Step 2 for SEC: Prove Tokens in Coinbase Case are Securities

SEC Will Need to Prove Tokens Are Securities in Coinbase Insider-Trading Case, Legal Expert Says

Ian McGinley, now a partner at the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, told CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” Friday that the SEC couldn’t have filed the case unless the tokens in question are securities.

“They don’t have a wire fraud statute like the DOJ does,” McGinley said, referring to wire fraud charges issued by the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday.

McGinley, who served more for more than a decade as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York, noted the Justice Department can sidestep the debate of whether the tokens are securities.

“The SEC doesn’t have that option,” McGinley said. “They will have to prove that it’s a security.”

Paul Pelosi’s questionable Wall Street windfall spurs bipartisan calls for stock trading ban | The Hill

Now more eyes are turning to Paul Pelosi, the House speaker’s husband. From a trading perspective, he’s like the real-life version of Gordon Gekko from the 1987 Oliver Stone classic “Wall Street.” His portfolio has substantially outperformed the S&P 500. In 2020 alone, a year when the stock market was as turbulent as in any year in recent memory thanks to COVID-19 shutdowns, Paul outperformed the S&P 500 by 14.3 percent, according to Hawley’s office. And per a New York Post analysis, the Pelosis have made approximately $30 million from trades involving Big Tech companies the House speaker is responsible for regulating.

In fact, Paul is so good that there’s an app that allows the public to follow his stock trades. And for good reason: The Pelosi’s reported net worth is more than $114 million, according to OpenSecrets.org. Per a Business Insider report, “a vast majority of the couple’s wealth is derived from stocks, options, and investments made by Paul Pelosi.”

Singapore’s Three Arrows Founders, En Route to Dubai, Describe ‘LTCM Moment’

After five weeks in hiding, the disgraced founders of Three Arrows Capital spoke extensively about the spectacular implosion of their once high-flying hedge fund, saying their bungled crypto speculation unleashed cascading margin calls on loans that should never have been made.

Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, both 35, first became friends in high school. They built 3AC into a crypto-trading behemoth before its collapse bankrupted creditors and exacerbated a selloff that foisted steep losses on mom-and-pop owners of Bitcoin and other tokens. At times contrite and at times defensive, Davies and Zhu, speaking from an undisclosed location, described a systemic failure of risk management in which easy-flowing credit worsened the impact of wrong-way bets.

Texas GOP Aims to Enshrine Crypto in State’s Constitution

The Texas GOP platform calls for the state’s Bill of Rights to include a clause allowing citizens to own, hold and use whatever medium of exchange they choose, including digital currency.

“The right of the people to own, hold and use a mutually agreed upon medium of exchange, including cash, coin, bullion, digital currency or scrip, when trading and contracting for goods and services shall not be infringed,” begins the clause Texas Republicans would like to see added to the state’s Bill of Rights.

“No government shall prohibit or encumber the ownership or holding of any form or amount of money or other currency,” the platform continues. “Explicit protections [are needed] for the natural right of Texans to keep and exchange and store their wealth in the mediums of exchange of [their] choice.”

Movie Producer Sentenced to Over 21 Years for Role in Film Financing Scheme

Yesterday, a federal district judge in South Florida sentenced a 44-year-old former actor and movie producer from Bartlesville, Oklahoma, to 262 months in prison for his role in a financing scheme that defrauded investors out of more than $60 million. The defendant, Jason Van Eman, also was ordered to pay certain victims over $9 million in restitution.

The sentence comes after a federal jury found Van Eman guilty of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering in May.

According to the evidence, Van Eman held himself out as a film producer and financier, offering to fund independent motion pictures, Broadway shows, music festivals, and other productions. Van Eman promised the victims (producers and others seeking financing), that his partner (a co-conspirator named Benjamin McConley) would match any cash that the victims contributed to their projects. Then, with the combined starting capital (which made the projects more attractive to investors), McConley would apply for and secure financing from financial institutions.

For crypto advice, thousands turn to BitBoy, a.k.a. Ben Armstrong

Armstrong is a leading example of a crypto influencer. One-part media personality, one-part untrained investment adviser, the 39-year-old Georgia native wields significant power in the world of cryptocurrency investment, steering tip-hungry online trawlers to the latest token. In polished daily news-like feeds featuring a team of deputies and videos designed to go viral (in one, he drives around the Atlanta area in wraparound sunglasses suggesting the best way to invest $1,000), he has become a go-to source for the newest crypto trends.

BitBoy’s rise — and even his recent Celsius wobble — highlights how low the threshold can be for gaining power amid the morass of gamified finance. In the land of crypto, the one-eyed man is king — and the line between carnival barker and investment guru extremely difficult to find.