SEC

Latter-day Saints lawsuits raise questions over Mormon tithing – can churches just invest funds members believe are for charity?

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 十一月 8, 2023

Three men have filed a lawsuit against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – also known as the LDS or Mormon church – and its investment arm, Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc.

Key Points: 
  • Three men have filed a lawsuit against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – also known as the LDS or Mormon church – and its investment arm, Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc.
  • LDS church doctrine requires its members to tithe – that is, give 10% of their income to the church.

3 kinds of relief

  • The men are seeking three forms of relief.
  • They’re also requesting other monetary relief, including that the LDS church pay their legal fees.
  • In February 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission found that Ensign Peak, the church’s investment arm, had failed to make required disclosures of its securities portfolio.
  • By a whistleblower’s estimate, it may be as high as $100 billion.

Donors generally have no say

  • Charitable donations, generally of money or property, are often deductible for tax purposes because churches qualify as exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
  • While donors cannot get their money back when they are disappointed by a charity, they will probably stop making donations.

Fiduciary duty – for the institution

  • They argue that the church breached its fiduciary duties to its members – all of whom are also its donors.
  • Fiduciary duties encompass a special duty to act in the best interests of someone or something, based on certain legal relationships.

Allegations of fraud

  • In Utah, plaintiffs must file fraud suits within three years of when they discover or should have discovered fraudulent behavior.
  • And the Ensign Peak allegations first surfaced in 2019 – four years before the plaintiffs filed this lawsuit.
  • Their lawyers argue that the statute of limitations does not bar the case, because the LDS church hid how it used the money and plaintiffs could not have discovered the alleged fraud until recently.

Seeking relief

  • But they are also asking for the court to order the LDS church to make periodic financial disclosures and to appoint an independent authority outside the church to oversee the church’s finances.
  • Appointing somebody to oversee how the LDS church raises and spends its money would violate this doctrine.


Samuel Brunson is practicing member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted of fraud following the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Here's what investors need to know

Retrieved on: 
星期二, 十一月 7, 2023

In the fast-paced world of cryptocurrency, vast sums of money can be made or lost in the blink of an eye.

Key Points: 
  • In the fast-paced world of cryptocurrency, vast sums of money can be made or lost in the blink of an eye.
  • In early November 2022, the crypto exchange FTX was valued at more than US$30 billion.
  • They explain how and why this incredible collapse happened, what effect it might have on the traditional financial sector and whether you should care.

1. What happened?

  • FTX was where many crypto investors traded and held their cryptocurrency, similar to the New York Stock Exchange for stocks.
  • Bankman-Fried also founded Alameda Research, a hedge fund that invested in cryptocurrencies and crypto companies.
  • But in early November 2022, news outlets reported that a significant proportion of Alameda’s assets were a type of cryptocurrency released by FTX itself.
  • This left huge numbers of investors who bought cryptocurrencies through the exchange with no good way to get their money back.

2. Did a lack of oversight play a role?

  • Liquidity is the ability of a firm to sell assets quickly without those assets losing much value.
  • Solvency is the idea that a company’s assets are worth more than what that company owes to debtors and customers.
  • But the crypto world has generally operated with much less caution than the traditional financial sector, and FTX is no exception.
  • In addition, nearly 40% of Alameda’s assets were in FTX’s own cryptocurrency – and remember, both companies were founded by the same person.

3. Why is this a big deal in crypto?

  • Bank runs are rare in traditional financial institutions, but they are increasingly common in the crypto space.
  • Given that Bankman-Fried and FTX were seen as some of the biggest, most trusted figures in crypto, these events may lead more investors to think twice about putting money in crypto.

4. If I don’t own crypto, should I care?

  • While investors and regulators are still evaluating the consequences of this fall, the impact on any person who doesn’t personally own crypto will be minuscule.
  • In high-risk environments like crypto, it’s possible to lose everything – a lesson investors in FTX learned the hard way.

