Autor Cointelegraph By Turner Wright

The military government of Myanmar released the text of a bill aimed at combating online fraudsters, with several penalties related to cryptocurrencies and scam centers.According to the text of the Anti-Online Fraud Bill, made public on Thursday, Myanmar’s parliament, the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, proposed the law in response to online fraud in the country, which it said challenged its “sovereignty and stability.” The law stated that anyone who was convicted of committing “digital currency fraud” or online fraud could face from ten years to life in prison, and possibly the death penalty.In addition, the law set out conditions under which the death penalty would be imposed, including those related to the country’s scam centers. Anyone responsible for the death of an individual who had been coerced or exploited into committing online fraud would receive a sentence of death.Source: Myanmar governmentThe proposed law and its potential penalties were some of the most severe imposed globally for digital currency fraudsters amid scam centers cropping up in areas of Southeast Asia. In January, China reportedly ordered the execution of 11 people linked to Myanmar scam centers that had been responsible for trafficking Chinese nationals.Related: Scammers use Gmail dot alias trick to spoof Robinhood in phishing scamInternational authorities have been working to combat human trafficking in scam centers that continue to con people globally through schemes like pig butchering, romance scams, fake investments and more. The US announced in April that they had worked with authorities in China and Dubai to arrest more than 200 people and shutter nine centers. Myanmar’s military overthrew its civilian government in a 2021 coup d’état, resulting in its parliament not reconvening until March 2026 following elections the Council on Foreign Relations called “neither free nor fair.” According to a Wednesday notice, the government is scheduled to meet the first week of June and may consider the bill at that time.Americans lost billions to crypto scams in 2025According to an FBI report released in April, Americans’ losses from crypto-related scams were more than $11 billion in 2025 and more than $20 billion overall through online fraud. The agency cited a March executive order from US President Donald Trump, who authorized officials to work against “scam centers and cybercrime.”“The [US Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia] Scam Center Strike Force is investigating the worst scam compounds located in Southeast Asia,” said the FBI report. “Strike Force teams focus on identifying and pursuing key leaders—including Chinese organized crime affiliates operating in Cambodia, Laos, and Burma—to bring them to justice.”Magazine: ETH stalls at $2.4K five times, SOL to rally to $120: Market Moves

The $9 billion endowment of Ivy League university Dartmouth College reported new investments with exposure to cryptocurrencies, increasing the digital assets in its portfolio since January.In a Thursday filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the trustees of Dartmouth College reported that the university endowment held about $3.3 million worth of the Bitwise Solana staking exchange-traded fund (ETF).The trustees also disclosed about $3.5 million worth of the Grayscale Ethereum staking ETF and about $7.7 million of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF. The investments changed the endowment’s crypto exposure compared to that reported in January, when the same number of shares of BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF were worth more than $10 million and it held about $5 million in the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF. Source: SECDartmouth’s initial crypto exposure, which it reported purchasing in 2025, marked another US university endowment moving closer to digital assets. Harvard, with a reported endowment of about $57 billion in 2025, reported holdings in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust and Ethereum Trust in January.Related: JPMorgan lifts Bitcoin ETF exposure in Q1, led by BlackRock’s IBITThe SEC first approved listings of spot ETFs tied to Bitcoin in January 2024, including BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust and the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF. The regulator has since given the green light to ETFs tied to Ether, Solana, Dogecoin, XRP, and has other applications under consideration. Bitcoin ETFs record largest daily outflow since JanuaryThe SEC filing came shortly after ETFs tied to Bitcoin recorded $635.2 million in daily outflows, marking the largest increase since January. On Jan. 29, the funds lost more than $800 million, led by losses in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust.The price of Bitcoin was $81,237 at the time of publication, having risen about 2% in the previous 24 hours, tapping the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA), a dynamic support level.However, despite the rally, the price of BTC remains well below the 365-day EMA and the all-time high of about $126,000 reached in October 2025.Magazine: eToro founder timed Bitcoin top perfectly due to belief in 4 year cycles

