😱 Trump Did What?

📉 Trump’s newest tariffs crash crypto, !!️ FDUSD briefly depegged as Justin Sun alleges insolvency, 😬 former NY governor advised OKX on federal probe, and U.S. stablecoin regulation moves forward ➡️.

Author

Adrian Zmudzinski
April 03, 2025

Hi! In today’s edition:

  • 📉 Turmoil in crypto markets following Trump’s tariffs

  • ⚠️ FDUSD depegs after Sun alleges issuer insolvency

  • 🤝 Cuomo advised OKX during federal probe

  • 🏛️ STABLE Act advances in Congress

It’s never been easier to get rewarded in crypto!

We’re inviting you to try RockWallet, a multi-currency wallet that’s easy, quick, and secure. New accounts that make $50 purchases of a supported coin can earn up to $250 in LTC.

By Tikta

Crypto Retraces as Trump Reveals Reciprocal Tariffs 

Crypto markets saw a sharp decline after President Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping reciprocal tariffs, with ether (ETH) and Solana’s native token SOL leading the losses, each dropping around 10%.

Bitcoin slid 6% from $88,000 in the lead-up to the announcement to an intraday low of $82,220 shortly after Trump’s remarks.

Trump introduced a 10% baseline tariff on most imports and 25% tariffs on foreign-made cars, with reciprocal tariffs reaching 49% for some nations. The 34% reciprocal tariff on China will be added on to the existing 20% already imposed on the country, taking the total tariff rate on Chinese imports to 54%.

U.S. Bitcoin miners will now face higher costs due to potential tariffs on ASIC chips from China, which could put pressure on profitability.

Data from Coinglass shows that crypto derivatives traders saw around $490 million in liquidations over the last 24 hours, including around $182 million from bitcoin positions.

FDUSD Briefly Depegs After Justin Sun Claims First Digital Is Insolvent

The FDUSD stablecoin experienced a temporary depeg on Wednesday, dropping as low as $0.76 against USDC on Binance before partially recovering to around $0.98. The volatility follows public allegations, made by Tron founder Justin Sun, that First Digital Trust (FDT), the issuer of FDUSD, was unable to process redemptions.

Sun allegedly intervened to stabilize TrueUSD (TUSD), which he acts as advisor for, after $456 million of its reserves became trapped in illiquid investments due to alleged mismanagement and fraudulent activities, CoinDesk reported, citing court filings from Hong Kong.

The filings show that FDT, the fiduciary managing TUSD’s reserves, redirected funds to unauthorized entities without Techteryx’s (TUSD’s parent company) consent.

FDT allegedly channeled $456 million to Aria Commodities DMCC, a Dubai-based entity unrelated to the intended Cayman Islands-registered Aria Commodity Finance Fund. These diverted funds were then deployed into high-risk ventures, including mining operations, maritime assets, and renewable energy projects, which lacked liquidity for redemptions.

Sun provided emergency liquidity support through a loan structure to prevent TUSD from losing its peg.

In a statement posted on X, he urged users to secure their assets and said First Digital was “effectively insolvent.”

First Digital refuted these claims, on X,  as “completely false” and assured users that its stablecoin FDUSD was secured by U.S. Treasury bills. 

“This is a typical Justin Sun smear campaign to try to attack a competitor to his business,” they said.

Former NY Governor Advised OKX During Federal Probe: Report

Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo provided strategic advice to crypto exchange OKX during a federal investigation into its operations, which ultimately led to a $505 million settlement with U.S. authorities, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday citing sources familiar with the matter.

The probe, conducted by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, focused on OKX’s failure to obtain a money transmission license and implement adequate anti-money laundering (AML) controls between 2018 and 2024. 

The advisory work to OKX was provided after Cuomo resigned as governor of New York amid a scandal in 2021.

In addition to advising OKX executives on policy responses and navigating the criminal investigation, sources said Cuomo recommended hiring Linda Lacewell, former superintendent of the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), to bolster compliance efforts. She was named OKX’s chief legal officer this week.

