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☆ US securities regulator charges 5 investment advisers with custody rule violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The headquarters of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. The firms - Lloyd George Management (HK) Ltd, Bluestone Capital Management LLC, the Eideard Group, Disruptive Technology Advisers LLC, and Apex Financial Advisors Inc - did not admit or deny the SEC's findings. Disruptive Technology agreed to pay a civil penalty of $225,000, the SEC said. Lloyd George agreed to pay a penalty of $50,000. Apex, which declined to comment when called for comment, agreed to pay $130,000.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Lloyd George, Chris Prentice, Jonathan Oatis, Nick Zieminski Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, SEC, Lloyd, Lloyd George Management, Bluestone Capital Management, Eideard, Technology, Apex Financial Advisors, Bluestone Capital, Apex, Thomson Locations: Washington ,

☆ Analysis-Grayscale victory big boost for decade-long spot bitcoin ETF push
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Hannah Lang | Chris Prentice | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

FILE PHOTO: Representations of cryptocurrency Bitcoin are placed on a PC motherboard, in this illustration taken June 16, 2023. A spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization without having to own it. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications, saying applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation. Grayscale argued the same setup should be satisfactory for its spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin’s underlying price. Other firms have spot bitcoin ETF applications with the SEC, including asset management giant BlackRock, Fidelity and WisdomTree.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale’s, It’s, ”, Christopher LaVigne, Withers, “, Michael Sonnenshein, Bitcoin, Sui Chung, Joseph Toner, Seth Hertlein, Ryan Louvar, Paul Grewal, ” Coinbase, Withers ’ LaVigne Organizations: WASHINGTON, REUTERS, District of Columbia, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Fidelity, Coinbase, BlackRock, Supreme Locations: Washington, New York, WilmerHale, BlackRock

Representations of cryptocurrency Bitcoin are placed on a PC motherboard, in this illustration taken June 16, 2023. A spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization without having to own it. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications, saying applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation. Grayscale argued the same setup should be satisfactory for its spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin's underlying price. Other firms have spot bitcoin ETF applications with the SEC, including asset management giant BlackRock (BLK.N), Fidelity and WisdomTree (WT.N).

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale's, It's, Christopher LaVigne, Withers, Michael Sonnenshein, Bitcoin, Sui Chung, Joseph Toner, Seth Hertlein, Ryan Louvar, Paul Grewal, Coinbase, LaVigne, Carolina Mandl, Tom Wilson, Michelle Price, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, District of Columbia, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Fidelity, Coinbase, CME, BlackRock, Supreme, Thomson Locations: Washington, New York, WilmerHale, London

A panel of judges in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals in Washington said the securities regulator's denial of Grayscale's proposal was arbitrary and capricious because the SEC failed to explain its different treatment between bitcoin futures ETFs and spot bitcoin ETFs. CRYPTO WINThe SEC rejected Grayscale's application for a spot bitcoin ETF in June 2022, arguing the proposal did not meet anti-fraud and investor protection standards. The court said in its ruling that the SEC failed to explain why it disagreed with Grayscale's assertion that the bitcoin spot and futures markets are 99.9% correlated. If the SEC chooses not to appeal, the court would issue a mandate specifying how its decision should be executed. That could include instructing the SEC to approve the application, or to revisit Grayscale's application, in which case the SEC could still reject the proposal on other grounds.

Persons: Dado, CRYPTO, Judge Neomi Rao, Hannah Lang, Chris Prentice, Paul Simao, Matthew Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, U.S . Securities, Exchange, District of Columbia, SEC, CRYPTO WIN, Fidelity, Appeals, U.S, Supreme, BlackRock, New, Thomson Locations: District, Washington, New York

☆ US SEC readies vote on regulatory overhaul for private funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. At the time it was proposed, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said the changes would benefit investors in such funds, typically wealthy individuals and institutional investors like pension funds, and companies raising capital from them. "Private fund advisers, through the funds they manage, touch so much of our economy. Private funds reported holding $20.4 trillion in gross assets by the end of 2022, versus $8 trillion about a decade earlier, according to data available on the SEC's website. "We don't see that the SEC is solving anything with this," said Jack Inglis, CEO of the Alternative Investment Management Association.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Gary Gensler, Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren, Jennifer Han, Jack Inglis, Chris Prentice, Douglas Gillison, Michelle Price, Nick Zieminski Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, Exchange, Fund, SEC, Democratic, Industry, Citadel LLC, Association, Alternative Investment Management Association, Carolina, Thomson Locations: Washington ,, New York, Washington

