Hodder Law Newsletter - August 30, 2022

Good news from Florida! Hodder Law Firm has been advocating for the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (FLOFR) to issue a statement addressing the limbo period until the new money transmission law comes into effect next January. After careful consideration, the OFR has issued this press release.

“Due to the impending change in the legal definition of a money transmitter, the OFR finds it would be impractical to take action against money transmitters engaging in two-party transactions from now to January 1, 2023.“

HODLCast Podcast - In Episode 129, I talk about the Celsius Network's bankruptcy proceedings. Check out the video below for all the details. The facts are stranger than fiction in this one!

Watch out for New Regulation! On March 9, 2022, President Biden issued an Executive Order to ensure the responsible development of digital assets. The responses from various government departments will be made available after Labor Day.

International Collaboration. A June report from the Justice Department proposes more international cooperation from law enforcement agencies regarding crypto and blockchain. The Treasury has provided its framework for International cooperation on crypto to the Biden administration. However, the Treasury has not yet publicized the actual framework but will produce a follow-up report on actions taken within the coming year.

Latvia man extradited to US for wire and securities fraud. The Department of Justice went after Ivaras Auzins of Latvia. He was extradited to the US on a six-count indictment and charged with wire fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracies to commit wire fraud and securities fraud. Auzins has been charged in connection to the operation of eight companies purporting to offer, invest, or mine digital assets, including Bitcoin and Ether.

Allegedly, Auzins was using aliases to conceal his identity while operating a series of entities advertising through email campaigns social media and crypto websites. He purported to offer valuable investment opportunities, then disappeared after soliciting investments without promised services. It’s estimated that at least $7 million in digital assets were transferred over to “Auzins Entities.” Entities such as Denaro and Bitroad Limited raised funds from investors through ICOs. His other entities Impressio Estate Ltd., Broi Investments Ltd., also known as Bankroi, ChangePro Pty Ltd, Gemneon Investments Limited and Lycovest Ltd. presented as crypto investment platforms.

Volcano Bonds. It’s been a year since El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. Since that time its debt has been traded at a deep discount. Bloomberg reported last month that El Salvador Bonds Surge on Bukele’s Plan for Buyback at Market Prices. There’s been a double-digit jump in the price of the junk-rated securities since that announcement last month. Starting in September there are plans for a “transparent, public and voluntary” purchase offer for the government debt at market prices.

President Bukele’s announcement adds credibility and trust around his government. Which is something that organizations like the IMF and Moody’s have struggled with since the Central American nation first adopted bitcoin along with the US dollar as legal tender. Making an announcement like this may make it even more difficult to buy back the $1.6 billion dollars of El Salvador’s sovereign bonds, as it’s caused the price to jump. However, in the long-term, these actions should help El Salvador stabilize their economy and help show the world the benefits of using bitcoin as legal tender.

Roch Freedman & Ava Labs giving the industry a bad name. A wild story from the CryptoLeaks website casts a dark shadow over certain organizations and individuals in the crypto world. This shocking [and unverified] report accuses Kyle Roch of colluding with Ava Labs to harm its competitors through 'gangster-style' litigation tactics.

This news has contributed to an 11% drop in the price of their AVAX token. The CEO of Ripple is also being implicated in using litigation as a tactic aimed at damaging rivals within the crypto space.

Allegedly, Kyle Roch from Roch Freedman is being accused of taking a huge portion of AVAX tokens and Ava labs stock in exchange for utilizing his litigation skills as a weapon to damage competitors. There are approximately 25 cases of litigation that Roch Freedman has initiated in the crypto world. Class action lawsuits against Solana and Dfinity make accusations that their tokens are illegal securities. Once these lawsuits are filed Roch Freedman is accused [illegally] collecting and harvesting confidential information from through the discovery process. Kyle was filmed without his consent boasting of these things.

That's all the crypto news from Hodder Law for the week of August 30. Look for next week's edition of the Hodder Law Firm crypto newsletter on September 6.

None of the information in this newsletter should be interpreted as investment advice.

Sincerely,

Sasha Hodder

Hodder Law

sasha@hodder.law

www.hodder.law