Professional basketball player for Miami Heat, Jimmy Butler, has requested to be dismissed from a class action lawsuit alleging that he and other celebrities were promoting unregistered securities through their association with Binance. Butler, it’s argued in a filing from his lawyers, did not promote these alleged unregistered securities and his tweets promoting Binance between February 2 and 13, 2022 were intended as warnings against the dangers of celebrity crypto endorsements. Butler, rather, encouraged potential customers to carry out independent research into crypto investments.
However, claims were made that Butler’s statements were misleading since they were placed alongside promotion of free Binance NFTs and its exchange platform. Other defendants, Binance, its chief CZ Zhao and BitBoy Crypto’s Ben Armstrong have requested dismissal, similarly disputing the allegations.
On another matter, a new chapter in crypto regulations begins as Namibia, following a flip from its 2017 decision to ban cryptocurrency exchanges. The Namibian Government recently signed a law to regulate virtual asset service providers. The bill, known as the Namibia Virtual Assets Act 2023, marks the country’s first step towards establishing regulatory protocols for cryptocurrency-related activities, with an emphasis on consumer protection and the prevention of market abuse. However, failure to comply could lead to fines up to 10 million Namibian dollars and incarceration up to 10 years. Despite steps towards regulation, the Bank of Namibia still firmly asserts that cryptocurrencies will not be accepted as legal tender.
In conclusion, both stories serve as examples of the constant tug and pull between endorsing and restricting, promoting and warning, which is reflective of the larger ambivalence with the world of cryptocurrencies as a whole – a world of potential, yet fraught with concerns over misuse and lack of regulation. Nevertheless, they also suggest a necessary and inevitable movement towards regulatory frameworks to manage the turbulent and transformative power of cryptocurrency. The interplay between these poles of excitement and caution; potential and risk, is a characteristic of the emergence of a new technology that seeks to disrupt conventional finance.
Source: Cointelegraph