A US federal judge has sentenced the former chief revenue officer of defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius to time served after almost three years following his arrest on fraud and conspiracy charges.In a sentencing hearing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on Wednesday, Judge John Koeltl ordered that Roni Cohen-Pavon be sentenced to time served and one year of supervised release for his role in manipulating the price of Celsius’s CEL token and fraud on the platform. The former chief revenue officer initially pleaded not guilty to four charges following his arrest in September 2023, changing his plea to guilty about a week later.Alex Mashinsky at the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami. Source: CointelegraphCohen-Pavon was indicted along with former CEO Alex Mashinsky in July 2023 after the 2022 collapse of Celsius, which led to billions of dollars’ worth of investor and user losses. Cohen-Pavon, an Israeli citizen and resident, was outside the US when prosecutors filed the indictment, but later reentered the country for his arraignment. He posted a $500,000 bond in September 2023 and has been free to travel with some restrictions.With the sentencing of Cohen-Pavon and Mashinsky, who is already serving 12 years following his guilty plea, the criminal cases involving Celsius are winding down. The former CEO was ordered to pay $48 million as part of a forfeiture in his criminal case, while Cohen-Pavon agreed to pay more than $1 million and a $40,000 fine.Related: Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky settles FTC case with $10M payment“Whatever sentence the Court imposes, the deeper obligation will remain the same,” said Cohen-Pavon in a letter to Koeltl before his sentencing. “I will have to spend the rest of my life becoming, through my conduct, the husband, father, and man my family had every right to expect from me all along.” The sentencing memorandum for Roni Cohen-Pavon. Source: Court ListenerTornado Cash co-founder still potentially looking at SDNY retrialRoman Storm, the co-founder of crypto mixing service Tornado Cash, still faces a possible retrial on two charges in the Southern District of New York after a jury failed to reach a verdict in his trial last year. Prosecutors requested that a judge schedule the proceedings in October to retry Storm on money laundering and sanctions violation conspiracy charges, for which the jury deadlocked.The terms of Storm’s $2 million bail restrict the Tornado Cash co-founder to certain areas of New York, Washington and California. However, on Thursday, a federal judge granted him permission to “attend his niece’s high school graduation” in El Dorado Hills, California.Magazine: eToro founder timed Bitcoin top perfectly due to belief in 4 year cycles

US lawmakers in the Senate Banking Committee held a markup for a long-awaited crypto market structure bill, marking a pivotal step toward Congress’ effort to establish regulatory clarity for digital asset companies and markets.In a Thursday session of the US Senate Banking Committee, all 13 Republican members and two Democrats voted to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY), with nine Democrats also voting no on the bill. Senators Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks sided with Republicans to vote yay. The vote came after lawmakers proposed more than 100 amendments to the crypto bill, ranging from provisions on stablecoin yield to ethics restrictions.In opening statements before the vote, committee chair Tim Scott said that the bill was focused on protecting consumers, keeping innovation in the US, and safeguarding national security in regards to digital assets. Ranking member Elizabeth Warren said that the bill was “written by the crypto industry for the crypto industry,” adding that it would allow Republican lawmakers to “grease the skids” for US President Donald Trump’s “crypto grift.” “Nothing made it into this bill that wasn’t approved by the crypto industry,” said Warren.Senator Elizabeth Warren addressing lawmakers at the Thursday markup. Source: US Senate Banking CommitteeSenator Cynthia Lummis, one of the legislation’s chief Republican advocates, pushed back against many of Warren’s concerns, saying CLARITY was a “pro law enforcement” and “pro consumer” bill. Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat, said that the bill was not an example of bipartisan work, given that Scott had “arbitrarily” dismissed consideration of amendments Democrats had proposed. Related: Ethics remain sticking point as crypto market structure bill goes to markupWith the advancement of CLARITY in the banking and agriculture committees to address laws and regulations in the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), respectively, the bill is expected to head for a floor vote in the Senate soon.The bill will need 60 votes to pass. the Senate. The US House of Representatives will then need to approve the amended legislation.“I think it’s so difficult to get Senate floor time, and if they get something through the Senate that has the votes, I think the House will probably pass that identical language, and then it will be able to go on to the president’s desk for a signature,” Solana Policy Institute President Kristin Smith told Cointelegraph before the markup.Several amendments were debated and dismissed at markupMany of the amendments proposed at markup were either adopted or failed along partisan lines, addressing different aspects of regulating the crypto industry.Among those considered at markup included provisions on sandboxes for AI by Scott and ones on “tokenization loopholes” and money laundering by Warren, who cited reports that Iran was collecting tolls in crypto for ships using the Strait of Hormuz and otherwise evading sanctions. Lummis said that CLARITY would address the regulation of crypto mixers in response to Warren’s proposed amendment. Scott’s amendment was included, while Warren’s failed.Senator Cynthia Lummis addresses the Senate Banking Committee. Source: US Senate Banking CommitteeAnother amendment by Warren included a demand for US banking regulators to report on information related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, whom she described as an “early backer of crypto.” Lummis said the provision was not related to digital assets and should not be included. Lawmakers voted along party lines, and the amendment failed to pass. Republicans also voted against amendments proposed by Reed on stablecoins and digital dollars.Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat who expressed general support for the CLARITY Act at the markup, introduced an amendment that would give law enforcement more authority over crypto-related cases. The amendment failed along party lines.Democratic Senator Tina Smith proposed an amendment to prohibit federal agencies from bailing out crypto companies if another market crash were to occur. Calling it a “preventative measure” in response to volatility in the crypto markets, Smith and all Democrats voted in favor of the amendment, which failed along party lines.Ethics still a concern for DemocratsThe committee also considered an amendment from Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen over Trump’s potential conflicts of interest with the crypto industry through his family’s World Liberty Financial business and memecoins. Republican Senator Bernie Moreno and Scott defended the president, accusing Van Hollen of “ad hominem” attacks. All 13 Republicans voted against the provision.“The people involved directly in making these policies, from the president to the Congress, should not be able to be issuers of these particular assets and coins,” said Van Hollen.Senator Raphael Warnock withdrew an amendment in response to what he called “pure corruption” by the Trump administration, adding that he would not support any bill without these carveouts. Warren echoed these concerns in a separate amendment, which would continue to fund the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in response to the administration’s attempt to shutter the agency since 2025.Magazine: eToro founder timed Bitcoin top perfectly due to belief in 4 year cycles

