Crypto Shake

BTC-e founder pleads guilty to laundering stolen Bitcoin ⚡️ In a May 3 press release, the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) revealed that at the time Vinnik was at the helm of BTC-e, the exchange processed no less than $9 billion in transactions and amassed a global user base exceeding one million, with many of them located in the U.S. According to the DoJ, BTC-e served as a conduit for laundering funds acquired from a variety of criminal activities. Moreover, the DoJ’s investigation revealed that BTC-e operated without having compliance measures such as registration with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in place. Furthermore, the exchange did not put its customers through anti-money laundering (AML) or know-your-customer (KYC) protocols in the period it operated. Additionally, investigators found Vinnik to have established numerous shell companies and financial accounts worldwide, facilitating the illicit transfer of funds through BTC-e, resulting in criminal losses totaling at least $121 million.

ZKasino Scam Suspect Arrested and Over 11 Million Euros Seized in Investigation of Gambling Platform 💸 On April 29th, the FIOD arrested a 26-year-old man suspected of fraud, embezzlement, and money laundering related to the alleged gambling platform ZKasino. The investigation centers on a large-scale scam involving more than 30 million US dollars in cryptocurrency invested by victims worldwide.

Charges Filed Against Idin Dalpour in $43M Crypto Ponzi Scheme Fraud 🔥 Idin Dalpour faces wire fraud charges linked to an alleged Ponzi scheme that scammed investors out of more than $43 million, as per an indictment revealed by the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.

Imaginary Ones secures new funding to expand web3 entertainment ecosystem According to a press release shared with crypto.news, the latest investment is part of an oversubscribed round to boost the company’s web3 entertainment, blending gaming, digital content, and merchandise. “These funds will fuel our ambitious expansion plans, allowing us to scale up operations and deliver even more immersive experiences within the Imaginary World. We want to strengthen our position as a leader in web3 entertainment,” the Imaginary Ones team told crypto.news. The web3 firm did not disclose the amount raised in the funding round. Initially established as an IP company, Imaginary Ones gained major attention in 2022 after its NFT collection, featuring 8,888 fully animated 3D ‘bubble characters,’ sold out within just four minutes. The firm partnered with fashion giant Hugo Boss in 2023, becoming the first Asian NFT project to partner with an international fashion brand. The project has since launched two web3 games, Bubble Rider and Bubble Rangers. In the first quarter of this year, Imaginary Ones introduced the project’s native token, BUBBLE coin, which provides users with access to the comprehensive web3 entertainment ecosystem within Imaginary World.

Ripple Partners with HashKey DX to Introduce XRP Ledger-Based Blockchain Solutions to the Japanese Market ! SBI Group will be the first Japanese corporation to use XRP Ledger (XRPL) blockchain supply chain solutions in a partnership with Ripple and HashKey DX. This collaboration aims to introduce XRPL enterprise solutions for supply chain finance in Japan.

North Korea's Lazarus Group Laundered $200 Million from Crypto to Fiat, ZachXBT 🔥 ZachXBT's investigation revealed that over a four-year period, the Lazarus Group laundered $200 million of cryptocurrency into fiat currency. The investigation analyzed more than 25 exploits across various blockchains and tracked the illicitly gained funds as they passed through mixers, exchanges, and other channels.

Phoenix Wallet halts services for US users amid regulatory uncertainty 🔥 Phoenix Wallet, a Bitcoin (BTC) wallet designed for Lightning payments, has announced that it will stop serving U.S. residents on May 3. ACINQ, the company behind Phoenix Wallet, plans to remove the app from U.S. app stores, meaning users in the U.S. will no longer be able to access it from the said date. The company has advised its U.S. customers to withdraw their funds without delay. However, it cautioned against force-closing the wallets, as that could lead to higher on-chain fees. Instead, the company urged its American iOS users to go to the wallet’s settings page and hit “drain wallet,” Android users are advised to also go to the settings section and hit the “close channels” command to safely empty their wallets. The official reason for pulling the wallet from U.S. app stores hasn’t been given. However, ACINQ hinted in a tweet that recent U.S. government statements raise doubts about whether self-custodial wallets, Lightning service providers, or even Lightning nodes might be considered Money Services Businesses and face regulation. The company’s decision comes on the heels of legal action against the creators of Samourai, a Bitcoin mixing wallet.

Yuga Labs CEO announces layoffs, focusing on ‘getting back to roots’ Yuga Labs will restructure, expecting to result in team members’ layoffs. Company Co-Founder and CEO Greg Solano presented a company memo announcing the restructuring. In his statement, he called today “tough.” Solano noted that some of the company’s plans have already begun to be implemented. Yuga’s CEO stated that Farawaygg, the web3 game development firm that Yuga used to develop its Dookey Dash game and which recently acquired web3 games HV-MTL and Legends of the Mara, will allow Yuga to focus on creating 3D Otherside games. On Feb. 21, Solano thanked former Yuga CEO Daniel Alegre and announced that he would take over his post. In the message, he added that he is “reinvigorated to be taking the reins for our next chapter” in the startup’s story. In October 2023, Yuga Labs announced it was laying off employees from its U.S. team as part of a broader restructuring. The company decided to focus its force on developing Otherside, a gaming metaverse.

Consensys Sues SEC, Seeks Court Declaration that Ethereum Token is Not a Security ⚡️ Consensys has filed a lawsuit against the SEC, arguing that Ethereum's Ether token is not a security and challenging the SEC's jurisdiction over Ethereum. The lawsuit aims to prevent an SEC lawsuit against Consensys over its MetaMask wallet.

