JUST IN: SEC launches new Crypto Task Force website

BREAKING: Kanye West has made a shocking revelation, implying that certain celebrities and influencers who claim their accounts were hacked after promoting cryptocurrency projects might have actually been part of a coordinated scheme. In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter), Kanye revealed he was offered $2 million as part of a suspicious deal to promote a fake cryptocurrency.

The alleged terms of the deal included an upfront payment of $750,000, followed by $1.25 million after a promotional post stayed online for eight hours. The deal also reportedly instructed Kanye to later claim that his account was hacked, distancing himself from the promotion. This type of strategy would allow the scam to mislead the public while leveraging celebrity influence to drive massive investments into fraudulent projects.

Kanye stated that he rejected the offer and severed ties with the individual behind the proposal, emphasizing his unwillingness to defraud his audience. His claims cast a new light on past incidents where public figures have denied responsibility for endorsing questionable cryptocurrencies, raising questions about the legitimacy of those denials and their involvement in similar schemes.

This revelation could have far-reaching implications, exposing unethical practices within the cryptocurrency space and among celebrities willing to exploit their platforms for financial gain.

In a significant policy shift, Russia’s central bank has quietly opened the door for a “limited circle of investors” to trade Bitcoin. The Bank of Russia has also proposed new regulations to govern crypto investments.

A recent leak reveals that Russia is leveraging Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to facilitate trade with China and India, effectively bypassing international sanctions.

Russian oil companies are reportedly using crypto transactions to convert rubles into yuan and rupees, with plans to continue even if sanctions are eventually lifted.

This development coincides with reports that the Trump administration has paused the sale of seized Bitcoin and is working on making Bitcoin a U.S. strategic reserve asset.

Meanwhile, Russian lawmakers are advocating for a similar Bitcoin reserve, in line with Putin’s earlier praise of cryptocurrency as a safeguard against Western financial dominance.

Source: Forbes

Bpifrance, the French state-owned investment bank, has announced its plans to invest 25 million euros ($27 million) in digital assets to bolster the country’s blockchain industry. The bank will be purchasing and holding crypto tokens related to decentralized finance (DeFi) such as tokenization and staking.

This initiative aims to support local blockchain projects in their early stages to contribute to the growth of the blockchain industry in France. Bpifrance stated, “Having the ability to invest directly in digital assets is a significant advancement for us and a pioneering move among sovereign wealth funds.”

France has been establishing itself as a prominent crypto hub in 2022, taking proactive measures ahead of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation. This strategy has attracted several major cryptocurrency companies to set up their European operations in the country.