Signage is seen at the headquarters of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. Here are the highlights:PRIVATE EQUITY, HEDGE FUND FEESThe SEC on Wednesday finalized a sweeping overhaul of private rules with the aim of increasing transparency and fairness in the industry which oversees more than $20 trillion in assets. MONEY MARKET FUNDSThe SEC in July finalized rules aimed at increasing the resilience of the $5.5 trillion money market fund industry. MUTUAL FUND LIQUIDITY, PRICING RULESSimilarly, the SEC has proposed new rules aimed at better preparing the broader mutual fund industry for distress. The SEC says speeding up the disclosures is fairer on retail investors, who are disadvantaged by the current 10-day window.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Gary Gensler, Chizu Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, Rights, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Washington ,

The private fund industry manages $20 trillion in assets. They would also require funds to perform annual audits. "Private fund advisers, through the funds they manage, touch so much of our economy," he said at the time. The rule would require fund managers to disclose so-called "side letters" - an industry practice through which funds can offer some investors special terms - when they are financially material. Earlier, the proposed rules would require investors and private funds to re-write all their contracts.

Persons: Jim Bourg, Exchange Commission's, Gary Gensler, Andreesen Horowitz, Michelle Price, Nick Zieminski, Mark Porter Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, REUTERS, Securities, Exchange, Citadel, Industry, Association, Alternative Investment Management Association, Thomson Locations: Washington, U.S

NEW YORK, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Fintech investment adviser Titan Global Capital Management USA LLC agreed to pay over $1 million to settle charges from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it misled investors about performance metrics and custody of clients' crypto assets. Titan, a New York-based registered investment adviser, misled investors with statements made on its website about hypothetical returns from August 2021 to October 2022, the SEC said in a statement. That included touting annualized crypto performance results as high 2,700% without telling investors they were extrapolated from a "purely" hypothetical three-week period during which no trading occurred, the SEC said in a charging document. Reuters previously reported the SEC was investigating investment advisers over whether they are meeting rules around custody of client crypto assets. Titan agreed to pay a $850,000 civil penalty that will be distributed to affected clients and give back ill-gotten gains and interest of over $192,000, the SEC said.

Persons: Chris Prentice, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Titan Global Capital Management, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Reuters, Titan, Thomson Locations: New York

☆ US Senators say Credit Suisse did not review all records when probing Nazi-linked accounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Chris Prentice | Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK/ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss lender Credit Suisse did not review all available records when it conducted an internal probe into the historical servicing of Nazi clients and Nazi-linked accounts, according to an investigation published by U.S. lawmakers on Thursday. The logo of Credit Suisse is seen outside its office building in Hong Kong, China, August 8, 2023. “Just under” 1,000 of 65,000 sets of records were available electronically for review, the report said. Neil Barofsky, the former ombudsman, and AlixPartners, the consulting firm Credit Suisse hired to conduct the probe, did not respond immediately to a requests for comment. A spokesperson for Credit Suisse referred Reuters to its April statement defending its review and raising concerns over the ombudsman’s work.

Persons: Tyrone Siu, “, Chuck Grassley, Neil Barofsky, Simon Wiesenthal Organizations: Credit Suisse, Nazi, U.S, REUTERS, Senate, Reuters, Simon, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Bloomberg Locations: ZURICH, Hong Kong, China

The long-awaited rule is expected to require that real estate professionals such as title insurers report the identities of the beneficial owners of companies buying real estate in cash to the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Criminals have for decades anonymously hidden ill-gotten gains in real estate, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in March, adding that as much as $2.3 billion was laundered through U.S. real estate between 2015 and 2020. That debate has slowed down FinCEN's work on the real estate reporting rule, one of the sources said. PATCHWORKWhile banks have long been required to understand the source of customer funds and report suspicious transactions, no such rules exist nationwide for the real estate industry. FinCEN implemented GTOs in 2016 after the New York Times revealed that nearly half of luxury real estate was bought by anonymous shell companies.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Erica Hanichak, FinCEN, Jodi Vittori, Guo Wengui, Guo, Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, Howard, David Szakonyi, Luc Cohen, Chris Prentice, Amy Stevens, Michelle Price, Matthew Lewis Organizations: U.S . Treasury Department, FACT Coalition, Association, New York Times, Carnegie Endowment, International Peace, Nardello, Government, Office, George Washington University, New, Thomson Locations: New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Chinese, Jersey, Manhattan

