In a riveting revelation from daily newsletter First Mover by CoinDesk, popular crypto exchange Binance could purportedly face fraud charges by the U.S. Department of Justice. As per Semafor news site, the prosecution is treading with caution considering the potential ripple effect on the wider crypto industry. Rather than direct indictment, alternatives such as fines and deferred or non-prosecution agreements are under contemplation.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first incident of Binance landing under legal scrutiny. Earlier this year, the company and its CEO Changpeng Zhao were sued by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for alleged evasion of U.S. laws.
On a tangential topic, the article mentions the application filed by Direxion, an exchange-traded fund issuer, to SEC for a Bitcoin and Ether futures product. Interestingly, this comes amidst a rush of organizations vying to launch similar crypto-related trading products in the U.S., as the SEC reviews more than a handful applications for a spot Bitcoin ETF launch.
Equally gripping is a report from the Network Contagion Research Institute revealing a surge in Twitter bots promoting crypto tokens traded by Sam Bankman-Fried’s quant trading firm Alameda Research. This occurrence was registered soon after FTX listed the tokens. According to the report, fake tweets about these coins, including BOBA, GALA, IMX, RNDR and SPELL, soared by as much as 30% following FTX‘s official listing.
The final interesting thread in the crypto web is the diminishing discount in shares of the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) relative to the fund’s net asset value, which shrank from 41.5% to 37.16% within two days. This comes as six companies – Volatility Shares, Bitwise, ProShares, Roundhill Investments, VanEck and Grayscale Investments, have submitted applications for ETFs tied to Ether futures. Speculations moot that these applications could be withdrawn by the week’s end, citing the sizeably large position change as unpalatable to the SEC.
As we peer into the crypto microcosm, the diverse happenings offer a rich tapestry of intrigue, validation, doubts and possibilities. The industry’s future, while certainly revolutionary, isn’t without its challenges and necessary reforms. As the crypto world turns, so do the fortunes of those embroiled within its fascinating framework.
Source: Coindesk
