May 2024 - cypherpunks - lists.cpunks.org

Mich. Judge Not Satisfied By Atty's Letter Over Flint PR Stunt
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Mich. Judge Not Satisfied By Atty's Letter Over Flint PR Stunt <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1840165?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> By Lauren Berg The federal judge overseeing Flint, Michigan, water crisis cases isn't satisfied with a California attorney's letter denying involvement in an alleged smear campaign targeting a lawyer for Flint children, saying Wednesday that if the attorney doesn't provide more substantive information, she will be referred to the State Bar of California. Order attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1840165?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1840165?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…>

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Another FDIC-Insured Bank Got in Bed with Fintech; It’s Now Got a Dumpster Fire and Desperate Pleas from Customers for their Money
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/05/another-fdic-insured-bank-got-in-bed… By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: May 23, 2024 ~ Exactly how long is it going to take federal banking regulators to figure out that “move fast and break things” – the business model of Silicon Valley financial technology (fintech) startups and their voracious venture capital backers – is the last thing that Americans want to be integrated into the FDIC-insured bank where they hold their money to pay their mortgage and to buy food to feed their children. After one form of fintech – crypto – hastened the demise of several FDIC-insured banks in the spring of last year, handing billions of dollars in losses to the FDIC’s Deposit Insurance Fund, a rational person might have thought that federal banking regulators would have moved rapidly to shut down this lunatic banking model. But no. The story becomes ever more surreal today. Below is the desperate plea filed on Tuesday with the court that is hearing the bankruptcy proceedings of the fintech firm, Synapse Financial Technologies. A father says his daughter has been working after school at a florist shop to save money for college and now finds that her $1,730 in deposits, ostensibly placed at FDIC-insured Evolve Bank and Trust by Synapse, have disappeared into a black hole. Appeal to Judge re Evolve Bank and Trust Frozen Account Customers of another fintech, Yotta, are screaming on Reddit that they also can’t get access to what they were told by Yotta would be FDIC-insured deposits held at Evolve Bank and Trust. The Synapse bankruptcy appears to also be at the center of the Yotta/Evolve Bank and Trust mess. Yotta explains itself like this on its website: “Instead of a simple flat interest rate that other bank accounts have, Yotta offers a prize-linked account that pays interest in prizes.” (What could possibly go wrong with this model?) The text on the rest of that Yotta website page is so bizarre that it feels like satire on Saturday Night Live. Synapse is a fintech startup that had financial backing from Andreessen Horowitz, the giant Menlo Park, California venture capital firm. Synapse describes itself as “a finance platform” that “provides payment, card issuance, deposit, lending, compliance, credit and investment products as APIs [Application Programming Interface] to more than 18 million end users.” Apparently, other FDIC-insured banks besides Evolve Bank and Trust are also involved in this mess. In 2023 Synapse announced “A New Partnership with AMG National Trust.” In 2022, it announced a “Partnership with Lineage Bank.” Synapse’s partnership with Evolve Bank and Trust dates back to 2017 and was renewed in 2022. If all of this isn’t frightening enough, Synapse shares on its website that it also owns a registered broker-dealer (brokerage firm) that is regulated by Wall Street’s self-regulator, FINRA. According to documents filed in the bankruptcy court proceedings, on May 11 of this year Synapse discontinued access to its dashboard that allowed bank visibility to critical financial data, such as beneficial owner account balances. On May 17, Evolve Bank and Trust posted this statement on its website: “Evolve Bank & Trust supports today’s (Friday, May 17, 2024) United States Bankruptcy court rulings regarding our motion and maintains unwavering dedication to safeguarding the security of all end user funds. Since the unfortunate necessity of freezing certain transactions, our teams have been tirelessly working to guarantee account accuracy, enhancing security measures, and ultimately restoring access to funds for our valued customers. “Today’s rulings and Judge Martin R. Barash’s remarks serve to validate what we have steadfastly asserted all along: Synapse’s abrupt shutdown of essential systems without notice and failure to provide necessary records needlessly jeopardized end users by hindering our ability to verify transactions, confirm end user balances, and comply with applicable law. Evolve’s position is further corroborated by the U.S. Trustee’s emergency filing, which warns of Synapse’s ‘gross mismanagement’ in deciding to cut off access to its computer systems over a weekend. “As a robustly well-capitalized FDIC institution exceeding the capital thresholds for the highest category of capitalization under PCA (‘well capitalized’), our primary focus is on ensuring the protection of end user funds. This becomes paramount when essential reporting and information necessary for transaction processing are not forthcoming from our critical service provider. “Evolve operates in accordance with federal regulations governing financial institutions. Any insinuation suggesting that Evolve has intentionally mishandled or withheld funds is entirely false and defamatory. “As we move forward, Evolve Bank & Trust reaffirms our commitment to collaborating with financial industry partners with the shared goal of providing customers access to their funds. We are dedicated to addressing any challenges that arise with agility and efficacy, ensuring the integrity and security of all customer funds remain paramount.” Anyone who thinks this is going to end well might want to browse the following: Related Articles: Federally-Insured, Crypto-Focused Silvergate Bank Loses 43 Percent of Its Market Value Yesterday as Depositors Flee Bank Stocks Plummet as Bank Runs in the U.S. Gain Momentum at Federally-Insured, Non-Traditional Banks The Same Day Sam Bankman-Fried Is Hit with a New Count of Bank Fraud, Three Regulators Warn About Crypto Bank Runs As far back as August of 2022 we warned: Brace Yourself for Federally-Insured Bank Failures Caused by Crypto