Morgan Stanley Considering Allowing Brokers to Promote Bitcoin ETFs to Clients: Report 💰 Morgan Stanley is reportedly considering allowing its brokers to recommend spot bitcoin ETFs to customers, setting requirements for risk tolerance and trading limits. Other major brokerage firms have already started offering spot bitcoin ETFs on an unsolicited basis.

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Nigerian Central Bank to Freeze User Accounts on Bybit, KuCoin, OKX & Binance, CBN Denies ⭐️ The Central Bank of Nigeria has directed banks to identify and restrict accounts transacting with unlicensed crypto exchanges, placing them on Post No Debit (PND) for six months. Bybit, KuCoin, OKX, and Binance are among the exchanges listed as not licensed in Nigeria.

XSwap IDO to Be Hosted Today on XSwap Launchpad 🔥 XSwap Announces its native token $XSWAP Community IDO will be conducted on its Launchpad today at 17:00 UTC. The IDO price is $0.05 per token with IDO allocation of $50K, Total Supply is 350M $XSWAP. In XSwap's Public Sale, the top 6000 users will have the opportunity to compete for a spot. The sale operates on a first-come, first-served basis XSwap is a Cross-Chain Swaps Protocol using Chainlink CCIP technology, emphasizing secure cross-chain messages and token transfers. It offers a unified developer interface for seamless execution across blockchains and aims to enhance DeFi liquidity transfers.

Thailand to Restrict Access to 'Unauthorized' Crypto Platforms 💸 Authorities in Thailand have announced plans to block "unauthorized" crypto platforms to enhance law enforcement efficiency in combating online crime. They have not disclosed the specific entities deemed unauthorized but have advised users to withdraw their assets promptly.

ZKasino Faces Questions as Users Struggle to Withdraw Funds, Telegram Banned and MEXC Listing Postponed 🔥 ZKasino, a crypto betting platform, is facing issues with user withdrawals and has had its official Telegram channel banned. A large deposit of 10,500 ETH (worth US$32 million) has been made to the platform. Accusations of fraud by ZigZag and MEXC's decision to postpone the listing and withdrawal of ZKasino (ZKAS) have further complicated the situation, leading to the temporary suspension of ZKAS deposits.

Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF hits $1.6b outflows hours before halving Grayscale’s spot Bitcoin ETF continued a five-day outflow sprint leading to the halving, a code change that occurs every four years to help maintain BTC scarcity. Data gathered by SoSoValue showed $89.9 million in Grayscale exits, bringing GBTC’s total net outflows to $1.6 billion since trading opened back in January. For all 10 spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs, cumulative outflows were recorded as $4.3 million, as Fidelity and BlackRock garnered demand to offset some of GBTC’s liquidations. Fidelity’s FBTC net inflows came in at $37.3 million, outpacing $18.7 million, boasted BlackRock’s IBIT. April 18 marked a rare occurrence where BlackRock was outclassed by a competitor for inflows in the spot BTC ETF market.

Tether Restructures Into Four Divisions as Expansion Beyond Stablecoins Grows Tether, the developer of the world's largest stablecoin, is reorganizing into four divisions to expand its focus into other areas of digital assets. The divisions—Data, Finance, Power, and Edu(cation)—will handle strategic investments in technology, financial infrastructure, bitcoin mining, and digital education, respectively.

Arkansas State House passes bills to limit cryptocurrency mining 🔥 The Arkansas State House has approved two bills that could see a ban on crypto mining activities within the state. At present, the bills are still under consideration and have yet to progress to full-fledged legislation; they establish the framework for further discussions leading to potential legislation. On April 17, senators held a Senate hearing to discuss general concerns such as noise reduction, foreign ownership, and the closeness of cryptocurrency mining to residential areas. Two of the eight bills that were introduced to the House on April 17 were successfully enacted, whereas the Senate approved only one bill pertaining to cryptocurrencies last week. There is a lot of disagreement over whether Act 851 should be revised and how much detail those revisions should include. The committees will discuss the issue before potentially approving legislation during the current fiscal session or the following one. According to the bill, the Arkansas Data Centers Act of 2023 aims to regulate the Bitcoin mining business in the American state by defining rules for miners and safeguarding them from discriminatory restrictions and taxes. Bitcoin mining’s lengthy and energy-intensive operation is being criticized for the waste it generates. According to Investopedia, bitcoin mining generates more than 77 kilotons of electrical waste per year. Crypto mining also poses legal issues outside of the U.S. Paraguay senators submitted a bill to temporarily outlaw crypto mining and associated activities in the South American country, claiming that illegal crypto mines are stealing power and disrupting the electrical supply. The proposed legislation seeks to restrict the installation of crypto mining facilities as well as operations involving the creation, preservation, storage, and trading of cryptocurrency. .

Senate Banking Committee Chair Aims to Combine Stablecoin Legislation for Better Passage Prospects ⚡️ Senator Sherrod Brown, chair of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, plans to advance a stablecoin bill by combining it with legislation related to marijuana businesses and clawing back compensation for bankers. Brown aims to address concerns and pass the stablecoin legislation, potentially alongside laws allowing banks to work with marijuana firms and clawback rules for failed financial institution executives.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF draws $73m amid sluggish market 💸 BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF was the only spot Bitcoin fund in the United States to record inflows on Monday, setting it apart from other ETFs that reported no inflows or experienced outflows. According to data from Farside Investors, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) recorded net inflows of $73.4 million on April 15, albeit a decrease from the $111.1 million observed the previous day. This contrasted sharply with the other eight ETFs, which, aside from Grayscale’s offering, reported no inflows during the same period. The inflows into IBIT were unable to counterbalance the significant outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which saw $110.1 million leave on April 15, reducing from the $166.2 million outflows recorded on April 14.