The U.S. Department of Justice arrested Anatoly Legkodymov, a Russian national and founder of Bitzlato. The DOJ laid charges against Legkodymov for crypto money laundering valued at $700M. More: - Legkodymov was living in China.
- He was arrested in Miami and was a "critical financial resource" for the Hydra dark web market and hosted wallets of criminals buying and selling goods.
- FinCEN accused the company of handling illicit transactions for Russian ransomware actors, including those connected to the Russian government.
- Chainalysis reports that Bitzlato facilitated around $1B in crypto money laundering since 2019 and processed more than $700M in illegal funds, including ransomware gains.
- "To anyone who still believes that they can hide from the law by using cryptocurrency, this prosecution should put that illusion to rest," says a U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
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Coinbase is halting operations in Japan due to bear market conditions and reviewing business operations in the country. Coinbase was granted a license to operate in Japan sometime in June 2021, but due to market volatility, it has undergone several layoffs. More: - Coinbase's decision to end operations in Japan came after rival crypto exchange Kraken announced that it would stop trading in the Japanese markets.
- Fiat deposits will suspend on Friday, Jan. 20; however, customers can still withdraw their cash and crypto holdings until Feb. 16.
- The remaining funds will be converted into Japanese yen and sent to the guaranty account at the Legal Affairs Bureau.
- Trading crypto is legal in Japan under the Payment Services Act, which allows companies to manage customers' money, sell, purchase, exchange crypto, and manage crypto on behalf of another person.
- Japan's financial regulators are starting to call for tough crypto regulations and to supervise crypto entities like traditional financial institutions.
- The regulators in the country will focus on measures relating to auditing, disclosure, governance, internal controls, and preventing money laundering.
- Despite Japan's calls for strict crypto regulations, the country remains "crypto friendly" and is looking to remove a ban on foreign stablecoins.
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The U.S. SEC's crypto-related enforcement actions were up 50% compared to 2021. The SEC also expanded its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit to bring more enforcement actions in the coming year. More: - High-profile cases brought by the Commission include charges against BlockFi for failing to register with the agency and against Kim Kardashian for promoting crypto tokens on her social media platform.
- 14 involved Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), and 57% of actions included fraud.
- From 2013 through 2022, 73% of cases alleged unregistered security offering violations, with 70 of them (55%) involving ICOs.
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Ripple dominates trading volumes on the Australian markets due to on-demand liquidity. Ripple transactions amounted to $10.2M over a 24-hour period on the Sydney-based Independent Reserve. More: - Ripple's list of clients in Australian markets includes market makers and international remitters on the ODL network.
- BTC Markets chief executive Caroline Bowler says the sudden surge is due to BTC Markets being a Ripple on-demand liquidity (ODL) partner.
- ODLs help companies manage cross-border payments without banks or pre-funding costs.
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Hashkey Capital raised $500M to support the Web3 ecosystem. The fund will focus on global crypto and blockchain initiatives that advance the Web3 space. More: - The raised capital will be deployed toward blockchain infrastructure, applications, and tools that have the potential for mass adoption, focusing on opportunities in emerging markets.
- "FinTech Investment Fund III" (Fund III) got support from a range of institutional investors, "including sovereign wealth funds, corporations, and family offices," says the firm.
- The capital will be allocated toward blockchain infrastructure, applications, and tools that have the potential to lead to mass adoption.
- Hashkey is an active member in the crypto space and recently supported the Ethereum Shanghai upgrade.
- HashKey has managed over $1B in client assets since launching in 2018.
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FTX says $415M was hacked, including $90M from the FTX US platform, after the company filed for bankruptcy. The company says it recovered $1.7B in cash, $3.5B in liquid cryptocurrency, and $300M in liquid securities. More: - Here is a breakdown of where all of FTX assets are currently being held:
- $1.7B of FTX assets are stored in a "hot wallet," a crypto wallet connected to the internet.
- Bitgo, a crypto custody firm, also holds another $1.1B in cold storage.
- The Securities Commission of the Bahamas holds $426M.
- FTX Japan holds $140M.
- FTX's Bahamas real estate includes 36 different properties worth $253M.
- Jean Chalopin, one of the minds behind several children's shows, including Inspector Gadget, reportedly secured a $50M loan from an entity connected to FTX through former executive Ryan Salame.
- Sam Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty to all fraud charges.
- "I didn't knowingly commit fraud. I don't think I committed fraud. I didn't want any of this to happen. I was certainly not nearly as competent as I thought I was," he says.
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 |  | Gia Mattu is based in Calgary, Alberta. She is an entrepreneur with experience in climate technology, drones, AI, machine learning, and blockchain technology. When she's not working, she loves to hike the Canadian Rockies, try new cuisine, and travel. | | | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 and 1972 Fords. | |
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