LianGuai Morning News | Insider The United States may reach a comprehensive framework agreement on stablecoins.

LianGuai Morning News reports that the US may reach a comprehensive agreement on stablecoins.

Headlines

▌Insiders: The US may reach a comprehensive framework agreement on stablecoins

A majority of Democrats on the US House Financial Services Committee opposed a bill that would direct regulatory agencies to provide a clear path for digital assets to transition from securities to commodities, among other significant changes in US cryptocurrency regulation. Democratic leader and Congressman Maxine Waters said the bill is too friendly to the crypto industry, and they are disappointed that Republicans have decided to advance a massive market structure bill to rewrite US investor protection laws. With Democrats holding a slim majority in the Senate, their opposition has complicated the path for the market bill to become law in this Congress. If a majority of party members oppose it, it is unlikely that Biden will sign a bill into law.

However, Waters and the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry, are optimistic that the stablecoin bill is feasible, and ongoing negotiations at the eleventh hour may result in more agreements on stablecoin legislation and the market bill, with a committee vote expected on Thursday.

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Market

As of the time of writing, according to coinmarketcap data:

BTC recent trading price is $29,348.6, with a daily change of+0.09%;

ETH recent trading price is $1,872.19, with a daily change of+0.61%;

BNB recent trading price is $238.95, with a daily change of+0.34%;

XRP recent trading price is $0.7164, with a daily change of+1.82%;

DOGE recent trading price is $0.0779, with a daily change of-1.03%;

ADA recent trading price is $0.3068, with a daily change of+0.45%;

MATIC recent trading price is $0.7226, with a daily change of+0.33%.

WLD recent trading price is $2.2503, with a daily change of-2.24%.

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Policies

▌Cryptocurrency-focused anti-money laundering legislation enters the annual US defense budget in the Senate

DL News has learned that cryptocurrency-focused anti-money laundering legislation has entered the US Senate version of the annual defense budget. According to three informed sources, Senate leadership has approved an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would require federal regulatory agencies to develop new anti-money laundering guidelines. The NDAA is a major legislation that must be passed, and it is currently being negotiated between the House and the Senate.

In addition to requiring federal agencies (from the Drug Enforcement Administration to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) to provide reports, the cryptocurrency-focused anti-money laundering bill also establishes new rules that require cryptocurrency ATMs to collect user identity information, and cryptocurrency ATM operators need to report the status of all operating locations to the government.

The version of the National Defense Authorization Act that includes the amendment may be passed in the Senate, which is scheduled to vote on the bill this week.

▌Chairman of the US Financial Services Committee: Traditional banks will benefit from the stablecoin bill

Patrick McHenry, Chairman of the US House Financial Services Committee, refuted criticism from bankers regarding the stablecoin legislation he helped draft in a letter to the American Bankers Association (ABA). McHenry pointed out that even if stablecoin issuers obtain federal approval under the terms of the bill, they will be subject to similar regulations as banks, and banks can benefit from other provisions in the legislation.

He wrote, “Your letter did not mention the favorable policies for financial institutions included in the bill.” McHenry pointed out that the stablecoin bill abolishes the Securities and Exchange Commission’s guidance on digital asset custody and clarifies that banks can tokenize deposits. Banks should be able to compete fairly in the blockchain ecosystem, and McHenry expressed his desire to continue discussing the bill with the ABA.

▌US federal prosecutors request detention of SBF months before trial

According to Reuters, federal prosecutors requested the detention of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of FTX, for several months before his trial at a hearing held in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday. Prosecutor Danielle Sassoon stated, “No set of release conditions can ensure community safety.”

A week ago, the US Department of Justice charged SBF with leaking the private diary of his former colleague Caroline Ellison to the media. Caroline Ellison operated Alameda Research and admitted to multiple charges last year. According to Inner City Press, SBF, who is currently under house arrest, attempted to “intimidate” Ellison and made 100 phone calls to the journalist of The New York Times article, some of which lasted more than 20 minutes.

▌Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee: Cryptocurrencies offered as investment contracts will not be considered securities

The US House Financial Services Committee held a hearing on July 26th to provide clear rules for the country’s digital asset industry. The committee’s chairman, Patrick McHenry, stated that the entire legislative structure for the cryptocurrency market addresses a key issue in the market, which is whether digital assets are considered securities. He clarified that while digital assets can be offered as part of an investment contract, it does not classify them as securities.

