In the face of growing criticism, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire defended the USDC-issuer’s policy of refusing to freeze its stablecoins immediately after hacks and exploits. While leading stablecoin issuer Tether freezes its USDT stablecoins if it can be done in time — often within hours of a reported hack — to prevent stolen funds from being moved, Circle does not. It has been criticized for refusing to act while stolen funds are still in a position to be seized and restored to their rightful owners. Speaking during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, Allaire explained that as a regulated financial product, it cannot freeze tokens on a…
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Michael Barr taught financial regulation at the University of Michigan and co-founded its International Transactions Clinic (Photo: University of Michigan)Ripple advisor Michael Barr to be named Comptroller of the Currency: Report
The former member of the international payments firm’s advisory board could become the nation’s second ‘fintech comptroller’
That would mean that the Biden Administration’s Comptroller of the Currency would have an affiliation with Ripple, a company being sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for illegally selling an unregistered security—XRP—for a period of more than seven years.
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Crypto-friendly Brian Brooks steps down as bank overseer
The former Coinbase executive’s rulings at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency aided the cryptocurrency industry by allowing banks to custody and make payments with stablecoins
During his eight months at the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Brooks, a former general counsel at Coinbase, enacted a number of reforms that helped push the cryptocurrency industry farther into the banking industry’s mainstream, most recently authorizing banks to use stablecoins to make payments and for other transactions on behalf of customers.
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In a ‘huge’ win, regulator says banks can make payments with stablecoins
Circle’s Jeremy Allaire said the ruling by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ‘helps put the U.S. in a leadership position in embracing the power of public blockchains’
Allaire said Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks’ latest move is “a HUGE way to start 2021, the year that crypto and stablecoins go mass market!” He added, "the significance of this can’t be understated.”