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoNEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission plans to appeal a recent court decision involving Ripple Labs that was a setback for the agency's efforts to oversee cryptocurrency markets. The SEC said an appeal could address legal issues on which there was "substantial ground for differences of opinion." Torres' decision was not a total victory for Ripple, as she found that it violated securities laws by selling XRP to institutional investors. The judge must decide whether to let the SEC appeal her decision, and put the case on hold. Ripple, and lawyers for Ripple, Garlinghouse and Larsen did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Analisa Torres, Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, Chris Larsen, Torres, Jed Rakoff, Larsen, Gary Gensler, Coinbase, Jonathan Stempel, Chris Prentice, Jody Godoy, Chris Reese, Lisa Shumaker, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, Ripple Labs, SEC, U.S, District, Terra, Terraform Labs, Thomson Locations: Washington ,, Manhattan, U.S, Gensler, New York

WASHINGTON, Aug 8 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators on Tuesday hit another batch of Wall Street firms with $549 million in civil penalties over widespread record-keeping failures related to employees' use of personal text messages and other messaging apps. Eleven firms, including Wells Fargo Securities and BNP Paribas Securities Corp, have agreed to pay $289 million in fines to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve the allegations. Regulators require broker dealers and investment advisers to keep certain work-related communications, but Wall Street dealers have increasingly used personal devices in recent years. Spokespeople for BNP, which agreed to pay $110 million to the regulators, and Mizuho, which agreed to pay $25 million to the SEC, declined to comment. The regulators have already fined units of JPMorgan Chase and Co (JPM.N), Barclays, Bank of America and others for similar record-keeping failures.

Persons: Wells, Société, Spokespeople, Gurbir Grewal, Chris Prentice, Susan Heavey, Nivedita Balu, Nupur Anand, Saeed Azhar, Bernadette Baum, Jason Neely Organizations: Wall Street, Wells, Wells Fargo Securities, BNP Paribas Securities Corp, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Futures Trading, BNP, Bank of Montreal, Wedbush Securities Inc, Wall, SEC, CFTC, Mizuho, Nikko Securities, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, Bank of America, Reuters, Thomson Locations: U.S, Wells Fargo, Nikko, New York, Washington, Toronto

A representation of the cryptocurrency is seen in front of Coinbase logo in this illustration taken, March 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoNEW YORK, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Coinbase Global (COIN.O) on Friday asked a judge to end the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's lawsuit accusing the world's largest publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange of violating federal securities laws. Coinbase was sued by the SEC in June, and accused of operating illegally as a national securities exchange, broker and clearing agency without registering with the regulator. Firms are closely watching the litigation between the SEC and Coinbase, with some onlookers deeming it an "existential" clash. Coinbase leaned on the recent Ripple matter in Friday's filing, noting the SEC's lawsuit hinges on the type of transactions that the judge deemed outside of the regulator's jurisdiction.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Coinbase, Paul Grewal, Chris Prentice, Toby Chopra, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, U.S . Securities, Exchange, SEC, Labs, Thomson Locations: Manhattan

An AI (Artificial Intelligence) sign is seen at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China July 6, 2023. REUTERS/Aly Song/File PhotoBOSTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Massachusetts securities regulators have opened an investigation into the ways in which investment firms use artificial intelligence in their interactions with investors, citing concerns about the technology's potential unchecked use. Others who received letters included Tradier Brokerage, US Tiger Securities, E*Trade, Savvy Advisors and Hearsay Systems, according to a spokesperson for Galvin, a long-serving Democrat and prominent state securities regulator. "If deployed without the guardrails necessary to ensure proper disclosure and consideration of conflicts, I am concerned that this technology could result in harm to investors," Galvin said in a statement. The investigation came a week after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposed requiring broker-dealers to eliminate possible conflicts of interest from the use of artificial intelligence on trading platforms.