The Republican chairman mentioned that their cryptocurrency-related bill, the “21st Century Financial Innovation and Technology (FIT) Act,” focuses on two key points, decentralization and functionality, to explain how the Howey test applies to digital assets. He added that this will help advance US legislation and is key to the “21st Century FIT Act.”

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Blockchain Applications

▌Founder of OpenAI launches “Worldcoin,” controversy arises over privacy issues after a sharp rise

Recently, WorldCoin, a Web3 encryption project co-founded by OpenAI founder Sam Altman, officially launched. It is reported that the WorldCoin team has designed a biometric identity verification system called World ID, which uses an eye scanner called Orb to verify identity by scanning the user’s iris. Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin has issued a warning about the WorldCoin technology, stating that its iris scanning hardware and biometric data collection practices raise significant privacy concerns. As the scan results are stored in the company’s database, iris scanning may leak more information. In addition, WorldCoin also faces contradictions in regulatory intervention and data processing. According to the EU GDPR regulations, any data that operates within the EU or involves EU residents is subject to EU regulation, and failure to adequately protect data can result in fines. (Huaxia Times)

▌Aethir completes Pre-A round of financing at a valuation of $150 million, led by Hashkey

Decentralized GPU infrastructure platform Aethir announced the completion of its Pre-A round of financing, with a total financing amount of over $9 million and a valuation of $150 million. It is reported that this round of financing is another round of financing after the seed round led by Framework Ventures and Infinity Ventures Crypto. This round was led by institutions such as Sanctor Capital, Hashkey, Merit Circle, and CitizenX, with participation from Mirana Ventures, Animoca Brands, Momentum6, Big Brain Holdings, Builder Capital, Tess Ventures, and Maelstrom (Arthur Hayes). The new funds will be used to expand global business in key markets such as Southeast Asia, Latin America, and North America, and to strengthen technological research and development and application innovation support.

It is reported that Aethir is a pioneering company in the global coverage of elastic and scalable decentralized cloud infrastructure (DCI), aiming to solve the challenges faced by the cloud industry by providing scalable and secure cloud services to meet the needs of global gaming and artificial intelligence companies.

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Cryptocurrency

▌CFTC Chairman: CFTC needs $120 million in the next three years to fulfill additional obligations related to cryptocurrencies

On Wednesday morning local time, the U.S. Congress debated a new cryptocurrency bill, and CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam stated that his agency would need $120 million in the next three years to fulfill additional obligations related to cryptocurrencies, but Democratic lawmakers pointed out that there is no guarantee that the Treasury Department will allocate this money. Republican members of the committee countered that the Agriculture Committee will provide $120 million in funding for the CFTC.

▌U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: I purchased 2 bitcoins for each of my 7 children

U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated in a Twitter space hosted by crypto celebrity Scott Melker that he purchased 2 bitcoins for each of his 7 children. He said that Bitcoin allows small investors to actually have a currency that is resistant to inflation, giving them freedom instead of holding fiat currencies controlled by the system. He explained how cryptocurrency market investments have the potential to lift people out of poverty, saying, “After the Bitcoin conference (May 18th and 20th this year), I decided to follow through and purchase 2 bitcoins for each of my 7 children.”

In May 2023, Robert Kennedy became the first presidential candidate to accept Bitcoin campaign donations. He recently pledged to support the US dollar with Bitcoin and cancel Bitcoin taxes.

▌Ripple Chief Legal Officer: SEC Appeal will Benefit Ripple

Ripple’s legal head, Stuart Alderoty, said in a TechCrunch podcast that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may appeal after the recent ruling, which could be advantageous for the company. Alderoty believes that any appeal by the SEC will further solidify the company’s partial victory as the battle for clarification continues. He said, “We believe the judge’s decision was correct. It faithfully applies the law, and the appellate court will not only affirm this, but may even amplify it to a greater extent.”

Alderoty also predicted that if the commission continues to claim that digital assets are securities, the SEC will still lose in other cases related to cryptocurrency companies. He said, “We still need a reasonable, comprehensive, and easy-to-understand regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in the United States.”

