🔥Hot off the press! The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is not backing down in its case against Tornado Cash developer, Roman Storm. Despite Storm's motion to dismiss the criminal indictment, the DOJ is standing firm, expecting its evidence to support the charges.💼

Tornado Cash, a crypto mixing service designed to anonymize transactions, has been accused of being used by North Korea's Lazarus Group and other criminal entities for money laundering. Storm's defense? He argues that Tornado Cash is not a custodial mixing service and doesn't fit the definition of a "financial institution".🏦

But the DOJ isn't buying it. They've disputed Storm's characterization of Tornado Cash, pointing out that the service includes a website, user interface, smart contracts, and a network of 'relayers'. They also argue that Storm and his co-founders maintained control over the mixer.🔄

Storm's trial is set for September. What's your take on this? Is Tornado Cash a financial institution or just a tool for crypto users? Let's discuss!👇 #CryptoNews #TornadoCash #DOJ

📉The Japanese yen has hit a 34-year low against the U.S. dollar, but the crypto market remains unfazed! Bitcoin is holding steady around $64,000, despite some altcoins taking a dip. 🌊

🔮Experts predict intervention may be on the horizon if the yen continues to devalue. This could mean the Bank of Japan selling U.S. dollar assets to buy yen, potentially giving crypto prices a boost! 💪

🌍But it's not just about the yen. Analyst Noelle Acheson warns that currency turmoil could spread, putting pressure on other currencies and possibly prompting central banks to take action. This could lead to a collective selling of U.S. treasuries, adding to inflationary pressures elsewhere.

💰What's the silver lining? Acheson suggests this volatility could encourage more corporate and even sovereign holdings of hedges like gold and bitcoin.

What are your thoughts on these market movements? Do you think this could be a turning point for crypto? Let's discuss! #CryptoNews #MarketAnalysis

🚀Crypto defender and Republican lawyer, John Deaton, has stepped up to bat for Coinbase in its legal clash with the SEC! He's filed a supporting brief arguing that the SEC's accusations of certain token trading violating securities laws is an unconstitutional shortcut.👨‍⚖️

Deaton, who hopes to run against Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the Massachusetts Senate race, is no stranger to crypto battles. He's previously weighed in on Ripple Labs' clash with the SEC, earning him a solid rep in digital asset circles.🥊

He argues that the SEC's use of the Howey test to define tokens as securities is beyond its authority. "The Howey test is a transaction-by-transaction analysis," he says. "The SEC adopted an unconstitutional shortcut by effectively saying all transactions of the tokens violate securities laws."🔍

What's your take on Deaton's stance? Do you think the SEC is overstepping its bounds? Let's discuss in the comments!👇 #CryptoNews #SECvsCoinbase

🚀 CoinDesk Indices (CDI) just dropped its bi-weekly market update! Despite some choppy waters, the majority of assets in the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20) and CoinDesk Market Index (CMI) closed higher than last week. Just five tokens took a dip. Overall, CD20 gained a cool 2.1% on the week. 📈

NEAR Protocol is leading the pack with a 24% advance, making serious moves in the decentralized AI space. On the flip side, Aptos, Filecoin, and Bitcoin Cash saw some losses.

The CD20 tracks top digital assets and is investible on multiple platforms, while the broader CMI includes about 180 tokens across seven crypto sectors.

What are your thoughts on this week's movers and shakers? Let's discuss in the comments! #CryptoNews #Blockchain #MarketUpdate

🔔#CryptoNews: Wyoming-based crypto bank hopeful, Custodia, is appealing a court ruling that backed the Federal Reserve's rejection of its bid for a master account and membership. The court ruled that Custodia hadn't provided enough evidence to support claims of illegal bias from the Fed's Board of Governors. 🏦

Custodia, led by Caitlin Long, initially filed the suit years ago, alleging the Fed took too long to decide. The suit was refiled after the Fed formally denied the master account application. A master account would allow Custodia to directly access the Fed, bypassing intermediary banks. 🚀

The judge warned that without the Fed's discretion to deny applications, state chartering laws could lead to a "race to the bottom" with lax legislation. Custodia is also objecting to the Fed's attempt to collect legal fees. 🏛️

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think Custodia's appeal will succeed? Let's discuss! #Blockchain #CryptoBanking

🔍U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bill Cassidy are raising concerns about crypto's role in illegal activities, specifically child exploitation. They've penned a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, citing crypto as "the payment of choice for perpetrators of child sexual abuse and exploitation."