5. What does the trial reveal about the regulatory environment for crypto?

  • The trial of Bankman-Fried has brought attention to the ever-evolving and complex nature of cryptocurrency regulation and oversight.
  • At the conclusion of the case, Damian Williams, the federal prosecutor for the U.S. Justice Department, underlined the department’s dedication to fighting fraud, even in the relatively new crypto space.
  • Despite a recent crypto crackdown by the SEC, the U.S. continues to lag behind other nations in establishing comprehensive crypto regulations.
  • This is evident in the formal regulatory frameworks introduced by places such as the U.K. and the European Union.


The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Crypto Community’s Intrigue up After Ripple CTO’s Cryptic Frog Post

Retrieved on: 
星期日, 十月 29, 2023

David Schwartz, the CTO of Ripple Labs, generated significant excitement within the cryptocurrency community through a mysterious frog-themed social media post.

Key Points: 
  • David Schwartz, the CTO of Ripple Labs, generated significant excitement within the cryptocurrency community through a mysterious frog-themed social media post.
  • Meanwhile, Ripple has unveiled a strategic partnership with Uphold, a Web3 financial platform, aimed at integrating Uphold's cryptocurrency liquidity resources into Ripple's cross-border payment ecosystem.

Ripple CTO's Cryptic Frog Post Sparks Enthusiasm and Speculation in Cryptocurrency Community

  • The post featured a frog perched on a lily pad leaf, flanked by water lily flowers on either side.
  • While seemingly innocuous at first glance, this image has triggered a flurry of responses and speculation from various cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
  • The most vocal reactions came from the XRP and PEPE armies, two passionate groups of cryptocurrency supporters.
  • XRP fans wasted no time in expressing their hopes that Schwartz's cryptic post would somehow lead to a substantial increase in the XRP price.
  • The PEPE-themed X account, @xPEPENFT, celebrated Schwartz's post, stating that the Ripple CTO had finally "come to his senses" and shared "a bullish flag for frog lovers everywhere."

Ripple and Uphold Join Forces to Revolutionize Cross-Border Payments

  • In related news, Ripple has unveiled a strategic partnership with Uphold, a leading Web3 financial platform.
  • With the integration of Uphold's services, Ripple seeks to enhance and streamline its already impressive cross-border payments network.
  • Pegah Soltani, the head of payments product at Ripple, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership and its potential to bring operational improvements to the company's offerings.
  • Ripple, a global leader in providing innovative solutions for cross-border payments, currently operates in over 55 countries and has a presence in more than 70 markets worldwide.

Price Overview

  • Data from the cryptocurrency price tracking website CoinStats indicated that the native token for the Ripple ecosystem, XRP, rescorded a slight 24-hour loss of 0.11%.
  • Nevertheless, the remittance token’s weekly performance was still entrenched deep in the green zone, and stood at +14.71%.
  • As a result of the latest price movements, the altcoin was changing hands at $0.55443 at press time.
  • Price chart for XRP (Source: CoinStats)
    XRP also weakened against the market leader Bitcoin (BTC) throughout the past day of trading.

Former SEC Chair Is Confident That a BTC ETF Will Get Approved Soon

Retrieved on: 
星期日, 十月 29, 2023

Clayton attributed this optimism to the resolution of key regulatory concerns that had previously hindered the introduction of a Bitcoin ETF.

Key Points: 
  • Clayton attributed this optimism to the resolution of key regulatory concerns that had previously hindered the introduction of a Bitcoin ETF.
  • The cryptocurrency market's growth and maturation, coupled with a focus on regulation, signal a promising future for a Bitcoin ETF.
  • Meanwhile, Bitwise, a prominent player in the cryptocurrency industry, has resubmitted its revised proposal for a BTC ETF to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Former SEC Chair Jay Clayton Expresses Confidence in Impending Bitcoin ETF Approval

  • In a recent interview with CNBC's "Last Call," former SEC Chair Jay Clayton expressed unwavering confidence in the forthcoming approval of a Bitcoin ETF.
  • One of the primary issues that Clayton addressed in the interview was the prevalence of questionable trading practices in the Bitcoin market.
  • Clayton's comments echo the sentiment that a mature, well-regulated market is essential for the successful introduction of a Bitcoin ETF.
  • High-quality and reliable market data had also been a substantial obstacle to the approval of a Bitcoin ETF.
  • However, in recent times, Jay Clayton believes that the landscape of the Bitcoin market has undergone significant transformation.

