To extradite Do Kwon to the US, CZ’s passports were seized: the law was passed
Since his arrest in March 2023, Do Kwon, the founder of Terraform Labs in Montenegro, has reportedly been extradited to the United States to face fraud charges. The High Court in Podgorica has reportedly rejected Kwon's request to be extradited to South Korea. The decision follows an appeal by Kewon's legal team, which argued that Montenegro's justice minister had the final authority to decide on the Terraform founder's extradition – a claim that was rejected by the Supreme Court. It is still unclear when Khun will travel to the US.
Meanwhile, the US Attorney's Office has asked a federal judge to approve additional travel restrictions for former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. The US Attorney's Office has requested that Zhao remain in the mainland US pending a sentencing hearing on April 30 and that the government be given three days' notice to raise objections. Prosecutors have asked CZ to hand over his Canadian passport and “other current and expired passports and travel documents” to his legal team.
Another former crypto CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, has returned to court to resolve potential conflicts of interest with his lawyers. Bankman-Fried has waived his right to free legal representation with attorneys Mark Mucasey and Torrey Young. The trial in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York is one of the first times Banman-Fried has been seen outside of prison since a jury indicted the former FTX CEO on seven felony charges in November 2023.
Turkey will review its first digital lira project.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey has released an English translation of its report evaluating the first phase of the Central Bank's Digital Turkish Lira Research and Development (R&D) project to develop the central bank's digital currency. The first phase of the project began in 2021, and the central bank conducted its first test transaction with the digital lira in 2022. Digital Lira is designed as an intermediate retail CBCC. Bulk payments are studied in a separate process. Turkey's CBCC promises greater interaction and complementarity.
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International experts demand government action against AI deep fakers.
More than 300 experts in technology, artificial intelligence (AI), digital ethics and child welfare from around the world have signed an open letter urging governments to take “immediate action” to tackle deep-rooted fraud. The letter, titled “Disrupting the Deep Counterfeit Supply Chain,” urges governments, policymakers and political leaders to “impose obligations” in the supply chain to stop the spread of deep counterfeiting.
It sets out three main principles of action, the first of which is to completely criminalize child pornography – even by fictional children. It also calls for criminal penalties for anyone who “knowingly creates or facilitates harmful deep forgery” to prevent their media products from creating harmful deep forgery, and fines for non-standard measures, as well as requirements for software developers and distributors. .
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The ECB reiterates its anti-Bitcoin stance despite spot ETF approval
The European Central Bank's (ECB) recent position on the US Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) approval of a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) is unconvincing. In a recent blog post, executives Ulrike Bindseil and Jürgen Schaff disagree with the claim that the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US makes BTC investments safe and that the previous rally is “proof of an unstoppable victory.” The real value of Bitcoin is still zero, bank investors.
Bindseil and Schaaf cite their 2022 post on the same blog, arguing that Bitcoin has failed to fulfill its original promise of becoming a global decentralized digital currency. According to them, Bitcoin is not suitable as an investment because it does not generate any cash flow or dividends, cannot be used productively and has no social benefit or tangible appreciation based on superior capabilities.
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