Here are some of the major developments in the world of crypto over the past few days
Binance CEO Richard Teng said he has been trying to seek the release of Tigran Gambaryan, head of financial crime compliance, from prison. On September 19, at the Token2049 conference in Singapore, Teng described Gambaryan's health as degrading now as malaria and repeated pneumonia cases are being reported during his stay in the notorious Kuje Prison. He collapsed in court last May because of his state of health.
He was arrested on his visit to Nigeria in February discussing compliance issues over Binance. The Nigerian officials detained him on charges of money laundering and tax evasion. Both Binance and 12 US politicians along with Gambaryan's mother appealed for his release saying charges were baseless and possibly coercive means adopted by the Nigerian authority.
He insisted that Gambaryan was to be released on humanitarian grounds and urged the U.S. authorities to declare him illegally held. He was asked if there was a crisis and whether Binance, in such a crisis, stopped contributing to Nigeria's economic transformation in which Binance is one of the biggest crypto exchanges.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission filed its first-ever enforcement actions against crypto "pig butchering" scams, targeting two allegedly bogus exchanges, NanoBit and CoinW6. In a statement dated September 17, the SEC charged five entities and three individuals for draining nearly $3.2 million from investors by setting up trust over social media networks such as LinkedIn and Instagram before eventually pursuing relationships over WhatsApp.
The SEC said the swindlers promised fake high returns on staking, mining, and yield farming products in the guise of "professionals". Applicants for withdrawals received blackmail threats and even warned of leaks of their private messages. CoinW6 was accused of stealing $2.2 million from at least 11 investors, while NanoBit targeted 18 investors, nearing approximately $968,000 after misleading investors with false claims of working with SEC-registered brokers.
The scammers also sold fake initial coin offerings, supposedly forwarding investor funds sent through the NanoBit platform into bank accounts in Hong Kong. The SEC charged both platforms with violating the antifraud securities laws and is seeking permanent injunctions, penalties, and disgorgement. The agency once more warned the public to be cautious of unknown solicitations about investments on the web.
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes says Fed rate cuts may trigger a market meltdown. Hayes spoke of Fed Cuts that might be planning rate cuts at precisely the moment when gov spending reaches a record high and dollar issuance. He argues that such a cut of 50 to 75 basis points would reduce the interest rate gap between the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen, and this would send the financial system into stress conditions similar to those recent shocks in yen volatility.
Hayes noted the yields on cryptocurrencies like Ether (ETH) now are behind 5%, paying U.S. Treasury bills, or T-bills, in the unlikely event that the traditional option is better. Yet he believes a rate drop precipitates at a high enough speed the Ethereum bull market will be re-ignited as T-bill yields no longer keep up and investors will go back into crypto. Hayes describes Ether as an "internet bond" and even thinks that its 4% yield as it falls Ethereum's price might go through the roof.