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US Law Firm Seeks Court Order to Redistribute $344M in USDT Tied to Iran

Law firm Gerstein Harrow LLP has filed a fresh motion in a miscellaneous enforcement case, seeking more than $344 million in frozen USDt stablecoins that the firm says are linked to Iranian entities. The filing argues that the plaintiffs are owed over $532 million in compensatory damages and more than $1.8 billion in punitive damages tied to acts of terrorism allegedly sponsored by Iran, covering a span of more than 25 years. The move forms part of a broader lawsuit aimed at recouping digital assets as compensation for victims of state-sponsored violence by North Korea and Iran, a strategy that has sparked considerable debate within the crypto community. In May, Gerstein Harrow filed a restraining notice against the Kelp decentralized autonomous organization, attempting to block the transfer of frozen Ether tied to the $293 million Kelp exploit in April. Critics have argued that such tactics can delay payments to victims of hacks, potentially deprioritizing those whose losses are direc...
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South Korea to Unveil Tokenized Securities Regulations in July

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) is accelerating the drafting of a formal framework for tokenized securities, with a detailed rule package slated for release in July as the country choreographs a 2027 transition of blockchain-based securities into its capital markets regime. The measures are expected to outline a roadmap for tokenizing assets such as stocks, bonds and money market funds, and may contemplate adjustments to over-the-counter trading limits as well as the pooling of similar underlying assets through fractional investment products. The FSC disclosed the plan at the second meeting of its public-private tokenized securities council, created in March to design issuance, trading, infrastructure and settlement rules ahead of the framework’s 2027 rollout. “The goal is to make an announcement in July,” stated FSC Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young, underscoring that the forthcoming rules will serve the “institutionalization” of tokenized securities. The July package wil...
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Myanmar military regime seeks life imprisonment for crypto fraud

Myanmar’s military government released the text of an Anti-Online Fraud Bill, signaling a hardening stance against digital currency scams and other online-fraud schemes as regional crime networks continue to evolve. The measure would impose severe penalties on those convicted of online fraud and, in particular, “digital currency fraud,” underscoring the regime’s resolve to curb fintech-enabled crime. The bill, made public this week, sets out lengthy prison terms for offenders—ranging from a minimum of ten years to life imprisonment—with the death penalty a possible outcome in certain circumstances. It also lays out conditions under which the death sentence could be applied, notably for those implicated in scam centers and for cases in which victims are coerced or exploited into participating in fraudulent activities. According to a government notice, the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, Myanmar’s parliament, could consider the draft law during its first session in June, following elections the auth...
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Myanmar Military Regime Proposes Life Sentence for Crypto Scammers

Myanmar’s military authorities have published the text of an Anti-Online Fraud Bill that would impose severe penalties on digital currency fraud and online scam operations. The draft statute, presented to the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, frames online fraud as a threat to national sovereignty and stability and contemplates punishments ranging from long prison terms to the death penalty for certain offenses. According to Cointelegraph, the proposed legislation sets out that individuals convicted of “digital currency fraud” or related online fraud could face a sentence of 10 years to life imprisonment, with the possibility of capital punishment in specified circumstances. The bill also delineates the death penalty for those implicated in the operation of scam centers or for actions that resulted in the death of a victim coerced or exploited into committing fraud. The government has underscored the aim of curbing organized online fraud networks that have proliferated in parts of Southeast Asia. Th...
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Augustus CEO: Banks Can't Rebuild for AI and Stablecoins

Augustus Bank N.A. has secured conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to charter the first clearing bank designed for an AI-enabled, fully reserved stablecoin regime. The move, backed by the GENIUS Act framework, seeks to create a federal structure for payment stablecoins while clarifying how banks and select nonbank entities can issue and integrate dollar-pegged tokens under federal oversight. Augustus disclosed the conditional approval in a PR Newswire release and now aims to launch a Dallas, Texas–based national bank centered on AI-driven compliance and highly automated back-office operations. Founder Ferdinand Dabitz told Cointelegraph that the institution is “a couple of months” from full approval and launch, though final clearance remains contingent on pre-opening conditions. The claim underscores Augustus’ belief that the current clearing ecosystem—dominated by large, legacy banks—needs a wholesale rebuild rather than a retrofit of existing ...
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OCC backs stablecoin bank; Augustus CEO says AI won’t rebuild banks

According to Cointelegraph, Augustus Bank N.A. has reached a regulatory milestone as the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted conditional approval for the institution to pursue a national charter under the GENIUS Act. The development marks a pivotal moment for a project that envisions a banking model built around fully reserved stablecoins and AI-powered compliance, signaling a potential shift in how clearing and settlement could be reimagined for the digital era. The GENIUS Act created a federal framework for payment stablecoins and clarified how banks and certain nonbank entities can issue and integrate dollar-pegged tokens under federal oversight, a framework Augustus plans to leverage as it moves toward a full national charter. Final approval remains contingent on pre-opening conditions, but Augustus’ leadership asserts that the path to a full launch is now measured in weeks rather than years. Ferdinand Dabitz, Augustus Bank’s chief executive, told Cointeleg...
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Bitcoin Holds Above $80K as CLARITY Act Passes, Breakout Triggers Ahead

Bitcoin pulled back after briefly testing the $82,000 level on Thursday, stalling at a zone that has repeatedly resisted recent advances. The intraday move came as the Senate Banking Committee moved forward the CLARITY Act, a development that traders see as a potential catalyst for institutional interest—but one that has yet to overcome the stubborn overhead supply and a cooling cycle in spot Bitcoin ETF flows. Analysts say the next leg higher will hinge on whether BTC can flip the $82,000–$84,000 region into sturdy support, a setup that could rekindle momentum toward higher targets. At the same time, the path ahead will likely depend on renewed institutional demand, a factor that has shown signs of waning amid uneven ETF inflows in recent weeks. Key takeaways BTC must convert resistance into support: A sustained move above the $82,000 mark, ideally into a new support floor, is needed to reassert bullish control. ETF demand remains uncertain: Spot Bitcoin ETF inflows have cooled, wit...
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