Coinbase sues the SEC, Binance lifts deposits for Russian customers, Visa hires more crypto talent

Coinbase sues the SEC over 2022 petition

US crypto exchange Coinbase has demanded more clarity for crypto firms in a new lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Coinbase’s lawsuit seeks to compel the SEC to answer a 2022 petition, which calls for the agency to adopt rules to “govern the regulation of securities” offered digitally, such as cryptocurrencies.

The SEC has levied several enforcement actions against US crypto firms in the last year — Coinbase among them — alleging they offer sales of unregistered securities.

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Binance lifts deposit limits on Russian users

Global exchange Binance has lifted restrictions in Russian users more than a year after pulling support for credit card deposits in the country.

Users reported the ability to deposit several currencies from Russian-issued bank cards, after limits were lifted for account sizes over €10,000 earlier this month.

Binance placed restrictions on following Vladimir Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which saw western nations place unprecedented sanctions against Russia.

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Chamath Palihapitiya claims ‘crypto is dead in America’

Prominent investor Chamath Palihapitiya said “crypto is dead in America” in a Friday podcast.

The Social Capital CEO and former Facebook executive pointed towards aggressive actions taken by regulators in recent months, as well as the pushing of legal boundaries by crypto firms.

Back in 2021, Palihapitiya claimed Bitcoin would reach $100,000 and replace gold as the leading reserve asset.

Palihapitiya is not the first to proclaim the Stateside death of crypto. Last month’s banking meltdown left investors bruised and anxious about the spectre of tougher regulations, with one crypto trader telling DL News that “crypto in the US is dead” for firms that have links to the US financial system.

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Job postings open up for Visa’s crypto wing

Credit card giant Visa is hiring software engineers to bolster its growing crypto division, according to the company’s head of crypto Cuy Sheffield.

Sheffield took to Twitter Monday to announce the posting, hinting at institutional adoption by the world’s leading credit card company.

This is another sign that Visa is still interested in the industry after Sheffield went to bat for crypto last month, defending Visa’s interest in the technology amid rumours the company was “slamming the brakes.”

Visa joins a growing number of TradFi firms that have bulked up their crypto muscles with new hires lately.

Finance giants with digital assets teams such as Fidelity, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon and Nomura are reportedly also recruiting new crypto talent.

Ethereum’s Shapella sees ETH hit record staking numbers

Ethereum’s Shapella upgrade has ushered in a weekly inflow of Ether deposits in excess of $1 billion, setting a new record for the asset.

Over 510,000 Ether was deposited into staking contracts last week, marking the biggest week for staking since its implementation in late 2020.

The inflows may come as a surprise to some, after Shapella — which allowed ETH stakers to withdraw for the first time — stoked fears of a massive sell-off.

NOW READ: Ethereum staking outflows hit $1.3bn one week after Shapella upgrade

More web3 news from around the web…

DAOs could get official standing under proposed California law — Decrypt

Crypto influencer in FTX case says Bahamian pig tweet was a joke as judge warns him to be careful — The Block

Ethereum layer 2 networks’ total value locked hovers at near-record high, data shows — CoinDesk