Tether

_{(via decentmemes by @netuoso)}

I don't often do breaking news stories, but sometimes there's just so much going on at once, I can't look away.

First off, if you're on Bitfinex or you're holding Tether, you might want to consider bitUSD (that link lets them know I sent you).

Bloomberg: U.S. Regulators Subpoena Crypto Exchange Bitfinex, Tether

Big deal? No big deal?

"We routinely receive legal process from law enforcement agents and regulators conducting investigations," Bitfinex and Tether said Tuesday in an emailed statement. "It is our policy not to comment on any such requests."

I guess that depends on who you ask. @Bitfinexed has been talking about this non-stop for quite some time:

With the auditor relationship dissolved and a subpoena coming in, it's not looking good for Tether. Maybe we should keep this stable token SBD conversation going after all?

Update: WOW! That's just shady. Bloomberg changed "last week" to "Dec. 6" as far as when the subpoenas were sent, and they didn't even list a correction at the end of the article.

AriseBank

I've been watching this one from the sidelines for a while now, reading through Reddit threads like this, Tweets like this, hearing questions about the history of the leadership team, the "picture of the office" (which may have not been real), and concerns over the Github repo and how they may have illegally removed some licenses.

Things got really interesting when their website went down, and their BitShares account was emptied.

Seems they pissed off the wrong people with this letter:

Their "PR News Wire" correction press release wasn't enough to prevent them from being raided by the government: SEC Halts Alleged Initial Coin Offering Scam

What's interesting about this whole story, in my mind, is how nicely it plays into the narrative of those (much like myself) who think everything the government does is always bad. If AriseBank is a scam, they can point fingers at the government being the bad guy. What's the real truth? Will we ever know? Now that the guys with guns are involved, probably not.

No More Facebook Crypto Ads!

When so many things happen all at once, it makes me wonder if there's a coordinated effort going on. Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook (who I blogged about recently) are shutting down cryptocurrency ads.

According to recode.net, Facebook is banning all ads promoting cryptocurrencies — including bitcoin and ICOs.

What I thought was so funny about this was what I saw while reading the article:

Now that, ladies and gentleman, is called irony. The very "meme" advertisement they are discussing shows up in their own article. I'm so thankful there are no ads on Steemit. :)

So what does all this mean? Are the cryptocurrency markets going to crash?

I don't know, but I have given some thoughts before: The Big Question: Should You Sell or Hold During a Market Correction

Either way, it's an exciting day in cryptocurrency, just like every other day.

I'm enjoying the drama from a far while setting up my SmartCash Nodes. Have you seen these return potentials?

$1,200+ in the first month? That's just crazy. I expect more nodes will come online (we're approaching 5,000 already) and/or the price will have to come down or... something. It just seems so unreal. See my last post on SmartNodes for more.

I hope you're having an amazing day!

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Luke Stokes is a father, husband, business owner, programmer, STEEM witness, and voluntaryist who wants to help create a world we all want to live in. Visit UnderstandingBlockchainFreedom.com

_{I'm a Witness! Please vote for @lukestokes.mhth}