News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily report: According to a U.S. Department of Justice announcement, law enforcement authorities in Ghana and Nigeria arrested 28 people in a joint operation targeting West African fraud networks, involving criminal activities such as cryptocurrency investment fraud. The operation was led by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), with participation from Binance, Coinbase, and blockchain analytics firms Chainalysis, Elliptic, and TRM Labs. Private-sector partners collectively identified more than $11 million in funds that could potentially be frozen, though the amount has not yet been confirmed as recovered assets.Coinbase stated that it assisted in tracking illicit funds, supporting asset freezes, and providing intelligence to investigators, identifying more than 65 victims still being defrauded and helping prevent over $415,000 in potential losses. During the operation, Ghanaian police arrested 19 people and seized 303 electronic devices, while another 9 people were arrested in Nigeria. Additionally, 117 human trafficking victims in Ghana are awaiting repatriation to Nigeria, and participants also provided law enforcement with leads on more than 30 suspected fraud centers. The U.S. Department of Justice said this was the first joint operation of its kind specifically targeting the West African region. (CoinDesk)
The Cysic Foundation released an incident report stating that on October 17, its cross-chain bridge experienced a security incident in which an attacker minted 10 million CYS without authorization on the BNB Smart Chain. Upon discovering the anomaly, the project team suspended the cross-chain bridge, placed related addresses on an on-chain blacklist, and hired a professional security firm to investigate the attack vectors and fund flows.
Odaily reports: The crypto project Cysic has announced that its cross-chain bridge was paused on Saturday after an attacker exploited a processing flaw to mint 10 million CYS tokens without authorization on BNB Smart Chain. Preliminary investigations indicate that the attacker may have gained unauthorized access to the database supporting the bridge.The unauthorized minting occurred at 12:31:38 UTC, and Cysic blacklisted the receiving address in the token contract at 13:47:52. The address currently still holds approximately 2.8 million CYS, and related transfers have been restricted.Cysic stated that the incident only involved cross-chain bridge message processing and token minting, and did not affect the mainnet or other operating systems, nor did it result in the theft or unauthorized transfer of existing CYS or other assets in user wallets. Token transfers, swaps, and actual losses are still under review, and the company has engaged security firms and plans to release a follow-up report. (Cointelegraph)
U.S. cryptocurrency trading platform Binance US is seeking to raise up to $100 million in funding at a target valuation of approximately $1 billion. This valuation represents a decline of about 78% from its $4.5 billion valuation prior to its previous funding round in 2022.Binance US raised over $200 million in 2022, with investors including Foundation Capital, RRE Ventures, Circle Ventures, and VanEck. The platform is working to rebuild its market share by reducing fees, launching new products, and expanding its U.S. business coverage.Binance US plans to expand to all 50 U.S. states and apply for a derivatives license to explore perpetual futures, prediction markets, and other financial services. The platform restored USD deposits and withdrawals via ACH transfers in February 2025, and CEO Stephen Gregory assumed office in March 2026. (Bitcoin.com News)
Odaily News: Nasdaq-listed fintech company Perpetuals.com plans to offer tokenized U.S. stock trading services under the innovation exemption mechanism introduced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The plan predates a related proposal from the joint venture between OKX and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).Perpetuals.com CEO Patrick Gruhn previously co-founded Digital Assets AG, a company that developed stock-linked tokens for cryptocurrency exchanges including Binance and FTX, and was later acquired by FTX Group.Trading could potentially launch as early as mid-November, but the company still needs to complete technical and compliance preparations. (CoinDesk)
According to Bloomberg, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is reviewing whether Binance Holdings Ltd. violated its 2023 settlement agreement with the U.S. government, with the investigation focused on potential sanctions violations related to Iran. This week, Tysen Duva, head of the DOJ Criminal Division, said officials were reviewing Binance’s compliance but did not provide specifics and stopped short of explicitly stating that Binance had breached the agreement. Under the 2023 settlement, Binance agreed to pay a $4.3 billion fine, admitted to violating banking regulations, and accepted stricter compliance oversight.
