Crypto fraudster hit with $3.4bn penalty, Elizabeth Warren delays anti-money laundering bill

US judge issues record-setting $3.4bn judgement against Bitcoin fraudster

Mirror International Proprietary’s CEO faces a record-setting $3.4 billion in fines and restitutions in relation to a Bitcoin fraud.

South African executive Cornelius Johannes Steynberg has been ordered by a US federal court to pay the amount.

The penalty is the highest-ever such order in the history of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Steinberg was convicted for the perpetration of a “fraudulent multilevel marketing scheme” which saw at least 29,421 Bitcoin appropriated from participants

Steinberg is a currently a fugitive from South African authorities and has been detained in Brazil on an Interpol arrest warrant since December 2021.

NOW READ: Arrest of Turkey’s failed crypto exchange boss kicks off hunt for answers

Elizabeth Warren’s anti-money laundering bill hits sponsorship hurdle

US lawmakers Elizabeth Warren and Roger Marshall have postponed reintroducing their crypto anti-money laundering bill because they do not have enough cosponsors.

That is according to a new report from Blockworks, citing two people familiar with the matter.

The bill has been in development since December 2022, with a focus on know your customer rules to mitigate illicit activity.

Lawmakers and lobby groups have taken issue with the language of the bill, and cited stifled innovation as well as “unworkable compliance burdens” for crypto companies, according to crypto advocacy group Chamber of Digital Commerce.

Warren has made no secret about her dislike of crypto. She referenced articles citing her attempts to build an “anti-crypto army” in her recent re-election campaign.

FBI raids former FTX executive Ryan Salame’s home

The FBI raided the home of former FTX executive Ryan Salame on Thursday morning. Salame oversaw FTX’s Bahamas-based subsidiary.

He has been under scrutiny since last year’s midterm elections, when he donated $24 million to mainly Republican candidates with funds allegedly misappropriated from FTX customers.

The reasons for the search of Saslame’s $4 million Maryland home are still unclear.

NOW READ: Wintermute hacker turns $160m heist into top liquidity position on Curve Finance

Arbitrum CEO blames ‘poor communication’ on failed $1bn ARB proposal

Arbitrum co-founder Stephen Goldfeder lamented poor communication as a factor in a failed governance proposal that shook the web3 space earlier in April.

The failed proposal sought to return $1 billion in ARB tokens to the Arbitrum protocol following a controversial self-allocation by the Arbitrum Foundation.

Its failure raised questions of centralisation at the lead layer 2 protocol on the Ethereum network — a protocol which champions its decentralisation as a key feature.

Goldfeder stated his regret for the outcome of the proposal, and insisted that the community came out stronger despite ongoing frustrations.

NOW READ: Traders pile $6.4bn into Ether options as bulls dominate before expiry

US lawmaker cites Sam Bankman-Fried’s ‘ghost’ in hearing

US Representative Brad Sherman said the “ghost” of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried haunted a Financial Services Committee hearing on Thursday.

Sherman, an avowed crypto-sceptic, accused Bankman-Fried of courting “baby regulation” from the CFTC during his highly publicised lobbying pre-arrest.

In Sherman’s words, Bankman’s “one reason” for addressing the Financial Services Committee was “to prevent the SEC from having jurisdiction over cryptocurrency.”

The Securities Exchange Commission has taken an aggressive stance on crypto under Chair Gary Gensler, with enforcements against several notable crypto companies in 2022 and 2023.

NOW READ: ‘Not a warm and fuzzy guy:’ Gary Gensler’s past sheds light on his firm stance on crypto

Binance official sees success in keeping North Korean actors off of platform

A senior compliance official at global crypto exchange Binance says the company has achieved “success” in efforts to stop North Koreans from using the platform through its various security measures.

The statement — made at Thursday’s Consensus 2023 event by Binance compliance watchdog Tigran Gambaryan — speaks to accusations that the company is prone to use by criminals.

North Korea hacking groups have been implicated in a wave of hacks, exploits and crypto thefts over the years.

More web3 news from around the web…

Bored Ape creator Yuga Labs dominates NFT sales with 35% share — Decrypt

‘William Shatner Warps Into Web3 With ‘Infinite Connections’ NFT Release’ - CoinDesk

‘Ethereum’s Next Upgrade To Focus On Blobs’ - Blockworks