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SEC apprehends FTX founder, accusing of fraud
Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO and founder of FTX, was arrested and charged with fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday. The Bahamian authorities complied with the US government’s request to apprehend the now infamous former cryptocurrency prodigy. The SEC filed a complaint, requesting injunctive relief for any future violations of securities laws, which would include a ban on Bankman-Fried from participating, buying, offering, or selling any security, except for his own personal account.
FTC resists Microsoft Activision Blizzard purchase
Microsoft’s attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard came to a halt on Thursday when the Federal Trade Commission reportedly opposed the transaction. According to the FTC, the acquisition could be in violation of antitrust regulations, giving Microsoft the power to withhold content from other gaming partners, thus preventing them from competing.
Previously, Microsoft President and CEO Satya Nadella had stated that the acquisition would “play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms”. However, the FTC found itself caught in between two media behemoths, filing a lawsuit against Meta in July over allegations that their ultimate goal was to “own the entire ‘metaverse'”. It is yet to be seen if the FTC will allow Microsoft to ensure more competition in the metaverse space, or if it will side with Microsoft’s gaming rivals.
Bahamian officials asked Bankman-Fried to mint new assets after FTX fallout
According to a Bloomberg report on December 12, Bahamian government officials asked Sam Bankman-Fried for the possibility of creating digital assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars in the aftermath of the FTX collapse. The authorities have also reportedly requested that the former FTX CEO transfer the new tokens to island officials. In a court filing, FTX lawyers also stated that Bahamian officials attempted to help Bankman-Fried gain access to FTX’s crucial computer systems in order to reestablish them. According to American lawyers, the Bahamian officials were “responsible for directing unauthorized access” to FTX systems to seize digital assets under US court supervision.
The strained US-Bahamas relations were further highlighted as the report indicated that Bahamas officials were arrested at the behest of the US government during the same period.
Mintlayer to launch new token
Mintlayer, a Layer 2 solution to unlock decentralized financing (DeFi), smart contracts, atomic swaps, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) announced a token launch event for the company: March 21, 2023. The team decided to reward tokenholders who supported the project with ERC-20 tokens. The Mintlayer utility token can be used to purchase various services from RBB Lab.
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