hubspot, the breach happened after a bad actor gained access to an employee’s account. They then used the compromised account to target stakeholders in the cryptocurrency industry.
Two crypto firms, BlockFi and Swan Bitcoin, have revealed that they were affected by the breach. However, both crypto firm companies have assured users that their crypto is safe.
They explained that the data breach at Hubspot had limited access, and did not affect their users’ passwords or internal data.
Flipsider:
Since the HubSpot hack, some BlockFi and Swan Bitcoin users have reported receiving phishing attack emails over the weekend, attempting to lure them into entering their passwords on a fake site. EMAIL NEWSLETTERJoin to get the flipside of crypto
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You might also be interested in reading XRP Price Projection: Assessing The Ripple-Colombia Central Bank Partnership.