In this week’s recap, the Bitfinex exchange hacker attained early release thanks to criminal justice reform, BitMine Immersion’s chairman sought shareholder consent for a significant share increase, and South Korean traders moved over $110 billion to foreign exchanges due to local regulatory pressures.
Summary
- Bitfinex hacker benefited from early release via US prison reform laws.
- Treasury firms restructured crypto approaches as companies expand staking and share initiatives.
- Various governments enhanced crypto regulations, from Turkmenistan to China.
Bitfinex hacker attributes early release to Trump legislation
- Ilya Lichtenstein declared his early release from prison on X, citing President Trump’s 2018 First Step Act.
- Lichtenstein, who admitted to leading the cryptocurrency exchange hack, expressed his intention to positively impact cybersecurity as soon as possible post-release.
BitMine chairman discusses share authorization plan
- Tom Lee, chairman of BitMine Immersion, urged shareholders to support a proposal to increase the company’s authorized share count from 500 million to 50 billion.
- In a message at the start of the year, Lee emphasized that the increase isn’t aimed at diluting existing shareholders.
Iran accepts cryptocurrency for weapon purchases
- Mindex, Iran’s Ministry of Defense export center, has started accepting cryptocurrency for advanced weapons as a way to circumvent international sanctions.
- Potential buyers can acquire missiles, tanks, and drones using cryptocurrency or other accepted payment methods like Iranian rials or barter, as stated on the center’s website.
Turkmenistan legalizes cryptocurrency activities
- The country has enacted the Law on Virtual Assets, legalizing cryptocurrency mining and exchanges to enhance economic growth and attract foreign investments.
- President Serdar Berdimuhamedov signed the regulations on November 28, establishing a framework for virtual asset usage, creation, and exchange within the nation.
Cuban and Mavericks win against Voyager fraud lawsuit
- A class action lawsuit claiming Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks defrauded investors by promoting the now-bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital has been entirely dismissed.
- U.S. District Court Judge Roy K. Altman dismissed the case on December 30, concluding claims under various state securities laws and consumer fraud statutes, according to Cuban’s legal team at Brown Rudnick.
Trump Media reveals shareholder token distribution
- The company behind Truth Social announced plans to distribute a new digital token to shareholders through a partnership with Crypto.com.
- The token will be issued on Crypto.com’s Cronos blockchain, with each shareholder receiving one token for every whole share of DJT stock once the program launches.
Cypherpunk increases privacy coin holdings
- The Winklevoss twins-backed digital asset treasury firm acquired $28 million worth of the privacy coin zcash, raising total holdings to 290,062 ZEC valued at $152 million.
- Nasdaq-listed Cypherpunk Technologies obtained 56,418 tokens at an average price of $514.02 each, now possessing approximately 1.76% of zcash’s circulating supply.
Prenetics ends Bitcoin treasury approach
- The health sciences company that raised $48 million earlier this year to develop a Bitcoin treasury has announced it will halt BTC purchases amid ongoing cryptocurrency market struggles.
- Prenetics initiated its accumulation strategy in June, inspired by Michael Saylor’s model, but enthusiasm waned following the steep market decline in October.
China launches interest-bearing digital yuan
- The People’s Bank of China announced a major overhaul Monday, indicating commercial banks will begin offering interest on digital yuan holdings.
- This policy is aimed at encouraging the adoption of the state-backed digital currency by providing financial incentives for users to maintain balances.
