Crypto Regulation and Compliance Updates

South Korean authorities reported that 22 bitcoin, valued at $1.5 million, were missing from a cold wallet after being surrendered during a 2021 investigation. An audit in 2026 revealed the funds were transferred without physical breach, raising concerns about cryptocurrency custody protocols.

A dormant hacker wallet from the 2023 Mixin exploit transferred $3.85 million in Ethereum to Tornado Cash. The Mixin hack caused a $200 million loss. Mixin plans to repay affected users $23 million by September 2026, but continues operations with $1 billion in assets.

A Connecticut man, Elmin Redzepagic, faces up to 375 years in prison for allegedly defrauding crypto investors out of nearly $1 million. He misrepresented himself as a crypto expert and gambled the funds online, leading to multiple fraud charges.

_Figure probes customer data breach as hackers leak files, adding to rising crypto fraud and identity crime concerns._ Figure Technology, a blockchain-based lending company, has confirmed a data breach following a social engineering attack. Hackers gained access after tricking an employee and st

PANews February 14 News: After the Wyoming Stablecoin Committee in the United States supported the issuance of the stablecoin Frontier Stable Token (FRNT), they are recruiting two summer legal interns for 2026 to assist in improving legal and compliance frameworks. The positions are unpaid or academic credit-based and are aimed at law students with strong research and writing skills who are interested in cryptocurrency and blockchain regulation.

Israeli Defense Forces reservists and civilians have been charged for placing bets on military secrets on Polymarket,涉嫌 insider trading. This incident highlights the risks of unfair competition and insider involvement in prediction markets, especially in sensitive areas like war. It calls for potential future regulation to prevent similar issues.

Patrick Witt emphasizes that regulatory clarity is essential to access trillions in institutional capital, highlighting ongoing Senate negotiations on the Clarity Act. He notes the government's efforts to centralize Bitcoin oversight and foster collaboration between banks and crypto firms to enhance innovation and participation in the digital finance sector.

Foresight News reports that AI agent platform Bankr announced a response to "X's proposed API update terms, which would prevent applications from creating fee pools without user consent," stating, "Charging fees has never been the ultimate goal. Instead, it serves as a proof of concept demonstrating that developers can use token-guided mechanisms to create real businesses through AI agents. Bankr will adjust its deployment strategy and will now only allow developers to deploy independently via the X platform. Developers must build, deploy, and profit from their applications on their own, maintaining full autonomous control."

Figure Tech breached after an employee fell for a scam; ShinyHunters leaked 2.5GB of sensitive data. Step Finance lost $29M in SOL after hackers accessed treasury wallets, cause remains unclear. Social engineering and AI scams are rising, threatening both tech firms and crypto platforms a

The Federal Reserve Board's new research paper recognizes XRP as a key crypto asset for managing risk in uncleared derivatives markets, distinguishing it from stablecoins. This inclusion signals XRP's legitimacy, aiding institutions in developing compliant products and enhancing regulatory clarity in the evolving crypto landscape.

The prediction markets in the United States have rapidly emerged in recent years, attracting the attention of regulatory agencies. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins emphasized that the legal status of prediction markets as "gambling" or "financial instruments" remains controversial, especially for contracts involving events such as elections. The overlapping regulatory authority requires collaboration between federal and state governments, and whether clear rules will be established in the future remains to be seen.

Virginia is advancing a bill to regulate cryptocurrency ATMs statewide, requiring licensing and consumer protection measures due to rising fraud. New users will have a 48-hour hold on transactions to allow refunds if fraud is suspected.

The measure, described last week, would be submitted by Brazil’s Revenue Service for public consultation and would impose a 3.5% tax on both stablecoin purchases and remittances, treating them as foreign currency exchanges subject to the existing Tax on Financial Transactions (IOF). Brazil

_Netherlands applies 36% tax on deemed crypto returns under Box 3, taxing holdings based on annual asset valuation, even without a sale._ The Netherlands has implemented a tax structure that applies to crypto holdings even when no sale occurs. Under the country’s wealth tax framework, digital as

February 14 News, Virginia is advancing a regulatory bill targeting cryptocurrency ATMs. The bill has been approved by the state Senate and House and is now awaiting the governor's signature. Once enacted, it will establish uniform compliance standards for operators of self-service terminals across the state and provide consumers with more systematic fraud protection. According to the bill, operators must complete registration and licensing processes, submit periodic reports, and comply with fee cap requirements. Machines are no longer allowed to promote themselves as "ATMs" or use any language implying cash withdrawal. The new regulations will also set daily and monthly transaction limits, implement a 48-hour freeze period for new users to facilitate refunds in case of suspected fraud, and all transactions must complete identity verification. Clear risk warnings must be posted next to the devices.

February 14 News, Kevin O’Leary won a default judgment in a defamation case against Ben “BitBoy” Armstrong in the Southern District of Florida Federal Court, with a total compensation of $2.8 million. The court found that the defendant’s posting of “malicious” false accusations and private information on social media constituted serious defamation and punitive damages. The judgment shows that O’Leary was awarded $750,000 in emotional distress damages, $78,000 in reputation damages, and an additional $2 million in punitive damages. The judge noted that as a public figure engaged in media and business collaborations, damage to O’Leary’s reputation would directly affect his performance invitations and business relationships. Expert testimony, based on the viewership of the involved posts, the size of the affected audience, and repair costs, estimated the reputation loss at $78,000.

BlockBeats News, February 14 — X product lead and Solana advisor Nikita Bier announced, "X plans to update API policies to prevent applications from creating fee pools without user consent."

February 14 News, the Central Bank of Russia recently announced that it will conduct in-depth research on the feasibility of pegging stablecoins to the ruble and assess their risks and potential benefits. On February 12, Vladimir Chistyukhin, First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, revealed at the Alpha Dialogue Conference in Moscow that the research plan aims to explore how stablecoins can better integrate into Russia's financial system. This move comes at a critical moment when Russia, facing Western sanctions and global banking access restrictions, is seeking new payment tools. For years, the Central Bank of Russia has opposed stablecoins, especially those pegged to fiat currencies, believing they could pose financial stability and regulatory risks. However, as cryptocurrencies gradually enter the international settlement space and the digital ruble project is launched, the stance of the Central Bank of Russia has changed. Previously, Russia allowed cryptocurrencies for some international settlements, and the digital ruble has entered the pilot phase. It is expected that stablecoins will be fully launched by the end of 2026.

On February 14, former Ripple Chief Technology Officer and current Honorary CTO David Schwartz reiterated that XRP has no issuer, so in cases of theft or scam, no one can freeze, revoke, or recover these tokens. This statement was made in response to a recent "LP Reward Coupon" NFT scam, which resulted in a major liquidity provider’s wallet funds being transferred out and sparked widespread discussion in the community about the XRP Ledger’s recovery features. The first to disclose this was X platform user Apex589, who pointed out that a liquidity provider suffered losses after receiving suspicious NFTs. Subsequently, GTFXRP added that the affected address belongs to a venture capital firm and called for the situation to be directly reported to David Schwartz. Some users asked whether losses could be recovered through XRPL’s recovery mechanism, but Schwartz responded that only assets with an issuer can be recovered, and since XRP is a native asset with no issuer, it cannot be recovered.