Crypto - Shore News Network

Former Inland Empire Nonprofit CEO Arrested on Indictment Alleging She Embezzled Federal Grant Funds for Wedding and Crypto

Indira PatelMay 8, 20240

Donise Warren, 51, a.k.a. “Donise Warren-Jackson,” “Donise Jackson,” and “Donise Conerly,” of Canyon Lake, is charged with 15 counts of embezzlement from organizations receiving federal funds and 15 counts of embezzlement of government property. RIVERSIDE, California – The former CEO and executive director of two San Bernardino County nonprofit organizations was arrested today on an indictment alleging she embezzled federal grant money intended for the nonprofits, using more than $225,000 of it for unauthorized expenditures such as wedding and travel expenses and cryptocurrency. Warren was the president, CEO, and executive director of the Citadel Community Development Corporation (CCDC), whose stated

Brooklyn DA Targets “Pig Butchering” Crypto Scam, Recovers Millions

Law and Crime ReportApril 4, 20240

BROOKLYN, NY — Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced a significant breakthrough in combating cryptocurrency scams, particularly a tactic known as “pig butchering.” This scam involves tricking individuals through online platforms into investing in fake cryptocurrency opportunities. The operation led to the seizure of 21 web domains following reports from Brooklyn victims, who collectively lost over five million dollars. Gonzalez’s Virtual Currency Unit pinpointed and disrupted the scheme, aiming to educate the public on recognizing and avoiding such scams. He emphasized the importance of skepticism towards too-good-to-be-true investment opportunities, especially from sources not met in person. The initiative was spurred

Exclusive-Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund made $200 million crypto investment before bull run

ReutersFebruary 12, 20240

By Anna Tong and Krystal Hu (Reuters) – Founders Fund, the venture capital firm founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, is investing once again in bitcoin and ether, sources said, signaling Silicon Valley’s renewed interest in cryptocurrency markets. From late summer to early fall last year, the fund invested $200 million to acquire crypto tokens, half in bitcoin and the other half in ether, the two largest cryptocurrencies, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The previously unreported move by the prominent Silicon Valley venture capital firm underscores some institutional investors’ return to token investments, once the hottest investment

EU reinforces tight limits on crypto firms from outside bloc

ReutersJanuary 29, 20240

By Huw Jones LONDON (Reuters) – Crypto companies based outside the EU will only be able to directly serve customers within the bloc under very limited conditions to avoid unfair competition, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) proposed on Monday. The EU approved the world’s first comprehensive rules for crypto markets last year, known as MiCA, a groundbreaking move in an online sector where national borders have been hard to police. The latest EU proposals on how crypto firms and regulators should apply the law in practice cover crypto asset firms from outside the EU that want to offer

Crypto lender Nexo seeks $3 billion in damages from Bulgaria over aborted investigation

ReutersJanuary 24, 20240

By Elizabeth Howcroft and Kirstin Ridley LONDON (Reuters) – Cryptocurrency lender Nexo is seeking $3 billion in damages from Bulgaria over an aborted criminal investigation that the company alleges scuppered its plans for a U.S. stock market listing and a soccer sponsorship deal, legal filings seen by Reuters show. Nexo AG, a Swiss unit of Cayman Islands-based Nexo Capital, alleges the investigation tarnished its reputation and destroyed shareholder value, according to a document filed with the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The Washington-based ICSID, an international arbitration institution that handles disputes between international investors and

CEO of Crypto Arraigned in Brooklyn on Multi-Million Dollar Cryptocurrency Fraud

Indira PatelJanuary 20, 20240

This morning, German national Horst Jicha, 64, will be arraigned at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, facing charges of securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracies in connection with a cryptocurrency scheme known as USI Tech. The indictment was unsealed following Jicha’s arrest on December 23, 2023, as he attempted to vacation in Miami, Florida. United States Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York and James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the FBI New York Field Office, announced the charges. U.S. Attorney Peace stated that Jicha allegedly exploited the burgeoning interest in cryptocurrencies to defraud U.S. investors

