--- title: RegWatch (2) description: Latest cryptocurrency regulation updates from across the world. (2) --- # RegWatch ![How is the Crypto Industry Trying to Fill the Gap Created by Lack of Third Party Insurance?](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/InsuranceGap_BlogBanner.png) ### [How is the Crypto Industry Trying to Fill the Gap Created by Lack of Third Party Insurance?](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/how-is-the-crypto-industry-trying-to-fill-the-gap-created-by-lack-of-third-party-insurance) Dec 6, 2021 9:01:44 AM The cryptocurrency industry is growing at a rapid pace, with the market capitalization of crypto assets reaching [$3 trillion](https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/cryptocurrency/crypto-market-m-cap-hits-3-trillion-mark-will-the-frenzy-continue/articleshow/87603782.cms) in November this year. With new investors entering into the crypto space, it is essential to have robust insurance solutions in place to manage and hedge risks in the crypto sphere. [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/how-is-the-crypto-industry-trying-to-fill-the-gap-created-by-lack-of-third-party-insurance) ![](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/CryptoAssetRegulation_Banner.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [The Federal Bank Regulatory Agencies Issue a Joint Statement Summarizing Crypto-Asset Policy Sprint](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/the-federal-bank-regulatory-agencies-issue-a-joint-statement-summarizing-crypto-asset-policy-sprint) Nov 26, 2021 8:52:05 AM On Nov 23, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) — collectively referred to as the ‘agencies’ — issued a joint statement summarizing their interagency ‘policy sprints’ focused on crypto-assets. [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/the-federal-bank-regulatory-agencies-issue-a-joint-statement-summarizing-crypto-asset-policy-sprint) ![The U.S. Department of Treasury Sanctions Crypto Exchange Chatex for Facilitating Ransomware Transactions](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/ChatexExchange%20banner.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [The U.S. Department of Treasury Sanctions Crypto Exchange Chatex for Facilitating Ransomware Transactions](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/the-us-department-of-treasury-sanctions-crypto-exchange-chatex-for-facilitating-ransomware-transactions) Nov 11, 2021 11:02:13 AM On November 8, 2021, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned cryptocurrency exchange Chatex and its associated support network — IZIBITS OU, Chatextech SIA, and Hightrade Finance Ltd — for facilitating financial transactions for ransomware actors. [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/the-us-department-of-treasury-sanctions-crypto-exchange-chatex-for-facilitating-ransomware-transactions) ![Stablecoins: Overview, CBDCs, Role in Crypto, Regulations](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/Stablecoins%20Primer%20%26%20Related%20Regulations.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [Stablecoins: Overview, CBDCs, Role in Crypto, Regulations](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/stablecoins-overview) Oct 21, 2021 4:03:18 PM Stablecoins — pegged to a dependable fiat currency such as the US dollar — have become a cornerstone of the crypto ecosystem. As per industry reports, there has been an increase in the issuance of stablecoins and the market cap has grown [18 fold](https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-global-crypto-currency-idUSKBN2EK0PM) over the past year, surpassing $100 billion in May 2021. The stablecoin market cap is currently [$112.15 ](https://coincodex.com/cryptocurrencies/sector/stablecoins/)billion. In particular, stablecoins such as Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), and Pax Dollar (USDP) have jumped from $30 billion in circulation in January 2021 to about $125 billion as of[ mid-September](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/23/us/politics/cryptocurrency-regulators-rules.html). [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/stablecoins-overview) ![5 Key Takeaways from Regulating the DeFi Frontier: Industry Leaders Discuss Fostering Innovation & Consumer Protection on the Financial Frontier](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/DeFi%20key%20takeaways%20final.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [5 Key Takeaways from Regulating the DeFi Frontier: Industry Leaders Discuss Fostering Innovation & Consumer Protection on the Financial Frontier](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/insights-from-defi-frontier) Oct 18, 2021 7:05:51 PM With the advent of financial institutions exploring the DeFi space, panelists for [Merkle Science’s second Regulating Defi webinar](https://events.merklescience.com/en-us/en-us/regulating-defi-industry-leaders-discuss-fostering-innovation-protecting-consumer-on-the-financial-frontie) **Jai Ramaswamy (**Chief Regulatory Officer at a16z**)**, **Jason P. Allegrante (**Chief Legal & Compliance Officer at Fireblock**s), Vanessa Grellet **(Head of Portfolio Growth at CoinFund), and **Sandra Ro **(Chief Executive Officer at Global Blockchain Business Council) discussed the possible implications of the convergence between traditional financial and crypto markets. With the DeFi industry witnessing a massive surge from financial institutions (FIs) and the regulatory scrutiny around DeFi increasing, our panelists forayed into several timely topics including striking a balance between fostering innovation and the need to protect consumers, combating anti-money laundering activities, and preserving financial stability.  [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/insights-from-defi-frontier) ![Ransomware in Crypto & the Use of Predictive Blockchain Analytics](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/Ransomware%20page.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [Ransomware in Crypto & the Use of Predictive Blockchain Analytics](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/ransomware-in-crypto-the-use-of-predictive-blockchain-analytics) Oct 7, 2021 12:21:11 PM ## Introduction Of Late, the U.S. has been hit by a wave of disruptive ransomware attacks. In the [official press release](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-government-launches-first-one-stop-ransomware-resource-stopransomwaregov) detailing the actions taken by regulators to counter ransomware, the U.S. Department of Treasury noted that roughly $400 million in ransom was paid to malicious cyber actors in 2020, more than four times the amount in 2019. Globally, the frequency of ransomware attacks has increased dramatically in 2021, with ransomware attacks surging [93%](https://pages.checkpoint.com/cyber-attack-2021-trends.html) in the last six months.  [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/ransomware-in-crypto-the-use-of-predictive-blockchain-analytics) ![3 Key Takeaways from Global Blockchain Business Council’s Blockchain Central UNGA 2021 Session - The Future of Finance: DeFi and Crypto Webinar.](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/Insights%20from%20Global%20Blockchain%20Business%20Council%E2%80%99s%20Blockchain%20Central%20UNGA%202021%20The%20Future%20of%20Finance%20DeFi%20and%20Crypto%20Webinar%20(3).png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [3 Key Takeaways from Global Blockchain Business Council’s Blockchain Central UNGA 2021 Session - The Future of Finance: DeFi and Crypto Webinar.](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/3-key-takeaways-from-the-future-of-finance-defi-and-crypto-webinar) Sep 23, 2021 1:20:54 PM Decentralized Finance (DeFi), which is pegged to be the next frontier of fintech innovation, has grown exponentially over the past year. With regulatory scrutiny over DeFi increasing at a rapid pace, Merkle Science’s President, Americas and Global Chief Legal Officer Mary Beth Buchanan was joined at[ Blockchain Central UNGA 2021](https://unfoundation.org/event/gbbcs-4th-annual-blockchain-central-unga/) — hosted by the GBBC — by industry experts **Ambre Soubiran** (CEO, Kaiko), **Daniel Peled **(Co-Founder, Orbs), **Harriet Browning **(Director, Business Development and Strategic Sales Manager for EMEA, ConsenSys), **Raymond Zenkich** (President and Founder, Evertas), and** John Salmon** (Partner, Hogan & Lovells) to talk about the advancement of DeFi and crypto. [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/3-key-takeaways-from-the-future-of-finance-defi-and-crypto-webinar) ![Bitcoin Becomes Legal Tender in El Salvador](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/El%20Salvador%20Becomes%20First%20Country%20to%20Adopt%20Bitcoin%20as%20Legal%20Tender.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [Bitcoin Becomes Legal Tender in El Salvador; Spurs Money Laundering Concerns](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/bitcoin-becomes-legal-tender-in-el-salvador) Sep 15, 2021 5:34:24 AM On September 7, [El Salvador](https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/el-salvador/) officially became the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender. According to President [Nayib Bukele’s tweet,](https://twitter.com/nayibbukele/status/1434968475928248331?s=20) on 6 September 2021, El Salvador bought 400 bitcoins amounting to roughly $21 million in two lots. El Salvador, taking advantage of the dip in price bought another 150 Bitcoins. The country now holds 550 Bitcoins which is equivalent to about $26 million. All values in this piece are expressed in US dollars. [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/bitcoin-becomes-legal-tender-in-el-salvador) ![](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/SEC%20Sues%20Bitconnect.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [The Federal Grand Jury Indicts BitConnect Founder Satish Kumbhani Over $2.4 Billion Ponzi Scheme](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/sec-charges-bitconnect-founder-with-2-billion-crypto-fraud) Sep 3, 2021 12:15:21 PM **[Update 28.1****2.2022]** [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/sec-charges-bitconnect-founder-with-2-billion-crypto-fraud) ![](https://blog.merklescience.com/hubfs/DeFi%20Emerging%20Trend%20-%20Banner.png) [RegWatch](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/tag/regwatch) ### [Diving into DeFi — Top DeFi Trends of 2021](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/top-defi-trends-of-2021) Sep 2, 2021 1:25:48 PM Decentralized Finance (DeFi) which is pegged to be the next frontier of fintech innovation has grown exponentially over the past year. The [DeFi market cap ](https://hackernoon.com/the-current-state-of-the-crypto-market-and-7-trends-to-follow)has shown a 382% increase since the beginning of the year, setting a new all-time high at $95.7 billion. The continued growth of DeFi in the first quarter of 2021 is directly proportional to the growth in other sectors within DeFi for example increase in — (a) the price of top decentralized exchanges’ (DEXs) governance tokens, (b) supply of stable coins, (c) investment in DeFi platforms, and (d) [surge in DEXs’ trading volume](https://explodingtopics.com/blog/defi-trends). [Read More](https://blog.merklescience.com/regwatch/top-defi-trends-of-2021)