What is the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) law?
The European Union will be voting on the markets in crypto-assets (MiCA) in April; which will determine how crypto asset issuers are...
In response to the collapse of FTX and the arrest of its former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Sheldon Whitehouse have called for the Justice Department to investigate the matter and consider prosecuting individuals who may have played a role in the downfall of FTX.
Following the FTX crash, several US senators, including Warren, Roger Marshall, and John Kennedy, sent a letter to Silvergate Capital — the parent company of Silvergate Bank — seeking answers about Silvergate’s connection to the crisis.
According to a Jan. 31 Bloomberg report, the senators said Silvergate had not fully answered questions in response to a December letter about its alleged role in handling the cryptocurrency exchanges‘s user funds. Silvergate reportedly cited restrictions on disclosing “confidential supervisory information” — a rationale the senators said was unacceptable, noting:
“Both Congress and the public need and deserve the information necessary to understand Silvergate’s role in FTX’s fraudulent collapse, particularly given the fact that Silvergate turned to the Federal Home Loan Bank as its lender of last resort in 2022.”
The senators claim that Silvergate has not fully answered questions posed in a previous letter sent in December and call for transparency on Silvergate’s role in the FTX collapse, particularly considering that the company sought aid from the Federal Home Loan Bank during the crisis. The senators have given Silvergate until February 13 to provide a full response on its involvement with FTX and its due diligence practices.
The recent developments are part of ongoing congressional investigations into the FTX crash. In December, US senators and members of the House of Representatives conducted a series of hearings exploring the matter and considering legislative action to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The congressional investigation is expected to continue in 2023, with leadership suggesting that the fallout from the FTX crash will be a significant focus for lawmakers in the coming months.