Sam Bankman-Fried’s Expert Witnesses Denied A Role in Court Case – Details

Leonardo Perez
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Sam Bankman-Fried’s Expert Witnesses Denied A Role in Court Case – Details

In late August, lawyers for the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to exclude all witnesses suggested by Bankman-Fried.

In a setback for Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, a US judge limited his ability to present expert witnesses in his criminal fraud trial.

Bankman-Fried had tried to call seven experts on issues related to cryptocurrency markets and English contracts in an effort to convince the jury to acquit him of charges of stealing billions of dollars in FTX client funds. to cover losses at his Alameda Research hedge fund.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan issued a written order excluding three of the proposed experts, deeming their testimony irrelevant or potentially confusing to the jury.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s Experts Cannot Testify, Judge Says

Among these witnesses was Peter Vinella, a consultant who intended to discuss “FTX’s use of widely accepted practices in the financial services industry.” Judge Kaplan found this testimony irrelevant to the case.

Additionally, Bankman-Fried was prohibited from calling English lawyer Lawrence Akka to testify about FTX’s terms of service, which were governed by English law. Kaplan reasoned that only a judge could instruct juries on questions of law.

According to the court, Akka’s testimony does not serve to help the jury understand FTX’s terms of service. Rather, it is considered an expression of “legal opinions” regarding the interpretation of the contractual terms in question.

The defense also sought testimony about FTX’s finances, software and document metadata from consultants Thomas Bishop and Joseph Pimbley, as well as data analytics specialist Brian Kim. Based on Rule 16, which requires the government to disclose specific evidence it intends to use during trial, the court rejected all of his potential testimony.

The Government Can Block All Requests

Sam Bankman-Fried may file a request to allow certain witnesses to testify if his attorneys believe they will be able to refute the testimony of the government witnesses. However, the government could oppose the presentation.

Court documents suggest Bankman-Fried may argue that the terms of service did not explicitly prohibit the use of client funds for investments, drawing a comparison with how traditional banks use deposits to fund loans. It can be claimed that this practice was common in the cryptocurrency industry.

It is customary in American criminal trials for both prosecutors and defendants to use expert witnesses to help clarify complex issues. In this case, prosecutors plan to present three former FTX and Alameda executives, all of whom have pleaded guilty to their roles in the alleged fraud, as witnesses at Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial. The trial is expected to extend for a period of up to six weeks as it develops.

Bankman-Fried, a 31-year-old former billionaire, has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. While he acknowledged deficiencies in risk management at FTX before its collapse in November 2022, he vehemently denies any wrongdoing in the misappropriation of funds.

The Bankman-Fried Family Resorts to a Risky Strategy

According to a report in Fortune magazine, the Bankman-Fried family has taken a risky approach in their legal battle, shifting the blame to the prominent law firm Sullivan & Cromwell. They argue that the company did not act in their best interest, downplaying its role in FTX’s downfall.

According to the report, the family’s strategy may backfire, as it could provide prosecutors with access to new evidence by waiving attorney-client privilege. The effectiveness of the strategy therefore remains uncertain.

By Leonardo Pérez

Cryptocurrencies Are Nothing Without a Community: This Expert Suggests You Create Yours

Audy Castañeda
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Cryptocurrencies Are Nothing Without a Community: This Expert Suggests You Create Yours

A veteran community manager emphasized the utmost importance of a dedicated community in the success of cryptocurrency projects. While technology plays an important role, it is community participation, feedback, and trust that truly drives the success of a cryptocurrency project. For crypto, a strong community offers trust building, valuable feedback, advocacy, and a sense of belonging, making it more than just code.

In the cryptocurrency market, a single tweet can skyrocket the value of a coin, helping unknown projects become giants overnight. For this reason, the power of the community is more powerful than intricate algorithms and revolutionary blockchain technology.

As many industry experts point out, a cryptocurrency without a devoted community behind it is like a ship without a crew, destined to sail aimlessly.

Community Participation, Catalyst for Success

Some of the top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Dogecoin, are successful not only because of their technology. The fervor and dedication of their communities have brought them to the heights they have reached. Still, building such a community requires intention, strategy, and most importantly, genuine attention and commitment.

While the cryptocurrency market has undeniable appeal, attracting investors looking to make their fortunes, community creators work behind the scenes, ensuring that the heart of these projects remains strong.

Roxana Gallardo, renowned community manager behind La Crypto Beach, a talent incubator and bridge to Web 3.0 technology in Latin America, says that “You can have the most advanced technology, but if there is no community participation, your project is essentially a ghost ship.”

