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Crypto Kidnappings and Physical Attacks Are on the Rise—Here’s How to Stay Safe

After the shocking kidnapping of Ledger co-founder David Balland, many in crypto are asking: How do you truly secure your assets? Jameson Lopp, co-founder of Casa, gives tips on how to protect yourself from physical and digital threats.

The kidnapping of Ledger co-founder David Balland in France sent shockwaves through the crypto community, raising urgent questions about security for high-profile crypto holders. How do you protect yourself when criminals are willing to go beyond digital attacks and resort to violence?

In this episode of Unchained, Jameson Lopp, co-founder and Chief Security Officer of Casa, speaks about the growing trend of “wrench attacks”—physical assaults aimed at forcing crypto holders to transfer their assets. Lopp explains how these attacks are evolving, what makes someone a target, and which geographies are seeing the most attacks.

Plus, he shares what behaviors put you most at risk, how criminals are getting more organized, and why relying on exchanges for security is not as safe as you think.

If you hold significant crypto wealth, this is an episode you can’t afford to miss.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Now, let’s get into this week’s news!

In today’s edition:

🧠 DeepSeek AI shakes markets as its model disrupts Big Tech

📈 Trump-linked MOVE buy sparks controversy after a $2M purchase fuels insider trading speculation

💼 Trump Media launches Truth.Fi, a crypto and ETF platform with a $250M investment

🏦 FDIC chair doubts crypto debanking conspiracy, despite industry concerns.

🔄 Ai16z DAO rebrands as ElizaOS after pressure from a16z

🚨 Venice AI’s VVV token launch triggers probe over insider trading suspicions

📊 Solana, Dogecoin, and memecoin ETFs flood the SEC, testing approval limits

💰 Czech central bank considers Bitcoin reserves, a potential first in the West

⚖️ France expands Binance fraud probe, targeting money laundering and tax issues

💸 KuCoin fined $297M and exits the U.S. after pleading guilty to unlicensed money transmitting

😂 Gary Gensler ditches crypto for AI, heading to MIT

DeepSeek’s AI Disrupts Markets

Bitcoin’s price fell below $100,000 on Monday as China’s DeepSeek AI shook the financial landscape, rattling tech stocks and triggering widespread liquidations across the crypto market. The AI startup unveiled DeepSeek R1, an open-source model that claims to rival OpenAI’s most advanced systems at 98% lower costs — a revelation that sent shockwaves through Big Tech just ahead of major earnings reports.

The Nasdaq dropped 3.5% as investors reacted to DeepSeek’s potential to disrupt the AI economy, while bitcoin’s price slipped by 5% to $99,600 amid broader risk-off sentiment.

Markets have since recovered with bitcoin trading around $105,000 as of Thursday.

While AI-related tech stocks, including Nvidia and Tesla, saw declines, crypto AI tokens were hit even harder. AI-based projects such as launchpads, agents, and meme tokens were among some of the worst performing categories in a 24-hour period on Monday.

DeepSeek’s open-source breakthrough also sparked debate over AI decentralization. DeepSeek became the top mobile app on Apple’s App Store — surpassing OpenAI’s ChatGPT which some viewed as a shift in AI power dynamics.

Jake Brukhman, co-founder of venture firm CoinFund, called DeepSeek’s success “the biggest validation story of decentralized AI to date.” He challenged the long-held belief that Big Tech’s GPU dominance would create an insurmountable advantage, adding, “The cracks in OpenAI’s traditionalist Web2 strategy are showing.”

Despite the sharp decline in AI-related crypto tokens, Matthew Graham of Ryze Labs questioned the selloff’s logic, invoking Jevons paradox — the idea that greater efficiency can drive more adoption, not less.

“The barrier to entry for AI agents will trend to zero, just as it did with memecoins,” he said, suggesting DeepSeek’s model could fuel further AI innovation, rather than hinder it.

Trump-Linked Crypto Project Buys MOVE Tokens Prior to a Report

The price of MOVE, the native token for the Ethereum layer 2 network Movement, surged nearly 20% on Tuesday after World Liberty Financial — a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform tied to U.S. President Donald Trump — purchased roughly $2 million worth of the asset.

The transaction occurred just minutes before reports emerged that Movement’s developers might be in discussions with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) regarding blockchain integration.

