Fran Velasquez

Fran is CoinDesk's TV writer and reporter. He is an alum of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and CUNY's Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, where he earned his master's in business and economic reporting. In the past, he has written for Borderless Magazine, CNBC Make It, and Inc. He owns no crypto holdings.

Fran Velasquez

Latest from Fran Velasquez


Policy

Caitlin Long Sees 'Coordinated Effort' Among Regulators for Custodia Rejection

The CEO says crypto is here, get used to it. Custodia Bank has filed another master account application with the Federal Reserve.

Caitlin Long at BTC 22 (Danny Nelson/CoinDesk)

Policy

Former CFTC Chairman: SEC Was 'Absolutely Right' to Sue Terraform Labs, Do Kwon

Timothy Massad, now a research fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, said U.S. bank regulators have the ability right now to create a framework that could license stablecoin issuers.

Former CFTC Chairman Timothy Massad (CoinDesk TV screenshot)

Policy

Coinbase Exec: US Congress Needs to ‘Step Up’ Its Crypto Regulatory Efforts

Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad said the exchange would “love to register” its two dormant broker-dealers, but the reality is no clear direction has been provided by lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Coinbase official Faryar Shirzad (Wikimedia)

Policy

Bankman-Fried $250M Bond Is a ‘Joke,’ Claims Securities Lawyer

“MetaLawMan” James Murphy says that in 30 years of experience he has “never seen anything this lenient in a situation” where someone has lost millions of dollars of users’ money.

El fundador de FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, vuelve a comparecer ante el tribunal en las Bahamas. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Policy

Former Paxos Exec: Regulators Failed to Address Crypto Collapses, Now They’re Going After 'On-Ramps'

Jesse Austin Campbell, former head of portfolio management, says that “probably, the greatest mistake you could have made is to be an onshore, regulated company in the crypto space.”

Jesse Austin Campbell (LinkedIn)

Finance

Former SEC Chief Counsel Says Agency Needs to Make Clear Its Crypto Compliance Rules

“When the SEC tells us that something is not compliant, it’s not necessarily the same thing as telling us what they would consider compliant,” said TuongVy Le, a partner and head of regulatory and policy at investment firm Bain Capital.

TuongVy Le (LinkedIn)

Policy

Algorand Foundation CEO: SEC’s Crypto Crackdown Highlights Lack of Regulatory Clarity

Staci Warden told CoinDesk TV crypto-native firms are being punished rather than given guidance.

Staci Warden (CoinDesk TV screenshot)

Policy

Former SEC Attorney: Kraken Action Not a Condemnation of 'Staking Writ Large'

However, Zachary Fallon, a partner at law firm Ketsal, said it is an “obvious shot across the bow to others.”

Zachary Fallon (CoinDesk TV, modified by CoinDesk)

Policy

Legal Expert Says MetaBirkin Project Intended to Use Hermès’ Brand for Economic Gain

Olta Andoni, general counsel at financial firm Enclave Markets, said artist Mason Rothschild was looking to “piggyback” off the French luxury brand’s reputation. But even artists who are creating digital art aren't free of consumer protection laws.

(MetaBirkins/Instagram)

Finance

Kraken’s Head Of Strategy: Our Business Felt Crypto Winter's Chill

Thomas Perfumo said the firm has not been insulated from the broader economy. Here's what he says the exchange wants to do next.

(PiggyBank, Unsplash)