Illicit crypto addresses received at least $24.2 billion in 2023 – report

ReutersJanuary 18, 20240

By Elizabeth Howcroft LONDON (Reuters) – At least $24.2 billion worth of crypto was sent to illicit crypto wallet addresses in 2023, including addresses identified as sanctioned or linked to terrorist financing and scams, crypto research firm Chainalysis said on Thursday. Cryptocurrencies enable people to send money around the world without using the mainstream financial system. The underlying blockchain technology creates a record of transactions where senders and receivers are identified only by their wallet addresses, which are a string of letters and numbers. Chainalysis said the $24.2 billion number is almost certainly an underestimation and will rise as it

Nigerian central bank lifts ban on crypto trading

ReutersDecember 23, 20230

LAGOS (Reuters) – Nigeria’s central bank has lifted a ban on transacting in cryptocurrencies, while saying global trends had shown a need to regulate such activities, the bank said in its latest circular. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Feb. 2021 barred banks and financial institutions from dealing in or facilitating transactions in crypto assets, citing money laundering and terrorism financing risks. Subsequently Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in May last year published regulations for digital assets that signalled Africa’s most populous country was trying to find a middle ground between an outright ban on crypto assets and

Crypto miner Core Scientific expects to emerge from bankruptcy in January

ReutersDecember 21, 20230

(Reuters) -Cryptocurrency miner Core Scientific said on Thursday it was expecting to emerge from bankruptcy in mid-to-late January, a year after it became a casualty of high-profile collapses that led to a rout in crypto tokens. The Austin, Texas-based company said it has reached an in-principle agreement with all key stakeholders on the terms of a global settlement. “The global settlement removes key hurdles to our anticipated emergence from Chapter 11 in January,” said CEO Adam Sullivan in a statement. Core Scientific had filed for bankruptcy protection in December last year, citing slumping bitcoin prices, rising energy costs for bitcoin

Coinbase petitions court to review SEC denial of its request for crypto rules

ReutersDecember 18, 20230

(Reuters) – Coinbase filed a petition in a federal appeals court requesting a review of a decision by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to deny the crypto exchange’s request for new rules for the digital asset sector. The five-member commission, in a 3-2 vote, said Friday it would not propose new rules because it fundamentally disagreed that current regulations are “unworkable” for the crypto sphere, as Coinbase has argued. (Reporting by Hannah Lang in Washington)

Crypto, insurance-linked and trend hedge funds most popular – Preqin

ReutersDecember 13, 20230

By Nell Mackenzie LONDON (Reuters) – Trend-following and niche hedge funds that trade crypto currencies and insurance-linked assets attracted most new investor money in the first three quarters of 2023, according to a global report by research firm Preqin on Wednesday. Hedge funds making use of algorithms to catch market trends, or commodity trading advisors saw $13.1 billion of net cash inflows, Preqin said. Niche strategies, which make up 2% of the industry (by assets), saw a net $11 billion in inflows during the same time frame, said Preqin. The global hedge fund industry as a whole only saw about

Crypto market eyes interest rates and expected bitcoin ETFs in 2024

ReutersDecember 11, 20230

By Hannah Lang (Reuters) – After ending 2023 on a high, crypto investors will be watching central bank interest rates and a U.S. regulatory decision on new bitcoin products as they decide how to place their bets next year. Cryptocurrencies staged a recovery this year after a torrid 2022 in which a market meltdown and a string of scandals, including the collapse of FTX and fraud charges against its CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, undermined the credibility of the industry. The price of bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency and the market’s chief barometer, has more than doubled this year, reaching a 20-month high

Spain arrests a man wanted by US over North Korea crypto conspiracy

ReutersDecember 1, 20230

MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish police said on Friday they detained a Spaniard wanted by the United States for allegedly conspiring with a convicted American cryptocurrency researcher to help North Korea evade U.S. sanctions. The U.S. Department of Justice accused last year Alejandro Cao de Benos, who founded a pro-Pyongyang affinity organisation, of recruiting researcher Virgil Griffith to illegally provide cryptocurrency and blockchain technology services to North Korea. Griffith was sentenced by a U.S. court to five years and three months in prison in 2022 for conspiring to help North Korea evade U.S. sanctions using cryptocurrency. In a post on Friday

