The SEC has taken its first enforcement action against a hedge fund over its cryptocurrency investments—namely, falsely holding itself out as the “first regulated fund in the U.S. focused on crypto assets.” It also targeted a pair running what they claimed was an “ICO superstore” – WSJ and Bloomberg and Law360
Not to be outdone, Finra’s pursued a crypto-based action of its own focused on Timothy Tilton Ayre and his HempCoin—an “unregistered, cannabis-focused cryptocurrency security” – WSJ and Reuters
We’re certainly all cheering the streak of monthly job growth that the US continues to enjoy. But the Times wants to make sure that we’re not under any false illusions about the role that jobs—in and of themselves—play in fighting poverty – NYTimes
The FCC is slowing its review of the T-Mobile/Sprint deal, citing the need for more time to review a “significantly larger and more complex” engineering model submitted by the parties beyond the informal 180-day window – WSJ
An interesting look at the fate of James Katzman, a former Goldman Sachs partner and head of West Coast M&A whose 2014 call to the firm’s whistleblower line over “a range of unethical practices” led to a “just move on” suggestion from incoming CEO David Solomon and eventually to Katzman’s departure – NYTimes
Marketplace on the stunning consolidation in the banking industry in the past 40 years, all part of a move from “too small to thrive” to today’s “too big to fail” reality – Marketplace
Though it comes with considerably less magic as during the Jobs era, it’s APPLE DAY, people! Here’s what insiders expect to see today from Tim Cook & co. – Bloomberg and WSJ
A car delivery service is accusing Uber of breaking California law by misclassifying its drivers as independent contractors, a practice that it alleges has saved the ride-hailing giant upwards of $500 million a year – Bloomberg [disclosure: Robins Kaplan represents the plaintiff in this action]
Hot tariff war aside, Chinese officials are “stepping up a charm offensive” with major US companies, hoping to assure them that their China operations “won’t be targeted in Beijing’s trade counterattacks” – WSJ
The CFPB is pushing back in the 5th Circuit against a claim that the agency is unconstitutionally structured, pointing to its interim director’s appointment as curative of any flaws that may have existed – Law360
ING CEO Koos Timmermans is out after the Dutch bank agreed last week to pay a nearly $900 million sum to resolve an investigation into its AML controls – WSJ
Not sure if we’re chalking this up to escapism, but regardless, menswear is officially looking to the skies for inspiration this season – WSJ