US SEC approves bitcoin ETFs in watershed for crypto market

The U.S. securities regulator on Wednesday approved the first U.S.-listed exchange traded funds (ETFs) to track bitcoin, in a watershed for the world's largest cryptocurrency and the broader crypto industry.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said it approved 11 applications, including from BlackRock (BLK.N), Ark Investments/21Shares (ABTC.S), Fidelity, Invesco (IVZ.N) and VanEck, despite warnings from some officials and investor advocates that the products carried risks.

offroadscholar wrote: ↑Wed Jan 10, 2024 10:01 am Cambodia’s 1st digital assets exchange kicks off

The Royal Group Exchange (RGX) trading platform using blockchain technology was launched at a spectacular event yesterday, marking the beginning of a new history in Cambodia’s financial landscape. The platform is an exchange dealing with digital assets, a first in Cambodia.

The new exchange, fully owned by the Royal Group and approved by the Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) under its Fintech Sandbox Scheme, provides a secure, transparent, and efficient environment for the trading of a variety of digital securities products.

The new exchange also opened up exciting opportunities for individuals and businesses in Cambodia to participate in the global digital economy. Over 100 digital assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum and others can be bought or sold through the exchange and both spot and futures trading are available from the start.

The exchange is run on technology provided by X-Codes Solutions which has built a number of digital exchanges in various countries. User data is safely stored on Cambodian servers provided by Ezecom, the leading primary fibre optic and internet service provider in the Kingdom.

Sou Socheat, Delegate of the Royal Government in charge as Director General of the Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia, together with Kith Meng, Chairman and CEO of Royal Group, launched the new exchange at the colourful event, held at Hotel Cambodiana.

“RGX aims to be a catalyst for change, promoting financial inclusion and empowering all members of our community to access the opportunities presented by the digital economy,” said Kith Meng, who made the opening remarks.

“The launch of the RGX Trading Platform within the FinTech Regulatory Sandbox in the Securities Sector stands as a testament to the advancements in financial technology in Cambodia’s securities sector. The launch also highlights SERC’s efforts in promoting financial innovation, market integrity, and investor protection with the active participation of the private sector. It aims to fulfill the demands of digital investors who are interested in blockchain technology,” remarked Sou Socheat.

Thomas Schings, Senior Manager of the Royal Group, said in a presentation during the launch that the exchange will soon launch RGX Token as the next stage of development. Among the future plans of the exchange includes the introduction of assets tokenisation, he said.

Assets tokenisation will help the digitalization and tokenisation of various assets including real estate on a blockchain for trading on securities platforms.

Thomas also said that to be fully compliant with international AML (Anti-Money Laundering) laws and regulations, RGX is employing the state-of-the-art transaction monitoring and KYC processes provided by Chainanalysis, an international market leader in this segment.

“Customers are at the heart of our exchange. Hence, we take utmost care in providing the best support to them. So, we have also enlisted the services of Zendesk, another world leader in its segment, to streamline support services,” he added.

Talking to Khmer Times on the sidelines of the event, Thomas later said through a simple registration and KYC process, which will take not more than two days, one could subscribe to the services of RGX. Registration can be conducted online by visiting www.rgxtrade.com.

According to a press release issued by RGX, with cutting-edge technology, industry partnerships, and a focus on financial inclusion, it is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Cambodia’s digital economy.

The launch event was followed by a New Year Lunch, attended by a galaxy of business leaders from across various sectors.

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501419953/ ... kicks-off/

Roryborealis wrote: ↑Thu Jan 11, 2024 9:44 pm I'm curious to see how much the market has already priced in SEC approval and the new ETFs. And who hacked the SEC account that prematurely displayed the approval announcement? They said the account did not have two-factor authentication enabled. Par for the course?

FTX’s caretaker chief executive has branded Sam Bankman-Fried a deluded criminal who masterminded a “colossal fraud”, and accused the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange’s founder of lying about the losses incurred by former customers in an attempt to reduce his sentence.

In a fiery letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan, who is due to pass sentence next week, John Ray said Bankman-Fried had run FTX “with hubris, arrogance, and a complete lack of respect for the basic norms of the law, which is all the more inexcusable given his privileged upbringing”.

He said the contention by the 32-year-old’s lawyers that the “harm to customers, lenders, and investors is zero” was “categorically, callously, and demonstrably false”.

Doc67 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 9:36 am Judgement Day looms for Sam Bankman-Fried; March 28th.

The defence suggests ~6 years. The prosecution wants 40-50. Place your bets...

The Liquidator, John Ray, is not happy, and his views may carry a lot of weight.

FTX’s caretaker chief executive has branded Sam Bankman-Fried a deluded criminal who masterminded a “colossal fraud”, and accused the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange’s founder of lying about the losses incurred by former customers in an attempt to reduce his sentence.

In a fiery letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan, who is due to pass sentence next week, John Ray said Bankman-Fried had run FTX “with hubris, arrogance, and a complete lack of respect for the basic norms of the law, which is all the more inexcusable given his privileged upbringing”.

He said the contention by the 32-year-old’s lawyers that the “harm to customers, lenders, and investors is zero” was “categorically, callously, and demonstrably false”.

https://www.ft.com/content/a0c04c31-24e ... 3448da472c
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... r-BB1kfbrv