According to Onchain Lens monitoring, the suspected hacker behind the reported $90 million Ledger reseller incident has deposited 430.2 ETH, worth $1.07 million, into Tornado Cash through 4 wallets. After Tether froze the related funds, the hacker swapped USDT for USDD through SUN.io and USDD's PSM, with some funds also flowing into Binance hot wallets.The hacker's wallet tracked by Arkham currently holds a total of $70.6 million in assets, including 11,406 ETH worth $28.35 million; 213.371 BTC worth $17.65 million; 13.646 million USDD worth $13.65 million; and 10.909 million USDT worth $10.91 million. Onchain Lens is calling on Binance to investigate these transfers and freeze accounts associated with the stolen funds as soon as possible.
According to Binance's official announcement, Binance will add the Biconomy (BICO) and Civic (CVC) tokens to the watchlist on October 9, 2026. Tokens under the watchlist exhibit significantly higher volatility and risk compared to other listed tokens, are subject to regular reviews, and face delisting risk if they fail to meet listing standards.
Canton CEO and Digital Asset co-founder and CEO Yuval Rooz said at Token2049 in Singapore that the crypto industry should leverage the current regulatory environment to accelerate institutional adoption and drive broader blockchain usage, reducing the likelihood of future governments reversing the industry's progress. He said that regardless of what happens in 2028, the industry should reach a point of "no return."Yuval Rooz compared the opportunity for blockchain adoption to Uber and Airbnb, noting that both services achieved widespread use before regulators took restrictive measures. The next US presidential election is scheduled for November 7, 2028, which could bring changes in government and regulatory priorities.In the same panel discussion, Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said he hopes the CLARITY Act ultimately becomes law, adding that legislation can prevent regulatory backtracking and drive institutions into the market. Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson said legislation would increase certainty, but the industry should not rely on the bill's passage; the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have already been advancing crypto regulation under existing authorities. (Cointelegraph)
Odaily reports: Cross-chain swap service Near Intents announced that the $3.8 million in funds stolen in a previous exploit has been fully returned, and the team has closed its investigation. Near Intents General Manager Alex Shevchenko had previously issued a 48-hour return deadline to the attacker, providing Bitcoin, BNB, Ethereum, and Solana addresses.The attacker acknowledged wrongdoing in an on-chain message, stating that all funds had been returned and urging others to report issues through the bug bounty program. The incident stemmed from a vulnerability in the interaction between its Omni deposit and withdrawal layer and the main smart contract. Near Intents had suspended services and promised full compensation to users. (Decrypt)
Odaily News: The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and regulators in France, Germany, and Greece are reviewing Binance's practice of using the reverse solicitation exemption under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) to provide services to certain EU clients without authorization. The exemption applies only when clients approach a non-EU crypto asset service provider entirely on their own initiative.Binance withdrew its MiCA authorization application in Greece in June and stated it would apply for authorization in another EU member state. ESMA recently called for strengthened enforcement powers against non-EU companies that solicit European investors without MiCA authorization, in order to enhance consistency in EU regulatory actions. (Cointelegraph)
Odaily News: The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit on September 28, seeking the forfeiture of 110,300 USDT seized from a Binance account. The case involves phishing text messages impersonating Coinbase, which led to the theft of 33.7 bitcoins, worth approximately $900,000 at the time, from a beneficiary and their family trust held in the same Coinbase account.Investigators said that between June 5 and June 15, 2023, 11.2 of the stolen bitcoins were traced to the Binance account and were quickly converted into Monero. When the FBI requested the account be frozen, it held approximately 758.55 Monero; Binance transferred 110,300 USDT to a government-controlled wallet on August 3, 2026. (Bitcoin.com News)
According to Cointelegraph, Greece has been added to the EU's MiCA registry for the first time, with BCash, Xenios Blockchain Group, Capital Wallet Greece, and Piraeus Bank receiving authorization. The total number of registrations under ESMA now reaches 359. Among them, the first three are supervised by the HCMC, while Piraeus Bank is regulated by the Bank of Greece, demonstrating Greece's dual-track regulatory framework for MiCA. Previously, Binance applied for MiCA authorization in Greece. If approved, it could have leveraged the passporting system to offer services across Europe, but it voluntarily withdrew the application on June 24. On September 18, the Wall Street Journal reported that ECB President Lagarde had intervened, asking the Greek prime minister to prevent the application's approval. The HCMC explicitly denied this to Cointelegraph, stating that no officials had communicated with ECB staff regarding Binance's application, and that the report's claims were entirely untrue. Both Binance and the ECB declined to comment.
