We begin this week’s crypto wrap with a global report. If you belong to the group of individuals who are skeptical of the whole crypto debate and believe this digital wealth bubble could burst at any time, then you might want to reconsider your position. That’s because there are now more than 170,000 people around the world who hold more than $1 million in crypto assets. These are the findings of the latest  Crypto Wealth Report 2024 published by world-renowned wealth and investment migration specialists Henley & Partners.

For context, the above figure shows a 95% increase in the number of global crypto millionaires compared to this time last year. Here is some more context. The total market value of crypto assets globally has risen to $2.3 trillion. Yes, trillion. That figure was $1.2 trillion last year. It shows an 89% increase over the past 12 months. But what about the billionaires? Well, the report’s findings in that particular column aren’t disappointing either, showing a similar upward trajectory. We now have a total of 28 crypto billionaires around the globe, an increase of 27% since last year.

“We are seeing the dawn of a new era in global finance”.

Antonio Henriques, CEO of Bison Bank and chairman of Bison Digital Assets

Singapore, Hong Kong and the UAE could rightly be called the crypto havens, given the popularity of the digital currency in those regions. They hold the top three positions respectively for being crypto-friendly for investors, accordingly to the report. Rankings are based on factors such as public adoption of the crypto currency, the required infrastructure for the digital asset, innovation and technology, the regulatory environment in each country, a number of economic factors and, most importantly perhaps, the tax friendliness nature of those regimes. The US and the UK are not too far behind, holding fourth and fifth positions respectively in the report.

Dominic Volek, Group Head of Private Clients at Henley & Partners, believes the introduction of crypto ETFs in some major financial marketplaces is a major factor behind this impressive growth. As more cryptocurrencies prepare to appear on stock exchanges around the world, the natural expectation is that it will only bring in more trust on part of the investors, and more capital asset with it. To sum up, “we are witnessing the dawn of a new era in global finance,” according to Antonio Henriques, CEO of Bison Bank and chairman of Bison Digital Assets.

Mango Markets to send settlement proposal to SEC

It’s not all roses on the crypto front of course, since everything that goes up can also come crashing down, especially when the authorities find reasons to get involved. News is that Mango Markets, the Decentralised Exchange (DEX) that traded the cryptocurrency Solana, is trying to avoid litigation by offering to pay the SEC fines in the region of $223,228, as reported by CoinDesk. The SEC, plus a couple of other agencies, is looking into allegations that “Mango DAO sold an unregistered security and that Mango Labs, the developer behind Mango Markets, acted as an unlicensed broker.”

In light of the above allegations the DAO for Mango Markets has now opened voting on the proposed settlement with the SEC. If the vote goes through, and expectations are that it will, Mango Markets plans to propose to the SEC that it settles the case without having to accept or deny any wrongdoing. The settlement would also require the DAO to “halt all offers and sales of MNGO tokens, destroy all its MNGO holdings and request the delisting of MNGO for trading from ‘all crypto asset exchanges and trading platforms where the DAO is aware MNGO is trading,’” as reported by Blockworks. It’s not yet clear how the SEC will respond to any potential settlement proposal.

Mango Markets made headlines in October 2022 after trader Avraham Eisenberg was accused of manipulating the system by deliberately pushing the price of MNGO upwards and securing a loan of $120m for himself. The SEC and the US Department of Justice opened investigations into these allegations, which led to Eisenberg’s arrest in December of that year. He was charged with commodities fraud, commodities manipulation and wire fraud, and was found guilty of all three charges in April.

Binance might have a job for you

So, Mango Markets has ended up in hot water. But a certain other crypto trader seems to be trying to avoid exactly that by investing in its compliance efforts. Reports from the industry suggest that Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchangers, plans to hire 1,000 individuals. Around 200 of those will join the company’s compliance team, taking its current headcount from 500 to 700. The company also plans to invest around $200m in this vital department, as reported by Bloomberg.

Former CEO Changpeng Zhao founded Binance Holding Ltd, the company behind the brand ‘Binance’, in China in 2017. It subsequently moved to Japan, and then to Malta. In 2023 Zhao entered a plea deal with the US Department of Justice to settle criminal charges after the company was accused of allowing illicit trading activities on its platform, according to The Block. Binance has also reached penalty settlements with regulatory authorities in India and Brazil in the past.

Current CEO Richard Teng seems keen on cleaning up the mess by investing more in the company’s compliance department. He spoke to Bloomberg during his visit to the US earlier this month and insisted that “government agencies were important,” and that the company was spending more on compliance efforts in response to increased requests from law-enforcement agencies globally. Speaking of law-enforcement, the US SEC is separately suing Binance for “mishandling customer funds, misleading investors and regulators, and breaking securities rules,” Business Standard reported earlier this month.

Innovation vs regulation: India’s balancing act on crypto

We spoke about the global crypto boom earlier at the beginning, and you simply can’t expect India to watch from the periphery. Latest reports indicate a growing desire by the Indian Government to increase crypto literacy, bring in required regulation, address crypto-related concerns and pave the way for introducing the digital asset into the financial ecosystem. To achieve this, the government in New Delhi has invited industry experts to discuss and shape the country’s crypto policy. The aim is to release a consultation paper that will sum up those potential discussions.

India seems to favour a centralised mechanism for issuing cryptocurrency, something that goes against the decentralized nature of the digital asset. In 2021 the Indian Lok Sabha (lower house of the parliament) introduced The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) wants to have ultimate authority to issue cryptocurrency, as reported by Forbes. New Delhi is also keen to reach global consensus on crypto regulation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the G20 Summit last year “there was need for a global framework to regulate cryptocurrencies, artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.”

India seems to have had a love-hate relationship with crypto so far. The country’s Reserve Bank put a ban on the asset in 2018, preventing all financial institutions from dealing with crypto. The Supreme Court overturned the ban two years later. Although trading has resumed, regulatory concerns still loom large, according to reports. The upcoming consultation paper would surely try to address some of those concerns.

India takes pride in its achievements in the software technology industry, and in its ambitious state-sponsored AI strategy. Those two factors sit at the heart of the cryptocurrency pyramid. Such an ideal combination could only signal one thing. It won’t be long before India becomes a major player in the global crypto marketplace.

New Delhi’s ambitions are of global nature when it comes to soft-tech, AI and emerging technologies. It’s obvious from the fact that the country has a national, state-run and state-owned website dedicated to research and and advancements in the AI sector. The city of Bengaluru is attracting global attention for the sheer number of software companies, tech industry and its ever-increasing workforce of software developers, engineers and IT experts. Companies around the world rely on and constantly acquire top talent from this pool. When it comes to crypto, India’s approach is slightly different. They like the technology, and the idea behind it. However, they are keen on keeping things a bit centralized for compliance and regulatory reasons.