1. SEC States Memecoins Are Not Securities

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially abandoned its oversight of memecoins. According to a staff statement released by the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance on Thursday, the federal securities regulator stated that memecoins are more like collectibles than securities. Memecoins are defined as "a type of crypto asset inspired by internet memes, characters, current events, or trends, with the initiators hoping to attract an enthusiastic online community to buy and trade the memecoins." Due to the "limited or nonexistent use or function" of memecoins, they do not meet the definition of securities under the Howey Test and therefore fall outside the SEC's jurisdiction. This statement formalizes comments made by Commissioner Hester Peirce earlier this month during an interview with Bloomberg Television. Peirce is the head of the SEC's newly established crypto working group, which has been a pioneer in the agency's shift in attitude towards crypto regulation since its formation in January. In the interview, Peirce stated that "many" memecoins in the market are not under the SEC's jurisdiction. Peirce wrote in a cryptocurrency regulatory roadmap released earlier this month: "If people want to buy tokens or products that lack a clear long-term value proposition, they should feel free to do so, but they should not be surprised if the price drops one day." "In this country, people generally have the right to make decisions for themselves, but corresponding to this wonderful American freedom is the equally wonderful American expectation that people must make their own decisions, rather than relying on the government to tell them what to do or not do, and not expecting to be rescued when they do something bad." Such legal interpretations by the securities regulator do not carry the weight of formal regulation, but industries regulated by the SEC and other federal agencies often closely monitor such staff statements. The notorious Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 (guidance provided by agency accountants, known as SAB 121) caused turmoil in the cryptocurrency space, with bankers feeling constrained until the current leadership of the SEC rescinded the bulletin. In this case, a footnote in the staff memecoin statement notes that it "is not a rule, regulation, guidance, or statement approved by the Commission." Although Peirce explicitly stated that U.S. investors have a responsibility to conduct due diligence on the tokens they purchase, the SEC has not ruled out the possibility of intervening and using its enforcement powers in cases where memecoins are used to evade securities laws. "Notwithstanding the above, this statement does not apply to the offer and sale of meme coins that are inconsistent with the above description, or products labeled as 'meme coins,' in an attempt to evade the applicability of federal securities laws by disguising products that would otherwise constitute securities," the staff statement said. "As noted above, the Division will assess the economic realities of specific transactions." -Original

2. 95.5% Probability of Fed Keeping Rates Steady in March

According to CME's "FedWatch," the probability of the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates unchanged in March is 95.5%, while the probability of a 25 basis point rate cut is 4.5%. The probability of maintaining the current rate until May is 73.2%, with a cumulative probability of a 25 basis point rate cut at 25.8% and a cumulative probability of a 50 basis point cut at 1.1%. -Original

3. Trump's Tariff Plan Causes Market Volatility

After President Trump clarified his latest thoughts on tariffs, the U.S. stock market, which was expected to open strongly, faced a significant downturn. Trump posted on his Truth Social platform complaining about drugs flooding into the U.S. from both sides of the border and stated that tariffs would be imposed on Mexico and Canada on March 4 (next Tuesday). He continued to say that an additional 10% tariff would also be imposed on China that day. Trump made comments during a cabinet meeting yesterday, suggesting that these tariffs would not take effect until April. Before the latest threat was issued, Nasdaq 100 futures rose over 1%, but the gains were trimmed to about 0.6%. As of the time of writing, S&P 500 futures were only slightly up, while Dow futures were down. Following this news, the dollar index surged 0.5%. In recent days and weeks, cryptocurrencies have been hit hard—including a significant drop caused by yesterday's tariff rumors—cryptocurrencies have been hovering more or less at low levels since the announcement. Bitcoin (BTC) has seen little change in the past hour, priced at $85,600. -Original

4. BitMEX Seeks to Sell, Contacts Investment Bank

The trading platform BitMEX is looking for buyers and has contacted boutique investment bank Broadhaven Capital for assistance. -Original

5. BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Sees Outflows

Due to the uncertainty surrounding President Trump's tariff plan, cryptocurrency prices have plummeted for the third consecutive day, with BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF IBIT experiencing a record net outflow of $418.1 million on Wednesday. Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev believes that tokenization is a means to "unlock the true power of the cryptocurrency revolution" by bringing real-world assets like stocks and private investments onto blockchain technology (pending regulatory approval). -Original

6. South Korea Upgrades Crypto Crime Unit to Official Department

The Southern District Prosecutors' Office in Seoul, South Korea, has upgraded the virtual asset crime joint investigation team, which has been operating as a temporary organization, to the official department of virtual asset crime joint investigation. The joint investigation team consists of 34 members, including personnel from the prosecution and financial tax authorities. The joint task force was established in July 2023 following the enactment of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act. The purpose of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act is to protect users from unfair trading practices such as the use of undisclosed material information, price manipulation, and unfair trading. -Original

7. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Coinbase

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officially decided on Thursday to dismiss the lawsuit against Coinbase. The SEC had sued Coinbase in June 2023, two years after the top U.S. cryptocurrency exchange went public. -Original

8. Texas Bitcoin Reserve Bill Advances to Senate

The above are the highlights from the past 24 hours. For faster news, please download AiCoin (aicoin.com).

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