Crypto stocks set to start December on high note as bitcoin hits near 19-month high

ReutersDecember 1, 20230

(Reuters) -Shares of crypto miners and bitcoin-tracking companies rose on Friday as the world’s largest cryptocurrency extended a recent rally to touch a near 19-month high on improving risk appetite. Bitcoin, up 1.6% at $38,337, has been gaining since October on optimism that a potential approval of a spot exchange-traded fund is likely to unleash more capital investments in the digital asset sector. “Tailwinds have been gathering strength all year, especially in recent months, as spot ETF expectations build, the Binance uncertainty is resolved, and 2024’s accelerated money printing becomes more inevitable,” crypto-focused economist Noelle Acheson said, referring to the

ECB chief Lagarde admits her son lost crypto cash

ReutersNovember 24, 20230

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – No one is a prophet in their own land, including European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, who admitted on Friday that her son lost “almost all” of his investments in crypto assets, despite copious warnings. Lagarde has long railed against cryptocurrencies, calling them speculative, worthless and a tool often used by criminals for illicit activity. “He ignored me royally, which is his privilege,” Lagarde told a town hall with students in Frankfurt. “And he lost almost all the money that he had invested.” “It wasn’t a lot but he lost it all, he lost about 60% of

Factbox-Highlights from US charges against crypto exchange Binance

ReutersNovember 21, 20230

(Reuters) – Binance chief Changpeng Zhao stepped down and pleaded guilty to breaking criminal U.S. anti-money laundering laws as part of a $4.3 billion settlement resolving a years-long probe into the world’s largest crypto exchange, prosecutors said on Tuesday. The agreement will resolve criminal charges that Binance conducted an unlicensed money transmitter business, conspiracy and breaching sanctions regulations, the U.S. Department of Justice said. Some of the charges, which are both criminal and civil, relate to practices that Reuters reported first in a series of articles in 2022. Here are the key allegations against Binance, its founder Zhao and other

Crypto firm Tether says it has frozen $225 million linked to human trafficking

ReutersNovember 20, 20230

By Elizabeth Howcroft LONDON (Reuters) – Crypto firm Tether said on Monday that it had frozen $225 million worth of its cryptocurrency which it said had been linked to a human trafficking group in Southeast Asia. The U.S. Secret Service asked Tether to freeze the tokens during a “months-long investigative effort” by Tether and the crypto exchange OKX, Tether said in a blog post, without giving details about the scope or timescale of the investigation. The Secret Service did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Tether and OKX collaborated with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on

Factbox-How close are crypto markets to first spot bitcoin, ether ETFs?

ReutersNovember 20, 20230

(Reuters) – A spate of filings for spot bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs), including from traditional finance heavyweights, has revived the crypto market that had been crushed by a series of meltdowns last year. A spot crypto ETF would track the market price of the underlying crypto asset, giving investors exposure to the token without having to buy the currency. The SEC has previously denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications citing potential for fraud, but that could soon change after it lost a legal battle in August. Here is a pipeline of filings for spot bitcoin ETFs awaiting approval:

Secret Service Initiates Operation Crypto Guard in Philadelphia

Leo CanegaNovember 18, 20230

PHILADELPHIA, PA – The U.S. Secret Service has launched “Operation Crypto Guard” in Philadelphia to combat the increasing prevalence of pig butchering scams. This initiative, announced on Friday, aims to raise awareness and prevent these sophisticated financial crimes. Pig butchering scams involve criminals grooming potential victims before financially exploiting them. The Secret Service will conduct educational outreach and post bulletins on Bitcoin ATM machines to inform the public about these scams. Michael Centrella, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Field Office, emphasized the Secret Service’s commitment to protecting citizens from such frauds. He advised public vigilance and reporting of

