Today in crypto, former CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam says the agency should be given new authority to police crypto, BlackRock is reportedly seeking to acquire a 10% stake in Circle ahead of its IPO, and GameStop has announced its first Bitcoin buy.
Crypto vulnerable if CFTC not given authority: Ex-chair Behnam
Former Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Rostin Behnam said on May 28 that the crypto market will remain unregulated unless the agency he led is given greater authority.
Behnam argued in a Bloomberg TV interview that “the few largest tokens are commodities” and the Securities and Exchange Commission cannot properly regulate crypto because it can’t regulate commodities and the CFTC can’t regulate crypto because it is a derivatives regulator.
He said that without new authority for the CFTC to regulate “cash markets in digital assets, non-securities,” then crypto will remain an unregulated space.
“Ultimately, until we do something, the [crypto] market will remain unregulated,” Behnam said. “Customers, investors, retail and institutional, will be more vulnerable to harm, fraud, manipulation and conflicts of interest, until the market is regulated.”
BlackRock eyes 10% stake in Circle's IPO — Report
BlackRock is reportedly planning to take a significant stake in Circle’s upcoming initial public offering (IPO).
According to a May 28 Bloomberg report citing anonymous sources, BlackRock is looking to purchase roughly 10% of the offering. Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, is aiming to raise $624 million in its initial public offering.
Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment Management is also interested in buying $150 million worth of shares in the offering, the report said.
Circle launched its offering of 24 million shares of Class A common stock on May 27. The offering consists of shares from the company as well as shares of existing stakeholders, including co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire. According to the report, Circle’s IPO has now received orders for multiple times the shares available.
The company filed for an initial public offering on April 1, but delayed plans citing economic uncertainty. Crypto firms Ripple and Coinbase were reportedly exploring a potential acquisition of Circle. The company has since dismissed the speculation, saying it “is not for sale.”
GameStop officially confirms first Bitcoin purchase of 4,710 BTC
GameStop, the US video game and consumer electronics retailer, has confirmed its first Bitcoin investment, acquiring 4,710 Bitcoin, according to a statement posted May 28 on the company’s X account.
The company did not specify how much it paid for the Bitcoin or when the purchases were made in the announcement, while its Form 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission also offers little detail. The amount purchased was worth around $513 million at the time of writing.
The announced acquisition is GameStop's first publicly acknowledged Bitcoin purchase since the company disclosed plans to move into Bitcoin investment in March.
At the time, GameStop said it would fund the Bitcoin purchase through debt financing and launched a $1.3 billion convertible notes offering.
The news comes after months of speculation that GameStop was exploring alternative assets, including cryptocurrencies.