The United States is one of — if not the worst — place to launch a cryptocurrency startup in the world right now, according to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse whose firm is in a legal battle with the U.S. securities regulator.
“The only country I would not encourage you to start a company right now is in the U.S.,” Garlinghouse said on a Sept. 12 panel at Token 2049 in Singapore.
The Ripple boss wants the U.S. to take note from the likes of Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland by enacting policies that encourage crypto innovation while protecting consumers.
Bloomberg’s Annabelle Droulers (left) moderating a panel with Garlinghouse (center-left), OKX’s Hong Fang (center-right) and BitGo’s Mike Belshe (right). Source: Andrew Fenton/Cointelegraph
That lawsuit strategy isn’t working, said Garlinghouse, and claimed Ripple and Grayscale’s court wins over the SEC may suggest the court’s mood is turning in the industry’s favor.
“I think you’re seeing the momentum shift. I think that it used to be that a lot of judges were like: ‘Well the SEC is always right,’ and they weren’t fighting that [but] I think you’re starting to see the pattern change.”
While the outcomes in Ripple and Grayscale aren’t legally binding, Garlinghouse said the results provide more clarity to crypto exchanges and custody providers operating in the U.S. — at least for now.
OKX president Hong Fang acknowledged the politics at play but stressed for crypto firms to focus on what they can control.
“We can only control what we can control, which is to build the right product and to focus on the technology and to support responsible regulation.”
Despite the U.S. being a big market for Ripple, Garlinghouse said it’s expanding services to countries he claims are more progressive and better understand the potential benefits of blockchain technology.
We might not ready for a spot Bitcoin ETF
During the panel, Fang said he thinks investors may not be ready for custody solutions built around a prospective spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund because much of the new blockchain-based infrastructure hasn’t been battle tested by the masses.
“I think there’s a huge implication on custody […] The question I have on my mind is whether our industry is actually ready for it” he said.
Fang acknowledged a spot Bitcoin ETF will lead to more institutional inflows but isn’t convinced that investors can now stomach Bitcoin’s volatility and second guessed the readiness of continuing to build more applications on top of Bitcoin.
“We are actually creating something that is new, that we can build on top of, a new monetary system that hasn’t come to fruition yet,” Fang said. “So I don’t know whether we’re ready for that yet from an industry infrastructure perspective.”
After days of furore directed at Rishi Sunak for the election betting scandal, now a Labour candidate is under investigation by the Gambling Commission for his own betting activity – and is immediately suspended.
Is this an equaliser in one of the grubbiest electoral sagas of recent elections? Quite possibly not.
There is no doubting the utter dismay in Labour HQ at the revelation that they too have a candidate caught up in the betting scandal.
However, if this scenario is as presented, it is hard to see an allegation being mounted that he had insider intelligence on the race – unless it can be proved he was deliberately setting out to lose.
An under-pressure Gambling Commission will investigate every candidate’s name on the spreadsheet from gambling companies of those who placed bets – but it is unclear from available facts where this will go.
The Tory betting saga, however, is more complicated and now on its 13th day.
It was almost two weeks ago that Craig Williams – Rishi Sunak’s closest parliamentary aide and former Montgomeryshire MP – admitted he had placed a bet on the election date – a date he might have known before the public at large.
He denies he committed any offence, and remains under investigation.
Laura Saunders, standing for the Tories just south in Bristol North West, has also been suspended for putting a bet on the date when her partner worked in Conservative headquarters on the election.
For most of that time, Mr Sunak has been insisting he could not suspend either candidate because of the ongoing probe by the Gambling Commission.
Ministers, as well as opponents, weighed in.
And on Tuesday he reversed that decision under that pressure.
This means there are questions about the prime minister’s own judgement and unwillingness to act on top of questions about the behaviour of those closest to him.
Image: Craig Williams and Laura Saunders have both been suspended from the Tories. Pics: PA/Laura Saunders for Bristol North West
This story has had massive cut through with the public, topping the charts for any news story in the UK – according to YouGov’s AI news tracker – for the last four days.
There is dismay from the cabinet downwards.
Labour’s own problems have undermined their own ability to go on the attack. But it is not clear that voters will see the two issues on the same scale.
The full list of the candidates running for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is:
Charlie Caiger, independent; Tony Gould, Reform UK; Mike Hallatt, independent; Brett Alistair Mickelburgh, Lib Dems; Dan Pratt, Greens; Patrick Spencer, Conservatives.
The full list of candidates for Bristol North West is:
Caroline Gooch, Lib Dems; Darren Jones, Labour; Scarlett O’Connor, Reform UK; Mary Page, Green Party; Ben Smith, SDP.
The full list of candidates for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr is:
Jeremy Brignell-Thorp, Green Party; Oliver Lewis, Reform UK; Glyn Preston, Lib Dems; Elwyn Vaughan, Plaid Cymru; Steve Witherden, Labour.
Four men have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass in the grounds of the prime minister’s home, police have confirmed.
The incident took place at Rishi Sunak’s constituency address in Kirby Sigston, North Yorkshire, while he was attending events in London to mark the Japanese state visit.
A police statement said officers were “with the four men within one minute of them entering the grounds”.
The arrests are connected to a protest by campaigners from Youth Demand. It describes itself as a group of young people who want “the Tories and the Labour Party commit to a two-way arms embargo on Israel, and to stop all new oil and gas licences”.
A spokesperson for the group said three of those arrested were taking part in the demonstration, while the fourth person was an independent photographer.
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A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “They were detained at around 12.40pm before being escorted off the property and arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass.
“The men, aged 52 from London, 43 from Bolton, 21 from Manchester, and 20 from Chichester, remain in police custody for questioning and enquiries are ongoing.”
It comes after a separate incident last summer, when protesters scaled the roof of Mr Sunak’s home.
They held up banners which said “NO NEW OIL” and draped the building in fabric. It happened while the prime minister and his family were away on holiday in California.
Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, Alexandra Wilson, 32, Michael Grant, 64, and Mathieu Soete, 38, have pleaded not guilty to criminal damage, with a two-day trial set to take place in July.