Bitwise Resubmits Bitcoin ETF Proposal to SEC Following Regulatory Feedback

  • ETF industry analyst James Seyffart has recently shared insights into Bitwise's amended proposal, indicating that it largely aligns with expectations.
  • One notable detail revealed in this resubmitted proposal is the ticker symbol that the Bitwise product would use if approved by the SEC.
  • The journey toward a Bitcoin ETF has been a long and complex one, marked by regulatory hurdles and evolving market dynamics.
  • Nevertheless, as Bitwise resubmits its proposal with amendments aimed at addressing regulatory concerns, the cryptocurrency community eagerly awaits the SEC's decision.

Price Overview

  • According to data from CoinStats, BTC was down 1.83% and was changing hands at $34,048.14 at press time.
  • Notably, this was a minor correction compared to its weekly performance, which stood at more than 16%.
  • Price chart for BTC (Source: CoinStats)
    BTC was able to establish a peak at $34,766.63 over the past 24 hours, but had since retraced to trade at its current level.

Supreme Court supermajority will clarify its constitutional revolution this year, deciding cases on guns and regulations

Retrieved on: 
星期二, 九月 26, 2023

Both issues reflect a court that has announced revolutionary changes in doctrine and must now grapple with how far the new principles will reach.

Key Points: 
  • Both issues reflect a court that has announced revolutionary changes in doctrine and must now grapple with how far the new principles will reach.
  • Two years ago, the court began what many consider to be a constitutional revolution.
  • The new supermajority of six conservative justices rapidly introduced new doctrines across a range of controversies including abortion, guns, religion and race.

Focus on guns

    • Zackey Rahimi is a convicted drug dealer and violent criminal who also had a restraining order in place after assaulting his girlfriend.
    • The court will decide whether the federal law prohibiting the possession of firearms by someone subject to a domestic violence restraining order violates the Second Amendment.
    • In the 2022 case of New York Rifle & Pistol v. Bruen, the court announced a new understanding of the Second Amendment.
    • If the right to carry a gun can be regulated but not eradicated, limited but not eliminated, where is the line?
    • The Rahimi case will provide a critical test of this historical approach to the boundaries of constitutional rights.

The power of the administrative state

    • The court’s conservatives tend to see the actions of federal agencies as violating the constitutional principle of limited government.
    • They fear that the federal government is likely to use its vast power abusively if it is unconstrained.
    • In this view, the expansion of the administrative state allowed an end-run around the Constitution’s limits on government power.
    • In the last few years, the court has emphasized new doctrines limiting the power of federal agencies.
    • Overruling this precedent would strip power from administrative agencies and reallocate decisions to Congress or to courts.

Insider trading − the legal kind − is a lot more profitable if you work for a multinational company

Retrieved on: 
星期四, 八月 24, 2023

Insider trading happens when a director or employee trades their company’s public stock or other security based on important or “material” information about that business.

Key Points: 
  • Insider trading happens when a director or employee trades their company’s public stock or other security based on important or “material” information about that business.
  • Insider trading isn’t illegal as long as the person reports the trade to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the information is already in the public domain.
  • We wanted to know if multinational insiders stand to make more money because of the complexity of the information they could possess relative to outsiders.
  • We’ve recently conducted research on how insider trades by colleagues at the same company tend to cluster together, and we are currently looking at how innovation affects insider trading.

US regulators continue crypto crackdown – but here's why the latest charges are different

Retrieved on: 
星期六, 六月 17, 2023

This isn’t the first time Binance and Coinbase have caught the SEC’s attention – it’s not even the first time this year.

Key Points: 
  • This isn’t the first time Binance and Coinbase have caught the SEC’s attention – it’s not even the first time this year.
  • But the latest charges are much more serious, including accusations that the exchanges are operating without the correct registration.
  • He called for legislation that “allows fair rules for the road to be developed transparently and applied equally, not litigation”.