Roni Cohen-Pavon, the former chief revenue officer of defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius, will likely turn over more than $1 million as part of a forfeiture order by US authorities ahead of his sentencing hearing.In a Tuesday court filing, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton said that Cohen-Pavon had consented to a $1,070,000 judgment “representing the amount of proceeds traceable” to the former Celsius executive’s crimes. Clayton said that Cohen-Pavon would receive credit for any funds, in cash or crypto that he had on Celsius, paid as part of the platform’s bankruptcy case.Source: PACERCohen-Pavon pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy to commit price manipulation related to Celsius’s CEL token in September 2023. Clayton did not recommend a specific sentence for the Celsius executive, instead asking the judge to consider the guidelines for an “appropriate sentencing reduction for a defendant who has rendered substantial assistance.” He is scheduled to appear for sentencing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on Thursday.The collapse of Celsius was one of the most significant bankruptcies in the crypto industry in 2022, possibly precipitated by the downfall of the Terra ecosystem and leading to large exchanges including FTX filing for Chapter 11 in the US. Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May 2025 after pleading guilty to commodities and securities fraud and agreed to a forfeiture of more than $48 million.Related: Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky settles FTC case with $10M paymentIn April, Cohen-Pavon’s lawyers asked that he be sentenced to time served, citing his cooperation agreement with the government and potential role in Mashinsky’s guilty plea. They said that the Celsius executive took “full responsibility for his conduct.”“I pleaded guilty because I am guilty,” said Cohen-Pavon in a letter to Judge John Koeltl. “I participated in the manipulation of the CEL token. I did not stop it when I should have, and I did not leave when I could have. I take full responsibility for that.”Judge orders $10 million added to judgment of former FTX CEOOn Thursday, SDNY Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered that $10 million in assets connected to Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried be used toward the former FTX CEO’s forfeiture agreement. Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay more than $11 billion as part of his role in defrauding FTX users and investors.In April, Kaplan denied Bankman-Fried’s motion for a new trial, with the former CEO claiming that the judge showed “manifest prejudice” during his time in court in 2023. His appeal to overturn his conviction and sentence with the Second Circuit was still pending as of Wednesday.Magazine: eToro founder timed Bitcoin top perfectly due to belief in 4 year cycles