Regulatory Dynamics

1. The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has proposed a new rule draft.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury recently proposed a new rule draft regarding "requirements for certain transactions involving convertible virtual currencies or digital assets." Under this proposal, users will need to provide personal information to exchanges when transferring virtual currency from centralized exchanges to private wallets. Exchanges will also need to record and keep relevant transaction records. The draft is expected to be published in the Federal Register on December 23, and the public will have 15 days to provide comments. This rule aligns with the guidelines issued by the Financial Action Task Force last year, which suggested treating individual crypto wallets as virtual asset service providers.

2. Hong Kong issues licenses to virtual asset trading platforms for the first time

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission announced that it has issued the first virtual asset trading platform license to OSL Digital Securities Limited. This platform is affiliated with a Hong Kong listed company. Under the regulation of the Securities and Futures Commission, this platform will only provide services to professional investors and must comply with special regulations similar to those for securities brokers and automated trading venues.

3. Estonia Tightens Regulations on the Cryptocurrency Industry

Due to the increasing severity of money laundering issues, Estonia has strengthened its regulation of the cryptocurrency industry this year. The Estonian Ministry of Finance revealed that the country's financial intelligence unit has revoked licenses for over 1,000 crypto companies. The government anti-money laundering committee recently held a meeting to discuss regulatory issues concerning cryptocurrency service providers. The committee's vice chairman emphasized that the regulation of crypto service providers still requires high attention.

Industry News

1. Bitcoin's market value jumped to the 12th place globally.

After the price of Bitcoin broke through $20,000, it continued to rise. Data shows that Bitcoin's market capitalization reached $445.442 billion, climbing to 12th place in the global market cap rankings, surpassing retail giant Walmart. If the price of Bitcoin reaches $28,000, its market cap will enter the global top ten; if it reaches $42,500, it could enter the top five. Some media analysts believe that the impact of the pandemic and the safe-haven demand under global monetary easing policies are important factors driving Bitcoin's recent surge.

2. A cryptocurrency exchange plans to go public.

According to reports, a well-known cryptocurrency exchange has submitted initial listing documents to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Analysts estimate that the potential valuation of the exchange could reach $28 billion. Analysis shows that the platform's trading volume largely comes from institutional clients, but the average holding for individual clients is $703.

3. Wall Street investment banks adjust their portfolios to increase Bitcoin allocation

The global equity strategy head of a well-known investment bank on Wall Street stated that they plan to reallocate 5% of the physical gold weight in their managed global pension fund portfolio to Bitcoin. If the price of Bitcoin experiences a significant correction, the team may further increase their Bitcoin position.

4. Mt.Gox Liquidation Compensation Plan Progress

The Mt.Gox official website announced that it has submitted a draft liquidation compensation plan to the Tokyo District Court. The court and the examiner will review the draft to decide whether to proceed with the related compensation procedures. The specific content of the plan will be communicated to the relevant parties at an appropriate time.

5. The Chicago Exchange plans to launch Ethereum futures

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange announced plans to launch Ethereum futures contracts on February 8, 2021, which will be cash-settled and is currently awaiting regulatory review. Since the beginning of this year, the average daily trading volume of Bitcoin futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange has been approximately 42,800 Bitcoins.

6. A cryptocurrency trust fund completes share split

A well-known cryptocurrency investment firm has completed the share split of its Ethereum Trust Fund. The split ratio is 9 to 1, and registered shareholders will receive an additional 8 times the shares. After the split, the total shares of the fund increased to 285,269,400 shares, with each share corresponding to approximately 0.1 Ethereum. The total value of digital assets currently managed by the firm reaches $15.5 billion, and they plan to launch new cryptocurrency ads on major television networks in the United States early next year.

7. DeFi insurance protocol遭遇攻击

A decentralized finance insurance protocol founder's personal address was attacked, resulting in losses exceeding $8 million. The officials stated that this was a targeted attack, affecting only the founder's address. The attacker gained remote access to the founder's computer, modified the wallet plugin, and induced the founder to sign a fund transfer transaction.

8. Canadian wealth management firm launches Bitcoin fund

A Canadian wealth management company has completed a $72 million initial public offering of a Bitcoin fund. The fund has attracted widespread interest from institutions, individual investors, high-net-worth clients, and financial advisors. Fund shares will be traded in US dollars and Canadian dollars on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

9. An adult website adjusts its payment method

One of the largest adult websites in the world has recently adjusted its paid membership rules, now only accepting cryptocurrency payments. Previously, major payment companies Visa and Mastercard announced they would stop providing settlement services for the site. According to statistics, the site had a total of 42 billion visits in 2019, averaging about 80,000 visits per minute.

10. Internal restructuring of a mining machine manufacturer

A well-known Bitcoin mining machine manufacturer is undergoing internal restructuring. According to reports, the company's two main shareholders have reached an agreement, where one party will borrow $600 million to acquire the other party's shares. Some of the company's businesses will be spun off with a valuation of $90 million, while other businesses will remain with the original company. The company has committed to completing its listing on the US stock market by December 31, 2022, with a minimum valuation of $5.5 billion and financing of no less than $500 million. Additionally, there are reports that the company lost nearly 400 million RMB in 2019, while it had a profit of 3 billion RMB in 2018.