Counting the costs

    • It argues that XRP, Ripple’s cryptocurrency token, is an unregistered security.
    • Ripple disputes this and expects to spend US$200 million (£156 million) fighting the suit, according to its CEO.


    According to the SEC, the first criterion is easily satisfied with crypto because fiat money or other digital assets are being exchanged. Likewise, the “common enterprise” test is also easily met when trading cryptocurrencies. The third criterion largely turns on whether digital assets come with an “expectation of profit to be derived from the efforts of others”.

Why does this matter?

    • These platforms enable investors to buy and sell cryptocurrencies easily without the need for expert knowledge of how blockchains work.
    • Coinbase customers pulled about US$1.28 billion from the exchange after the news broke, according to initial estimates from data firm Nansen.
    • In the meantime, customers withdrew around US$780 million from Binance and its US affiliate in the 24 hours following the lawsuit, according to Nansen.
    • The Bitcoin market has rallied since, although Binance.US has stopped trading in a number of its cryptocurrencies.

Global coordination on crypto rules

    • But regulators in other major financial markets could follow the SEC’s lead when it comes to crypto rules.
    • But these rules will only affect the marketing of cryptocurrencies in the UK, so it’s a relatively small step.
    • Without this, regulators like the SEC will struggle to corral the growing global crypto market.

US regulators continue crypto crackdown - but here's why the latest charges are different

Retrieved on: 
星期五, 六月 16, 2023

This isn’t the first time Binance and Coinbase have caught the SEC’s attention – it’s not even the first time this year.

Key Points: 
  • This isn’t the first time Binance and Coinbase have caught the SEC’s attention – it’s not even the first time this year.
  • But the latest charges are much more serious, including accusations that the exchanges are operating without the correct registration.
  • He called for legislation that “allows fair rules for the road to be developed transparently and applied equally, not litigation”.

Counting the costs

    • It argues that XRP, Ripple’s cryptocurrency token, is an unregistered security.
    • Ripple disputes this and expects to spend US$200 million (£156 million) fighting the suit, according to its CEO.


    According to the SEC, the first criterion is easily satisfied with crypto because fiat money or other digital assets are being exchanged. Likewise, the “common enterprise” test is also easily met when trading cryptocurrencies. The third criterion largely turns on whether digital assets come with an “expectation of profit to be derived from the efforts of others”.

Why does this matter?

    • These platforms enable investors to buy and sell cryptocurrencies easily without the need for expert knowledge of how blockchains work.
    • Coinbase customers pulled about US$1.28 billion from the exchange after the news broke, according to initial estimates from data firm Nansen.
    • In the meantime, customers withdrew around US$780 million from Binance and its US affiliate in the 24 hours following the lawsuit, according to Nansen.
    • The Bitcoin market has rallied since, although Binance.US has stopped trading in a number of its cryptocurrencies.

Global coordination on crypto rules

    • But regulators in other major financial markets could follow the SEC’s lead when it comes to crypto rules.
    • But these rules will only affect the marketing of cryptocurrencies in the UK, so it’s a relatively small step.
    • Without this, regulators like the SEC will struggle to corral the growing global crypto market.

ESMA postpones to 2024 the annual IFRS amendment of the ESEF

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 五月 10, 2023

ESMA postpones to 2024 the annual IFRS amendment of the ESEF

Key Points: 
  • ESMA postpones to 2024 the annual IFRS amendment of the ESEF
    The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor, has decided to postpone to 2024 the amendment of the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF) Regulatory Technical Standard (RTS).
  • ESMA accordingly amends the ESEF RTS to reflect the annual update of the IFRS Taxonomy.
  • ESMA will combine both the 2023 and 2024 IFRS Taxonomy updates in its proposals to update the ESEF RTS in 2024.
  • During 2023, ESMA will publish the annual update of the ESEF Reporting Manual to provide additional guidance on the implementation of the ESEF requirements.