News linked to both this project and an event.
According to Cointelegraph, stablecoin issuer Circle faces a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts for failing to freeze stolen funds during the Drift Protocol hack on April 1. Plaintiffs allege that attackers transferred approximately $230 million worth of USDC from Solana to Ethereum via Circle’s cross-chain transfer protocol (CCTP) within hours—and that Circle failed to intervene. The lawsuit accuses Circle of aiding and abetting conversion and of negligence. Cryptocurrency analytics firm Elliptic previously suspected the attack may be linked to North Korea–backed hackers; the stolen funds were subsequently converted into ETH and laundered through Tornado Cash.
According to Politico, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee’s cryptocurrency bill—led by Chairman Tim Scott—has become mired in controversy over a provision designed to protect DeFi developers, making bipartisan consensus difficult to achieve. The contested provision would exempt non-custodial software developers who do not control users’ funds from registering as money transmitters or complying with anti-money laundering (AML) requirements. Law enforcement organizations—including the National Sheriffs’ Association and the National District Attorneys Association—have separately written to Congress warning that the provision would undermine efforts to combat financial crime; Senator Chuck Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has likewise expressed similar concerns. The crypto industry, however, views the provision as central to the bill: Amanda Tuminelli, Executive Director of the DeFi Education Fund, has explicitly stated that no textual modifications to the provision will be accepted. Democratic Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Mark Warner are now pushing for revisions to the provision. If bipartisan agreement cannot be reached, the bill may advance without Democratic support—a scenario that could jeopardize its ability to secure the bipartisan majority required for passage on the Senate floor.