This week on the crypto news recap, Ethereum developers confirm the long-anticipated Shapella fork epoch which will enable ETH withdrawals. Also, justice is finally served, as Terra co-founder Do Kwon is arrested. On the other hand, the U.S. goes after CZ and his crypto empire. All that and more so let's get started!
Binance, CZ sued by CFTC over US regulatory violations
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission has launched a lawsuit against Binance and its CEO, Changpeng "CZ" Zhao. Claims against the cryptocurrency exchange include failure to register with regulators, engaging in non-compliant trading, concealing the location of its executive offices, and conducting transactions for people in the United States since 2019, despite a policy of blocking or restricting customers in the country. Binance's CEO has denied the allegations, claiming that the crypto exchange "does not trade for profit or'manipulate' the market under any circumstances," but rather uses crypto revenue to pay expenses in fiat or other cryptocurrencies.
U.S. and South Korea demand Do Kwon's extradition
Following his arrest in Montenegro, authorities in both the United States and South Korea have attempted to extradite Terra co-founder Do Kwon. Decisions regarding Kwon's custody will be made by Montenegro's high court, according to Justice Minister Marko Kova, and will be based on a number of variables, including the severity, location, and time of his alleged criminal offenses. Kwon may experience harsh conditions in Montenegro's penal system during his detention, as jail conditions have not changed since the State Department's 2020 human rights report.
Ethereum developers confirm Shapella fork epoch
The anticipated Shapella hard fork, which will enable validators to withdraw staked Ether from Beacon Chain, has received more information from Ethereum core developers.
Source: Shutterstock
At epoch 194,048, which is planned for 10:27 PM UTC on April 12, Shapella will go into effect. Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4895 will make withdrawals possible by "pushing" staked Ethereum from the Beacon Chain to the implementation layer. On the Beacon Chain, 17.81 million Ether are pledged, and there are a number of safeguards in place to make sure that an influx of Ether won't cause a market disruption.
