Federal law enforcement officials have seized $54 million worth of cryptocurrencies from Christopher Castelluzzo, the leader of a New Jersey drug ring, and his co-conspirators. The funds were discovered in crypto wallets and were the laundered proceeds of the crew's mail-order cocaine and designer drug operations. Castelluzzo had intended to evade taxes and liquidate his holdings outside the country, and had discussed various offshore destinations for the crypto fortune while in prison. The U.S. Attorney's office stated that the forfeiture action should serve as a warning to those who believe their illicit behavior cannot be traced.

US Senator Cynthia Lummis posted on X platform, stating that an inaccurate report last week claimed that Hamas raised nearly $100 million through encrypted assets, when in fact the number was less than $500,000. In fact, cryptocurrency accounts for less than 1% of illegal activity worldwide, and considering it an illegal financial tool is a misunderstanding. Lummis said that there is no doubt that cryptocurrency assets are not the problem, and bad actors exist in all fields. The future of US cryptocurrency assets is brighter than ever.

US Senator Cynthia Lummis posted on X platform, saying that an inaccurate report last week claimed that Hamas raised nearly $100 million through encrypted assets, but in reality, the number is less than $500,000. Chainalysis' detailed report found that encrypted assets account for less than 1% of the annual illegal financial activities exceeding $2 trillion worldwide. After reports that Binance and Tether were engaged in illegal activities, I wrote to encourage the Department of Justice to complete the investigation, track the evidence, and consider criminal charges, because illegal activities by anyone are illegal. Lummis said that there is no doubt that encrypted assets are not the problem, and bad actors exist in all fields. The future of US encrypted assets is brighter than ever before.

According to CoinDesk, the UK government released its final rules on cryptocurrencies and stablecoins on Monday. The government plans to introduce cryptocurrency regulation in stages, starting with fiat-backed stablecoins, and then adding other cryptocurrency-related areas including algorithmic stablecoins.The document states that legislation on fiat-backed stablecoins is planned to be introduced in early 2024. <br>

According to the Deputy Secretary of the US Treasury, cryptocurrencies are not the primary source of funding for terrorist groups. While speaking at an event in London, Wally Adeyemo stated that terrorist financing is evolving and that crypto provides bad actors with a new way to move their funds. Adeyemo believes that the digital asset industry needs to work with authorities to prevent the use of crypto for illegal activities. He also mentioned that the USA PATRIOT Act's Section 311 is one way to prevent terror groups from using crypto to raise funds.

Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA team Dallas Mavericks, shared his true thoughts on cryptocurrency. Cuban said, "Cryptocurrency is still waiting for its Instagram moment. What cryptocurrency lacks is an app that grandma wants to use." When asked if he thinks cryptocurrency is dead, Cuban immediately said, "No. Absolutely not." However, the billionaire added, "But I do think there are some issues with cryptocurrency. First, most people, when they think of cryptocurrency, they think of speculation. That's not the true meaning of cryptocurrency. Second, cryptocurrency is actually about creating new applications that make things better and easier."

Sam Bankman-Fried testified in court this week, denying any wrongdoing between FTX and Alameda Research despite admitting “big mistakes."

Metropolis Holding Company announced its third quarter performance for 2023. As of September 30, 2023, the total deposit amount was $5.5 billion, an increase of $233 million or 4.4% from June 30, 2023, and a decrease of $209.9 million or 3.7% from September 30, 2022. The increase from June 30, 2023 was mainly due to a net increase of $286.1 million in vertical deposits, partially offset by a decrease of $53.1 million in deposits related to encrypted enterprises. The decrease in deposits related to encrypted enterprises reflects the company's ultimate exit from the encrypted vertical field. The decrease in deposits since September 30, 2022 was mainly due to a decrease of $757.3 million in deposits related to cryptocurrencies, partially offset by a net increase of $547.3 million in vertical deposits.

Lee Ju-yeol, the chairman of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) in South Korea, stated that the agency will take action against unfair disclosure of virtual assets (cryptocurrencies). Lee stated that he will take action on the issue of disclosure of circulating amounts of virtual assets such as "Sui" raised by Korean lawmaker Min Byung-doo during an audit of the Seoul Financial Supervisory Service Political Committee. Lee stated that they are asking consulting firm DAXA to take measures to win consumer trust, and if they manipulate the circulation volume or engage in unfair disclosure through monitoring, they will take action through consultation. However, he also acknowledged the limitations of the system, and it is difficult to control the issuance market and exchanges through the current Virtual Asset User Protection Act, so it is necessary to discuss this issue through secondary legislation. The FSS plans to support the establishment of virtual asset listing procedures, internal controls, issuance and circulation standards, and "establish a virtual asset market supervision inspection system" according to the work report submitted to the Korean Audit Office.

According to a popular crypto strategist, the native asset of the Cosmos blockchain ecosystem, ATOM, appears to be in a bearish trend and may drop further to $5.50 before experiencing a relief rally. The analyst also notes that Solana is currently stuck in a wide trading range between $16 and $27, while Woo Network's native asset, WOO, remains in a sideways trend with support at around $0.147. The strategist suggests that WOO may be a decent longer-term investment, but does not see it as a buy at the current time.