Blockchain records from Arkham Intelligence revealed that World Liberty Financial executed multiple transactions acquiring MOVE tokens as prices climbed. The timing led some market watchers to speculate about possible insider buying.

Movement co-founder Rushi Manche told Unchained in an interview that he couldn’t confirm whether any discussions had taken place with the DOGE team. He said he was “not in the loop” with World Liberty Financial’s decision to buy the tokens and when asked to address the insider trading allegations said, “We make blockchain infrastructure, so I have no knowledge of anything that transpired.”

Trump Media Expands Into Crypto Finance With Truth.Fi

Following its recent blockchain-related activities, Trump Media & Technology Group has unveiled Truth.Fi, a financial services platform designed to integrate cryptocurrencies and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The company, which also operates the social media platform Truth Social, announced that its board has approved an investment of up to $250 million in digital assets, traditional investment vehicles, and crypto-related securities.

“Truth.Fi is a natural expansion of the Truth Social movement,” said Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes in a press release.

The investment strategy will be guided by asset management giant Charles Schwab, which will advise on Truth.fi’s portfolio allocations and the development of separately managed accounts (SMAs). With Truth.Fi’s launch, Trump continues his pro-crypto stance, a position that played a significant role in his campaign messaging.

FDIC’s Travis Hill Skeptical of Crypto Debanking Conspiracy

While many in the crypto industry believe that Operation Choke Point 2.0— the alleged systematic debanking of crypto firms — ended with the new administration, acting FDIC Chairman Travis Hill remains unconvinced that such a scheme ever truly existed.

In a Jan. 10 speech that caught the industry’s attention, Hill stated that the FDIC would not tolerate pressuring banks to deny services to law-abiding businesses. Sources familiar with his stance clarified to Unchained that this was not confirmation of a past anti-crypto conspiracy but rather a stance against potential future discrimination.

Hill has acknowledged reports of crypto firms struggling to maintain banking relationships and considered evidence such as pause letters from the Coinbase lawsuit. However, he also weighs regulators’ arguments that risk concerns — rather than bias — drove decisions.

As Hill awaits a potential permanent appointment to the FDIC, the search for conclusive evidence continues, with Coinbase’s chief legal officer Paul Grewal telling Unchained, “It’s going to come out, they can’t hide forever.”

Ai16z DAO Rebrands as ElizaOS Following a16z’s Request

The decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) formerly known as Ai16Z has rebranded to ElizaOS, following a request from venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). The move comes as AI-driven crypto projects continue gaining traction.

Chris Dixon, managing partner at a16z Crypto, clarified the firm’s stance on the project in an episode of Unchained, saying, “We were not connected with AI16z. We’ve asked them to change it. It was just creating a little bit of confusion.”

Eliza Labs founder Shaw Walters confirmed the rebrand in the project’s Discord, emphasizing that the change would not affect the DAO’s roadmap, governance, or tokenomics. The $ai16z ticker will remain unchanged until the community votes on potential modifications. However, Walters didn’t mention anything about a request from a16z, which was revealed in the podcast by Dixon and later confirmed to Unchained via email.

Initially launched on Solana in October, the AI-integrated DAO has amassed a market capitalization of nearly $800 million.

Venice AI’s VVV Token Launches Amid Insider Trading Probe

The newly launched VVV token from Venice AI made a splash on its first trading day, reaching a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of $1.6 billion just hours after going live on Ethereum’s Base network. Founded by crypto advocate Erik Voorhees, Venice AI provides privacy-focused access to AI models, including the Chinese DeepSeek R1, which recently surged in popularity.

Half of the 100 million VVV tokens were airdropped, with 25 million allocated to AI protocols on Base and another 25 million distributed among 100,000 early users of the Venice platform. Token holders can stake their VVV to access Venice AI’s API services, creating an innovative crypto-AI bridge.

However, the launch quickly faced controversy as Aerodrome, a decentralized exchange on Base, suspended two contributors over suspected insider trading. The exchange stated that internal monitoring flagged unusual trading activity within 30 minutes, prompting an investigation.

Aerodrome’s swift response was acknowledged by Voorhees, who commented on X, “Really appreciate Aerodrome’s transparency on this. They reached out and let us know when they found out.” The investigation remains ongoing.

