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Proof of Operation Chokepoint 2.0
So, now we know. Operation Chokepoint 2.0 was real.
There really was a co-ordinated federal government effort to de-bank crypto following the collapse of three mid-sized crypto-friendly lenders (Signature, Silvergate and Silicon Valley Bank) in March 2023. The crypto industry, led by VC-commentator <a href=»https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2023/03/22/the-reality-behind-the-crypto-banking-crackdown-operation-choke-point-20-is-here?_gl=1*ty8r43*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTg2ODk5NzQzMS4xNzMzNTA2ODIx*_ga_VM3STRYVN8*MTczMzUwNjgyMC4xLjAuMTczMzUwNjgyMC4wLjAuNzkzOTM0MjI0″ target=»_blank»>Nic Carter</a>, has long suspected and railed against de-banking. But, until today, we didn’t have much documentary evidence.
Friday morning, internal communications at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp were released after a research firm (History Associates Inc.) hired by Coinbase sued to get them uncovered.
“The heavily-redacted documents emerged on Friday, showing the banking regulator slamming the brakes on lenders offering or considering products and services in the digital assets sector,” CoinDesk’s Jesse Hamilton wrote in <a href=»https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/12/05/u-s-regulator-told-banks-to-lay-off-crypto-letters-obtained-by-coinbase-reveal» target=»_blank»>his report</a> today.
«We respectfully ask that you pause all crypto asset-related activity,» the FDIC wrote in one of 23 internal letters released by Coinbase. «The FDIC will notify all FDIC-supervised banks at a later date when a determination has been made on the supervisory expectations for engaging in crypto asset-related activity.»
The FDIC and other regulators have long denied they pressured the three struggling banks to stop banking crypto companies, many of which were suffering following the collapse of FTX and others in late-2022.
«The letters show that this was no conspiracy theory at all, that this was not just rank speculation or the musings of a paranoid industry,» Grewal told Hamilton. «There was a concerted plan on the part of the FDIC that they carried out — without any reluctance — to deny banking services to a legal American industry. That should give everyone great pause.»
Debanking has been a hot issue recently, after mega-VC Marc Andreessen <a href=»https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2024/12/02/de-banking-deserves-urgent-attention» target=»_blank»>discussed Operation Chokepoint 2.0</a> on Joe Rogan’s podcast. The House Committee on Financial Services heard testimony from several crypto leaders this week attesting to <a href=»https://www.youtube.com/live/eyl2qzHCiW8″ target=»_blank»>difficulties gaining banking services.</a> The heavily redacted letters show FDIC demanding onerous compliance information while being unclear as to what was actually required of the banks before they could approve the provision of financial services to the businesses. Hamilton writes that some letters show the “agency wasn’t yet sure what regulatory filings would even be required before it could green-light crypto business.”
Grewal said Coinbase will petition the court to allow the documents to be released unredacted.
Aside from hurting the crypto industry, critics argue financial services are a <a href=»https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2024/12/02/de-banking-deserves-urgent-attention» target=»_blank»>fundamental right</a> and that the federal government should not be able to <a href=»https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2024/10/03/why-you-should-still-care-about-silvergate» target=»_blank»>effectively outlaw legal businesses</a>. Operation Chokepoint 2.0 is a reference to an official Obama Administration policy to restrict financial services to payday lenders, gun sellers and <a href=»https://reason.com/2017/08/18/good-bye-and-good-riddence-to-operation/» target=»_blank»>other “undesirable” businesses</a>.
It’s now clear that de-banking was as much a matter for crypto as it was for porn, which says a lot about the current administration’s attitude towards it.
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Judge Overturns Convictions in Mango Markets Exploiter’s Crypto Fraud Case

A U.S. judge has overturned the fraud and market manipulation convictions of Avraham Eisenberg, the crypto trader accused of draining $110 million from the now-defunct decentralized finance protocol Mango Markets.
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian ruled that prosecutors failed to prove Eisenberg made false representations to the platform.
He also moved to acquit Eisenberg of wire fraud charges. The investor manipulated the price of Mango’s native token MNGO with massive trades by more than 1,000% in 20 minutes before getting the protocol to allow him to borrow and withdraw $110 million in various cryptocurrencies, backed by the inflated collateral.
Eisenberg’s defense argued that the platform, which operated through smart contracts, allowed anyone to transact freely and that he simply exploited a vulnerability. The judge agreed, stating that Mango’s permissionless structure meant that there “was insufficient evidence of falsity” from prosecutors regarding Eisenberg’s representation to Mango Markets.
Eisenberg was arrested in December 2022, and while this case collapsed, he is still currently serving a four-year sentence handed out after he pleaded guilty to the possession of child sexual abuse material.
“From the beginning, we said this case was fatally flawed,” his attorney Brian Klein of Waymaker LLP said. “We are very pleased for Avi that the judge granted our motion and dismissed the case.”
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Swiss watchmaker Franck Muller Unveils Limited Edition Solana Watch

If you’ve ever wanted to have your Solana wallet on your wrist while flexing your wealth, Swiss watchmaker Franck Muller is making that a reality.
The watch market is stepping into the Web3 ecosystem with a Solana-inspired, limited-edition series of watches that contain an embedded unique QR code to directly link to the user’s Solana address.
The company’s Solana-inspired watch collection is limited to 1,111 units that will set buyers back 20,000 Swiss francs (around $24,300).
While the watches feature a unique design that could appeal to Solana ecosystem participants, their launch comes at a time when, unfortunately, flaunting crypto-related wealth is becoming risky.
The cryptocurrency industry has seen dozens of physical attacks just this year, with a notable case seeing the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, CEO of crypto platform Paymium, being targeted in a daytime attempted kidnapping. The attack was filmed and shared on social media.
While that kidnapping attempt failed, an earlier one in the same city saw the father of a crypto millionaire get abducted. Police managed to rescue the man, but not before his finger was severed.
Earlier this year, the co-founder of hardware wallet maker Ledger, David Balland, along with his wife, was abducted from his home and saw similar treatment. The couple was later rescued by authorities, and a ransom that had been paid out was seized.
There have been many other similar attacks in recent months.
Franck Muller is pitching the collection as a «phygital» (physical-digital) symbol of identity and ownership in the crypto age. While the watch is certainly a piece of crypto mythos, it may be a collectible that investors may not want to show off.
Read more: ‘Major Wake-Up Call’: How $400M Coinbase Breach Exposes Crypto’s Dark Side
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A Small Food Firm Buys 21 bitcoin, Jumping on BTC Treasury Trend, Shares Fall Anyways

DDC Enterprise (DDC), an Asian food company, has announced the acquisition of 21 BTC as part of a long-term plan to incorporate the cryptocurrency into its corporate treasury.
The company, led by founder and CEO Norma Chu, exchanged 254,333 class A ordinary shares for BTC, in a transaction valued at roughly $2.28 million, according to a press release.
The move positions DDC among a growing cohort of public companies using BTC as a treasury asset. Two more purchases totaling 79 BTC are expected in the coming days, bringing the company’s initial holdings to 100 BTC.
In a shareholder letter issued last week, Chu outlined plans to accumulate up to 500 BTC within six months and aim for 5,000 BTC in three years.
While companies adopting bitcoin as a strategic treasury asset often see major price rises, DDC saw the opposite. The company’s shares dropped more than 12% on Friday’s trading session, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.6% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1%.
DigiAsia (FAAS), for example, saw its share prices surge more than 90% in a single trading session after announcing a $100 million BTC treasury plan earlier this month.
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