EU loophole lets banks dodge ECB’s crypto supervision, needs fixing -Enria

ReutersNovember 14, 20230

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – EU rules to protect the financial system from risks stemming from cryptocurrencies contain a loophole that allows banks to circumvent some safeguards and should be fixed urgently, the European Central Bank’s chief supervisor Andrea Enria said on Tuesday. The cryptocurrency market is starting to bounce back a year after the collapse of exchange FTX and other big players in 2022 crushed prices, tarnished the industry and prompted a regulatory crackdown. Enria listed a number of challenges for European financial watchdogs as they prepare to tackle the crypto market using newly approved EU and global regulation set by

Jury Finds Disgraced Crypto Tycoon And Dem Megadonor Guilty Of Fraud

The Daily CallerNovember 3, 20230

Jury Finds Disgraced Crypto Tycoon And Dem Megadonor Guilty Of Fraud Jason Cohen on November 2, 2023 A jury found disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon and Democrat megadonor Sam Bankman-Fried guilty of fraud-related charges on Thursday. Bankman-Fried co-founded and served as CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which collapsed in November amid allegations the company was mishandling billions in customer funds. The Department of Justice indicted Bankman-Fried on seven fraud and conspiracy-related charges in August, alleging he masterminded a scheme to divert the money to fund campaign contributions, donations to charities and real estate acquisitions. The jury found Bankman-Fried guilty on all seven

SafeMoon executives charged in US with fraud related to crypto token

ReutersNovember 1, 20230

By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) – The founder and two top executives at SafeMoon, whose namesake crypto token was once valued at more than $8 billion, have been charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with running a fraud that diverted tens of millions of investor dollars so they could buy luxuries and line their pockets. An indictment unsealed on Wednesday in Brooklyn charged founder Kyle Nagy, 35; Chief Executive Braden John Karony, 27; and former Chief Technology Officer Thomas Smith, 35, with three criminal counts each of conspiring to commit securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. The

Crypto billionaire’s nonprofit buys $500 million of AI data center chips

ReutersOctober 30, 20230

By Max A. Cherney and Anna Tong (Reuters) – A nonprofit organization funded by cryptocurrency billionaire Jed McCaleb bought roughly $500 million of Nvidia advanced chips and plans to lease computing capacity to companies for artificial intelligence projects. The AI cloud-computing organization, called Voltage Park, has 24,000 Nvidia H100 chips, Voltage Park CEO Eric Park told Reuters in an interview. The operation plans to offer long- and short-term, low-cost AI computing to help alleviate the shortage of AI chips. “It’s our belief that basically the current ecosystem for machine learning is broken,” Park said. Voltage Park plans to set up

Basel proposes crypto disclosures by banks from January 2025

ReutersOctober 17, 20230

LONDON (Reuters) – Global banking regulators on Tuesday proposed a standardised format for major banks to disclose their holdings of cryptoassets from January 2025 to support “market discipline” by giving a complete picture to investors. The Basel Committee of banking regulators from the world’s main financial centres agreed new rules last December on how much capital banks should hold to cover different types of cryptoassets. On Tuesday, they set out for public consultation how the holdings should be disclosed to investors. “Under the proposals, banks would be required to disclose qualitative information on their activities related to cryptoassets and quantitative

Ferrari to accept crypto as payment for its cars in the US

ReutersOctober 14, 20230

By Giulio Piovaccari MILAN (Reuters) – Ferrari has started to accept payment in cryptocurrency for its luxury sports cars in the U.S. and will extend the scheme to Europe following requests from its wealthy customers, its marketing and commercial chief told Reuters. The vast majority of blue-chip companies have steered clear of crypto as the volatility of bitcoin and other tokens renders them impractical for commerce. Patchy regulation and high energy usage have also prevented the spread of crypto as a means of payment. These include electric carmaker Tesla, which in 2021 began to accept payment in bitcoin, the biggest