Crypto

John Karony took to social media as his criminal trial for fraud and money laundering charges began in New York. Braden John Karony, the former CEO of crypto firm SafeMoon, made an out-of-court statement claiming innocence as his criminal trial began in New York. In a May 6 X post after court proceedings had likely ended for the day, Karony said he was innocent and “did not commit fraud” in response to media coverage of his trial. The former CEO, as well as SafeMoon creator Kyle Nagy and former chief technology officer Thomas Smith, were charged in 2023 for having allegedly “diverted and misappropriated millions of dollars’ worth” of the platform’s SFM token. According to reporting from the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) on May 6, Karony implied that Nagy, who reportedly fled to Russia after authorities filed charges, was responsible for some of the alleged fraud at SafeMoon. On the first day of the trial, after jury selection, Smith reportedly appeared as a witness for the pros...

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) clarified on May 7 that federally chartered banks and savings associations may offer crypto services, namely custody and execution, including through third-party providers, provided they adhere to sound risk management practices and legal compliance.  The clarification, issued through Interpretive Letter 1184, confirms and expands on earlier […] The post OCC reaffirms banks’ authority to offer crypto services without prior approval appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Holding rates steady, the U.S. central bank took note of the possibility of higher inflation and unemployment.

The network's token price and onchain metrics are rising after a period of stagnation in 2023. Binance-affiliated BNB Chain has rebounded after a period of stagnation in 2023 amid accelerating institutional and decentralized finance (DeFi) adoption.  During the past year, BNB Chain has benefited from multibillion-dollar inflows into DeFi, US exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and rising trading volume at affiliated centralized exchange (CEX) Binance.  Consequently, the blockchain network’s native BNB token (BNB) has emerged as among the market’s most resilient cryptocurrencies, surpassing all-time highs in the first quarter of 2025 even as the broader crypto market trended downward.  Read more

Strive Asset Management is adopting Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset after pushing other firms to do the same, unveiling a reverse merger.

Bailey, who advised President Donald Trump on crypto policy during his 2024 presidential campaign, is reportedly raising $300 million to buy bitcoin.

Representative Ritchie Torres is reportedly preparing to introduce legislation prohibiting federal officials from owning or trading crypto while in office.  The measure seeks to close potential conflicts of interest and expand existing financial ethics rules to include digital assets. The proposed bill would apply to a wide range of public servants, including members of Congress, […] The post Congressman Torres proposes bill to ban federal officials from trading or owning crypto appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade made some much-needed improvements. Will ETH price respond by rallying in the near future? Key takeaways: Reclaiming the $2,200 level remains the first price challenge for ETH.  ETH price could recover if the Pectra upgrade leads to a surge in DApp and Ethereum network activity.  Read more

As Netflix rolls out generative AI, the streaming giant is unironically retiring a Black Mirror interactive title.

Richard Blumenthal has opened a Senate review into Donald Trump’s $TRUMP cryptocurrency, saying the token and a pricey White House gala could let investors discreetly enrich the President and sway policy. Senators Warren and Schiff have urged ethics officials to examine Trump’s broader crypto ties. The post Richard Blumenthal Probes $TRUMP Coin – Does Foreign Money Buy Oval Office Access? appeared first on Cryptonews.

Coinbase users are falling prey to social engineering scams, costing users tens of millions of dollars in losses, according to ZackXBT. Onchain sleuth and security analyst ZackXBT claims to have identified an additional $45 million in funds stolen from Coinbase users through social engineering scams in the past seven days alone. According to the onchain detective, the $45 million figure represents the latest financial losses in a string of social engineering scams targeting Coinbase users, which ZackXBT said is a problem unique among crypto exchanges: Cointelegraph reached out to Coinbase but was unable to get a response by the time of publication. Read more

The brokerage firm is reportedly considering Arbitrum, Ethereum and Solana for the new platform.

Road rage victim posthumously forgave his killer via artificial intelligence. The judge was so moved he added a year to the killer's sentence.

Also: Bitcoin Devs Debate OP_RETURN, World Network Launches in U.S., and Aztec Testnet Launches

Blockchain investigator ZachXBT revealed that Coinbase users lost another $45 million over the past week due to coordinated social engineering scams.  The update, shared on his Telegram channel, identifies multiple wallet addresses connected to the theft and links the latest activity to a broader pattern of crypto heists that has persisted for months. The report […] The post ZachXBT reveals Coinbase users lost another $45M in a week to ongoing social engineering scams appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Scott Bessent suggested support for the stablecoin and market structure bills being considered in Congress in response to a question about China. Speaking at a hearing, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested support for two crypto-related bills moving through Congress. Bessent addressed lawmakers at a May 7 hearing of the House Financial Services Committee, saying that the United States should be the “premier destination for digital assets” in response to a question about American dominance over China in crypto-related innovation. The Treasury Secretary added that “good market structure” and “stablecoin legislation” could help ensure this outcome. Bessent’s remarks echoed those of other Republican lawmakers and President Donald Trump, who initially claimed he wanted to make the US the “crypto capital of the world” during his 2024 campaign. The Treasury Secretary was likely referring to the draft of a digital asset market structure bill released by House Republicans on May 6 and the GENIUS bill to regul...

Manche admits mistakes but denies personal profit, blaming 'opportunistic administrators' and shadow decision-makers for his woes.

"We would like to request that the SEC file an amicus in support of the argument that Ether is a security," the NY attorney general's office wrote.

The malware, LOSTKEYS, can steal files from hard-coded extensions and directories, according to Google. Threat group COLDRIVER is using new malware to steal documents from Western targets, according to a May 7 report from Google Threat Intelligence. The malware, called LOSTKEYS, shows the evolution of the group from credential phishing to more sophisticated attacks. According to the Google report, the new malware is installed through four steps. The process involves a “lure website” with a fake CAPTCHA, a PowerShell script downloaded to the user’s clipboard, some device evasion, and retrieval of the final payload. Lastly, the malware is installed. LOSTKEYS is capable of stealing files from extensions and directories. It can also send system information and running processes back to COLDRIVER. The address from which the parts of the attack come is “165.227.148[.]68” according to Google. Read more

New Jersey governor contenders have treated crypto as a distinguishing issue. Front-runners Mikie Sherrill and Steve Fulop have cited previous votes and personal investments, while PACs such as Fairshake and Stand With Crypto have invested in debates, illustrating the state-level role in regulation. The post New Jersey Governor Candidates Turn to Crypto – Could a Token Strategy Sway June Voters? appeared first on Cryptonews.