According to the European Banking Authority (EBA), which regulates stress tests on EU banks, additional measures will be taken to predict how stress on non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs), including cryptocurrency-related entities, will affect lending institutions. EBA Chairman José Manuel Campa said in an interview that concerns about the spread of the crisis prompted the need to "dig deeper into the connections between banks and other financial institutions. We should do more, and we will do more. We need to understand the entire potential chain of non-bank financial institutions." Non-bank financial institutions are said to hold around $219 trillion in assets, almost half of the world's financial assets. (Financial Times)

According to CoinGecko, the total market value of cryptocurrencies has reached 1.821 trillion US dollars. In addition, BTC's market share has risen to 48.8%, while ETH's market share is 15.7%.

US presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy outlined in multiple posts on X how he would shut down the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) if elected president. He pointed out that the FBI has about 35,842 employees and stated that "56% of the FBI's professional bureaucrats should be fired immediately." Ramaswamy recently released his cryptocurrency policy, promising that if elected president, he would ensure that innovative areas, including cryptocurrencies, are "liberated from the unconstitutional shadow government." He is expected to repeal most of the regulations that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) applies to cryptocurrencies.

75 US lawmakers have now supported the CBDC Anti-Surveillance Act. Representative Tom Emmer, who proposed the bill, wrote on X platform on Saturday: "I have introduced the CBDC Anti-Surveillance National Act to protect Americans' financial privacy rights, and it has 75 legislative supporters. We will continue to gain more support." Emmer emphasized: "Unlike decentralized cryptocurrencies, central bank digital currencies are digital forms of sovereign currencies designed and issued by governments, and traded on government-controlled digital ledgers. In short, central bank digital currencies are programmable currencies controlled by governments, and if not designed to mimic cash, they may enable the US federal government to monitor and restrict Americans' transactions." <br>

At the 2023 annual meeting of the China Association for Promoting Democracy and Legal System Construction, experts in attendance believed that new payment methods such as virtual currencies and electronic gift cards provide new hidden channels and ways of delivering benefits. Liao Tianhu, Vice Dean of the Law School of Southwest University of Science and Technology, pointed out that cases of bribery involving digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum in reality require relevant responses from China's anti-corruption legislation and practice. In order to effectively prevent and combat the occurrence of crimes such as the acceptance of virtual currencies by corrupt individuals, efforts should be made to increase the crackdown on underground banks and token financing trading platforms engaged in exchange transactions between legal tender and tokens, virtual currencies, and to effectively regulate relevant platforms.

The CEO of the Turkish Commercial Bank said that Turkish banks should be informed about the draft encryption law. Turkish banks may serve as custodians for cryptocurrencies.

New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has released new standards for the listing and delisting of virtual currencies (coins). These new regulations apply to Bitlicenses and limited purpose trust companies, including considerations for the business model of virtual currency entities (VCE), the latest risk assessment expectations for VCE, new advance notification requirements, and updated definitions.According to the latest guidelines, VCEs that have obtained prior approval for coin listing policies must obtain NYDFS approval for their coin listing and coin delisting policies before self-certifying any coins. Once NYDFS approves these two policies, VCEs can self-certify coins for activity in New York. However, without NYDFS-approved listing policies, VCEs are almost always restricted to listing coins on the NYDFS green list, unless there is specific NYDFS approval. In addition, NYDFS reserves the right of discretion to require VCEs to delist coins or restrict the use of non-green list coins by New Yorkers.

Abu Dhabi is becoming a popular destination for cryptocurrency companies seeking enthusiastic investors and more friendly regulatory agencies, while major markets such as the United States are currently lacking in both.

After a challenging 2022, this past year brought a number of positive developments across the ecosystem, from new institutional entrants to key technical upgrades. While the regulatory environment was arguably the most challenging it has ever been, especially in the US, the new battles should force clarity on a number of outstanding questions. With a period of monetary tightening seemingly coming to an end, both crypto and equities surged in 2023, with many digital assets posting gains above 100%, including bitcoin (BTC), which has risen 150% in 2023. The table below shows the performance of all assets in the datonomyTM universe with a market cap above $1B.

Crypto has been around for 15 years now - an absolute eon in the digital age. It’s now a valuable, maturing space, even if the loudest narratives are still maddeningly degenerate. In this post, I’ll offer my personal perspective of the various eras in crypto.