OKX pleaded guilty in February to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and agreed to pay $84 million in penalties and forfeit $421 million in fees earned from U.S. clients.

House Financial Services Committee Advances STABLE Act

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee advanced the STABLE Act (Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy) in a 32-17 vote. Six Democrats voted in favor of the bill.

The bipartisan bill establishes a regulatory framework for dollar-denominated payment stablecoins, requiring issuers to maintain one-to-one reserves in U.S. dollars or short-term assets, enforce AML standards, and comply with capital requirements.

One of the bill’s key provisions is a mandate for non-U.S. stablecoin providers, such as Tether, to adhere to U.S. reserve and sanctions standards.

“The purpose of this bill has nothing to do with Donald Trump and Elon Musk, despite the hours of commentary we’ve heard today…” said Congressman Mike Lawler on X.

“The true purpose of the STABLE Act is to set up a regulatory framework to ensure transparency and accountability with stablecoins in the digital economy,” he added.

Mantle is building the largest sustainable hub for on-chain finance. Launching three new core innovation pillars: Enhanced Index Fund, Mantle Banking and MantleX. 

  • 🚫 A key Bitcoin developer mailing list was temporarily banned by Google on April 2 due to suspected spam reports, possibly from a targeted bot attack, disrupting discussions on protocol changes before being reinstated the next day.

  • 🧑‍💻 Thousands of low-cost Android smartphones sold online come preloaded with powerful Triada malware that gives attackers full device control, allowing them to steal crypto and sensitive data, according to cybersecurity firm Kaspersky.

  • 🎭 EY has upgraded its enterprise Ethereum layer 2 blockchain Nightfall to a zero-knowledge rollup design for faster, simpler, and more private transactions, citing improved client confidence following eased U.S. sanctions on privacy tools.

  • 📃 Senator Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Maxine Waters urged the SEC to preserve records related to Trump-backed crypto firm World Liberty Financial, citing concerns over potential conflicts of interest and undue influence on crypto regulation.

  • 📈 Despite a broader crypto market downturn, Curve Finance saw record Q1 2025 trading volumes of nearly $35 billion — up 13% year-over-year — driven by a surge in transactions, even as its total value locked and token price declined.

  • 👀 At a congressional hearing on April 2, Rep. Maxine Waters criticized President Donald Trump for allegedly using his political influence to profit from crypto ventures.

  • 🇯🇵 Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, TIS Inc, Ava Labs, and Fireblocks have partnered to explore the commercialization of stablecoins in Japan, aiming to use them for settlements of tokenized real-world assets.

  • 🏦 Grayscale Investments has launched two new bitcoin-focused ETFs aimed at generating income through options strategies leveraging bitcoin’s volatility as it expands its range of crypto investment products.

  • 💸 Over $2 billion was lost to cryptocurrency hacks in Q1 2025 — primarily due to a $1.4 billion Bybit breach linked to North Korean hackers — with most losses stemming from access control failures and increasingly professionalized scam networks.

  • 💹 VanEck registered a Delaware trust for a potential BNB ETF, making it the first U.S. firm to propose an exchange-traded fund linked to Binance’s BNB cryptocurrency, amid a broader wave of altcoin ETF filings.

  • 🇰🇷 South Korea will launch a retail CBDC trial from April to June 2025, allowing 100,000 participants to make digital payments — including at 7-Eleven stores, which offer a 10% discount on CBDC purchases — as part of a broader Bank of Korea CBDC initiative.

  • 💰 Fidelity launched nearly fee-free crypto retirement accounts, allowing Americans to invest in bitcoin, ether, and litecoin through traditional and Roth IRAs, signaling growing mainstream acceptance of cryptocurrency in U.S. retirement planning.

  • 🎮 Sony Electronics Singapore now accepts USDC payments via Crypto.com, highlighting Singapore’s growing role as a crypto-friendly hub embracing stablecoin adoption and Web3 innovation.

  • 💎 DoubleZero Protocol, backed by a $28 million raise, launched a validator-only token sale via CoinList to fund its high-speed fiber optic blockchain infrastructure ahead of a planned mainnet launch in late 2025.