Author: James Wilson

Gotbit founder Aleksei Andriunin’s plea agreement would require him to forfeit around $23 million in stablecoins. If approved, he could avoid prison time and additional fines. Andruinin and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts have reached a plea agreement that would have him forfeit $23 million in cryptocurrency assets. According to official court documents, Andruinin has pleaded guilty to one count of market manipulation and two counts of wire fraud. For his indictments, he originally faced 20 years in prison or more. However, if his plea deal gets approved, the founder of market maker firm Gotbit would only…

The Australian Federal Police have kicked off an investigation into a major crypto scam where fraudsters posed as Binance representatives to defraud locals. In a joint statement, the AFP, National Anti-Scam Centre, and Binance Australia revealed that the scam was uncovered through Operation Firestorm, a global crackdown on digital fraud. They warned that over 130 potential victims had already been targeted in the scheme. Scammers posed as Binance representatives and contacted victims with fake warnings, claiming that their Binance accounts had been breached.  Using encrypted messaging platforms and SMS, the bad actors sent “spoofed” messages that looked like they came…

Pakistan appears to be exploring a legal framework for crypto to potentially attract foreign investment. Pakistan seems to be exploring the possibility of establishing a legal framework for cryptocurrency trading, aiming to attract international investment while potentially providing more clarity for digital asset activities in the country’s growing crypto market. In an interview with Bloomberg, Bilal bin Saqib, chief executive officer at Pakistan Crypto Council, said that Pakistan is “done sitting on the sidelines” and wants to attract international investment, highlighting the country’s “low-cost high-growth market” and a “web3 native workforce ready to build.” “Pakistan is done sitting on the…

Garantex, a Russian crypto exchange sanctioned by the US, is reportedly back in business under a new name, Grinex, after moving funds and users to the platform. A report from Swiss blockchain analytics firm Global Ledger claims that Garantex has shifted its liquidity and customer balances to Grinex. The report cited on-chain and off-chain evidence linking the two exchanges despite Garantex’s official shutdown. Global Ledger found that Garantex laundered over $60 million worth of ruble-backed stablecoins, A7A5, through a process of burning and reminting to wipe transaction histories. These funds were then funneled to Grinex, allowing the new platform to…

After a week of consolidation, XDC made a strong move upward, fueled by new partnerships designed to boost adoption. According to data from Crypto.news, XDC Network (XDC) surged 10% to hit an intraday high of $0.072 on March 20 during the afternoon trading session in Asia. This breakout pushed it past the $0.07 resistance level that had held for the past week.  At the time, XDC’s market cap stood at over $1.1 billion, while daily trading volume spiked 25%, hovering near $40 million. XDC’s gains today came as excitement built around its latest partnership with Mercado Bitcoin, one of Brazil’s…

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expects XRP exchange-traded funds to launch in the U.S. by the second half of 2025.  In an Mar. 19 interview with Bloomberg Crypto, he expressed strong confidence in the approvals, citing Ripple’s (XRP) legal win against the Securities and Exchange Commission as a key turning point. “There’s huge demand for these ETFs,” Garlinghouse said, noting that XRP-based investment products outside the U.S. are already seeing steady inflows while other crypto funds struggle. Following the SEC’s decision to drop its case against Ripple on Mar. 19, he believes that previous regulatory pressure on XRP has eased. Institutions…

Three senior executives from the Trump Media & Technology Group have launched Renatus Tactical Acquisition Corp I, a Cayman Islands-registerd special purpose acquisition company. The firm aims to raise about $179 million to acquire businesses in cryptocurrency, blockchain, data security, and dual-use technology. According to a Forbes report published on Mar. 20, Renatus Tactical’s leadership has close ties to Trump Media.  CEO Eric Swider is a Trump Media board member and previously led the firm that merged with it. Devin Nunes, Trump Media’s CEO, chairs Renatus Tactical’s board, while COO Alexander Cano was also involved in the Trump Media merger.…

Kraken exchange is close to acquiring NinjaTrader, a U.S. retail futures trading platform, in a record-breaking $1.5 billion deal. According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, which cited sources familiar with the matter, an official announcement is expected as early as Thursday, Mar. 20. Through the acquisition, Kraken will be able to leverage NinjaTrader’s Futures Commission Merchant license to increase the range of cryptocurrency futures and derivatives products it offers in the United States. NinjaTrader, which was established in 2003, serves more than 1.8 million retail investors. The deal would give Kraken access to this user base while…

The Crypto Fear and Greed Index has climbed 17 points in a day, reaching 49 on Mar. 20, moving from “Fear” to “Neutral” territory. Alternative’s Crypto Fear and Grid index gauges investor sentiment by examining market momentum, volatility, Bitcoin dominance, and social media trends. The shift to neutral sentiment indicates a more balanced view of the market, with investors being neither overly fearful nor excessively greedy Improving sentiment came about as markets reacted positively to the Federal Reserve’s Mar.19 decision to maintain interest rates at 4.25%–4.50%, prolonging its pause on rate cuts due to economic uncertainty. Fed Chair Jerome Powell…

Binance’s USDT/TRY trading pair saw its highest volatility since April 2024 after Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival to President Tayyip Erdogan, was arrested. Turkey’s arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, a key political figure, and potential 2028 presidential candidate, sent shockwaves through the country’s markets — sparking a sharp drop in the lira and a rush into crypto. Shortly after the news broke, the lira took a quick nosedive, hitting a new all-time low in one of its worst intraday moves ever. Binance‘s USDT/TRY trading pair also saw wild price swings, spiking 6.4% in volatilityl what appears to…