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No subject
by pro2rat＠yahoo.com.au 23 May '24

23 May '24

Yanks may not be displeased if they didn't want an immediate results since months more punishment by process is in order. The appeals menu has also been whittled down to one course. They may see that as incremental progress. But while legal logic and cold hard facts have favoured them so far the whole "vibe" about this case is now going the other way. Why I'm now busy raising crypto donations for Julian's bail. Anyone caring to contribute may send me a hardware wallet in the mail. Every cypherpunk revolutionary deserves as much. Yes?

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(no subject)
by jdb10987＠yahoo.com 23 May '24

23 May '24

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Conn. Atty Denies Involvement In $1.4M Transfer Scam
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Conn. Atty Denies Involvement In $1.4M Transfer Scam <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839198?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> By Brian Steele Connecticut attorney Carole W. Briggs has issued a sweeping, albeit untimely, denial of the allegations in a lawsuit filed by a New Jersey real estate developer in Connecticut federal court that accused her of playing a role in a business email compromise scam that stole $1.4 million. 1 document attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839198?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839198?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…>

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Bungie's Code Copying Claims Questioned At Seattle Trial
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Bungie's Code Copying Claims Questioned At Seattle Trial <https://www.law360.com/cybersecurity-privacy/articles/1839576?nl_pk=3dfd2fd…> By Rachel Riley A top product security engineer at Bungie told a Seattle federal jury on Tuesday that a hacker accused of exploiting a popular game to make cheat software likely never had access to the game's source code and acknowledged the game company hasn't seen the cheat code that it claims amounts to copyright infringement. Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/cybersecurity-privacy/articles/1839576?nl_pk=3dfd2fd…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/cybersecurity-privacy/articles/1839576?nl_pk=3dfd2fd…>

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Copyright Claims Against Defense Agencies Go To Trial
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Copyright Claims Against Defense Agencies Go To Trial <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1839535?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> By Daniel Wilson A Court of Federal Claims judge has ruled that a geospatial technology firm's copyright infringement claims against defense agencies must go to trial, citing disputed facts about whether related software was effectively created on the government's time and dime. 2 documents attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1839535?nl_pk=4126fe73-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/governmentcontracts/articles/1839535?nl_pk=4126fe73-…>

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Hate Speech Watchdog Drops Atty Fee Bid Against X Corp.
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Hate Speech Watchdog Drops Atty Fee Bid Against X Corp. <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839520?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> By Lauren Berg A California federal judge Tuesday signed off on an agreement that X Corp. and the Center for Countering Digital Hate reached to resolve the nonprofit organization's bid for $300,000 in attorney fees following a successful defense against the Elon Musk-led social media platform's claims that the center used improper tactics to write one of its articles. Order attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839520?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839520?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…>

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Attys Accused Of Botching NC Suit By Missing Filing Deadline
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

Attys Accused Of Botching NC Suit By Missing Filing Deadline <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1838926?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> By Hayley Fowler The parents of two children who died in a car fire are suing their former attorneys in North Carolina federal court for malpractice, alleging they dropped the ball on filing the pair's wrongful death claims against a seat belt manufacturer before the deadline passed. Complaint attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1838926?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1838926?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…>

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DOJ, VW Ask 9th Circ. To Void Jones Day Docs Release Order
by Gunnar Larson 23 May '24

23 May '24

DOJ, VW Ask 9th Circ. To Void Jones Day Docs Release Order <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839339?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> By Linda Chiem The U.S. Department of Justice and Volkswagen have told the Ninth Circuit that forcing them to release confidential Volkswagen documents that were part of a Jones Day investigation into the automaker's 2015 emissions-cheating scandal would have far-reaching, chilling implications for federal criminal prosecutions. 2 documents attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839339?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/legalethics/articles/1839339?nl_pk=153d4a8a-6fb9-4a5…>

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