With Summer vacations underway and in a steady week for news, let us take a look at the stories that dominated the Forex , fintech, and crypto headlines, in our best of the week segment.
CFTC Settles with Scotiabank for $127M for Regulatory Violations
As Finance Magnates reported this week, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced on Wednesday the settlement of two separate enforcement actions against the Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS), operating as Scotiabank, for a total fine of $127.4 million.
The regulator charged the provisionally registered swap dealer for spoofing and violations of swap dealer compliances. It also found the company making false statements to cover up both allegations.
Read more on the Scotiabank CFTC Settlement here.
South African Regulator Asks MTI Clients to Urgently Withdraw Funds
South African regulator, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has initiated an investigation against the activities of Mirror Trading International for multiple operational concerns and urged its clients to “request refunds into their own accounts as soon as possible.”
The FSCA is concerned about the cryptocurrency trading company’s claims of holding 2.9 billion rands (over $168.8 million) in its clients’ trading accounts as the regulator could not confirm the existence of the funds.
The platform was also flagged by the US and Canadian watchdogs.
Read more on the Mirror Trading International (MTI) FSCA Investigation here
Could the US Postal Service’s Blockchain Be Built on the Ethereum Network?
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has filed a patent for a blockchain-based mail-in voting system, according to documentation published on the United States Patent and Trademark Office website late last week. A paragraph in the filing notes that the blockchain platform could be based on “the Ethereum open software platform or other similar platforms,” though there is no confirmation that the platform will be built at all.
In a Finance Magnates analysis, we delved deeper into the subject and looked at how viable the proposition of blockchain in the USPS ecosystem really is.
Read more on USPS and Blockchain here
Plus500 Becomes Main Sponsor of Italy’s Atalanta B.C. Football Team
Plus500 announced yet another sports sponsorship this Wednesday, with the London listed broker revealing that it has signed an agreement with Italian football team, Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio to become its sole and exclusive sponsor.
Under the agreement announced today, Plus500 will be the main sponsor for Atalanta B.C. for three years commencing on 1st September 2020. This is the third sports sponsorship announced by the Israel-based broker this year, with the last one announced less than two weeks ago.
As the main sponsor, Plus500’s logo will appear on the front of the Atalanta B.C. jersey for both national and international games. Furthermore, the online CFD trading provider will have access to branding rights.
Read more on the Plus500 Atalanta Deal here.
US Regulators Charge AirBit Club for Running Crypto Mining Scam
US authorities this week asserted that AirBit Club has been selling illegal investment schemes as well as claiming passive, guaranteed daily returns that cannot be verified.
The DoJ named defendants in this case as Pablo Renato Rodriguez, Gutemberg Dos Santos, Scott Hughes, Cecilia Millan, And Jackie Aguilar. The complaint identified dos Santos and Rodriguez as founders of AirBit Club. The pair are serial scammers that were fined $1.4 million three years ago for running another Ponzi scheme called 'Vizinova'.
Read more on the AirBit Club Charges here.
Binance-Owned Crypto Cards Provider Swipe to Launch in the US
Swipe, a digital asset wallet and debit card platform, has just announced that it will soon be launching its services in the US with plans to expand elsewhere in the country, after receiving the necessary regulatory sign-offs.
The news comes a few weeks after Swipe’s takeover by Binance and issuance of a Swipe-powered crypto debit card, branded to the influential crypto exchange.
Swipe is already available in 31 countries, mostly in the European Union.
Read more on the Swipe US launch here.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Takes 14% Stake in SBI R3 Japan
As Finance Magnates covered this week, the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. has purchased a 14 percent stake in the joint venture between SBI Holdings and blockchain technology provider R3 Holdo LLC, SBI R3 Japan Co., Ltd.
In a statement from SBI Holdings on Monday, the company revealed that the joint venture has signed a Share Purchase Agreement and completed the transfer of 14 percent of its company shares to Sumitomo Mitsui.
Read more on the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Stake in SBI R3 Japan
Exclusive: FX & CFD Broker Zenfinex Raises £5m in Series A Funding Round
There is about to be a number of changes for foreign exchange and contracts for difference broker, Zenfinex Limited, with the company revealing exclusively to Finance Magnates that it has recently completed a Series A funding round, raising £5 million.
Zenfinex, which is currently regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), will put the cash raised during the funding round towards its global operations. As such, clients can expect a number of changes on the horizon for the trading provider.
Finance Magnates can confirm that these changes include geographical expansion across Asia, the Middle East and further throughout Europe, as well as the expansion of its product offering. Leading the recent funding round was Zenfinex Technologies Limited, which is headed by Oscar Hilt Tatum IV.
Read more on the latest Zenfinex developments here.
