Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has been operating in the Philippines without the necessary approval or license, according to the local securities regulator.

The Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a warning against Binance on Nov. 28, informing the public that the exchange is not authorized to sell or offer securities in the country.

The announcement emphasized that an exchange like Binance must apply for registration and provide detailed information about offered securities before selling them to the public. Such detailed information includes the issuance price, the nature of securities and other data.

Related: Philippines to sell $179M in tokenized treasury bonds…

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Pro-soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has been hit with a proposed class-action lawsuit from plaintiffs claiming they suffered losses from his promotion of the now-legally embroiled crypto exchange Binance.

A Nov. 27 filing to a Florida District Court claimed Ronaldo “promoted, assisted in, and/or actively participated in the offer and sale of unregistered securities in coordination with Binance.”

Binance entered a multi-year partnership with Ronaldo in mid-2022 to promote a series of his own nonfungible tokens (NFT), of which he has at least three collections tied to Binance.

The complaint claims users who signed up for Ronaldo’s NFTs were more likely to use Binance for other purposes…

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Bitfinex’s recently launched Tether (USDT) tokenized bond, hailed as a “new era for capital raises,” appears to have failed to garner the investment and interest the firm anticipated.

Bitfinex Securities, a platform focused on listing tokenized real-world assets (RWA), announced its first tokenized bond in October, called ALT2611 Tokenized Bond, with the product going live on Nov. 15.

However, after a two-week offer period, only $1.5 million of a $10 million target has been raised, according to the official website.

The target of 100,000 ALT2611 worth 10 million USDT was set for two weeks after launch in the announcement, but it appears to have been extended by another fortnight as…

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Bankrupt crypto lender Genesis and its parent company, Digital Currency Group (DCG), has struck a deal that could end an ongoing lawsuit to claw back $620 million in repayments from DCG. 

In a Nov. 28 filing to a New York Bankruptcy Court, Genesis said DCG agreed to pay its outstanding $324.5 million in loans by April next year, and Genesis can chase up on any unpaid amounts.

The proposed deal aims to allow Genesis to end a lawsuit filed against DCG in September that sought to have the firm repay overdue loans worth around $620 million. DCG has made some payments since the suit.

Highlighted excerpt of the agreement between Genesis (GGC) and DCG. Source: Kroll

Genesis said the repayment…

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Legendary investor and billionaire Charlie Munger, known as the right-hand man of Warren Buffet who helped build investment powerhouse Berkshire Hathaway, has passed away at 99 years of age.

Munger’s family informed Berkshire “that he peacefully died this morning at a California hospital,” according to a company announcement on Nov. 28.

Munger, who served as vice chairman at Buffet’s empire since 1978, accumulated a net worth of $2.6 billion and was routinely praised for adopting a sound investment and stock-picking philosophy throughout his tenure at Berkshire.

While Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies weren’t favored investments for Munger and Buffet, who once referred to Bitcoin (BTC)…

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Bitcoin (BTC) spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States now have a “clear runway” to potential simultaneous approvals after an advanced decision to delay the bids of Franklin Templeton and Hashdex ETFs, according to ETF analysts.

In a Nov. 28 X (Twitter) post, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said the Securities and Exchange Commission delayed its decision on the applications 34 days earlier than the Jan. 1, 2024, decision deadline.

The SEC requested comments on forms by Templeton and Hashdex that are necessary for the ETFs to eventually be listed and start trading. The comment and rebuttal period will last 35 days.

Seyffart and his colleague Eric Balchunas had placed…

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The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has announced the next steps in its consideration of the proposed Franklin Templeton and Hashdex spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) bids.

The agency has requested written comments on both proposals to approve or deny the applicants’ Forms 19b-4.

SEC Form 19b-4 is a public disclosure approved by the SEC Trading and Markets Division separately from Form S-1, the offering prospectus subject to Corporate Finance Division approval. The SEC’s requests have an open period of 35 days from their publication in the Federal Register for both comments and responses to comments.

The SEC release on the Franklin Templeton Bitcoin ETF…. Read more on Cointelegraph

Amazon has launched its own artificial intelligence-powered assistant built for business, “Amazon Q.”

The AI chatbot can be used to have conversations, solve problems, generate content, gain insights and connect with a company’s information repositories, code, data and enterprise systems, Amazon Web Services said in a Nov. 28 announcement.

Meet your new #generativeAI assistant designed for work that can be tailored to your business.

With Amazon Q, you can solve problems, generate content, get insights from data, build faster on #AWS, while helping keep your data private & secure. ☁️

pic.twitter.com/4H0xagrgfI

— Amazon Web Services (@awscloud) November 28,… Read more on Cointelegraph

Hut 8 is on track to complete its merger with US Bitcoin Corp this week.

This development is expected to initiate a new phase of geographic diversity and increased revenue streams for the company.

Labeled by executives as a “merger of equals,” the deal was first announced in February. USBTC stockholders voted in favor of the combination, the companies said last week — a key step to finalizing a deal expected to close by Nov. 30.

Hut 8 Mining CEO Jaime Leverton noted during the company’s earnings call earlier this month that USBTC’s US operations — featuring campuses in New York, Nebraska and Texas — are set to complement Hut 8’s current Canadian footprint.

Dan Weiskopf,…

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