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US reportedly launches probe into cryptocurrency price-fixing
It feels like cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are going mainstream. They're becoming more heavily regulated around the world, in diverse places like Japan and New York. Now people are being investigated for price fixing. According to Bloomberg, the US Justice Department has opened a private criminal probe into traders who may be manipulating the price of Bitcoin and other digital currency products.
SEC is ‘looking closely’ at companies that dabble in blockchain
The Securities and Exchange Commission has had it with companies throwing around words like crypto and blockchain in order to bump up their stock prices. There have been quite a few instances of that lately and the SEC says it will be looking more closely at public companies that suddenly shift their interests to cryptocurrencies or blockchain technology.
US regulator accepts bitcoin as a commodity
Virtual currencies like bitcoin just came one step closer to legitimacy in the US. As part of its first action against an unregistered bitcoin options trading outfit, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has determined that digital currencies are commodities subject to its regulations. The move both puts cryptocurrency on the same level as conventional commodity derivatives (like futures contracts or swaps) and rejects the notion that they're 'just' securities, like stocks. This isn't a shocking move when the CFTC had already hinted that it would rule this way, but it could mean a lot if it both gets bitcoin exchanges off the ground and reduces the potential for abuse. [Image credit: Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images]
