Return to Golden Morning News Trump claims he will be the cryptocurrency president as AIdriven cryptocurrency crime rates significantly increase

Top Headlines
▌Trump Claims He Will Be the “Crypto President” at Fundraising Event
According to sources at the fundraising event, Trump raised $12 million during an event held at the home of tech entrepreneur and investor David Sacks in San Francisco. Social Capital CEO Chamath Palihapitiya co-hosted the event. Famous crypto leaders such as Gemini founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss also attended. Trevor Traina, Chief Business Officer of Tools for Humanity and former US Ambassador to Austria, told Reuters that Trump stated at the fundraising event that he will be the “Crypto President.” Jacob Helberg, an advisor at Palantir Technologies, told Reuters that Trump explicitly mentioned that “Biden and Gensler’s crackdown on cryptocurrency will stop within an hour of Trump’s second term in office.”
▌Elliptic: Increased Utilization of Artificial Intelligence in Cryptocurrency-Related Crimes
According to a new report from Elliptic, artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being utilized by criminals in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. The report highlights the growing use of generative AI by criminals to create deepfakes and other deceptive materials to conduct crypto scams. Additionally, scams related to AI, investment platforms, Ponzi schemes, and fake trading bots have significantly increased. Scammers often use popular technologies and jargon to create tokens or investment schemes, leading to exit scams. A notable incident involved a fake AI trading bot scam called iEarn in 2023, resulting in approximately $6 million in losses. The surge in AI trading bots prompted a warning from the US CFTC in January. The report also mentions that besides creating tokens, fraudsters use AI to hype up fraudulent investment platforms. In particular, scammers attempt to enhance trading or arbitrage capabilities using the potential of AI. Furthermore, AI technology is being used to facilitate large-scale crypto scams and misinformation campaigns.
Market Update
As of the time of writing, according to Coingecko data:
BTC recently traded at $69,318.12, with a 2.02% intraday change;
ETH recently traded at $3,681.95, with a 3.22% intraday change;
BNB recently traded at $681.12, with a 3.27% intraday change;
SOL recently traded at $162.06, with a 4.68% intraday change;
DOGE recently traded at $0.148, with a 7.64% intraday change;
XPR recently traded at $0.4983, with a 4.30% intraday change.
Policy
▌Bloomberg ETF Analyst: US SEC Requests Information on Ethereum ETF Approval Under FOIA
In an interview with KITCO, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart called for a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request regarding the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) approval of a spot Ethereum ETF. Seyffart stated that the public request should search for emails, phone calls, and anyone who has interacted with SEC Chairman Gary Gensler to determine what transpired during the decision-making process. Due to the agency’s rapid stance change, there may be unused denial orders. Seyffart noted that the SEC approving a spot Ethereum ETF through an authorized agency is a common practice but a rare choice for the current issues. The authorization also implies unclear voting records. This decision is politically motivated, and unless someone comes forward to show me concrete evidence… everything is political. The main theory is that a member of the Biden administration called SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and influenced the agency’s decision.
▌Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance Requests Craig Wright to Compensate 85% of Legal Fees
The legal representatives of the Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA) requested Judge James Mellor on Friday to approve Craig Wright paying 85% of the organization’s legal fees incurred in the lawsuit. In February this year, COPA sued Wright to determine if he was the creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto. In March, Judge James Mellor ruled that Wright was not Nakamoto. One of COPA’s legal representatives, Jonathan Hough, requested a civil restraining order against Craig Wright to prevent him from filing any further lawsuits.
▌Mastermind of Ponzi Scheme GS Partners in South Africa Granted Bail After Arrest
On June 8, key figure Neil Leon De Waal of the virtual universe Ponzi scheme GS Partners was arrested by South African law enforcement at the end of May. He was granted bail on June 3. Authorities began investigating De Waal after receiving a complaint from a victim. De Waal reportedly recruited a new GS Partners investor in May 2023. The exact timeline is unclear, but the arrest warrant for De Waal was issued in December last year. He was arrested upon landing in South Africa, and his legal team claims he will prove his innocence.
