Here’s what happened in crypto today
Today in crypto, the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s Crypto Task Force is actively meeting with digital asset firms to discuss regulatory frameworks for the industry. A former Near Protocol employee landed in hot water after accidentally displaying nude images while sharing his screen on a public call. Meanwhile, GameStop shares surged amid rumors of a potential Bitcoin purchase.SEC Crypto Task Force met with firms to discuss staking, litigation reviewThe US Securities and Exchange Commission’s Crypto Task Force met with several representatives from the cryptocurrency and traditional finance sectors to discuss regulatory issues impacting digital assets in early February. Key themes included staking, clear guidelines for exchange-traded products (ETPs) and a new framework for policing the emerging asset class. According to memoranda available on the SEC’s website, the Crypto Task Force met with the Blockchain Association, an industry lobby group, on Feb. 4.The lobby group suggested six priority areas the task force should focus on to “tackle issues that impact the digital asset industry.”On Feb. 5, representatives from Jito Labs and Multicoin Capital met with the Crypto Task Force to discuss the possibility of adding staking to ETPs. According to the SEC document, the representatives described staking as the “true nature” of proof-of-stake tokens.Also on Feb. 5, the task force met with Andreessen Horowitz’s capital management group, AH Capital Management. The discussion centered around token classification and issuance and market intermediaries. A separate SEC document showed that the Crypto Task Force met with representatives from Nasdaq on Feb. 6. In addition to bringing regulatory clarity to digital assets, the SEC’s Task Force was requested to clarify the “venues” that are permitted to trade cryptocurrencies.Near Protocol ex-manager livestreams nudes, apologizes to girlfriendA former employee of layer-1 blockchain platform Near Protocol showed nude images while sharing his screen on a public call, coinciding with a tidy price bump for native token NEAR.Ex-business development manager Andrew Krynin was on a livestream with Near core contributor Cameron Dennis when two titillating images appeared on the screen, providing viewers with a look at the files saved on his laptop.“The only thing that I wanted to say next was, uh… God damn it,” Krynin said. After two seconds of silence, his screensharing stopped.This surprise private show — neatly coinciding with Valentine’s Day Eve — did not go unnoticed. Clips of the video swiftly made the rounds on X, prompting Near Protocol to issue some advice: “top tip: use one laptop for personal stuff, another device for crypto and work. secure your private keys and also other things.”“and never goon,” the account finished.Near issued a more formal apology hours later, stating it takes “full responsibility.” The video has been removed from its platform.GameStop jumps 18% after the bell on reports it’s mulling Bitcoin buyShares in GameStop (GME) jumped 18% in after-hours trading on Feb. 13 after CNBC reported that the game retailer is considering investing in alternative asset classes, which could include Bitcoin .One source told CNBC that GameStop might not go through the buys, however, as it’s still looking at if it makes sense for the business. If it does, GameStop will join a growing number of companies that buy Bitcoin in a bid to boost their earnings and returns to shareholders.Google Finance shows GME spiked up over 18% in after-hours trading to a high of $31.30, later cooling to $28.31 — still up around 7.5% from its $26.34 close.Speculation was already rife that GameStop was mulling buying Bitcoin after CEO Ryan Cohen posted a picture to X earlier this month with Bitcoin bull and Strategy chair Michael Saylor — who CNBC reported was not involved with GameStop’s plan.GameStop has tried to make inroads into crypto before. It previously launched a crypto wallet, but it killed the product in November 2023 due to regulatory uncertainty. It also shut its non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace in January 2024 over similar concerns.