Persons: Aly, Bill Galvin, Morgan Stanley, Galvin, Nate Raymond, Chris Prentice, Mark Porter, Andrea Ricci Organizations: Artificial Intelligence, REUTERS, BOSTON, JPMorgan Chase, US Tiger Securities, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Massachusetts, Boston, Washington

☆ US regulator warns brokers to bolster anti money-laundering efforts
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Signage is seen at the headquarters of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. Such firms are required to flag suspicious transactions and conduct customer due diligence. Regulators found some broker dealers did not conduct tests of their anti-money laundering programs in a timely manner or did not do comprehensive testing of these policies, the SEC said. The SEC, which did not name any firms in its notice, also found that some firms had not updated their programs in line with new regulations. Reporting by Chris Prentice; editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Andrew Kelly NEW, Chris Prentice, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, Andrew Kelly NEW YORK, Thomson Locations: Washington ,

☆ US SEC says Hex crypto founder defrauded investors, spent money on 'Enigma' diamond
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

In a complaint filed in Brooklyn federal court, the SEC said Heart, also known as Richard Schueler, touted his Hex token, PulseX asset trading platform and PulseChain asset network on YouTube and other websites as pathways to "grandiose wealth." The SEC accused Heart of spending investor funds on McLaren and Ferrari sports cars, four Rolex watches and "The Enigma," which cost 3.16 million British pounds (then $4.28 million) at auction and was purportedly the world's largest black diamond. Heart, 43, is a U.S. citizen believed to live in Helsinki, Finland, the SEC said. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment through LinkedIn. Hex, PulseX and PulseChain are also defendants.

Persons: Richard Heart, Richard Schueler, Jonathan Stempel, Chris Prentice, Katharine Jackson, Ismail Shakil, Will Dunham, Mark Porter Organizations: YORK, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, YouTube, McLaren, Ferrari, Rolex, Thomson Locations: Brooklyn, U.S, Helsinki, Finland, New York

NEW YORK, July 26 (Reuters) - British billionaire Joe Lewis has surrendered to U.S. authorities in Manhattan and is expected to appear in court later on Wednesday to face insider trading charges, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office in Manhattan said. Two of Lewis' pilots, Patrick O'Connor and Bryan Waugh, were also charged with insider trading securities fraud. Joe Lewis is a wealthy man," Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, said in a statement. Insider trading has long been a focus of Williams' office, dating to 2009 when a crackdown began under one of his predecessors, Preet Bharara. Separately on Wednesday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil insider trading case against Lewis, O'Connor, Waugh and Lewis' then-girlfriend Carolyn Carter.

Persons: Joe Lewis, Lewis, Patrick O'Connor, Bryan Waugh, David Zornow, O'Connor, Waugh, O'Connor texted, Mirati, Daniel Levy, Dylan Martinez, Damian Williams, Williams, Preet Bharara, Carolyn Carter, Carter, Gurbir Grewal, Luc Cohen, Jonathan Stempel, Chris Prentice, Chizu Nomiyama, Daniel Wallis Organizations: YORK, U.S, Tottenham Hotspur, Tottenham, Prosecutors, Mirati Therapeutics, Southampton Premier League, Reuters, Tavistock Group, Forbes, Attorney, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Thomson Locations: British, U.S, Manhattan, United States, New York, Virginia

Companies Mirati Therapeutics Inc FollowNEW YORK, July 26 (Reuters) - The British billionaire Joe Lewis pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to orchestrating what prosecutors called a "brazen" insider trading scheme by passing tips about companies in which he invested to friends, private pilots and a former girlfriend. Two of Lewis' pilots, Patrick O'Connor and Bryan Waugh, also pleaded not guilty to related insider trading charges, after being accused of making millions of dollars in illegal profit from Lewis' tips. British billionaire and Tottenham Hotspur owner Joe Lewis exits the United States Courthouse in Manhattan, following his appearance on insider trading charges, in New York City, U.S., July 26, 2023. Insider trading has long been a focus of Williams' office, dating to 2009 when a crackdown began under one of his predecessors, Preet Bharara. Separately on Wednesday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil insider trading case against Lewis, O'Connor, Waugh and Lewis' former girlfriend Carolyn Carter.