▌Hector Network Stablecoin Project to Take 6-12 Months for Liquidation

After losing millions of dollars (and potentially more in legal fees) due to the collapse of the Multichain in the community treasury, the community behind the Hector Network stablecoin project has decided to liquidate. However, a Discord team post shows that the liquidation process may take “at least six to twelve months” and will involve liquidators, lawyers, and auditors. The Hector project treasury once held $100 million in tokens, but now only has $16 million remaining.

Discord comments show dissatisfaction from both long-standing and new community members regarding this timeline, believing that the Hector team withheld information when voting on the project’s future. On Wednesday, Hector closed its Discord server, deleted two years of history, and deprived community members of the opportunity to ask questions to the leadership.

▌Data: Stellar, Ripple, and Solana Investment Funds Experience Surge in July

According to a report by CCData, investment assets under management (AUM) for funds related to Stellar, Ripple, and Solana surged in July, with most of the growth happening on July 14th. Prior to this day, a US judge ruled that selling XRP tokens on exchanges does not constitute an investment contract, leading to a significant rise in the entire crypto market, particularly XRP and other altcoins, including XLM and SOL.

CCData states that AUM for funds based on XLM grew by 62.7% to reach $17.3 million. These funds include Grayscale’s Stellar Lumens Trust (XLM), which saw its net asset value premium surge to 330%. AUM for funds based on XRP grew by 33.2% to reach $65.7 million in July, while AUM for funds based on SOL grew by 55.7% to reach $87.8 million.

▌CoinsLianGuaiid: Hack Attack Orchestrated by Lazarus Group, Customer Funds Intact

CoinsLianGuaiid issued a statement stating that on July 22nd, CoinsLianGuaiid was attacked by hackers, resulting in a theft of $37.3 million. We suspect that one of the most powerful hacker groups, Lazarus Group, is responsible for this. The list of victims also includes top companies in the world: Sony ($81 million), Axie Infinity ($625 million), Horizon Bridge ($100 million), Atomic Wallet ($100 million), and Alphapo ($23 million). The team stated that as a top priority, they have ensured the safety of customer funds. Unfortunately, this attack has affected the platform’s availability and the company’s revenue has also been impacted.

CoinsLianGuaiid CEO Max Krupyshev emphasized, “After a partial shutdown, our services are being gradually started and operated in a new secure environment. We expect it will take a few more days to sort out the minor details and ensure the smooth operation of the system.” Within a few weeks, CoinsLianGuaiid will organize a roundtable meeting to announce a new initiative with all Lazarus victims, aiming to minimize and prevent such attacks in the future.

▌Expert: Bitcoin Mining Hashrate May Drop 30% After Halving

Industry experts predict on Twitter Spaces hosted by CoinDesk that after the next halving event of Bitcoin in April 2024, the computing power (known as hashrate) on the Bitcoin network may drop by up to 30% due to unprofitable miners shutting down their mining machines.

Lucas Pipes, Managing Director of investment bank B. Riley Financial, estimates that the Bitcoin hashrate will decrease by 15% to 30%. Colin Harper, Content Lead of mining services company Luxor Mining, says a 20% drop is possible.

▌Bloomberg Analyst: SEC’s Delay of Carbon Quota ETF Decision is Negative for Spot Bitcoin ETF

The U.S. SEC has postponed the decision on the rule change proposal for the first physically backed carbon quota ETF. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Balchunas said this could be bad news for companies that have submitted applications for spot Bitcoin ETFs, such as Ark Invest, BlackRock, and Fidelity, because the process for carbon quota ETFs is “exactly the same” as that for spot Bitcoin ETFs.

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Important Economic News

▌Fed Chair Powell: There’s Every Reason to Slow Down Rate Hikes

Federal Reserve Chair Powell stated in a speech that if the data indicates the need, we may raise interest rates in September. There’s every reason to slow down the pace of rate hikes and potentially stop them before inflation reaches 2%.

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LianGuai Encyclopedia

▌Cryptocurrency ATMs

Cryptocurrency ATMs, also known as Bitcoin ATMs or digital asset ATMs, are physical machines that allow users to buy or sell cryptocurrencies with cash or debit/credit cards. These ATMs bridge the gap between traditional banking systems and the cryptocurrency world, making it easier for people to access and interact with digital assets.

Disclaimer: LianGuai, as a blockchain information platform, publishes articles for informational purposes only and does not constitute actual investment advice. Please establish the correct investment concept and increase risk awareness.

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