Odaily Planet Daily reports that the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has sued New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Attorney General Raúl Torrez, and other officials in the U.S. District Court for New Mexico, aiming to stop the state from applying its gambling regulations to prediction market platforms. The dispute follows New Mexico's lawsuit against Kalshi, in which the state alleged the platform offered sports betting to New Mexico residents without authorization and allowed participation by users below the state's legal gambling age of 21. The Attorney General's office has argued that lawful gambling in New Mexico may operate only under tribal-state gaming compacts or within a tightly regulated state framework. The CFTC contends that platforms such as Kalshi list federally regulated derivatives contracts, not gambling products under state law. CFTC Chair Michael Selig said New Mexico is trying to extend state gambling laws to federal derivatives exchanges that fall under the CFTC's exclusive jurisdiction. In recent months, the CFTC has filed similar suits against Wisconsin, Illinois, Arizona, Connecticut, and New York as it seeks to reaffirm its oversight of sports-related prediction markets. The agency also proposed broader rules for prediction markets this week, which would generally continue to allow sports-related contracts.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a lawsuit against the state of New Mexico, stepping up its effort to keep prediction markets regulated exclusively at the federal level.

A bill in Brazil's Congress aimed at setting guardrails for a future central bank digital currency (CBDC) has cleared a key hurdle, as lawmakers seek to ensure the instrument cannot be used to expand state control, replace cash, or deepen financial exclusion. Bill 4212/25, introduced last year by Deputy Bia Kicis and revised by rapporteur Lafayette de Andrada, was approved in amended form by the Chamber of Deputies' Economic Development Committee and now heads to floor votes. The proposal targets limits on the Central Bank of Brazil and other institutions involved in any eventual CBDC rollout, citing the need to protect economic freedom, privacy, and public security. Under the text, a central bank-issued digital currency would be barred from substituting paper money, could not be imposed as legal tender, and could not be deployed as a tool for political or ideological surveillance. The bill also includes a provision designed to prevent digital-first policy from shutting out vulnerable groups: Article 5 requires authorities to ensure that drex does not lead to financial exclusion, with accessible alternatives guaranteed for people without access to digital media. Kicis argues that while an official digital currency such as Brazil's drex could bring meaningful benefits, global precedents show the technology can also facilitate mass surveillance and transaction monitoring, raising concerns around privacy, individual liberty, and citizen safety. The legislative push comes as the central bank reassesses drex and has already narrowed the project's scope amid privacy concerns. Even so, debate continues over the risks of a fully digital system for less tech-savvy citizens and others who rely on cash for daily spending. The bill still requires approval in both chambers of Congress and presidential sign-off. Its progress signals growing interest in codifying checks on any future CBDC and how it could be used by the Brazilian government.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has sued New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Attorney General Raúl Torrez and other state officials in the U.S. District Court for New Mexico, seeking to stop the state from applying its gambling regulations to prediction market platforms. New Mexico previously filed suit against Kalshi, alleging the platform offered sports betting to state residents without proper authorization and allowed participation by users below the state's legal gambling age of 21. The attorney general's office has argued that lawful gambling in New Mexico may operate only through tribal-state gaming compacts or within a tightly regulated state framework. The CFTC says Kalshi and similar venues offer federally regulated derivatives contracts, not gambling products governed by state law. CFTC Chair Michael Selig said New Mexico is attempting to apply state gambling statutes to federal derivatives exchanges that fall under the CFTC's exclusive jurisdiction. In recent months, the CFTC has brought similar actions against Wisconsin, Illinois, Arizona, Connecticut and New York to assert oversight of sports prediction markets. The agency also released proposed rules this week that would broadly allow sports-related contracts, underscoring a widening federal-state clash over where prediction markets end and sports betting begins.

White House official Patrick Witt said the administration is aiming to secure passage of the crypto-focused "Clarity Act" by July 4.

White House Executive Director Patrick Witt said he is optimistic the Clarity Act can be passed by July 4. Witt added that significant work is underway "behind the scenes."

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce delivered her farewell remarks Tuesday at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Capital Markets Summit in Washington, D.C., closing out a career that made her one of the agency's most prominent advocates for clearer oversight of the crypto sector. In a speech titled "Peirce Out," she confirmed she is leaving after nearly 30 years in Washington, saying she is "moving to the beach." Bloomberg reported she will join Regent University School of Law in Virginia Beach as an associate professor in November. Peirce's second term as commissioner expired in June 2025, and she has remained in office as a holdover since then. Crypto featured as one part of a broader message. Peirce reviewed a wide range of securities-policy issues, including climate disclosure rules, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and the SEC's use of disgorgement. She highlighted digital-asset policy as an example of the Commission returning to its statutory mandate, describing the past year and a half as an effort "to tie our crypto regulatory and enforcement activities to the statutes we administer." Her framing underscored a long-running split with the approach taken under former Chair Gary Gensler, when she repeatedly objected to what she characterized as regulation driven by litigation rather than rulemaking. After Gensler's departure, the SEC reset its digital-asset enforcement and rulemaking under Chair Paul Atkins through an initiative called Project Crypto. Peirce has criticized the SEC's enforcement-first posture for years, calling it a "paternalistic and lazy" way to regulate and likening the regulatory environment for compliant firms to a "regulatory version of an escape room" with no clear exit. Beyond crypto, Peirce used the speech to outline what she views as unfinished business. She raised constitutional concerns about the SEC's pay-to-play rule for investment advisers, arguing it effectively creates a financial disincentive for political speech. She also criticized the agency's expansive interpretation of internal accounting controls under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, calling it a "lever" used to discipline companies over controls unrelated to accounting. She also took aim at the Consolidated Audit Trail, describing it as "a massive market surveillance monitoring operation." The SEC issued a concept release in April seeking feedback on the CAT's civil-liberties and privacy implications, an approach Peirce endorsed. Peirce pointed to several recent actions as signs of progress: the May rescission of the rule that barred settling defendants from publicly denying allegations, the proposed rollback of climate disclosure rules, and April's move to reduce the Form PF reporting burden on private funds. She closed by urging bipartisan cooperation on what she called the "boring basics," including updating transfer agent rules, modernizing investor disclosure technology, and reforming investment-company proxy processes. "We will not agree on every detail," she said, "but the joint work of getting to a good place might build good will that can be applied to areas of deeper disagreement." Her departure would leave the SEC with two commissioners. While the agency can legally operate with fewer than three, a two-member commission has no modern precedent and could hinder rulemaking and enforcement when tie votes result in no decision. The Defiant has recently covered Peirce's work on tokenization, including efforts to clarify distinctions between tokenized securities and synthetic instruments, as well as guidance on the proposed innovation exemption for on-chain stock trading. Those positions remain in effect until her seat is filled. Peirce joined the SEC in 2018, filling the vacancy left by Commissioner Daniel Gallagher. She was renominated by President Trump and confirmed to a second term in 2020, and she is the last Republican holdover commissioner.

