Inside View of FTX's Privileges Shared by Ex-CTO at CEO's Trial

Unusual Privileges at FTX Revealed in Testimony by Former CTO

Ex-Chief Technology Officer of FTX, Gary Wang, made some surprising revelations during his testimony at the trial of the firm's former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, on October 6. Wang shed light on a unique arrangement between FTX and Alameda Research.

Wang disclosed that FTX had awarded an exceptional benefit to an account owned by Alameda, allowing it to trade using funds beyond its balance. The "allow negative" feature enabled Alameda to continue trading, even if its account balance was in the red. Despite earlier objections to this method, Bankman-Fried endorsed its implementation, confirmed Wang. These extraordinary privileges were also connected to FTX's proprietary token, FTT.

The ex-CTO's tell-all was made in the context of Bankman-Fried's ongoing trial triggered by a slew of criminal accusations against the former FTX CEO.

ESMA Issues Second Consultation Paper on MiCA

Adding to the string of recent crypto-world news, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) - the EU's market watchdog - unveiled its second consultation paper about Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) on October 5.

The mammoth 307-page document solicits stakeholders' opinions on a variety of MiCA-related issues such as blockchain sustainability indicators, the handling of insider news, technical standards for white papers, trading transparency protocols, and record-keeping requirements for Crypto Asset Service Providers (CASPs).

A third consultation installment is slated for release in early 2024, with ESMA planning to present its concluding report and draft technical guidelines to the European Commission by June 2024.

Last Opportunity for EMAX Investors to Reframe Class-Action Lawsuit

U.S District Court Judge, Michael Fitzgerald, has afforded the claimants suing EthereumMax (EMAX) one last chance to restructure their case against the cryptocurrency's celebrity promoters.

The claimants accused several high-profile personalities, including Boxing star Floyd Mayweather and reality TV icon Kim Kardashian, of deliberately boosting the EMAX cryptocurrency as part of an alleged "pump and dump" plot.

Though initially dismissed, the lawsuit was brought back to life after the judge upheld the investors' 'unfair competition' claims against these celebrities.