PRESS – Earlybirds Invest https://earlybirdsinvest.com Latest Crypto News Fri, 06 Jun 2025 19:42:46 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.7 https://i0.wp.com/earlybirdsinvest.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/cropped-New-Project-2024-12-17T235703.455.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 PRESS – Earlybirds Invest https://earlybirdsinvest.com 32 32 240146708 Stalling first-mover advantage: VanEck, 21Shares, Canary press SEC to restore first-to-file ETF review order https://earlybirdsinvest.com/stalling-first-mover-advantage-vaneck-21shares-canary-press-sec-to-restore-first-to-file-etf-review-order/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/stalling-first-mover-advantage-vaneck-21shares-canary-press-sec-to-restore-first-to-file-etf-review-order/#respond Fri, 06 Jun 2025 19:42:46 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/stalling-first-mover-advantage-vaneck-21shares-canary-press-sec-to-restore-first-to-file-etf-review-order/

VanEck, 21Shares, and Canary Capital requested on June 5 that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reinstate the queue-based review system that awards exchange-traded product approvals in the order issuers filed. 

In a joint letter to Chair Paul Atkins, the firms said concurrent approvals strip early filers of the advantage that traditionally offsets higher legal and compliance costs.

In the letter, VanEck chief executive Jan van Eck, Canary’s Steve McClurg, and 21Shares president Duncan Moir asked the SEC to apply the filing-date principle to pending products, including any future Solana exchange-traded funds (ETFs) submissions.

The letter also calls on the regulator to “nurture a competitive financial marketplace” by restoring predictable timelines.

Stalled first-mover advantage

The letter argued that departures from the queue began in October 2021, when the ProShares Bitcoin Futures Fund received a three-day head start and secured more than 90% of the market share. 

Early filers for spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs later saw their applications cleared on Jan. 10, 2024, the same day larger asset managers that filed months or years later received green lights. 

The firms contend that such timing favors issuers with deeper distribution networks, encourages copycat filings, and concentrates assets under bigger brands.

The authors said the pattern harms market integrity by weakening incentives for original research and discouraging smaller sponsors from taking early risks. 

They also noted that honoring filing dates would not add material strain on SEC staff because registration statements already arrive in sequence and can retain their original time gaps through the review cycle.

Calls echo prior public remarks

VanEck digital assets research chief Matt Sigel has repeated the queue argument since 2024. On May 23, 2024, Sigel warned that deviations undercut the Administrative Procedure Act’s transparency standard and force early filers to shoulder prolonged update expenses.

He added that refusing to follow this standard “creates an uneven playing field for issuers who filed earlier and had to wait longer.”

On January 22, Sigel urged the regulator’s new leadership to “respect the line” after the agency formed its Crypto Task Force. 

Canary Capital chief executive Steve McClurg previewed the coordinated push during a late-May panel at the Litecoin Summit in Las Vegas, telling attendees that several issuers planned a formal appeal for a return to the queue. 

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart also commented on the letter, stating that the first-to-file approach was standard practice until the 2024 launches of the spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs.

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]]> https://earlybirdsinvest.com/stalling-first-mover-advantage-vaneck-21shares-canary-press-sec-to-restore-first-to-file-etf-review-order/feed/ 0 40520 DOJ to press on with criminal charges against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm https://earlybirdsinvest.com/doj-to-press-on-with-criminal-charges-against-tornado-cash-developer-roman-storm/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/doj-to-press-on-with-criminal-charges-against-tornado-cash-developer-roman-storm/#respond Thu, 15 May 2025 23:17:04 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/doj-to-press-on-with-criminal-charges-against-tornado-cash-developer-roman-storm/

The US Department of Justice does not intend to drop its federal criminal charges against Tornado Cash developer and co-founder Roman Storm, Decrypt reported on May 15, citing sources within the DOJ.

The DOJ’s decision to proceed comes despite an internal memo circulated last month signaling a potential shift in how the agency handles cases involving crypto mixing services.

Storm will stand trial on federal charges, including money laundering and sanctions evasion.

Criminal charges

Federal prosecutors allege that Storm conspired to launder funds, evade US sanctions, and operate an unlicensed money transmitting business through Tornado Cash, an Ethereum-based coin mixer designed to obscure the origin and destination of crypto transactions.

Storm’s trial is set to begin in a Manhattan federal courtroom in less than two months. The most recent court filings show that prosecutors have agreed to drop one portion of the charge related to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, acknowledging inconsistencies with federal guidelines.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) clarified in 2019 that “non-custodial entities” such as Tornado Cash are not classified as money transmitters. The DOJ’s partial rollback highlights a tension between law enforcement and developers of decentralized software.

Amanda Tuminelli, executive director of the DeFi Education Fund, told Decrypt that technologists building neutral privacy tools should not be held to “unreasonable criminal standards.”