Gallardo, an industry veteran who has witnessed the rise and fall of countless cryptocurrencies, believes that having a community that supports a project during its lowest moments and celebrates its highest moments can make all the difference.

Creating a safe space to interact with founders and members build trust, as community members can be “one click away from clarifying concerns and reducing the risk of being scammed.” A strong community also allows crypto projects to conduct focus groups and activities to test and improve their product.

Four Benefits of Building a Strong Community

Gallardo recommends regular updates, question-and-answer sessions, and even behind-the-scenes looks at project operations. According to this expert, such initiatives will significantly help a cryptocurrency project in four fundamental pillars:

Building trust: When a community participates, it sends a clear signal that the project is genuine and promising. This increases user confidence in the project.

Providing feedback: The community not only supports but also offers valuable feedback. This feedback is essential to identify problems and opportunities for improvement that sometimes go unnoticed.

Encouraging adoption: Community members are often the best ambassadors for a project. They act as passionate advocates and promote the project within their networks and contacts, leading to greater adoption.

Creating a sense of belonging: Being part of a community gives members a feeling of being part of something bigger than themselves. This strengthens your emotional connection to the project and your commitment to its success.

Therefore, true community building involves “giving a voice to its members,” said Gallardo. “Allow them to have a say in the direction of the project to create a sense of ownership and responsibility among members,” she recommended.

As complex and multifaceted as the cryptocurrency market is, it depends on the human element. Hence the community that supports, promotes and believes in the vision of a project.

By Audy Castaneda

The Anti-CBDC Bill Inches Closer to Passage with Strong Support from 60 Members of Congress

Audy Castañeda
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The Anti-CBDC Bill Inches Closer to Passage with Strong Support from 60 Members of Congress

The House Financial Services Committee Successfully Passes State CBDC Anti-Surveillance Law.

In a significant development, the House Financial Services Committee successfully passed the State CBDC Anti-Surveillance Act, a bill to prevent the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). Representative Tom Emmer, known for his stance in favor of decentralized cryptocurrency, announced on X (formerly Twitter) that the legislation had received committee approval and is now ready to proceed to a vote in Congress.

The State Anti-Surveillance Law of CBDC advances in Congress

Emmer highlighted the broad support the bill has garnered and emphasized that it already has the support of 60 members of Congress. Speaking about the committee’s decision, Emmer highlighted the importance of stopping the issuance of a financial surveillance tool that could undermine the American way of life.

Emmer stressed the dangers of state control over the currency and its incompatibility with American values:

“American values. American values. This is what the future global digital economy needs. If it is not open, with no permission, and private – just like cash – a central bank digital currency is nothing more than a CCP [Chinese Communist Party]-style surveillance tool that can be used as a weapon to oppress the American way of life.”

He distinguished decentralized cryptocurrencies and CBDCs, describing the latter as a programmable, government-controlled form of sovereign currency that transacts on a digital ledger maintained by the government. Emmer expressed concern that if a CBDC were not designed to emulate cash, which could allow the Federal Government to monitor and impose restrictions on US transactions.

Drawing parallels with China’s approach, where the Communist Party uses a CBDC to track users’ spending habits to create a social credit system, Emmer argued that the US government should not sacrifice citizens’ right Americans to financial privacy in exchange for a surveillance-oriented central bank. digital currency.

Emmer’s proposed bill seeks to ensure that any digital currency issued by the United States remains in the hands of the American people rather than controlled by the administrative state. Its goal is to defend the values ​​of privacy, individual sovereignty and free market competitiveness, reflecting American ideals, according to the congressman.

Emmer Urges Privacy in Central Bank Digital Currencies

Emmer emphasized the need for a future global digital economy that aligns with these principles, stating that a central bank digital currency that lacks openness, permissionless access and privacy similar to cash would simply serve as a surveillance tool similar to those employed by the Chinese Communist Party.

As will be recalled, the revised version of the bill introduces two significant changes with respect to its previous version. First, it prohibits the concept of “intermediated CBDCs,” which refers to CBDCs issued by the Federal Reserve but managed by retail banks and other financial institutions rather than directly controlled by the Federal Reserve.

Additionally, the updated version eliminates the requirement that the Federal Reserve report to Congress on any CBDC pilot programs or studies. Separate bills, such as the Digital Dollar Pilot Prevention Act introduced by Rep. Alex Mooney, will address these issues.

The advancement of the CBDC State Anti-Surveillance Act in Congress represents a notable step in ongoing discussions about the possible issuance of a central bank digital currency in the United States. With bipartisan support and a focus on preserving American values ​​and privacy, the bill serves as a platform for future deliberations on the future of digital currency in the US.

