Contents
- Regs Update.
- Vault12 Guard Product Updates.
- New to Crypto Inheritance? Start here.
The Digital Commonwealth Summit with Dr. Lisa Cameron, former MP, Tom Duff Gordon, Coinbase and Wasim Ahmad, Vault12 discussing US crypto policies rippling around the world.The Digital Commonwealth Summit
Update
April was a jam packed month - Paris Blockchain Week, confirmation of the chairman of the SEC, Stablecoin bills, The Digital Commonwealth Summit in London and then the Hill & Valley Forum in Washington DC - so here is part 2 of our April update.
Key Takeaways:
- Paris Blockchain Week was disappointing, with an all pervading sense of depressing dread seeping everywhere.
Companies in Europe have to go through 2,000 pages of regulations and find a way through — once they do that they get access to markets in Europe, which is a plus. Companies outside of Europe - other than the big fintech platforms will not spend anytime considering Europe as a base. Even Ledger, a French company that derives 60% of its revenue from the US (pre-tarriffs) is not happy with European regulations and will be focused on the US market - remember you should always back up your ledger in Vault12 Guard :) - UK - Lot’s of positive but very slow progress. I had to rebuke the FCA for stifling growth and strangling innovation in Great Britain. Luckily there are some stalwart leaders pushing the pro-innovation pro-digital asset agenda - people like Dr. Lisa Cameron, USUK Alliance, Coinbase and Stand with Crypto UK, Katie Herries together with support from the upper echelons of the UK government like Baroness Uddin, Lord Holmes and Lord Iain McNichol. The opportunity for the UK as a differentiated digital assets hub hinges on alignment and regulatory passporting with the US, this much is becoming clear to many more — need it percolate up to the Government, regulators and lawmakers on all sides.
- US - Finally, Chairman Paul Atkins took the helm of the SEC and was sworn in this week. He has reaffirmed his priorities for cleaning up the crypto market. The upcoming Market Structure Bill (aka FIT21) draft is due this week, a comprehensive bill that defines how crypto markets are regulated, the roles of security and utility tokens, and other market-defining capabilities that will eventually become the standard for worldwide crypto regulation. This is widely expected to be signed into law in August 1, 2025.Impact: While these bills and regulations are being worked on, attitudes and behaviour towards crypto assets may start to change; however, it is important to note that since no laws have changed, until the Market Structure Bill is in place, we remain in nebulous territory with respect to how tokens can be freely disseminated.
The media has reported that firms are applying pressure to consolidate all the bills into a single one and get that passed in one go. While this reflects the danger of losing the attention of lawmakers - multiple bills have been developed in parallel to ensure that the repeal of any one bill by a future administration will not bring the whole crypto market crashing down. - Was in DC this week and got to hear from the Senators and Congressmen, who are behind the efforts to bring clarity to crypto markets - GENIUS, STABLE bills and the upcoming Market Structure Bill. Also got to sit across from Crypto/AI Czar, David Sacks at the Hill & Valley Forum.
- Working on something exciting in DC - more to say in May.
- Stars Podcast:
https://x.com/TheStarsPodcast/status/1914707698408... - CryptoMondays Global Podcast
https://vault12.com/blog/podcast/podcast-crypto-in...
Podcasts:
Vault12 Guard Product Updates
April 2025 - Version 2.6.1
- New "Manage My Vault" page enables you subscribe to Vault12 plans using app store or crypto payments, in addition, provides a place to transport files directly into your Vault.
- Universal file transportation. You can now securely transport assets to your Vault from any device. Visit the Manage My Vault site to upload password backups, secret documents, PINs, and—of course—your crypto keys from Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, iPadOS, and more. Files are instantly transferred to your Vault with zero traces left behind once you close your browser tab. It’s simple, fast, and secure—just like the Vault12 Guard app.
- New Actions Dashboard. Stay on top of every important request from your Guardians or the Owner you support. Recover assets, access restored files, or configure Inheritance - all just a tap away. You can even play voice memos directly from the main screen.
- Various bug fixes and performance improvements for the smoothest experience.
New to Crypto
Ah, April – spring is in the air, taxes are due in many regions, and peoples' fancies turn to both love and long-term financial planning! The first step towards putting your long-term financial house in order is to visualize your inheritance goals. Not sure where to start? Vault12 has an article that breaks down for you the difference between estate planning and crypto inheritance planning. You will be more carefree after you plan for what happens to your crypto after you're gone.
Crypto acceptance is growing not only at the level of national governments, but also with smaller localities. This month, Panama City, Panama announced that they will accept crypto payments for municipal taxes, fines, and permits. Another sign to get ready for digital payment opportunities by having your own digital wallet!
As the crypto financial industry grows, so does the scale of crypto hacks and other crimes. In fact, The Street reports that Q1 of 2025 was the worst quarter ever for crypto hacks. (This was largely due to the enormous Bybit exchange hack in February, but there have been plenty more.) You can't control the security of crypto exchanges, but you can control your own security. Make sure you know the basics about how to protect your digital assets.
Wasim Ahmad
Wasim is a serial entrepreneur and an advisor in the fields of AI, blockchain, cryptocurrency, and encryption solutions. At Vault12, he led the private and public fundraising efforts and focuses today on expanding the Vault12 ecosystem. His crypto experience began with AlphaPoint, where he worked with the founding team to launch the world's first crypto trading exchanges. Previously he was a founding member of Voltage Security, a spinout from Stanford University, that launched Identity-Based Encryption (IBE), a breakthrough in Public Key Cryptography, and pioneered the use of sophisticated data encryption to protect sensitive data across the world's payment systems. Wasim serves on the board of non-profit, StartOut, and is a Seedcamp and WeWork Labs global mentor.
Wasim graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physics and French from the University of Sussex.
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