UK Goes After Unregistered Crypto-ATM Operators, S. Korea Looks at Ripple-SEC Battle, Silvergate Execs Probed by Law Firm, Bitget to Collaborate on CBDCs

Get your daily, bite-sized summary of cryptoassets and blockchain-related news – examine the stories that fly under the radar of today’s crypto news.
__________

Regulatory news

• Great Britain Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it gathered evidence relating to unregistered crypto-ATM operators from several locations around Leeds as part of a joint operation with West Yorkshire Police’s Digital Intelligence and Investigation Unit. According to the press release, the FCA is working with several law enforcement partners, including local police forces, to disrupt and disable illegal crypto-ATMs. It will review evidence gathered during these visits and consider further potential enforcement action.
• The South Korean financial regulator Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), closely monitors the US Securities and exchanges (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple. Per News1 Korea, the regulator previously announced that it would “revise regulations and formats so that token securities can be issued and distributed in accordance with relevant guidelines, and hold an industry briefing session.”

Legal news

• Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLPan international securities and consumer rights litigation firm is investigating “certain directors and officers” of crypto-friendly bank Silvergate for breach of their fiduciary duty to Silvergate and its shareholders, a press release states. “Scott+Scott is investigating whether members of Silvergate’s board of directors made, or caused Silvergate to make, false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about Silvergate’s business, operations, prospects and financial health,” it said.
• A Delaware, US, bankruptcy judge on Monday signed an order approving the dismissal of the collapsed stock exchange FTX‘s Turkish units from the US bankruptcy proceedings.

CBDC news

• Crypto exchange Bitten announced the collaboration with the fintech company Capital on central bank digital currency (CBDC) projects in Brazil and Argentina. “The partnership held talks with the Argentine government and central bank authorities, regarding cooperation in the CBDC areas, and coordinated a common strategy in the Mercosur region,” a press release said.

Investment news

• The bulla provider of digital asset infrastructure for financial institutions in Europe, announced a US$65 million Series B round led by Credit Suisse with the participation of new institutional investors such as the German bank, Pictet Group, Cedar Mundi Venturesas well as from Series A investors Arab Bank Switzerland and Invest. The transaction was approved by the Swiss regulator, FINMA. The funds will be used to support Taurus’ growth strategy, the company said.
• Interactive brokers, an automated global electronic broker, announced its launch of cryptocurrency trading in Hong Kong, enabling professional investors of Interactive Brokers Hong Kong to trade bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH). According to a press release, eligible customers, including individuals with over HK$8m (US$1m) in investable assets or institutions with assets greater than HK$40m (US$5.1m) who are Hong Kong residents, can now trade cryptocurrency with others asset classes available on the Interactive Brokers platform.
• Monad Labsthe team that supports Monad blockchain, announced the closing of a $19 million seed funding round led by Dragonfly Capitalwith the participation of 70 investors, including placeholder capital, Lemniscap, Shima capital, Finality Capital, and angel investors. “Through this investment, Monad Labs will be able to continue its commitment to building the next level of Layer1 smart contract platforms with Monad,” it said.

NFT news

• Web3 infrastructure company MoonPay and cross-chain non-fungible token (NFT) platform Magical Eden has entered into a strategic partnership that “will increase access to NFTs and digital assets globally,” it said in a press release. This integration, it added, will enable users to easily buy NFTs with a few clicks using payment rails familiar to them, it added. Magic Eden’s cross-chain marketplace houses over 16,000 NFT collections and has processed over $2.6 billion in trades since launching in September 2021.

Web3 news

• BNB chain announced its launch Zero2Hero, a six-month build series that will welcome developers from around the world to build the solutions and tools needed for mass Web3 adoption. According to the announcement, the virtual series will facilitate a six-week bootcamp, four-week hackathon and six-week incubator for developers of all levels, giving them the opportunity to build on the BNB Chain and showcase their capabilities. Applications will be opened from 13 February on the website of the BNB chain, it says.