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U.S. authorities confiscate $31M in crypto linked to 2021 Uranium Finance exploit The Southern District of New York (SDNY) and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in San Diego have seized roughly $31 million in cryptocurrency connected to the 2021 hack of Uranium Finance, according to CoinDesk. Uranium Finance was an automated market maker on the Binance BNB chain (previously known as Binance Smart Chain). In April 2021, a cybercriminal exploited a vulnerability in Uranium’s pair contracts, resulting in the theft of $50 million in crypto.

Tether co-founder Reeve Collins is launching a decentralized stablecoin that will compete with USDT in an increasingly crowded space that is still dominated by two players. The project will debut a stablecoin called USP on Ethereum and Solana blockchains in the second half of 2025, according to Bloomberg. Pi will use smart contracts to mint its USP stablecoin and minters will earn yields in the form of another token called USI. Competing With Tether The stablecoin will be backed by yield-bearing real-world assets such as bonds and over-collateralized with assets like Treasuries and money-market funds. “We view Pi Protocol as the evolution of stablecoins,” Collins told Bloomberg before comparing it to Tether. “Tether has been extremely successful in showcasing demand for stablecoins. But they keep all the yield. We believe 10 years later the market is really ready to evolve.” Collins, who was CEO from 2013 to 2015, and his partners sold Tether to the operators of the Bitfinex exchange in 2015. Back then, USDT stablecoin’s market value was less than $1 billion, today it is close to record highs of more than $140 billion. Pi Chief Executive Officer Bundeep Singh Rangar said, “You want assets that are non-correlated to crypto that are mid- to high yield, low risk.” “We have a mechanism that assesses the quality of the asset. They are ones that are vetted on their loss ratio and origination of where they are coming from,” he added. Regulations are shifting. Yield-bearing stablecoins will be the next trillion-dollar asset class — Pi Protocol (@piprotocol) February 18, 2025 Stablecoins got a green light this year with the election of US President Donald Trump. In his first days in office, he signed an executive order promoting US dollar-pegged stablecoin adoption while Congress is working on a regulatory framework for them. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong also wants to chip away at Tether’s market dominance. At the company earnings call last week, he said that the firm aims to make USDC “number one” but admitted that this ambition was a “stretch goal.” A Crowded Space USP is entering an extremely competitive stablecoin market that is dominated by Tether which has a share of 60% from a current supply of $141 billion. Circle’s USDC has seen its supply and market share grow in recent months, and it is currently $56 billion, giving it a market share of 24%. The third largest stablecoin is USDS, formerly DAI, which has just under $9 billion in circulation and a market share of almost 4%. The post Tether Co-Founder to Launch Yeild Bearing Stablecoin USP appeared first on CryptoPotato.

A disturbing trend emerges in the demographic profile of pig butchering scam victims. While older adults have historically been the main targets of financial fraud, these scams now focus on younger, tech-literate individuals. The latest data reveals that those aged 30 to 49 represent the majority of reported cases. Pig Butchering Scams A 2024 study by Cyvers analyzed 150 major crypto platforms, including exchanges, payment service providers, and banks, with a focus on the Ethereum blockchain. The research uncovered over 200,000 cases of Pig Butchering scams, which resulted in more than $5.5 billion stolen across 1.15 million fraudulent transactions. The impact of these scams varied significantly among platforms. While some exchanges and service providers saw extensive fraud, others reported minimal cases. Among the ten most affected platforms were three of the five largest crypto exchanges by trading volume, a crypto-friendly bank, and an institutional trading platform. The study demonstrated the scale of Pig Butchering fraud and the vulnerability of both centralized and decentralized financial systems. A significant portion of funds stolen in Pig Butchering scams is concentrated in a small number of cryptocurrencies. While fraudsters utilize various digital assets, Cyvers found that certain high-liquidity coins are preferred for illicit transactions. These assets are targeted due to their greater acceptance and ease of laundering. Stablecoins, particularly those with a strong market presence, are frequently used in scams due to their stability and seamless conversion. Additionally, major smart contract platforms experience high levels of fraudulent activity due to their dominance in decentralized finance (DeFi) and large transaction volumes. USDT and Ethereum each account for 45% of stolen funds, while USDC and DAI represent 1.7% and 1.3%, respectively. To evade detection, scammers leverage multiple micro-transactions to build victim trust and move funds across several wallets before reaching major exchanges. They use both centralized and decentralized protocols for laundering. Additionally, cross-chain bridging allows them to obscure transaction trails, often swapping assets for privacy coins such as Monero. Meanwhile, cashing out occurs through OTC markets, money mules, and gift card conversions, which makes tracking and recovery difficult. From Romance to Ruin Pig Butchering now accounts for over 60% of such cases. It is a highly adaptable scam that blends elements of romance fraud, investment scams, and Ponzi schemes. Unlike traditional rug pulls or quick deception tactics, Pig Butchering relies on long-term psychological manipulation. Scammers build trust through emotional connections, similar to romance scams, before luring victims into fraudulent investments. These schemes promise high returns and mimic Ponzi structures, before ultimately draining victims’ funds. This hybrid nature makes Pig Butchering particularly devastating and enables scammers to exploit victims on both emotional and financial levels. The post Over $5.5 Billion Stolen in Pig Butchering Scams: Cyvers Reports appeared first on CryptoPotato.

