Jack Dorsey confirms Square's bitcoin wallet and TikTok bans crypto promotions: 5 things that happened in crypto this past week

Published Mon, Jul 12 2021 1:30 PM EDT

Taylor Locke

Jack Dorsey creator, co-founder, and Chairman of Twitter and co-founder & CEO of Square speaks on stage at the Bitcoin 2021 Convention, a crypto-currency conference held at the Mana Convention Center in Wynwood on June 04, 2021 in Miami, Florida.

Joe Raedle | Getty Images

As bitcoin and ether remain in the red on Monday, here are five things worth knowing in crypto from the past week – from Jack Dorsey confirming Square is building a bitcoin hardware wallet to TikTok banning cryptocurrency promotions.

1. Sen. Elizabeth Warren gives the SEC a deadline for answers on crypto regulation

On Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., addressed a letter to Gary Gensler, the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), calling for more crypto regulation.

"As demand for cryptocurrencies has grown in recent years, the amount of trading activity on cryptocurrency exchanges has also grown, particularly amongst the largest exchanges," Warren wrote. "...The increased use of cryptocurrency exchanges presents unique risks to consumers."

Warren asked a series of questions on the matter and set a response deadline for July 28.

2. Jack Dorsey confirms Square is building a bitcoin hardware wallet

On June 4, Dorsey first mentioned that Square was "considering making a hardware wallet" on Twitter, and on Thursday, he confirmed that his financial services company is actually creating one.

On Thursday, Jesse Dorogusker, hardware lead at Square, tweeted that the company has "decided to build a hardware wallet and service to make bitcoin custody more mainstream." Dorsey retweeted it, saying, "We're doing it #bitcoin."

3. SEC alleges insider trading linked to Long Blockchain

On Friday, the SEC charged three individuals with insider trading ahead of Long Island Iced Tea's rebranding to Long Blockchain in 2017. In its shift from a beverage company to a blockchain company, Long Blockchain's stock price soared.

"The SEC remains committed to preventing all types of fraudulent conduct in connection with purported 'crypto' companies, including profiting from trading on material non-public information," said Richard R. Best, director of the SEC's New York regional office, in a release.

This isn't the first time the company has been involved with the SEC. Long Blockchain's stock was delisted by the SEC in February.

4. TikTok bans influencers from promoting cryptocurrency

TikTok banned influencers from promoting financial services and products on its social media platform, The Financial Times reported on Thursday.

The list of prohibited "branded content" includes loans and credit cards, cryptocurrency, pyramid schemes and get rich quick schemes, among others.

In the U.S., TikTok also prohibits ads promoting virtual currencies and cryptocurrencies, as well as cryptocurrency trading platforms and advisory services, according to its website.

5. Sotheby's sold a diamond for $12 million in cryptocurrency

On Friday, a 101.38-carat pear-shaped diamond was sold at Sotheby's for $12.3 million in an undisclosed cryptocurrency. Before the auction, Sotheby's announced that it would accept bitcoin or ether as payment for the diamond.

This marked the most expensive piece of jewelry sold for cryptocurrency, according to Sotheby's.

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