🚨They're asking for more tools and resources to combat this issue, highlighting the challenges faced by existing anti-money laundering rules and law enforcement methods.

📈While crypto's anonymity has been a draw for illicit activities, advances in analytic tools and law enforcement strategies are starting to cast doubt on the perceived secrecy.

🗣️What are your thoughts on this? How can the crypto community work together to address this issue? #CryptoNews #CryptoRegulation

🚀Crypto industry is evolving, and it's not just about meme coins or AI. It's about remaking the "operator economy" (aka gig/sharing economy). Think Uber, Airbnb, but decentralized and fairer. This could be a game-changer for all gig workers out there!👏

🔍DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure) could be the solution. It's a community-driven protocol network that coordinates hardware-based services with tokens. It's like Bitcoin, but for services. Teleport, a DePIN ride-hailing app, is a great example. No more Uber or Lyft taking a cut of your earnings. Higher wages, lower prices, and you earn a stake in the network.💰

🌐DePIN networks are permissionless, transparent, and hard to disrupt. They're popping up in various industries: computing, data, storage, hardware. But they're not without challenges. Navigating real-world regulations while staying decentralized is tricky. And protecting operators from token volatility is crucial.🛡️

🎉If DePIN can overcome these hurdles, it could revolutionize the operator economy and prove the true value of crypto. What do you think? Are we ready for this shift? Share your thoughts below!👇 #DePIN #Crypto #GigEconomy

🚀Bitcoin (BTC) is soaring above $64K, even as outflows from bitcoin ETFs increase. U.S.-listed ETFs saw a net outflow of $217 million in a day, totaling $244.49 million this week. Yet, BTC is up by 3.7% in the past week. Meanwhile, ARK Invest has sold the last of its ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) shares, a move anticipated with the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S.

🔍In other news, the European Parliament is tightening its grip on money laundering and terrorist financing, with new laws targeting large cash payments, crypto firms, and more. This includes "enhanced due diligence measures and checks on customers’ identity," with suspicious activities to be reported to Financial Intelligence Units and other authorities.

📉Lastly, Deribit's bitcoin volatility index (DVOL) has dropped from 72% to 55% in five days. This is attributed to the spot price being stuck in a tight range and the basis yield drying up.

What are your thoughts on these developments? Let's discuss in the comments! #CryptoNews #Bitcoin #ETFs #EuropeanParliament #Deribit

🚀OpenDelta, a Bitcoin-centric stablecoin firm, has raised $2.15M in a pre-seed round led by 6th Man Ventures. The company aims to use Bitcoin to create stable value in fiat-denominated currency. OpenDelta's flagship token, USDO, will retain its dollar value by hedging Bitcoin deposited by users as collateral.

🔥OpenDelta is planting itself in the newest greenfield for DeFi atop the newest trend in Bitcoin, Runes. The product will be yield-bearing for its holders and will generate this upside from the funding rates in derivatives markets that it trades in to retain its dollar value.

💡OpenDelta is among the first companies building the new face of DeFi for Bitcoin in the Runes era. What are your thoughts on this new trend? Let's discuss! #Bitcoin #DeFi #OpenDelta

📢 Big news from the EU! The European Parliament has greenlit a robust package of anti-money laundering laws that target a range of financial services, including crypto. 🎯

This isn't just about due diligence, folks. The measures will grant journalists and other interested entities free and direct access to beneficial ownership info in national registries. 🕵️‍♂️

The package also establishes an anti-money laundering authority based in Frankfurt to oversee the implementation of these frameworks, particularly for the "riskiest entities."

But wait, there's more! The new laws require banks, crypto asset managers, and others to report suspicious activities to Financial Intelligence Units and other authorities. 🚨

Some crypto enthusiasts in the EU are concerned that the requirements for digital assets might be unfairly strict. What do you think? 🤔

The package still needs formal adoption by the EU Council to become law. Stay tuned for updates! #CryptoNews #EULaws

🚨Big news from the UK! New powers enabling law enforcement agencies to seize crypto, even before making arrests, are now in effect. No more hide-and-seek for crypto criminals! 🕵️‍♂️

The UK Parliament passed a crime bill last year, paving the way for quicker crypto seizures. The goal? To nab assets known to be criminally obtained, even if the culprits are anonymous or overseas.