Sky initiates $1M daily buyback and burn of $SKY tokens Rune Christensen, founder of Sky (formerly MakerDAO), announced on X that the Sky Smart Burn Engine has begun repurchasing and burning SKY tokens at a rate of $1 million USDS per day. USDS is Sky’s dollar-pegged stablecoin.

Solana launched Solana Smart Wallets, eliminating gas fees and private key risks. In collaboration with Crossmint and Squads Protocol, these wallets enhance security and user experience by removing transaction approval prompts. The integration also allows developers to integrate wallets with just ten lines of code, offering scalability to millions of users. Crossmint’s Solana Smart Wallets introduce an embedded wallet system designed for security and ease of use. Unlike traditional wallets, programmable smart contracts replace seed phrases, private keys, and gas fees. Developers can build applications without facing the usual challenges of crypto transactions. Unlike traditional embedded wallets, which typically just protect a wallet private key using social log-ins, smart wallets are a new generation of wallets built as programmable smart contracts. They unlock major UX and security improvements compared to standard wallets. — Crossmint (@crossmint) February 20, 2025 For enterprises, flexible custody structures allow multiple keys to control one wallet address. Users manage access through preferred non-custodial wallets like Phantom, while businesses integrate a server-side admin signer to automate transactions securely. Smart wallets streamline operations, delivering a faster and more efficient experience. Squads Protocol powers the system, securing over $10 billion in digital assets. Strong security measures support large-scale adoption, making the technology ideal for financial institutions, gaming platforms, and AI-driven applications. One of the biggest pain points in blockchain adoption has been gas fees and signing prompts, often discouraging new users. Solana’s gasless model removes that hurdle, making blockchain technology more appealing for everyday applications. AI-driven agents, gaming platforms, and financial services now have a smoother way to interact with users. They're perfect for: ~ AI Agent providers: Launch fleets of non-custodial agents, with wallets controlled by the agent and owner ~ Gaming & Social: Create app-scoped wallets, without scary gas or signing prompts, for everyday users ~ Financial applications: Protect your user’s… — Crossmint (@crossmint) February 20, 2025 For AI applications, businesses can launch non-custodial AI agents that control wallets on behalf of users. These AI-driven wallets function without human intervention, allowing for automated payments and digital asset management. In gaming and SocialFi, app-specific wallets eliminate the need for gas fees and manual approvals, allowing players to make in-game purchases seamlessly. This new model significantly reduces friction, opening doors for blockchain-based gaming to compete with traditional mobile and console platforms. Financial institutions have shown strong interest in integrating these wallets due to their security, scalability, and compliance-friendly architecture. By using programmable guardrails, fintech companies can offer non-custodial financial services without putting users at risk. They're perfect for: ~ AI Agent providers: Launch fleets of non-custodial agents, with wallets controlled by the agent and owner ~ Gaming & Social: Create app-scoped wallets, without scary gas or signing prompts, for everyday users ~ Financial applications: Protect your user’s… — Crossmint (@crossmint) February 20, 2025 One of the standout features is multi-party computation ( MPC ) and social logins, giving businesses flexibility in how they authenticate users. Unlike other wallets, there’s no vendor lock-in, allowing companies to switch providers without changing wallet addresses. This reduces dependency on a single infrastructure, making adoption more flexible and future-proof. Solana Smart Wallets also facilitate cross-chain transactions, allowing users to buy, sell, or trade assets across different networks without dealing with multiple wallets. This shift pushes blockchain closer to mainstream financial adoption, bridging the gap between traditional banking and digital assets.