Author: admin

In brief EU regulator ESMA devoted a section of its latest risk monitor to prediction markets, citing insider trading, manipulation and retail harm. It says the platforms have gained little traction in the EU because binary options rules bar selling event contracts to retail investors. U.S. regulators have taken the opposite course, arguing over which contracts to allow rather than whether to allow any. Prediction markets are “rife with inside trading,” the European Securities and Markets Authority said in a risk monitor giving the sector its own chapter.It lists three episodes. New wallets made $1.2 million hours before February’s strike on…

In brief August CPI rose 3.4% year over year and 0.4% month over month, both matching consensus, per Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday. Core inflation cooled to 2.4% annually, its lowest since 2021, but its 0.3% monthly reading ran hotter than the 0.2% economists forecast. Crypto rallied across the board: total market capitalization climbed back near $2.7 trillion, the Fear & Greed Index jumped to 73 (greed) and Bitcoin’s daily chart now shows a nascent golden cross. U.S. inflation data gave the market a mixed bag today, with the core monthly reading coming in hotter than economists had…

In brief OpenAI has asked lawmakers whether rival AI developers could legally coordinate a slowdown, according to WIRED. Experts say funding and competitive pressures discourage companies from slowing development independently. A bill in Congress would protect certain agreements to restrict AI development to address security risks. OpenAI has asked members of Congress whether rival AI companies could legally agree to slow development, as its chief scientist urges the industry to establish shared safety standards.According to WIRED, which cited people close to the company, OpenAI asked lawmakers in recent weeks whether an agreement among AI companies to slow development could violate…

U.S. Bank has completed a live cross-border payment pilot using USBDC, its proprietary U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin. The transaction demonstrated in a limited test that the lender could move its own token between bank entities on a public blockchain while keeping established financial controls connected.The payment moved value between U.S. Bank entities in North America and Europe on Stellar, a public blockchain network used for payments, according to the bank’s September 9 announcement. It was an intercompany pilot, not a customer transaction. The announcement did not disclose the amount moved, a plan for customer access or a commercial rollout date.Although the…

In brief Greenberg Traurig said an unauthorized actor accessed documents and posted them on the dark web. The firm notified affected clients; a Vermont notice identified exposed Social Security information. Other law firms have disclosed breaches involving personal data, with WilmerHale and Eckert Seamans facing lawsuits. International law firm Greenberg Traurig said an unauthorized actor accessed a limited number of documents and posted them on the dark web, Reuters reported on Thursday.The report is part of a growing trend of data breaches targeting law firms. According to Reuters, the law firm of BakerHostetler handled nearly 60 cybersecurity incidents involving law…

In brief Bitcoin’s daily 50-day EMA dipped back below its 200-day EMA Friday evening as BTC retreated to $77,438, undoing the golden cross that had briefly confirmed earlier in the session. The 4-hour chart’s golden cross is still intact, but momentum has cooled. The reversal tracks a hawkish repricing in rates markets: The odds of a hike at next week’s Fed meeting have spiked to 86% per CME. Bitcoin’s brief flirtation with a confirmed daily golden cross is active but didn’t survive the afternoon.BTC is trading around $77,438 right now, still up 1.19% on the day but well off its…

In brief Robinhood’s crypto trading volume rose 61% month over month to $17.5 billion in August, according to new operating data. The figure remains 38% below last August’s total. Event contracts, Robinhood’s prediction market bets, traded 4.7 billion times in August, roughly 15 times the volume from a year earlier, even as Congress moves to rein in the products. Robinhood’s notional crypto trading volume—the total dollar value of all crypto assets bought and sold on the platform—rose 61% in August to $17.5 billion, according to operating data the company released Thursday.The rebound followed a slow July, when volume sat at…

The UK government suffered a defeat in the House of Lords on Wednesday as peers backed an amendment requiring the Treasury to draw up a national strategy for regulating digital assets. The upper chamber approved the measure by 194 votes to 138, with Conservative and Liberal Democrat peers combining against a near-solid bloc of Labour votes. Baroness Neville-Rolfe, a Conservative former Treasury minister, moved the amendment to the Financial Services and Markets Bill. The new clause, titled “Digital assets strategy,” would require the Treasury to prepare, publish and consult on a strategy for regulating and developing digital assets and related…

In brief Blockstream said it will not “pay a ransom” for the return of about 598.5 BTC still held after the Liquid exploit. The hackers returned 3,400 BTC on Monday, about 85% of what was taken. The company said it will work with law enforcement, exchanges and forensic specialists to trace the rest should it not be returned. Blockstream has refused to pay for the return of the $47 million in Bitcoin still missing from the Liquid Network, abandoning days of negotiation with the people who took it.”Taking assets without authorization and withholding their return is a crime, not responsible…

Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt. And check out our daily news show ‘FOMO HOUR’ covering all of the top stories and market action.GM!Today’s top news: Crypto majors fall another 1-3% ahead of CPI; BTC at $77k BTC ETFs see $280M in outflows and $440M on the week Binance’s Bitcoin reserves hit 2-year highs Stonkfun ecosystem soars as Stonk hits $0.30 and multiple pairs run 2-4x+ Robinhood Chain leaders rebound as volumes level off; Flycoin soars to $50M in its debut…

A former Missouri bank vice president and pastor is pleading guilty to federal fraud charges after running a cattle investment scheme that defrauded victims and his employer of millions. The 45-year-old Butler resident worked as a vice president and loan officer at Community First Bank while serving as a pastor, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri. From at least April 2024 until his termination in February 2026, he solicited funds for buying and quickly selling cattle but instead placed the money in an investment account. “Johnson did not use the funds to purchase cattle…