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Top Stories of The Week
Donald Trump signs executive order for Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that creates a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” and a “Digital Asset Stockpile,” both of which will initially use cryptocurrency forfeited in government criminal cases.
“Just a few minutes ago, President Trump signed an Executive Order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve,” White House AI and crypto czar David Sacks said in a March 7 post on X.
“The Reserve will be capitalized with Bitcoin owned by the federal government that was forfeited as part of criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings,” he added.
Additionally, a March 6 fact sheet from the White House said the order also establishes a “U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile,” which Sacks said would be made up of cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin.
SBF sent to solitary confinement over Tucker Carlson interview: Report
Former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried has reportedly been sent to solitary confinement after taking part in an interview with right-wing political commentator Tucker Carlson, which was not approved by prison authorities.
“This particular interview was not approved,” a representative for the US Bureau of Prisons told The New York Times on March 7.
According to a person briefed on the situation, after Bankman-Fried’s interview with Carlson was published, he was sent to solitary confinement at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, where he has been held since August 2023.
The Bureau of Prisons is said to have strict rules on who can communicate with inmates and how they can do so.
OCC lays out crypto banking after Trump vows to end Operation Chokepoint 2.0
The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has eased its stance on how banks can engage with crypto just hours after US President Donald Trump vowed to end the prolonged crackdown restricting crypto firms’ access to banking services.
“Crypto-asset custody, certain stablecoin activities, and participation in independent node verification networks such as distributed ledger are permissible for national banks and federal savings associations,” the OCC said in a March 7 statement.
The OCC confirmed in a document titled “Interpretive Letter 1183” that OCC-supervised financial institutions no longer need “supervisory nonobjection” to engage with crypto-related activities.
“Today’s action will reduce the burden on banks to engage in crypto-related activities and ensure that these bank activities are treated consistently by the OCC,” Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney E. Hood said.
FDIC resists transparency on Operation Chokepoint 2.0 — Coinbase CLO
Some US government agencies continue to deny transparency regarding their role in Operation Chokepoint 2.0, a period during the Biden administration when crypto and tech founders were allegedly denied banking services, according to Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal.
The collapse of crypto-friendly banks in early 2023 sparked the first allegations of Operation Choke Point 2.0. Critics, including venture capitalist Nic Carter, described it as a government effort to pressure banks into cutting ties with cryptocurrency firms.
Despite recent regulatory shifts, agencies like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) continue to “resist basic transparency” efforts, Grewal said in a March 8 post on X.
“They haven’t gotten the message,” he wrote.
US will use stablecoins to ensure dollar hegemony — Scott Bessent
United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US government will use stablecoins to ensure that the US dollar remains the world’s global reserve currency during the White House Crypto Summit on March 7.
Bessent reiterated the Trump administration’s promise to end the war on crypto and committed to rolling back previous IRS guidance and punitive regulatory measures. Bessent then turned his attention to stablecoins and said:
“We are going to put a lot of thought into the stablecoin regime, and as President Trump has directed, we are going to keep the US [dollar] the dominant reserve currency in the world, and we will use stablecoins to do that.”
President Trump told the summit that he hopes lawmakers will get a comprehensive stablecoin regulatory bill to his desk before the August congressional recess.
“I think there’s more than 50% chance we will see all-time highs before the end of June this year.”
Winners and Losers
At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $86,630 Ether (ETH) at $2,141 and XRP at $2.39. The total market cap is at $2.85 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Cardano (ADA) at 30.43%, Bitcoin Cash…
cointelegraph.com