Today in crypto, the SEC and CFTC signed a memo to regulate crypto and other emerging markets in harmony, the head of the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said the GENIUS Act doesn’t give the agency the authority to guarantee stablecoin deposits, while Binance filed a lawsuit after the Wall Street Journal reported a US Justice Department probe into Iran’s alleged use of the exchange to avoid sanctions.
SEC, CFTC agree to regulate crypto, other markets in harmony
Two of the US’s most influential financial regulators have agreed to better coordinate oversight of the financial markets, seeking to put an end to decades of “regulatory turf wars” between them.
According to the memorandum of understanding written on Wednesday, the US Securities and Exchange Commission and US Commodity Futures Trading Commission said it has become a “pivotal time” to regulate in harmony as new technologies, such as crypto, make it more challenging to monitor the markets.
In a separate statement, SEC chair Paul Atkins said the memo is the latest step toward repairing the relationship between the agencies:
“For decades, regulatory turf wars, duplicative agency registrations, and different sets of regulations between the SEC and CFTC have stifled innovation and pushed market participants to other jurisdictions.”
The agencies also noted in the memo that they strive to provide a “fit-for-purpose regulatory framework for crypto assets.”
FDIC chair says no deposit insurance for stablecoins under GENIUS Act
Travis Hill, chair of the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), confirmed that, in his opinion, a law passed in July would not give the agency the authority to guarantee stablecoin deposits.
In remarks prepared for the American Bankers Association (ABA) Washington Summit on Wednesday, Hill said that under rules for the stablecoin payments bill, the GENIUS Act, the FDIC would not allow the government to guarantee deposits once the law is fully implemented. Similarly, stablecoin issuers would be prohibited from representing that the digital assets were FDIC insured, and a proposed plan would stop “pass-through insurance” by third parties.
“If a payment stablecoin arrangement qualified for pass-through insurance, this would mean that if a bank holding the issuer’s reserves in a deposit account failed, the FDIC would insure the deposit account based on the interests of the stablecoin holders, rather than insuring the account as a corporate deposit account eligible for only $250,000 of insurance,” said Hill.
Binance sues Wall Street Journal amid report of DOJ Iran probe
Binance said Wednesday it is suing the Wall Street Journal after the newspaper reported that the US Justice Department was investigating whether Iran used the crypto exchange to evade US sanctions.
Binance filed a defamation lawsuit against the Journal in the Southern District of New York, seeking damages and legal fees, and demanding a jury trial.
Binance told Cointelegraph it was not aware of any Justice Department investigation and said it continues to cooperate with regulators and law enforcement. “As always, we are collaborating with regulators and law enforcement to investigate the facts,” the spokesperson said.
The suit came shortly after the Journal reported Wednesday that the DOJ was investigating whether Iran used Binance to evade US sanctions and whether transactions on the exchange helped route funds to networks linked to Iran-backed groups, including Yemen’s Houthi militants. The report cited company documents and people familiar with the matter.
The DOJ had not confirmed an investigation into Iran’s alleged use of Binance to avoid US sanctions at the time of publication.
