The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day |
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SOL has been on a tear as Sam Bankman-Fried's trial concludes, with prosecution and defense teams making their closing statements Thursday, which almost brought SBF to tears. "It's amazing to think about SOL here," said Thomas Braziel, CEO of 117 Partners, which advises investors on buying distressed assets. There are $10 billion of customer claims against FTX, said Braziel, who expects them to recover at least 80% of their money. If SOL's price gets to $50 to $60, that "leads to 100%+ certainty for creditors," he said. And the secondary effects are "huge," Braziel added. "Creditors like the Voyager estate, for instance, would start to be in the money." Looking for in-depth reporting on the SBF trial? Subscribe to "The SBF Trial" newsletter pop-up, written by CoinDesk reporters and editors on the ground in court. |
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PYUSD, a stablecoin made for Payments. 1USD = 1PYUSD. Introducing PayPal's new digital currency, PayPal USD (PYUSD), a stablecoin backed by U.S. dollar deposits, short-term U.S Treasuries and similar cash equivalents. Eligible U.S. PayPal customers who purchase PayPal USD are able to: - Transfer PayPal USD between PayPal and compatible external wallets
- Send PayPal USD to friends in the US on PayPal or Venmo without fees
- Shop with PayPal USD on millions of sites, wallets and dApps
- Convert any of PayPal's supported cryptocurrencies to and from PayPal USD
PayPal has remained at the forefront of the digital payment revolution for more than 20 years. By leveraging technology to make financial services and commerce more convenient, affordable, and secure, the PayPal platform is empowering hundreds of millions of consumers and merchants in more than 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. For more information, visit https://paypal.com/pyusd.
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The U.S. Department of Justice has arrested and charged SafeMoon's executive team for allegedly perpetrating a massive fraud. CEO John Karony and CTO Thomas Smith remain in custody, while creator Kyle Nagy is at large. The SafeMoon exec team supposedly stole more than $200 million for personal use from the meme coin project, which was meant to "lock" staked investor funds, as detailed in a separate SEC complaint. The "greedy scheme" enriched the defendants, who purchased "a custom Porsche, other luxury vehicles and real estate," U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace said. The SFM token fell over 30% on Wednesday. |
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A court in Tongliang, China has sentenced 21 people for running an online fraud enabled by tether (USDT). Some 2.25 billion RMB ($307 million) was converted into the stablecoin. According to court documents, two defendants referred to as Jiang and Zheng recruited 19 money mules who used a decentralized wallet called Bitpie (similar to Metamask) to move USDT to local P2P exchanges and then withdraw fiat currencies in different cities around the country under false pretenses. Jiang, who allegedly profited 22.62 million RMB ($3 million), was handed a six-plus year sentence and a 500,000 RMB fine. |
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Amir Bruno Elmaani, aka "Bruno Brock," founder of the Oyster Pearl token, received a four-year jail term for tax offenses, the DOJ announced Tuesday. Elmaani, 31, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, also faces one year of supervised release and will pay restitution of $5.5 million (the estimated tax loss). He pleaded guilty in April 2023 after being charged in 2020 separately by the IRS and SEC. The case dates back to 2017 when he made "millions of dollars" from an ICO, falsified his tax return and then used $10 million in proceeds to buy multiple yachts, gold bars and real estate. |
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The Takeaway: PayPal Subpoenaed | (Marques Thomas/Unsplash, modified) |
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is requesting documents related to PayPal's relatively new stablecoin, PYUSD. The payments giant is reportedly complying with the request, it disclosed in a quarterly report. This marks the latest in a series of regulatory actions against the crypto industry taken by the securities regulator led by Chairman Gary Gensler. Notably, the SEC filed suit against the Binance-brand BUSD stablecoin issued by Paxos in March. PayPal's stablecoin is also a product co-managed by Paxos. To many observers, this latest "Well's Notice," which typically precedes but doesn't always lead to an official lawsuit, reeks of the SEC "picking winners" in the emergent world of crypto. In a sub-sector dominated by crypto natives, PayPal was the first major fintech to launch a stablecoin, followed shortly after by VISA. At launch, in the depths of "crypto winter," PayPal's entrance signaled a strong show of support for the technology, which many see as beneficial to U.S. interests. Stablecoins are primarily denominated in U.S. dollars, and so arguably increase global demand for and access to greenbacks, which could be said to bolster U.S.' monetary hegemony. Though the PYUSD launch was also a controversial move. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), who until recently led the important House Financial Services Committee (from 2019 to 2023), said she was "deeply concerned" about the stablecoin in August. Stablecoins are a significant point of contention for U.S. lawmakers and regulators, and one of the few areas of crypto where progress is being made on the legislative front. Waters has said the "issuance of a new form of money" requires "federal guardrails." But this may not actually be true. As Jesse Austin Campbell (who goes by his middle name) said, there is a massive exception to the so-called "Howey Test," the guideline used by the SEC to determine what falls under its remit, which will likely be cited to argue that PYUSD is an "investment contract" under existing securities laws if the SEC decides to file suit. "The problem is … if you are already in a more restrictive regulatory regime," Campbell said. "That is to say, you know what's not captured by Howey? Banking activities and insurance — your JPMorgan checking account is not a security even if it pays you interest..." Read the full article on the web. –D.K.
@danielgkuhn daniel@coindesk.com |
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Building the Future of Finance: An Interview With Bitazza Co-Founder Kevin Heng Kevin Heng, CSO and co-founder of Bitazza, experienced the entanglement of technology and finance firsthand. Through his time working with the superapp Grab, the founding of Southeast Asia's leading exchange, Bitazza and the development of Freedom World, Kevin has a wealth of experience furthering the development of finance and technology. CoinDesk got the opportunity to speak with Kevin to learn about his experiences, what he's working on and where he sees the industry moving next. Read the full interview here. |
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Consensus is the biggest and most established hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3. Join us at the 10th annual Consensus May 29-31 in Austin, Texas for dialogue, discovery and dealmaking alongside developers, investors, startups, executives and more.
Register before prices increase on Nov. 16 to save $1,700 on registration! Plus, use code NODE15 for an additional 15% off. Grab your pass.
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