Sam Bankman-Fried failed to overturn his 2023 fraud conviction and 25-year prison term after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit unanimously affirmed the verdict on Friday. In an opinion authored by Circuit Judge Barrington Parker, a three-judge panel said prosecutors presented "robust" evidence supporting the jury's findings. The court upheld convictions stemming from the collapse of FTX, where prosecutors said customer assets were funneled to Alameda Research—the trading firm Bankman-Fried founded—and then spent on personal expenses, political donations, investments, and real estate. Manhattan federal prosecutors portrayed the conduct at trial as a "fraud of epic proportions." A jury in 2023 convicted Bankman-Fried on seven counts, including fraud and conspiracy, after prosecutors alleged roughly $8 billion in customer funds was misappropriated. Bankman-Fried acknowledged management failures at trial but denied stealing customer assets and pleaded not guilty. On appeal, defense lawyers argued U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan improperly restricted evidence that could have supported the claim FTX was still capable of meeting customer withdrawals—a point they said undercut fraudulent intent. The appeals court rejected that argument, citing precedent that fraud is established when money or property is obtained through deception, even if there is later intent to repay. The panel said customers were defrauded once their funds were transferred to Alameda, regardless of any later belief the money could be returned. Bankman-Fried had also sought a new trial under Rule 33 based on purportedly new evidence and testimony, but withdrew the motion before it was formally denied in April. Kaplan said the witnesses cited were not newly discovered and could have been presented at the original trial. Prosecutors also challenged defense assertions that FTX was solvent before its collapse, saying the exchange held only 105 Bitcoin against customer claims approaching 100,000 Bitcoin. Despite the loss on appeal, Bankman-Fried continues to seek clemency. Records show he filed an application with the Justice Department's Office of the Pardon Attorney requesting a "pardon after completion of sentence." President Trump previously told The New York Times he had no plans to pardon Bankman-Fried, and a White House spokesperson reiterated that position when asked about the filing. Public support for clemency has been limited; Senator Cynthia Lummis told Politico she hopes no pardon is granted given the harm to customers. Now 34, Bankman-Fried is serving his sentence at a low-security federal prison near Santa Barbara and, according to Bureau of Prisons records, is eligible for release in 2044. His attorneys did not respond to requests for comment on Friday's decision. Remaining options include seeking en banc review by the full Second Circuit or petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court. For the crypto sector, the decision underscores the legal exposure executives face when customer funds are commingled with proprietary trading and keeps the FTX case central to debates over transparency, custody practices, and regulatory oversight.

Sam Bankman-Fried will remain in federal custody under the 25-year prison term imposed after the collapse of crypto exchange FTX, after a US appeals court declined to overturn his conviction. A unanimous three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected his appeal, calling the government's case "conservatively stated" and "robust," Reuters reported. The ruling leaves intact the 2024 sentence tied to fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from FTX's multibillion-dollar failure. In written remarks cited in coverage, Judge Barrington Parker highlighted the gap between Bankman-Fried's public assurances and the conduct alleged at trial. The opinion said that while he told customers, investors and regulators that client funds were safe, he used FTX as "his own personal piggy bank," including spending customer money on real estate, political contributions and investments. The setback on appeal does not end his bid for relief. Bankman-Fried is also pursuing clemency through the presidential pardon process. Cointelegraph previously reported that a formal pardon request was submitted and appeared in early June on the US Department of Justice Office of the Pardon Attorney website. Bankman-Fried told Fox Business he is "absolutely" seeking a pardon. Public comments suggest the path may be steep. Reporting referenced in the article said President Donald Trump told The New York Times in January that he had no plans to pardon Bankman-Fried. A White House spokesperson declined to comment on the request, while Bloomberg pointed back to Trump's earlier remarks after the application became public. Trump has issued high-profile pardons, including for Ross Ulbricht, founder of the darknet marketplace Silk Road. Ulbricht had been serving two life sentences plus 40 years before receiving a pardon in January 2025. The comparison is frequently raised in discussions of political feasibility, though the two cases carry different narratives and political dynamics. For the broader crypto legal landscape, the Second Circuit decision reinforces that major exchange failures and related conduct can be treated as criminal matters capable of withstanding appellate review. With the conviction affirmed, additional relief through the courts appears limited, shifting attention toward the discretionary clemency track and any signals about the president's stance as the DOJ pardon process continues.