By Audy Castaneda

Is a Dash Rally Coming? Short term predictions

Leonardo Perez
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Is a Dash Rally Coming? Short term predictions

Dash analysis: current trends, short-term predictions and recent news that could influence its market value.

Dash is a cryptocurrency that has the same function as a Bitcoin. That is, to make certain payments, but with a difference: more security and confidentiality. Dash was launched in 2014 and its price has varied since then. It may be worth finding out what its current value is and where it can be purchased.

Currently, Dash is trading at a value of $26.40, showing a slight drop of 0.9% in the last day. However, if we expand our time horizon, in the last week the cryptocurrency has gained 2.2%. On the contrary, in the last month it has decreased by 0.6%.

Dash has been moving in a fairly tight range, giving the impression of a tedious sideways trend. In terms of market capitalization, Dash has reached $303 million and is ranked 96th in the global cryptocurrency ranking.

What is Dash and How Does It Work?

Dash is a cryptocurrency that was created thanks to an open source software project. Dash is, therefore, a decentralized digital currency, whose main objective is to become the same intangible currency as fiat money such as the dollar, euro but without depending on any bank or central government.

Its creation has been carried out through a unique encryption algorithm, seeking security and confidentiality in transactions.

DASH Prediction by VipTrader

Dash’s trend can be described as sideways and indecisive at the moment. However, there are signs suggesting that it could see a bullish tilt in the near term. These signals indicate that the most pronounced movement could occur between September 24 or 25 and last until October 3 or 4. In this optimistic scenario, it is reasonable to expect Dash to reach an indicative upside target of $27.17 in the next 12 days.

DASH Prediction by Crytopredictions.com

Dash started September 2023 at $25,999 and is expected to end the month at $29,538. During September, the expected high price of DASH is $43,099 and the low is $25,999.

DASH price for today (09/22/2023) is forecast to be in the price range of $22,104 – $32,506. Dash price is expected to end at $26,005 today.

The DASH price is expected to be in the price range of $22,743 – $33,445 tomorrow (09/23/2023). Tomorrow, Dash is expected to start at $26,756 and end the day at $27,024.

DASH News

Although in recent times news and media appearances about Dash have been scarce, the cryptocurrency recently made an appearance on the social network X. Through a promotional video, the organization behind Dash highlighted some of its main advantages such as means of payment, especially highlighting its speed and low transaction cost. These features make Dash an attractive option for everyday purchases.

Dash’s current situation, although showing a sideways trend, suggests a possible bullish breakout in the short term, especially considering the projected dates between the end of September and the beginning of October.

Dash’s recent promotional actions, such as its video on social network X, could also play a role in attracting new users and investors, highlighting its competitive advantages in the cryptocurrency market.

While it is always crucial to be cautious and do thorough analysis before making investment decisions, Dash appears to be laying the groundwork for a recovery and potentially capturing the attention of more cryptocurrency enthusiasts in the near future.

By Leonardo Pérez

Bitcoin Mining Can Help with Ecological Transition

Audy Castañeda
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Bitcoin Mining Can Help with Ecological Transition

World leaders are currently discussing Climate Week at the United Nations General Assembly, and this report aims to suggest some possible alternative solutions that leverage Bitcoin mining in this regard.

According to a recent report by the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI), green Bitcoin mining could prove useful in the transition process towards renewable energy.

Indeed, Bitcoin can help combat imbalances between energy supply and demand, and in particular those that concern the gap between requests for energy produced from zero-carbon sources and the energy production itself.

Those who produce electricity using renewable sources often fail to optimize production by adapting it to demand and, therefore, do not maximize their profits. Bitcoin mining could help in this regard, allowing excess production to be monetized.

The Bitcoin Mining Report

The ICC report was titled Proof of Work and Enabling the Energy Transition and consists of a 39-page PDF packed with data on the topic.

The Crypto Council for Innovation is a type of association that brings together many cryptocurrency operators, particularly American ones, including, for example, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets, Gemini, OpenSea, Block and others. The report highlights four possible actions to support the fight against pollution.

The first is a strategy that has been talked about for a long time. It involves using waste gases from hydrocarbon extraction plants to extract Bitcoin. They are gases that are currently simply burned, while they could have a practical use in monetizing BTC mining.

The second is also nothing new, that is, experimenting with new technologies to cool mining farms, given that it is estimated that 40% of the energy consumed by Bitcoin mining is used precisely to cool the machines.

