SEC Chairman On What Drives Bitcoin, Poker Players Cry For BTC + More News

Linas Kmieliauskas
Last updated: | 2 min read

Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.

SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. Source: Twitter, @SEC_News

Crypto adoption news

  • Current inefficient payment mechanisms are driving the rise of bitcoin (BTC), Jay Clayton, the outgoing Chairman of the US Security and Exchange Commission, told CNBC. According to him, BTC is not a security, “it was much more a payment mechanism and stored value.”

  • Winning Poker Network, which operates sites including AmericasCardRoom.eu, has had to buy millions of dollars worth of BTC a day from over-the-counter trading desks in recent weeks to meet demand of exiting players, Bloomberg reported, citing CEO Phil Nagy. The business does more than 60% of its transaction volume in BTC, which about USD 100m a month, it added.
  • Travala.com, a blockchain-based travel booking service, said it has partnered with BitPay, a major provider of crypto payment services, to power Travala.com’s new Travel Gift Cards. The partnership will enable cryptocurrency holders to purchase gift cards redeemable for over 3 million travel products on Travala.com.

CBDCs news

  • Anatoly Aksakov, the Chairman of the Committee of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on Financial Markets and the chief architect of Russia’s crypto and blockchain legislation, has stated that pilots for the forthcoming digital ruble will begin as early as next year. In an interview with media outlet Finversia, Aksakov said that the token would be compatible with Central Bank-issued wallets and would be made available “to all economic entities,” including “private citizens, businesses, financial market participants and the state,” for the purpose of “making payments and settlements.”
  • The central Bank of Japan (BoJ) is ready to launch digital yen trials as it prepares the tentative launch of its own central bank digital currency (CBDC). According to Reuters, the BoJ will team up on the pilots with some 30 companies, including financial and banking giants the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, the Mizuho Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui – in addition to a number of brokerages. Reuters reports that the digital yen pilot group will also comprise a number of telecommunication firms, utilities, and retailers.

Exchanges news

  • Binance has hired the legal team that successfully put media outlet Gawker out of business to fight a legal wrangle against Forbes. The latter published an article in October alleging that Binance had created a masterplan that would allow it to “intentionally deceive [American] regulators.” The exchange said, in a legal filing that it was demanding a jury trial after suffering hefty damages. The company has hired Charles Harder, who successfully helped ex-pro wrestler Hulk Hogan sue Gawker for USD 140m in 2016 – and later went on to help President Donald Trump win his nuisance case suit against the actress Stormy Daniels.

Regulation news

  • The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand has revised its net capital rules to bolster securities firms and derivatives brokers’ liquidity management, support soaring trading of Thai bourses and accommodate digital asset trading, the Bangkok Post reported. The revised rules are expected to help free up liquidity for securities firms that plan to enter new business such as open digital or cryptocurrency exchanges, it added.