Crypto ETF Filings Surge with Solana, Dogecoin, and Leveraged Funds

The race for cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) intensified this week as Cboe BZX Exchange, Bitwise, and Tuttle Capital Management submitted new applications to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

On Tuesday, Cboe BZX Exchange refiled 19b-4 applications for four Solana ETFs: the VanEck Solana Trust, Canary Solana Trust, Bitwise Solana ETF, and 21Shares Core Solana ETF. This marks a renewed push after previous applications were rejected under SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s administration. If accepted for review, the filings will enter a public comment period as part of the regulatory approval process.

Meanwhile, Bitwise Asset Management submitted an S-1 filing for a spot Dogecoin ETF, following its earlier registration of a Dogecoin trust in Delaware.

In a separate development, Tuttle Capital Management applied for 10 leveraged crypto ETFs, including funds tied to memecoins TRUMP, MELANIA, and BONK, as well as LINK and ADA. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart noted on X, “This is a case of issuers testing the limits of what this SEC is going to allow.”

Czech Central Bank Governor Proposes Bitcoin as a Reserve Asset

In a potential first for a Western central bank, Czech National Bank (CNB) Governor Aleš Michl has proposed investing a portion of the country’s €140 billion in reserves into bitcoin. Speaking to the Financial Times, Michl revealed that he will present the idea to the CNB’s board on Thursday, suggesting that up to 5% of the reserves could eventually be allocated to bitcoin if approved.

Michl emphasized bitcoin’s growing institutional adoption, pointing to BlackRock’s bitcoin ETF launch and U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent moves toward crypto-friendly policies, including the creation of a national digital asset stockpile. He acknowledged bitcoin’s extreme volatility, adding that bitcoin’s value could either skyrocket or collapse entirely, but defended the idea as part of a broader diversification strategy, stating, “For the diversification of our assets, bitcoin seems good.”Michl remains confident, suggesting that more central banks could follow suit in the next five years.

In related news, the Utah House Committee has approved a bill to establish bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset, positioning the state alongside Arizona in adopting bitcoin for public funds. If passed by the Senate, Utah could invest, stake, and lend digital assets, further solidifying its crypto-friendly regulatory stance.

French Authorities Expand Binance Fraud Investigation

French prosecutors have intensified their money laundering and tax fraud probe into crypto exchange Binance, investigating alleged offenses committed in France and across the European Union from 2019 to 2024, according to Reuters. The inquiry, led by the Paris public prosecutor’s economic and financial crime unit (JUNALCO), follows complaints from users who claim they lost funds due to misleading information and Binance’s alleged unauthorized trading activities before securing regulatory approval in 2022.

Binance has denied all allegations, stating it will “vigorously fight any charges.” The investigation adds to the exchange’s ongoing global legal challenges, including a $4.3 billion U.S. settlement and the sentencing of its former CEO, Changpeng Zhao, to four months in prison for violating anti-money laundering regulations.

KuCoin Pleads Guilty, Agrees to $297 Million Settlement and U.S. Exit

KuCoin, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, has pleaded guilty to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and agreed to pay a $297 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The settlement includes a $112.9 million criminal fine and $184.5 million in forfeitures.

The exchange, which served 1.5 million U.S. users, admitted to failing to implement anti-money laundering (AML) and Know-Your-Customer (KYC) measures, allowing billions of dollars in suspicious transactions linked to darknet markets, ransomware, and fraud schemes.

As part of the plea deal, KuCoin will exit the U.S. market for at least two years, while co-founders Chun “Michael” Gan and Ke “Eric” Tang entered into deferred prosecution agreements and will forfeit $2.7 million.

Fun Bits: Gary Gensler Trades Crypto Crackdowns for AI Algorithms

After years of keeping crypto on a short leash, former SEC Chair Gary Gensler is headed back to MIT — but not to teach blockchain this time. Instead, he’s taking his talents to artificial intelligence. That’s right, the same guy who made life miserable for crypto projects is now training the next generation of AI overlords.

Gensler will co-lead MIT’s FinTech AI @CSAIL initiative, working alongside academics and industry players to explore AI’s impact on finance. This marks a full-circle moment for the former SEC chief, who once taught blockchain at MIT, then spent four years cracking down on it, and is now returning to teach something else entirely. Maybe he just got tired of telling people their tokens were securities.

Watch the Recap!