Gerald Cotten died suddenly in 2018 and took keys to $250 million in crypto assets to his grave
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. 
Emmer introduced legislation to prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) for use by individuals.In his press release, Emmer noted that “to maintain the dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency in a digital age, it is important that the United States lead with a posture that prioritizes innovation and does not aim to compete with the private sector.” Emmer deserves high praise for taking such a principled stand for the private sector over further government centralization and control.
See: ‘Ready to Go’: Powell Says Fed Report on Crypto and CBDCs will drop in the coming weeks
He clearly understands what’s at stake with a CBDC, and Americans can only hope that many other members of Congress share his sympathies. With any luck, the Federal Reserve researchers working on the Fed’s upcoming CBDC report — one that could be released any day now — are paying very close attention.
That report, among other things, is supposed to “evaluate whether to issue a CBDC and, if so, in what form.” This question of what form a CBDC might take is especially important, and that’s why Emmer’s bill is such a positive step.
CBDC proposals vary a great deal, but it’s the retail account based CBDC that poses the biggest risk to both personal and economic freedom. (Broader overviews of CBDC proposals can be found here, here, here, and here.)
See: ECB Report on CBDCs: Functional scope, pricing and controls
So far, Fed officials have argued that the central bank only has the authority to offer accounts and payment services to commercial banks, as opposed to individuals, but nobody should doubt the Federal Reserve’s creativity. Its proclivity for creating special facilities, for instance, is especially worrisome given the details of some retail CBDC proposals.
The Bitcoin mining sector has piqued the interest of several countries over the last year, and it appears that the United States government is starting to become interested in this market.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. 
New estimates claim the CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, Changpeng Zhao, is the world’s richest crypto billionaire, with a net worth rivaling the sums amassed by tech billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg.
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency-trading platform by volume, has registered three new corporate entities in Calgary and hired two senior employees with experience working for Canadian securities regulators as it seeks to comply with the country’s rules.
The Fed will soon release its insights on CBDCs and the crypto market, and will ask the public for input.
Cryptocurrency-based crime hit a new all-time high in 2021, with illicit addresses receiving $14 billion over the course of the year, up from $7.8 billion in 2020. BUT those numbers don’t tell the full story.