Crypto tactical advisors are already stationed across the UK, and hundreds of millions of pounds worth of crypto have been seized. In one case, a joint operation with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration led to the seizure of $150 million in cash and crypto from a drug enterprise.

The new measures will also allow officers to transfer seized crypto into a law enforcement-controlled wallet. And if returning the seized crypto isn't in the public's best interest, they can destroy it. Privacy coins, you're on notice!

Home Secretary James Cleverly says these reforms will enhance national security, as terrorist organizations like Daesh are known to raise funds through crypto transactions.

What do you think about these new measures? Sound off in the comments! 📣 #CryptoNews #UKCryptoLaw

🚀 Stripe, the fintech giant, is making a comeback to the crypto world! After a 6-year hiatus, Stripe is reintroducing crypto payments, starting with Circle's USDC stablecoin. But this time, they promise a much better experience. 🎉

Stripe first dabbled in crypto back in 2014, but dropped support in 2018 due to Bitcoin's volatility and lengthy transaction times. Now, with transaction speeds increasing and costs coming down, Stripe believes crypto is finally making sense as a means of exchange.

The service will be available on the Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon blockchains. Stripe, valued at a whopping $65 billion, is one of the world's biggest payment providers with over $1 trillion in transactions in 2023.

What are your thoughts on Stripe's return to the crypto scene? Do you think this move will boost the adoption of crypto payments? Let's discuss in the comments! 🗨️

🚀Ethereum developer Consensys is taking on the SEC! They've filed a lawsuit against the regulator, challenging its "unlawful seizure of authority" over Ethereum. Consensys wants a court to declare that ETH is not a security, and that any investigation based on this assumption would violate their rights.

The company also denies acting as a broker via its MetaMask wallet, stating it's "simply an interface" that doesn't hold or transact digital assets.

Consensys argues that the SEC's move against Ethereum contradicts past statements that ETH is a commodity, not a security. They claim this "about-face" violates the requirement of fair notice under the Due Process Clause.

The suit was filed in Texas, joining others like the Blockchain Association and Legit Exchange in seeking to block the SEC from treating certain crypto companies or assets as securities.

🔥Hot topic! What's your take on this legal battle? Is ETH a security or a commodity? Let's discuss! #Ethereum #Consensys #SEC #CryptoLaw

🔥Hot take alert!🔥 Tech journalist Kara Swisher is throwing some shade on crypto's world-changing potential. She's calling it a "minor eruption" compared to the internet's "major explosion". Ouch! She's not buying into the hype and predicts crypto will settle as a niche in the tech landscape. 🌋

But wait, there's more! Swisher's got her eyes on the next big thing - AI. Despite its own hype cycle, she believes AI is attracting major tech interest and investment. It's costly and not yet profitable, but she's convinced it's a game changer. 🤖

What do you think? Is crypto overhyped or is Swisher missing the mark? And is AI the next big thing or just another tech bubble? Let's get this debate started in the comments! 💬

🚀ViaBTC, the mining pool that struck gold by mining the first satoshi after Bitcoin's halving last week, has just auctioned it off for a whopping $2.13 million! This "epic" satoshi, with a face value of just $0.0006, stirred up a bidding frenzy on CoinEx, proving that even the smallest unit of Bitcoin can hold immense value.💰

Thanks to the Ordinals protocol, individual satoshis can now be identified and traded like unique tokens, similar to NFTs. This marks the first time that specific sats have been attached with value, making them more than just bragging rights for miners.🔥

What's your take on this? Do you think this will change the way we perceive and trade Bitcoin? Let's chat in the comments! #Bitcoin #CryptoNews #ViaBTC #OrdinalsProtocol

🔥Hot off the press! Eric Ervin, CEO of Onramp Invest, shares insights on crypto investment models for advisors. As crypto interest surges, it's time to empower professionals with tokenized securities, crypto-forward financial products, and platforms for direct market access. 🚀

The professionalization of crypto is here, folks! It's not just about broader access to digital assets for clients, but also about building new offerings in your business. Capture more assets under management (AUM) and thrive!