Persons: Joe Lewis, Lewis, Valerie Figueredo, Nicolas Roos, Patrick O'Connor, Bryan Waugh, David Zornow, O'Connor, Waugh, O'Connor texted, Mirati, Amr Alfiky Mirati, Prosecutors, Damian Williams, Williams, Preet Bharara, Carolyn Carter, Carter, Gurbir Grewal, Luc Cohen, Jonathan Stempel, Jody Godoy, Chris Prentice, Chizu Nomiyama, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Mirati Therapeutics, Tottenham Hotspur, Aviva, Tavistock Group, Forbes, Tottenham, Prosecutors, United, REUTERS, U.S, Attorney, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Thomson Locations: British, Manhattan, United States, New York City, U.S, New York, Virginia, South Korea

DWS said the resolution of allegations was a top priority but that it couldn't comment on timeframes or outcomes. Under Democratic leadership, the SEC has pledged to crack down on "greenwashing" and the inflating of ESG credentials to attract investors. DWS had earmarked civil litigation provisions of 8 million euros ($8.84 million) by the end of last year. DWS has been in settlement negotiations with Frankfurt prosecutors over a multi-million euro fine, one of the people said. Earlier in July, Reuters and other media reported that German prosecutors were investigating DWS' former CEO Asoka Woehrmann, who in the past has called allegations "unfounded".

Persons: DWS, Goldman Sachs, Asoka Woehrmann, Chris Prentice, Tom Sims, John O'Donnell, Louise Heavens, Susan Fenton Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, U.S, Deutsche Bank, Securities, SEC, Investigations, Democratic, Frankfurt, Reuters, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, Germany

WASHINGTON, July 19 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday it fined Deutsche Bank and its U.S. affiliates $186 million for failing to sufficiently address money laundering and other shortcomings flagged by the U.S. central bank. The Fed identified the previous issues in 2015 and 2017 consent orders, which stemmed from deficient controls in Deutsche's relationship with the Estonian branch of Danske Bank which ended in 2015. In December, Danske Bank pleaded guilty to a bank fraud conspiracy and agreed to forfeit $2 billion to settle a long-running Department of Justice probe into billions of dollars of illicit payments. In its latest order, the Fed said it found a "significant portion" of the $276 billion in transactions Deutsche cleared for Danske involved "high-risk non-resident customers." Shortcomings in Deutsche's policies on money laundering persisted after its relationship with Danske ended in 2015, the Fed said.

Persons: Biden, Danske, Pete Schroeder, Richard Chang Organizations: Federal, Deutsche Bank, U.S, Fed, Danske Bank, of Justice, Danske, Thomson Locations: Estonian, Estonia, Russia

The crypto industry is in a tug-of-war with the SEC and its Democratic chair Gary Gensler, who has described the crypto market as a "Wild West" riddled with fraud. Saying most crypto tokens are securities, the SEC has cracked down on crypto trading platforms, including the top U.S. exchange Coinbase, in an effort to bring the industry under its oversight. Crypto firms have long disputed the SEC's jurisdiction but until Thursday no court had supported that view. The two sources, for example, said firms are considering ways to use the Judge's ruling for their defense. However, she also ruled Ripple's direct sales of XRP to investors should have been registered as securities, handing the SEC a partial victory.

Persons: Coinbase, Gary Gensler, Robert Frenchman, Mukasey Frenchman, Analisa Torres, XRP, Crypto, Teresa Goody Guillén, Spokespeople, Binance, Carol Goforth, Stuart Alderoty, Philip Moustakis, Jody Godoy, Chris Prentice, Hannah Lang, Tom Hals, Michelle Price, David Gregorio Our Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Ripple Labs, Democratic, Mukasey Frenchman LLP, San Francisco, U.S, District, Baker, Hostetler, University of Arkansas, Reuters, Circuit, Seward, Washington , D.C, Thomson Locations: Mukasey, New York, Washington, New York , Connecticut, Vermont, Washington ,

NEW YORK, July 13 (Reuters) - Alex Mashinsky, founder and former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, pleaded not guilty Thursday to U.S. fraud charges that he misled customers and artificially inflated the value of his company's propriety crypto token. Three federal regulatory agencies also sued Mashinsky and Celsius in connection with the case. Mashinsky, 57, was charged with seven criminal counts - including securities fraud, commodities fraud and wire fraud - according to an indictment unsealed earlier on Thursday. Its founder Sam Bankman-Fried was charged with fraud last year, and has pleaded not guilty. "Whether it's old-school fraud or some new-school crypto scheme, it doesn't matter one bit.