Odaily News: The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has updated the MiCA register, with BCash, Xenios Blockchain Group, Capital Wallet Greece, and Piraeus Bank becoming the first batch of Greek crypto asset service providers to be included. The register added 6 institutions from Germany, France, and Slovenia, bringing the total number of registered institutions to 359.The Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) is responsible for supervising the first three institutions, while the Bank of Greece oversees Piraeus Bank. The HCMC denied that its officials had communicated with European Central Bank (ECB) officials regarding Binance's Greek MiCA application, and also denied making any statements about Lagarde intervening in the application; Binance withdrew its application on June 24. (Cointelegraph)
Odaily News: Franklin Templeton has expanded its off-exchange collateral program to Bybit, allowing users to use their tokenized money market fund shares as collateral for crypto trading. These shares represent approximately $686 million in net assets and can be used to borrow USDT or USDC, while the underlying assets continue to generate yield.Users do not need to transfer the underlying assets to Bybit. The regulated custody platform ByCustody will hold the relevant assets off-exchange, with their value mirrored within Bybit's trading environment. Franklin Templeton has previously offered similar services to Binance and OKX users.
Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) posted that the U.S. Senate voted on the "Clarity Act," which aims to empower the Treasury Department to cut off money laundering activities conducted through offshore exchanges such as Binance. Lummis accused Democrats of voting against the bill, claiming they are unwilling to protect American citizens from the threat of offshore money laundering. Critics, however, pushed back, citing constitutional concerns and a corruption loophole targeting the current president as reasons for its defeat.
Bitget CEO Gracy Chen posted a 12-hour progress report on the security incident on X, including:1. Affected assets include ETH, XRP (largest single-chain loss), BNB, AVAX, USDT, USDC, and other tokens. Affected chains include: Ethereum, XRP Ledger, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Optimism, BSC, and Base. All on-chain cold wallets have been confirmed secure and unaffected.2. All foundations of the affected chains have been contacted, and some foundations have confirmed the freezing of the hacker's wallet addresses.3. Based on IP behavioral characteristics and on-chain analysis, the attack methodology is highly consistent with known patterns of North Korean hacker groups. Relevant authorities have been notified, and full cooperation is being provided for a global investigation.4. Bitget Wallet (decentralized wallet) operates completely independently from Bitget exchange infrastructure, and this incident has no impact on it. Bitget Wallet assets are completely safe.5. Transparent disclosure regarding the platform's financial status: In addition to over $464 million in protection funds (all held in publicly verifiable wallet addresses), Bitget's own assets exceed $1 billion. User funds are covered at a 1:1 ratio, and all data can be verified on-chain.6. Regarding withdrawal recovery timing: The goal is to achieve full recovery as soon as possible. Once a specific time window is confirmed, an announcement will be made immediately. No commitment will be made to timelines that cannot be fulfilled.
According to Bloomberg, people familiar with the matter said that U.S. federal prosecutors are investigating whether Binance Holdings, operator of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has violated U.S. sanctions against Iran by failing to block certain transactions on its platform. The investigation is being led by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office, with involvement from the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, as authorities review whether Binance knowingly allowed the transactions in question.
Odaily News: IcoBeast.eth, Head of Crypto at Kalshi, posted on X stating that the Artemis chart displays prediction market trading volume share, not perpetual futures trading volume; Kalshi does not offer rebates for crypto prediction markets, and its contract count and notional value calculation methods are consistent with other prediction markets.Regarding claims that self-clearing members are selected by Kalshi as market makers, IcoBeast.eth stated this is untrue—any institution meeting regulatory requirements can become a self-clearing member of a CFTC-regulated exchange. He noted that exchanges such as CME, Hyperliquid, and Binance all improve liquidity through rebates and incentive programs; Kalshi's perpetual futures business is still in its early stages, and relevant incentive programs must be publicly filed and are available for public review.
According to Cointelegraph, the Wall Street Journal reported that European Central Bank President Lagarde had requested the Greek Prime Minister not to approve Binance's MiCA license application, and the Vice Chair of the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) also conveyed this information to Binance. In response, Binance declined to comment, stating only that it does not comment on speculative reports, and reiterated its commitment to seeking authorization for long-term compliant operations under the EU's MiCA framework. Binance had previously withdrawn its Greek application ahead of the MiCA deadline on July 1 and plans to pursue authorization in other EU member states. Neither the European Central Bank nor Greek regulators have commented on the matter.