The bedrock of the United States law is its Constitution, in which the First Amendment protects the Freedom of Speech. Speech comes in all forms, and one of the most prolific forms of speech in modern days is code. In late March, the defense team for Roman Storm, co-founder of crypto mixer Tornado Cash, submitted the motion claiming the charges brought against him by the enforcement agency were a violation of his most basic, most protected freedom - the freedom of speech. On Friday, April 26, the Department of Justice submitted a memo to the courts rejecting that motion. Storm lawyers' reques ..read more

Tether, the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin USDT, has invested $200 million in Blackrock Neurotech, a brain-computer interface (BCI) technology developer. While Elon Musk's Neuralink tries to enable users to control computers with their minds, Blackrock Neurotech offers solutions to individuals with paralysis and neurological disorders. The firm has been in neurotechnology for over 15 years and offers products that are already in clinical and research use. Its technology primarily focuses on high-precision, implantable devices that record and stimulate brain activity, facilitating di ..read more

On April 30, in a Seattle court, U.S. District Judge Richard Jones delivered a sentence to one of the most prominent figures in the crypto industry, Binance founder and ex-CEO Changpeng Zhao. CZ was sentenced to four months in prison. The judge noted that the defendant took “extraordinary steps and significant steps” in cooperation with authorities and suggested that CZ is not likely to re-offend. There were repeated references to "matters that are under seal" from the defense side, indicating the depth of his cooperation. Zhao’s legal team provided over 160 support letters from friends and b ..read more

Today, a group of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) directly investing in cryptocurrencies made a cooler-than-anticipated debut in Hong Kong. This moment was set to mark a big shift in the global cryptocurrency market, as the city becomes the first market in Asia to offer the ability to trade cryptocurrencies at spot prices. The EFTs were issued by China Asset Management (CAM), Harvest Global Investments, and a partnership between HashKey Capital and Bosera Asset Management. The success of the funds is important for Hong Kong as it hopes to strengthen its reputation as a modern financial cent ..read more

Last week the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced the arrest of Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, founders of Samourai Wallet, a mobile cryptocurrency mixing service. The pair were charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. Rodriguez, 35, and Hill, 65, were apprehended on Wednesday, April 24. Hill was arrested in Portugal and faces extradition to the U.S. to face trial. Rodriguez pleaded not guilty following his appearance in the Southern District of New York on April 29 ..read more

EigenLayer, the pioneering restaking protocol boasting a total value locked of over $15 billion, has finally revealed the details of its anticipated Stakedrop, with the claim window opening in May. Despite the high level of excitement surrounding EigenLayer’s staking campaign, the Stakedrop has ultimately left many stakers disappointed. The primary concern is the size of the airdrop. EigenLayer announced it would allocate only 15% of the tokens to stakers, divided into three phases of 5% each. This means current stakers will receive just 5% of the supply. To qualify for more, users must conti ..read more

Ethereum's gas fees dropped to their lowest levels in six months this week, according to data from crypto analytics platform Santiment. Furthermore, according to data released by Dune Analytics, the median gas fee was recorded to be 6.43 gwei, which was the seventh lowest the price has ever reached in a single day over the past three years. Santiment reported on X that gas fees on the network dropped to $1.12 per transaction on April 27, against $15.21 on March 4. Historically, cryptocurrency traders tend to swing between extreme optimism ("to the moon") and pessimism, often manifesting in fl ..read more

Hivemapper is on the brink of a significant milestone, having covered nearly 200 million kilometers since its launch in 2022. This project aims to establish a global, decentralized mapping network, challenging Google’s dominance in the market.  Hivemapper is one of many Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network's (DePIN) projects that have gained traction over the past year. These systems are not controlled by a single entity but are distributed among multiple stakeholders. This is similar to decentralized finance (DeFi), shifting infrastructure from corporate to community control, a ..read more

Bitcoin block number 840,000 was mined on April 19, 2024, completing the fourth halving. It generated a record 37.6 BTC fee (over $2.4 million) as miners competed for the milestone block. The lucky winner was ViaBTC mining pool, and the block reward meant ownership of the first post-halving Satoshi. Following the quadrennial Bitcoin halving event, miners' revenue for creating a block was cut in half from 6.25 to 3.125 BTC. With the energy and technology costs remaining the same as before, mining might become more expensive if Bitcoin prices retreat. To minimize the impact ..read more

Yuga Labs, the start-up that created NFT hit collections BAYC and MAYC and owner of the rights of CryptoPunks and Proof studio collections, announced last Friday it would be restructuring its team. Co-founder and CEO Greg Solano shared a memo on X, which was sent to his team, where he admits that the company lost its creative drive in the bureaucracy haze inherent in being a $4 billion valuated company. "To put it simply: Yuga lost its way," he wrote. "The creative-first spirit that drove this company from inception has been getting muddied by labyrinthine corporate processes. We work hard an ..read more