German fintech firm 21X received regulatory approval from Germany’s financial supervisory authority, BaFin, to launch a blockchain-based trading system. According to a press release from 21X, the company "has become the first ever entity to receive a license to operate a blockchain-based trading and settlement system that is fully regulated in accordance with European Union (EU) law." The company plans to launch its exchange for tokenized financial instruments from its Frankfurt headquarters at the beginning of 2025.

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced that the Eurosystem has concluded a series of tests employing distributed ledger technology (DLT) for wholesale settlement in central bank money, processing over 200 transactions and a total value of €1.59 billion between May and November. According to the press release, 64 participants comprising central banks, financial market participants, and DLT operators completed over 40 trials and experiments, including actual settlement in central bank money.

President-elect Trump is reportedly considering Perianne Boring, founder and CEO of The Digital Chamber, to chair the CFTC. Other top contenders for the role include CFTC Commissioners Summer Mersinger and Caroline Pham. Former CFTC Commissioner Jill Sommers and former CFTC special counsel Neal Kumar are also in the running, according to Fox Business. Trump is expected to release his CFTC Chair nomination in the near future.

DOJ announced that Celsius founder and former CEO Alexander Mashinsky pled guilty to one count of commodities fraud and one count of securities fraud in connection with two fraudulent schemes at Celsius. Mashinsky told US District Judge John Koeltl that he lied when he told the public that the fallen $25 billion crypto lender's tokens were a safe investment. Judge Koeltl set an April 8 sentencing date. Mashinsky faces a theoretical maximum prison sentence of 30 years for the two counts to which he pled guilty.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published a paper comparing retail CBDCs and fast payment systems (FPS), and analyzing why some jurisdictions have opted for one over the other. The paper includes content from interviews with central banks in 14 jurisdictions around the world at different stages of implementation of a retail CBDC and/or an FPS, showing that some see a case for both to fulfil different policy goals and complement one another. The paper also compares emerging challenges and risks related to retail CBDCs and FPS. BIS concludes that the choice between one of the two, or both, is contextual and will depend on market features, ecosystem, and degree of maturity and innovation of existing payment infrastructures in a country.

US District Judge Jennifer Rochon sentenced crypto salesman David Brend to 10 years in prison for his role in promoting the $58 million IcomTech Ponzi scheme, saying he victimized others in a “get rich quick” scam and may do so again. Judge Rochon also directed Brend to pay a $40,000 fine and surrender to custody on December 16, adding that she will impose restitution and forfeiture in coming weeks. Brend's co-defendant, Gustavo Rodriguez, was recently sentenced to eight years in prison by Judge Rochon.

CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham is scheduled to speak at the fireside chat on global digital asset regulations and potential plans for 2025 during crypto platform Fireblocks’ Spark ’24 conference. Spark is Fireblocks' annual customer conference, which is focused on crypto ideas, leadership, and education. Topics of focus at the conference include tokenization, crypto adoption in emerging markets, stablecoin issuance, DeFi, and more.

The SEC promoted Jorge Tenreiro, the former acting chief of the agency’s unit in charge of overseeing cybersecurity and crypto-related cases, to chief litigation counsel. Tenreiro led the SEC’s battle against Ripple Labs and supervised investigations into Kraken and Coinbase. The new role will expand Tenreiro’s oversight of all active litigation, as well as investigations that may lead to future litigation. Other typical duties listed in the job post include providing guidance on legal and policy issues to enforcement staff, working with the SEC's appellate attorneys in the preparation of briefs, and supervising collection for cases that end up in bankruptcy court.

Coinbase discontinued its USDC yield offerings for customers in the European Economic Area starting December 1, citing MiCA restrictions. In an email to clients, Coinbase stated that "Due to the new European Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which introduces new requirements for e-money tokens, Coinbase will be sunsetting the USDC Rewards program for EEA customers." The company did not specify which rule prevents the firm from offering USDC rewards to European users.