European cryptocurrency investment firm CoinShares is optimistic about cryptocurrency regulation in the United States as the firm enters the new market.
On Sept. 22, CoinShares officially announced the launch of its new division, CoinShares Hedge Fund Solutions, marking the first time the firm has introduced its offerings to qualified U.S. investors.
CoinShares’ entrance into the U.S. market comes at a time when many U.S. crypto firms are looking to expand their businesses outside the country due to regulatory hurdles at home. One such firm, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, has been actively pushing its expansion in Europe and the United Kingdom amid a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over allegedly violating of securities laws.
But unlike many U.S. crypto regulation critics, CoinShares believes that the U.S. is a global leader in terms of digital asset development, a spokesperson for CoinShares told Cointelegraph, stating:
“Contrary to the belief that the U.S. lags in crypto adoption and regulation, our perspective is shaped by the U.S. regulators’ approach to treating digital assets akin to traditional asset classes. This stance, we believe, will encourage and expedite the fusion of the two industries.”
CoinShares’ representative went on to say that the U.S. is home to 50% of globally managed assets and is a dominant financial market. “Our assertion on its leadership in the digital assets space is influenced by observable integrations between legacy and emerging financial players,” the spokesperson said, citing industry collaborations of BlackRock with Circle and Coinbase.
The expansion of CoinShares in the U.S. comes just a few months after CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti declared in July 2023 that Europe’s approach to crypto has been “even more problematic when compared to the financial might of U.S. institutions.”
“These financial behemoths — such as BlackRock and Fidelity, who each announced recently the filing of a spot Bitcoin ETF — are well-positioned to provide widespread crypto exposure,” Mognetti wrote in an op-ed a few months ago.
But while being specifically bullish about the crypto regulatory climate in the United States, CoinShares continues to be loyal to Europe. “CoinShares remains committed to Europe. Our HFS is registered both in the U.S. and the United Kingdom,” the spokesperson for the firm told Cointelegraph, adding:
“Our perspective stems from the observation that in the U.S., there is a more apparent merging of traditional finance — TradFi — and crypto, which isn’t as pronounced in Europe where the two sectors aren’t as interconnected.”
One of the world’s largest crypto investment firms, CoinShares is a major provider of crypto exchange-traded products, or ETPs. The firm debuted its first Bitcoin (BTC) ETP in 2015. However, CoinShares has yet to disclose whether it plans to join the spot Bitcoin ETF race in the United States.
“We must adhere to strict regulations regarding the disclosure of forward-looking information. Therefore, we cannot provide specific details on CoinShares’ future product launches,” the CoinShares representative stated. CoinShares has been registered with the SEC as an exempt reporting adviser, with CoinShares Limited acting as a general partner for the private investment funds created by CoinShares Hedge Fund Solutions.
Kemi Badenoch has accused Sir Keir Starmer of “lying to the whole country” about what he knew regarding Peter Mandelson’s correspondence with Jeffrey Epstein.
Lord Mandelson was this week stripped of his position as ambassador to the US amid fresh scrutiny over his years-long friendship with the convicted paedophile.
The prime minister initially defended the Labour peer but removed him from his post on Thursday after newly seen emails revealed he sent messages of support to Epstein even as he faced jail for sex offences in 2008.
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Lord Mandelson – the unanswered questions
The Times has now reported that Downing Street and the Foreign Office were aware of the emails on Tuesday – a day before Sir Keir gave Lord Mandelson his backing at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs).
In a post on X, Conservative leader Ms Badenoch wrote: “Looks like the Prime Minister and Labour MPs spent the week lying to the whole country about what they knew regarding Mandelson’s involvement with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.”
She continued: “If No 10 had those emails for 48 hours before acting, it means he lied at PMQs and ministers lied again about new additional information. These are yet more errors of judgment.
“The Prime Minister has very serious questions to answer. The only way to clear this up is full transparency about who knew what, and when.”
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Sources said Sir Keir was not aware of the contents of the emails when he told MPs he had “confidence” in Lord Mandelson.
A media enquiry outlining details of the messages between Lord Mandelson and Epstein was sent to the Foreign Office on Tuesday, and passed on to Number 10.
Sir Oliver Robbins, the permanent under-secretary at the Foreign Office, asked Lord Mandelson about the emails on Tuesday, but did not receive a response until the following day.
Sir Keir is understood not to have been aware of the contents of the emails until Wednesday evening.
Speaking to Sky News, one Labour MP has called for more information on what happened behind closed doors at No 10 this week.
Jo White, MP for Bassetlaw, in Nottinghamshire, said: “We cannot move on until we find out how he [Sir Keir] was not briefed properly before PMQs.”
“What he needs to do now is get on top and sort out this mess,” she said. “Suspend the whip from Peter Mandelson and expel him from the party, then have a transparent enquiry about what went wrong at No.10.”
This came as Sir Keir enjoyed some time away from Downing Street.
The prime minister was on Saturday pictured watching Arsenal face Nottingham Forest in a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium.
Image: Arsenal fan Sir Keir cheered on his side as they won 3-0. Pic: Reuters
Lord Mandelson’s exit came after less than a fortnight after another high-profile loss for the Labour government, as Angela Rayner was forced to quit as deputy prime minister and deputy Labour leader over her tax affairs.
As Sir Keir has faced a scandal-hit start to the month, a growing number of Labour MPs have begun calling his leadership into question.
Lucy Powell, who is running to replace Ms Rayner as Labour’s deputy leader, has called for a “change of culture” at Downing Street.
“We’ve got a bit of a groupthink happening at the top, that culture of not being receptive to interrogation, not being receptive to differing views,” she told The Guardian newspaper.
Meanwhile, senior Labour MP Emily Thornberry has written to the new foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, demanding answers about the vetting process for UK diplomats in the wake of Lord Mandelson’s sacking.
A man has admitted arson after a major fire at an MP’s constituency office.
Joshua Oliver, 28, pleaded guilty to starting the fire which destroyed the office of Labour MP Sharon Hodgson, at Vermont House in Washington, Tyne and Wear.
The fire also wrecked a small charity for people with very rare genetic diseases and an NHS mental health service for veterans.
The guilty plea was entered at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court on the basis that it was reckless rather than intentional.
Image: Hodgson, who has been an MP since 2005, winning her seat again in 2019. Pic: Reuters
The Crown did not accept that basis of plea.
Oliver, of no fixed address, had been living in a tent nearby, the court heard.
Northumbria Police previously said it was “alerted to a fire at a premises on Woodland Terrace in the Washington area” shortly after 12.20am on Thursday.
“Emergency services attended and no one is reported to have been injured in the incident,” it added.
Drone footage from the scene showed extensive damage to the building.
A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
“We have worked closely with Northumbria Police as they carried out their investigation.”
Oliver was remanded in custody and will appear at Newcastle Crown Court on Tuesday, 14 October.