Crypto

Crypto Industry Advances Self-Regulatory Framework Amid Global Compliance Push

| Importance: 8/10

In November 2024, the cryptocurrency industry accelerated its self-regulatory efforts in response to intensifying global regulatory pressures. Following the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation and the Financial Stability Board’s global framework, crypto firms began …

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Kylian Mbappé Twitter Account Hacked to Promote $464M Crypto Pump-and-Dump Scam

| Importance: 8/10

Soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé’s official X (Twitter) account was compromised in a sophisticated phishing attack to promote a fraudulent $MBAPPE token on the Solana blockchain. The scam saw the token’s market cap rapidly surge to $464 million before crashing to less than $100,000 within …

Kylian Mbappé Unknown Hackers Sahil Arora crypto pump-and-dump celebrity social-media phishing +2 more
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Kylian Mbappé Twitter Account Hacked to Promote $464M Crypto Pump-and-Dump Scam

| Importance: 8/10

Soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé’s official X (Twitter) account was compromised in a sophisticated crypto scam on August 29, 2024. Hackers used his 14.4 million follower account to launch a fraudulent $MBAPPE token on the Solana blockchain, which rapidly reached a $464 million market cap before …

Kylian Mbappé Unknown Hackers Sahil Arora crypto pump-and-dump celebrity social-media phishing +3 more
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Trump campaign begins accepting cryptocurrency donations

| Importance: 5/10

Trump campaign begins accepting cryptocurrency donations in May 2024, coinciding with courting crypto industry’s $238 million in election spending, marking strategic pivot to embrace digital assets.

Trump Campaign Cryptocurrency industry campaign-finance crypto political-donations election-2024
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Federal Agents Charge Two with 2 Million NFT 'Rug Pull' Money Laundering Scheme

| Importance: 8/10

HSI agents charged Devin Alan Rhoden (24, active-duty Air Force cyber analyst) and Berman Jerry Nowlin Jr. (20) with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering through NFT schemes. The defendants created two NFT collections (‘UndeadApes’ and ‘Undead Lady Apes’) on …

Devin Alan Rhoden Berman Jerry Nowlin Jr. HSI DHS U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida nft money-laundering fraud blockchain federal-prosecution +3 more
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Federal Agents Charge Two with $400,000 NFT 'Rug Pull' Money Laundering Scheme

| Importance: 8/10

Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Tampa led a multi-agency investigation charging Devin Alan Rhoden, a senior military cyber analyst, and Berman Jerry Nowlin Jr., an NFT developer, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. The defendants created three NFT collections …

Devin Alan Rhoden Berman Jerry Nowlin Jr. HSI DHS U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations +2 more nft money-laundering fraud blockchain federal-prosecution +3 more
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Trump Launches Third 'Mugshot' NFT Collection Generating $9.9 Million Revenue

| Importance: 8/10

Trump launched his third NFT collection titled ‘MugShot’ featuring 100,000 digital trading cards based on his Georgia election interference mugshot. Priced at $99 each, the collection generated approximately $9.9 million in initial revenue. The unique offering included pieces of …

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Trump Launches Third 'Mugshot' NFT Collection Generating $9.9 Million Revenue

| Importance: 7/10

Trump launched his third NFT collection titled ‘MugShot’ featuring 100,000 digital trading cards based on his Georgia election interference mugshot, priced at $99 each. The collection generated approximately $9.9 million in initial revenue and offered pieces of Trump’s actual …

Donald Trump NFT INT LLC nft trump mugshot georgia election-interference +3 more
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Shell Company Network Analysis Links Cryptocurrency to Kleptocracy Infrastructure

| Importance: 8/10

Comprehensive investigation reveals systematic connections between cryptocurrency exchanges, shell company structures, and oligarchic money laundering operations. Analysis exposes how platforms like BitMEX facilitate complex financial networks that enable sanctions evasion, cybercrime funding, and …

BitMEX Arthur Hayes Ben Delo Samuel Reed Gregory Dwyer +3 more kleptocracy-network crypto shell-companies money-laundering sanctions-evasion +1 more
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Trump Second NFT Collection Sells Out While Revealing Substantial Digital Asset Income

| Importance: 7/10

Trump launched his second NFT collection in April 2023, which sold out rapidly, coinciding with his legal troubles in Manhattan. His financial disclosure revealed he earned between $500,000 and $1 million from NFT sales. The second collection’s launch occurred while the prices of his original …

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Trump launches first NFT collection one month after campaign announcement

| Importance: 6/10

Trump launches first NFT collection of 45,000 ‘Trump Digital Trading Cards’ for $99 each, selling out in under 12 hours and generating over $16 million in primary sales, marking his crypto debut one month after announcing presidential campaign.

Donald Trump Trump Organization nft crypto campaign-finance digital-assets
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Trump calls Bitcoin 'a scam' competing with the dollar

| Importance: 6/10

Donald Trump calls Bitcoin ‘a scam’ competing with the dollar in 2021, marking his initial skepticism before his dramatic transformation to ‘crypto president’ by 2025. In a Fox Business interview, Trump argued that Bitcoin threatens dollar hegemony and should be heavily …

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