Her comments echo the sentiment prevalent among industry leaders, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who continues to support Storm.

Case to continue despite shifting stance

The DOJ’s reaffirmation of charges against Storm follows the leak of an internal memo indicating the agency would now prioritize pursuing individuals using crypto tools for criminal purposes rather than prosecuting the platforms themselves.

The shift has been interpreted as a sign of evolving policy under the more crypto-friendly Trump administration. However, the DOJ does not intend to drop its charges against Storm.

In September, US District Judge Katherine Polk Failla denied his motion to dismiss, ruling that the use of computer code to facilitate money laundering is not protected under the First Amendment, despite Storm’s claims of free speech protections for his code.

The US Treasury sanctioned Tornado Cash in 2022, claiming that the protocol had facilitated more than $7 billion in illicit transactions.

However, in March, the Office of Foreign Assets Control quietly removed Tornado Cash from its sanctions list following a federal appeals court decision that found immutable smart contracts cannot be sanctioned as property.

Storm’s co-developer, Alexey Pertsev, was sentenced to over five years in prison by a Dutch court last year but was released under electronic monitoring in February pending an appeal.

The DOJ, Storm, and his attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment as of press time.

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]]> https://earlybirdsinvest.com/doj-to-press-on-with-criminal-charges-against-tornado-cash-developer-roman-storm/feed/ 0 36455 Senators press SEC for clarity on crypto ETP staking restrictions https://earlybirdsinvest.com/senators-press-sec-for-clarity-on-crypto-etp-staking-restrictions/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/senators-press-sec-for-clarity-on-crypto-etp-staking-restrictions/#respond Sun, 23 Feb 2025 04:48:22 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/senators-press-sec-for-clarity-on-crypto-etp-staking-restrictions/

A group of US senators, led by Cynthia Lummis, has urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to clarify its position on protocol staking in crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) in a Feb. 20 letter. 

The lawmakers are seeking answers regarding the exclusion of staking from ETP issuers’ S-1 filings, which they argue impacts the competitiveness of U.S. asset managers and prevents investors from accessing core blockchain functions.

The SEC has allowed the registration of multiple digital asset ETPs but has consistently required issuers to remove protocol staking from their filings. 

As a result, the senators have requested that the SEC provide explicit reasoning for its decision to exclude staking from digital asset ETPs. 

They have posed three key questions regarding the rationale behind the restriction, the risks the SEC identified regarding staking, and whether the regulator would allow staking to be offered within a registered security instrument if the product is seen as an investment contract.

Additionally, the senators argued that increased transparency would help market participants understand the SEC’s regulatory position and inform potential legislative action if needed.

The senators have set an April. 1 deadline for the SEC to respond to its letter.

Competitive disadvantage

The senators contend that this stance limits the investment potential of these products in the US, placing them at a disadvantage compared to similar offerings in Canada, Europe, and the United Kingdom. The latter recently permitted digital asset ETPs with staking, supported by bipartisan backing from Conservative and Labour leadership.

Staking is integral to proof-of-stake (PoS) networks such as Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL). It enables validators to secure blockchain networks by locking up native assets in exchange for transaction fees and newly minted tokens.

The letter authors argue that barring staking from ETPs prevents investors from realizing these benefits, reduces their potential returns, and weakens network security.

Staking discussions are heating up

On Feb. 5, the SEC’s Crypto Task Force met with Jito Labs CEO Lucas Bruder, Multicoin Capital’s Kyle Samani, and legal experts from both firms. The discussion focused on integrating staking into ETP structures while addressing regulatory concerns.

The SEC has cited multiple reasons for its hesitation, including redemption timelines that conflict with the T+1 settlement cycle, the tax implications of staking rewards, and the classification of staking-as-a-service as a securities offering. 

These factors led the SEC to require issuers to strip staking features from initial Ethereum ETP applications. 

During the meeting, industry representatives presented two models designed to mitigate the SEC’s concerns while enabling staking within ETPs. 

The first proposes that a portion of ETP-held assets be staked through third-party validators, while the second model would allow ETPs to hold liquid staking tokens representing staked assets. For example, a Solana-based ETP could include JitoSOL, a liquid staking derivative of SOL.

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]]> https://earlybirdsinvest.com/senators-press-sec-for-clarity-on-crypto-etp-staking-restrictions/feed/ 0 21289 [PRESS RELEASE] Join us in our 10th anniversary celebrations – special campaigns every week! https://earlybirdsinvest.com/press-release-join-us-in-our-10th-anniversary-celebrations-special-campaigns-every-week/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/press-release-join-us-in-our-10th-anniversary-celebrations-special-campaigns-every-week/#respond Tue, 11 Feb 2025 00:57:08 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/press-release-join-us-in-our-10th-anniversary-celebrations-special-campaigns-every-week/

bitFlyer Europe S.A.
Luxembourg
26 September 2024

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