The third has not yet been fully tested, that is, using Bitcoin mining as a support strategy to balance the instability of the electrical distribution network. In particular, they hypothesize using any excess electricity input into the grid, however frequent, to power mining operations in real time with a timing of 5 or 15 seconds.

The fourth is a long-term initiative, consisting of finding new sources of renewable energy that can add 3 GW to the US electrical grid.

The Investment Problem

One of the main problems faced by those who innovate is finding sufficient funds to continue. In particular, the use of renewable energy seems to be effectively hindered by the lack of investment in adequate infrastructure, also due to competition from traditional infrastructure.

The problem of fluctuations in renewable energy production with wind and solar energy due to daily and meteorological variations is especially long-standing. Clean energy produced in remote areas, often ideal for production, often has difficulty reaching consumers.

Bitcoin mining can help address these issues, because it is able to attract investments from the market that simply wouldn’t be there otherwise.

Bitcoin Mining: Solutions

The first concrete solution identified consists of making the load of networks powered by renewable sources more flexible, which can minimize the imbalance between supply and demand.

The second is related to coherence. Renewable energy markets often face periods of low demand that impact market prices and business models. Bitcoin mining can serve as a constant source of demand, reducing falling electricity prices.

The third is transparency, as Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies provide a new paradigm that allows large amounts of public data to be used in real time to inform decision-making and therefore generate greater awareness and accountability.

By Audy Castaneda

eToro Receives Approval to Offer Cryptocurrency Trading in Europe

Leonardo Perez
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eToro Receives Approval to Offer Cryptocurrency Trading in Europe

eToro has received EU approval to operate as a cryptoasset service provider, expanding its services to all EU countries. Galaxy Digital and Ark Invest also plan to expand into Europe, targeting the region’s growing cryptocurrency and ETF markets. Binance has expressed concerns about the possible exclusion of stablecoins in Europe due to the upcoming MiCA regulation.

Stock and cryptocurrency trading platform eToro has received regulatory green light from the European Union (EU) as more cryptocurrency companies expand into Europe.

Amid the US crackdown, Europe has become a popular destination for crypto companies. Many companies, including eToro, Galaxy Digital, and Ark Invest, have announced their expansion into Europe.

eToro Last to Offer Cryptocurrency Trading Services

According to Finextra, eToro has registered as a Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) with the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). The European legislation on the cryptoasset market (MiCA) received unanimous approval from all countries in the bloc in May 2023.

The legislation will come into force from July 2024 and eToro will be able to offer its services to all EU countries through a single entity. Dr. Hedva Ber, Deputy CEO of eToro, had this to say:

“Europe is a region of enormous importance for eToro, it is where the majority of our users are located and we want to continue offering European investors direct access to a wide range of crypto assets as part of a diversified portfolio.”

Digital Galaxy Expands

eToro is not the only company targeting the European market. According to the Financial Times, Galaxy Digital is expanding into the European market as it seeks a friendlier market after the US crackdown. The company first hinted at plans to move its operations out of the US market in May 2023.

Galaxy Digital offers a wide range of services around the crypto ecosystem, such as trading, asset management, investment banking and mining services. The company, led by Mike Novogratz, has hired Leon Marshall as CEO of its European division. Previously, he worked as global head of sales for Genesis. Marshall wrote on LinkedIn the following:

“Given increasing regulatory clarity, our expanding strategic partnerships and the continued adoption of digital assets by European financial institutions, I have never been more optimistic about the prospects for our industry in the region.”

Ark Invest Targets Europe ETF Market

Along with Galaxy Digital, Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest is also trying to penetrate the European market. To do so, it acquired European-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuer Rize ETF Limited.

According to Bloomberg, Ark Invest wants to capitalize on the growing ETF market in Europe. The screenshot below from Bloomberg Intelligence shows that Europe’s ETF market is worth more than $1.5 trillion.

Cathie Wood, founder of Ark Invest, had this to say:

“We believe the European ETF market presents a growth opportunity as new and younger investors continue to gain access to ETFs through the growth of platforms, and as active ETFs increase their market share by meeting demand. of innovative investment exhibitions.”

While major companies are looking forward to MiCA regulation, Binance is concerned about the exclusion of stablecoins from the European market. The European Banking Authority (EBA) has asked stablecoin issuers to voluntarily follow certain guidelines before MiCA rules are enacted.

In an EBA online public hearing, Marina Parthuisot, legal director of Binance France, said: “We are targeting the elimination of all stablecoins in Europe on June 30, given that no project has yet been approved.”

By Leonardo Pérez

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