▌New York Attorney General Opposes Dismissal Motion by DCG and Its Founder Silbert
The New York Attorney General’s Office filed a motion opposing a dismissal motion by Digital Currency Group (DCG), founder and CEO Barry Silbert, and former CEO of DCG’s wholly-owned cryptocurrency trading division Genesis, Soichiro “Michael” Moro, made in March. The NY Attorney General’s Office accuses Genesis, DCG, Silbert, and Moro, along with the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, of deceiving investors by conspiring to cover up a $1 billion hole on Genesis’ balance sheet due to the bankruptcy of the Singaporean crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC). The opposition motion reaffirms the office’s claims that “every defendant of DCG” (DCG, Silbert, and Moro) were well aware of their alleged fraudulent actions to make Genesis appear solvent, violating New York’s strict anti-fraud law, the Martin Act, which broadly prohibits any fraudulent business activities related to purchasing, exchanging, promoting, advertising, or selling any securities or commodities.
Blockchain Applications
▌Russia Plans to Start Using Digital Ruble for International Transactions in the Second Half of 2025
Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the Financial Markets Committee of the Russian State Duma, announced at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) that the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) will become widespread within five years and become the norm for international payments. He revealed that Russia may start using the digital ruble for international transactions in the second half of 2025, but first, it needs to undergo testing and widespread implementation domestically, including by legal entities. The Central Bank of Russia has been actively developing the digital ruble to modernize the national financial system and reduce reliance on traditional banking infrastructure. Since 2020, Russia has been testing various aspects of CBDC in pilot projects. The introduction of the digital ruble aims to promote safer and more efficient financial transactions, as well as strengthen Russia’s economic sovereignty and reduce the impact of foreign sanctions on its financial system. Aksakov also mentioned that initial tests of CBDC international transactions may involve China or Belarus, given the technological closeness and friendly relations between the two countries.
▌Peru Adopts Indian UPI System to Promote Financial Inclusion
The Central Bank of Peru (BCRP) has reached an agreement with the National Payments Corporation of India (NIPL) to create a system similar to India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) to promote financial inclusion and assist a large population of the unbanked. The new system supports offline transactions and enhances interoperability of payment systems. BCRP Governor Julio Velarde stated that the system will introduce new participants and complement the existing payment industry. NIPL has promoted the UPI system in several countries and has established partnerships with financial institutions like Google Pay.
Cryptocurrency
▌Base TVL Surpasses $8 Billion, Setting a New All-Time High
According to the latest data from L2BEAT, the total value locked (TVL) in Layer2 network Base has surpassed $8 billion, reaching $8.01 billion, marking a new all-time high with a 7-day increase of 11.0291%.
▌USDC Circulating Supply Increases by $200 Million in the Past Week, Total Circulation Reaches $32.5 Billion
Official data shows that as of June 6, Circle issued $2.3 billion USDC in the past 7 days and redeemed $2.1 billion USDC, resulting in a $200 million increase in circulation. The total circulation of USDC is $32.5 billion, with reserves of $32.6 billion, including approximately $3.6 billion in cash held by the Circle Reserve Fund.
▌Aave Community Proposal Suggests Increasing Aave V3 Ethereum Supply and Borrowing Cap for USDT
A proposal by Chaos Labs on the Aave official governance forum suggests increasing the supply and borrowing limit for USDT on Aave V3 on Ethereum.
▌Nascent Withdraws 447.67 Billion PEPE Tokens from Binance, Ranking First in Portfolio Allocation
According to Spot On Chain monitoring, Nascent withdrew 447.67 billion PEPE tokens ($548,000) from Binance 6 hours ago, with a current unrealized profit of $26,200 (+4.8%). Currently, PEPE ranks first in the venture capital’s portfolio allocation, followed by MKR, with total profits of $2.45 million (+248%).
Key Economic Developments
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What is Liquidity Staking?
Liquidity staking allows stakers to maintain liquidity of their staked tokens by using alternative tokens while earning additional yield through DeFi protocols. It enables cryptocurrency holders to participate in staking without giving up control of their holdings. This changes how users stake their assets. Projects like Lido have introduced liquidity staking, tokenizing staked assets in the form of tokens and derivatives.