IMF says an outright ban on crypto may be ineffective 

As it does every market day, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a global financial body, reiterated calls for regulations in the crypto industry this week. This time around, it said an outright ban on the nascent sector might not be the best approach.

Away from that. Bitcoiners have been on a roll this week. For the first time since April, the flagship asset surged above the $30,000 threshold when it hit a yearly high of $31,000 on Thursday morning.

Here are major crypto stories from around the world this week 

FTX wants to get $700 million from SBF’s friends 

According to a lawsuit filed on Thursday, crypto exchange FTX is seeking a return of funds from some of the investment firms it had ties to before its collapse. The suit contains 16 counts and seeks over $700 million from the defendants.

The lawsuit filing names incubator and investment company K5 Global, Mount Olympus Capital and SGN Albany Capital, as well as affiliated entities and K5 Global co-owners Michael Kives and Bryan Baum as defendants.

The transfer of funds to these entities was described as being carried out “without receiving equivalent value” and, as avoidable. Notably, in the United States bankruptcy law, an avoidable transaction is one that can be reversed under the Bankruptcy Code or other laws.

Germany’s largest bank applies for digital asset license 

According to reports on Tuesday, Germany’s largest banking institution, Deutsche Bank, has applied for a digital asset custody license to the country’s financial regulator, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in a bid to expand its revenue streams.

This is coming after a similar shift from the bank’s investment arm, DWS Group which aims to expand on digital asset custody services, including cryptocurrencies. 

German banking institutions up until recently had maintained a distance from the crypto industry, usually citing its volatile nature and unpredictability but the stance appears to be changing in 2023 as major banking institutions continue to explore the potential of adding digital asset-centred services for clients.

IMF publishes new crypto report 

In a report on Latin America and the Caribbean on Thursday, the IMF said an outright ban on crypto may not be the best approach. It pointed to various approaches taken by local governments in addressing the adoption of cryptocurrencies and CBDCs. 

The financial body said Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador, whose governments’ regulation of crypto was in progress, ranked among the highest countries in the world for the adoption of digital assets in an effort to help the unbanked, send faster and cheaper payments, and more. 

Related post:

IMF to launch global Digital Currency platform to facilitate international funds transfer

Notably, IMF director of the monetary and capital markets department, Tobias Adrian, this week proposed a payment system that uses one ledger to record CBDC transactions, a notion that received harsh criticism from stakeholders in the crypto space.

Binance linked with pyramid schemes in Brazil

According to reports, Deputy Alfredo Gaspar, a member of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies, has requested the summoning of Guilherme Haddad, the director of Binance Brazil, to appear before the Brazilian parliament as part of an ongoing Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) investigation into alleged pyramid schemes in the country.

The request was made on Wednesday and it will be voted on by members of the CPI next Tuesday. If the vote is approved, Haddad will be summoned to appear before the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies.

Read also:

Bitcoin crosses $28,000 for the first time since May; what is behind this surge?

This development is coming amid a global regulatory crackdown on Binance that has faced scrutiny from authorities in the United States, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and now Brazil.

Haru Invest lay off 100 staff

Per a CoinDesk Korea report on Thursday, Haru Invest, a crypto yield platform is set to remove 100 workers from its payroll by today. Haru Invest is based in South Korea and it allows users to earn interest on their digital assets. 

CEO Lee Hyung-soo shared the news about layoffs via a video call with employees. “I made that decision, due to the recent situation, normal company management is difficult.”

Earlier this month, the startup suspended customer withdrawals due to a problem with its service partners.

That’s all from us this week. See you same time next week!