Persons: Alex Mashinsky, Mashinsky, Sam Bankman, Fried, Ona Wang, Roni Cohen, Pavon, Cohen, Damian Williams, Williams, Hannah Lang, Luc Cohen, Chris Prentice, Elizabeth Howcroft, Chizu Nomiyama, Michelle Price, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: YORK, Prosecutors, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Futures Trading Commission, Federal Trade Commission, U.S, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, Israeli, U.S, Hoboken , New Jersey, Washington, New York, Bengaluru, London

July 13 (Reuters) - Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, was arrested and charged with fraud, a U.S. prosecutor in New York said Thursday, while three federal regulatory agencies sued him and his company. Mashinsky, 57, was charged with seven criminal counts - including securities fraud, commodities fraud and wire fraud - while Celsius' former chief revenue officer, Roni Cohen-Pavon, was charged with four criminal counts, according to the indictment, which was unsealed on Thursday. Its founder Sam Bankman-Fried was charged with fraud last year, and has pleaded not guilty. Crypto lenders such as Celsius grew rapidly as crypto prices surged during the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Federal Trade Commission also sued Celsius and Mashinsky.

Persons: Alex Mashinsky, Roni Cohen, Pavon, Cohen, Sam Bankman, Fried, Mashinsky, Niket, Hannah Lang, Elizabeth Howcroft, Chris Prentice, Shinjini Ganguli, Chizu Nomiyama, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Mashinsky, Attorney's, Prosecutors, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Arrows Capital, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Network, Coinbase, Arbinet, Transit Wireless, Thomson Locations: U.S, New York, Manhattan, New Jersey, cryptocurrency, Singapore, Bengaluru, Washington, London

CompaniesLaw Firms Ripple Labs Inc FollowCoinbase Global Inc FollowJuly 13 (Reuters) - Ripple Labs Inc did not violate federal securities law by selling its XRP token on public exchanges, a U.S. judge ruled on Thursday, a landmark legal victory for the cryptocurrency industry that sent the value of XRP soaring. An SEC spokesperson said the agency was pleased with part of the ruling in which the judge held that Ripple violated federal securities law by selling XRP directly to sophisticated investors. XRP sales on cryptocurrency platforms by Garlinghouse and co-founder and former CEO Chris Larsen, and other distributions including compensation to employees also did not involve securities, Torres ruled. PARTIAL WIN FOR THE SECThe SEC won a partial victory as Torres found the company's $728.9 million of XRP sales to hedge funds and other sophisticated buyers amounted to unregistered sales of securities. Both the Ripple and Coinbase cases focus on registration requirements and whether certain digital assets are securities under U.S. law.

Persons: XRP, Analisa Torres, Brad Garlinghouse, We’ve, Torres, Paul Grewal, Chris Larsen, Garlinghouse, Larsen, Gary DeWaal, Rosenman, Tom Emmer, Jody Godoy, Chris Prentice, Tom Hals, Chizu Nomiyama, Conor Humphries, Leslie Adler, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Labs, Ripple Labs, U.S, District, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Twitter, Supreme, WIN FOR, Republican, Thomson Locations: U.S, XRP, Katten, New York, Wilmington , Delaware

July 11 (Reuters) - Bank of America on Tuesday agreed to pay $250 million in fines and compensation to settle claims the bank systematically double-charged customers fees, withheld promised credit card perks, and opened accounts without customer authorization. Consumers could not reasonably expect or understand they would be hit with $35 fees each time the bank declined to pay a single transaction, regulators said. In a statement, Bank of America said it voluntarily eliminated or reduced a range of fees last year. The accounts represented a "small percentage" of new accounts at the bank, regulators said. As a result of these industry leading changes, revenue from these fees has dropped more than 90 percent," Bank of America said in a statement.

Persons: Rohit Chopra, Rami Ayyub, Chris Prentice, Saeed Azhar, Jonathan Stempel, Emma Rumney, Michelle Price, Sharon Singleton, Emelia Organizations: Bank of America, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Currency, OCC, Thomson Locations: Charlotte , North Carolina

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