But wait, there's more! Leo Mindyuk, CEO of ML Tech, dives into active vs passive bitcoin and crypto investment strategies. 🧠

Passive strategies involve holding a portfolio of cryptocurrencies over a long period, while active strategies aim to generate returns by capitalizing on market inefficiencies. The choice can significantly impact the results!

So, advisors, are you ready to leverage expert asset managers and tackle the crypto market head-on? Let's meet the demand, build expertise, and stay ahead of the curve. 🌐

What are your thoughts on these strategies? Share in the comments! #CryptoForAdvisors #CryptoInvestment #OnrampInvest #MLTech

🔒💼 The U.S. government's crackdown on crypto mixers continues, with the latest target being Samourai Wallet. The wallet, which promised to keep transactions private, is accused of processing over $2 billion in unlawful transactions. Its co-founders, Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, are facing charges, with Rodriguez already arrested and Hill awaiting extradition from Portugal.

The U.S. authorities' stance is clear - any involvement in privacy tools beyond authoring code is off-limits, and any funds flowing into such applications are treated as laundered, regardless of the purpose.

This move has sparked concerns about the future of privacy-preserving blockchain tech. Some experts believe that while coding crypto mixers could be legal, marketing or maintaining them likely isn't.

What's your take on this? Is this a necessary step to curb illicit activities or an infringement on the basic right to privacy? Let's discuss! #CryptoNews #BlockchainPrivacy 🗨️👇

🚀 Movement Labs, a blockchain firm co-founded by young Vanderbilt college dropouts, Rushi Manche and Cooper Scanlon, has secured a whopping $38M in Series A funding led by Polychain Capital. Their mission? To make blockchain security sexy! 💪

Their new layer-2 Ethereum blockchain, Movement L2, is based on Facebook's Move programming paradigm, aiming to enhance security and transaction speeds. Manche's interest in Move was sparked by an article about Facebook's blockchain efforts. 📰

🔒 "Security has never been a priority for the industry," Manche said. Movement L2 aims to change this narrative by preventing attack vectors like reentrancy from executing, potentially stopping 90% of attack vectors or more.

🎯 The team is also focusing on speed, using parallelization to process multiple streams of activity at once, a method used by Solana and Move-based chains. "This combination of speed and security makes for a really powerful VM," Manche added.

Despite their young age, Manche and Scanlon have built trust as category leaders, showing significant development and community ecosystem traction. 🌐

Movement L2 will enter its testnet phase this summer. What are your thoughts on this new layer-2 Ethereum blockchain? Let's discuss! #Blockchain #Ethereum #Security #Move

🚀Big news for blockchain professionals! The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's new rule banning non-compete agreements is a game-changer!👏

Remember Linda Jeng, the Founder & CEO of Digital Self Labs? She once faced a tough time when her old blockchain employer accused her of breaching a non-compete clause. It cost her months of work, $80,000 in income, and emotional distress.😓

But here's the twist: non-competes can hurt companies too! Linda's new employer lost valuable time and resources negotiating with her old company. Even the government lost out on tax revenue.🚧

The new rule could lead to 8,500 new startups, says FTC chair Lina M. Khan. Imagine the innovation that could come from the blockchain and digital assets industry without non-competes!💡

What's your take on non-compete agreements? Share your thoughts below!👇 #BlockchainNews #InnovationUnleashed

🔥Hot off the press! MicroStrategy (MSTR) is poised to shake Wall Street with a potential earnings surprise! If the software giant adopts new accounting standards, it could qualify for inclusion in the S&P 500, says broker Benchmark. 📈

The company's strategy is partly based on acquiring and holding Bitcoin. As of March 19, it held 214,246 Bitcoin worth $13.9 billion. The adoption of new Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) rules could massively boost MSTR's reported earnings per share, increasing its 2024 beginning retained earnings balance by ~$3.1 billion. 💰

Analysts predict a Q1 2024 loss per share of $0.55 for MicroStrategy. But with early adoption of the new standard, it could report a gain of more than $300 per share for the quarter! MSTR currently meets nearly all criteria for S&P 500 inclusion, with a market cap greater than $18 billion. 🚀

However, uncertainty around the tax impact of adopting the FASB’s updated guidance could cause MicroStrategy to hold off on early adoption. What do you think? Will they take the leap? Let's discuss below! 👇 #CryptoNews #MicroStrategy #SP500