Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is facing a probe from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into whether it improperly let its users trade digital assets that should have been registered as securities.

Electric car maker Tesla has made a $64 million profit from the sale of 75% of its Bitcoin holdings in the second quarter of the year, while still posting a $170 million impairment loss over the sale.

Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao is suing the publisher of Bloomberg Businessweek’s Hong Kong edition, Modern Media CL, over claims a translated Chinese language title portrayed the crypto exchange chief as running a “Ponzi scheme.”

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Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• SEC Probes Coinbase Over Crypto Listings
• Tesla Makes $64 Million Profit on Bitcoin Sales
• Binance CEO Sues Bloomberg Businessweek For Defamation
• Chart of the Week: Bitcoin Whale Withdraws From Coinbase Wallet
• Sponsored: Nexo - Unleash the Power of Your Crypto

SEC Probes Coinbase Over Crypto Listings

Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is facing a probe from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into whether it improperly let its users trade digital assets that should have been registered as securities.

The regulator has been investigating some of the tokens listed on the exchange and recently alleged that seven cryptocurrencies listed on the exchange were securities, in an unrelated insider trading case brought against a former product manager at the exchange.

The SEC’s probe into Coinbase reportedly predates its investigation into the insider trading case. Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said on social media:

“We are confident that our rigorous diligence process -- a process the SEC has already reviewed -- keeps securities off our platform, and we look forward to engaging with the SEC on the matter.”

SEC Chair Gary Gensler has in the past said he believed Coinbase should register as a national securities exchange over some of the assets it has listed. Coinbase, for its part, criticized the regulator for not providing clear rules defining how cryptocurrencies might be deemed securities.

Tesla Makes $64 Million Profit on Bitcoin Sales

Electric car maker Tesla has made a $64 million profit from the sale of 75% of its Bitcoin holdings in the second quarter of the year, while still posting a $170 million impairment loss over the sale.

Tesla spent $1.5 billion to acquire around 43,200 BTC in the first quarter of 2021. Later that quarter, it sold 10% of those coins for $272 million as an experiment to demonstrate BTC’s liquidity and utility.

Last week, the firm reported selling 75% of its BTC holdings during the second quarter for $936 million. Under accounting rules digital assets are considered “ “indefinite-lived intangible assets”, and as such, Tesla must value its BTC at its lowest point during the quarter and recognize a loss if it drops below its purchase price.

Vetle Lunde, an analyst at Arcane Research, estimates Tesla sold 29,060 BTC at an average price of $32,209, leaving the company with around 9,700 BTC on its balance sheet.

Binance CEO Sues Bloomberg Businessweek For Defamation

Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao is suing the publisher of Bloomberg Businessweek’s Hong Kong edition, Modern Media CL, over claims a translated Chinese language title portrayed the crypto exchange chief as running a “Ponzi scheme.”

The lawsuit stems from Bloomberg Businessweek’s profile of CZ titled “Can Crypto’s Richest Man Stand the Cold?” In Hong Kong, the publication used a headline designed to, from CZ’s perspective, spur “hatred, contempt and ridicule.” The headline was “Zhao Changpeng’s Ponzi Scheme.”

In response to the publication’s headline, CZ demanded a retraction, calling for the edition’s removal from newsstands and for a restraining order to stop the portrayal from being spread further. Modern Media has obliged in part.

Separately, the CEO filed a mation for discovery against Blooberg L.P. and Bloomberg Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York over the article’s portrayal of Binance as “sketchy.”

Chart of the Week: Bitcoin Whale Withdraws From Coinbase Wallet

 

On July 18, a Coinbase Bitcoin address began withdrawing BTC into a non-exchange wallet. Over the course of four days, the address moved 130,000 BTC, worth approximately $3 billion, to another wallet.

The funds are now being held in the Bitcoin address 1LQoWist8KkaUXSPKZHNvEyfrEkPHzSsCd and represent the third-largest holdings out of any non-dormant BTC wallet., and the largest of any non-exchange wallet.

Bitcoin moved out of xchange addresses and into private wallets is typically seen as being held in “cold storage” as a long-term investment.

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Nexo is a crypto platform that helps you prepare for the long run. With a set of strong fundamentals like overcollateralization policy, real-time auditing and insurance on custodial assets, your funds are secured and accessible at all times.

Timing the market can be a tall order. Choosing the right place is not. Unleash the power of your crypto and keep it secure on Nexo. 

Disclaimer:

Cryptocurrencies are unregulated. Cryptocurrency profits may be subject to Capital Gains Tax. The value of investments is variable and can go down as well as up;

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