11 Aug 2025, 22:22

Russians can now buy suspicious A7A5 stablecoins with cards issued by sanctioned bank

Russian citizens are now able to purchase the rubble-pegged stablecoin A7A5 using the payment cards of a bank placed under Western sanctions. The crypto is believed to be used to move Russian funds globally, in circumvention of financial restrictions imposed over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, and to launder money. Its alleged links to a fugitive Moldovan oligarch and the Kyrgyzstan-registered Grinex, alleged successor of Russian crypto exchange Garantex, have also raised concerns. A7A5 stablecoin available to Russian card holders Ruble-backed A7A5 coins can now be acquired using bank cards, Russian crypto media unveiled, quoting an announcement by the project’s team on Monday. As of now, the new option is only available to holders of cards issued by PSB Bank, but the plan is to add support for other cards in the future, leading Russian crypto news outlet Bits.media noted in a report. A card purchase of A7A5 stablecoins can be initiated through a personal account on the issuer’s website, which is registered in Kyrgyzstan. To do that, users are required to provide a Russian phone number and pass identity verification, including sharing passport details and proof of address. To finalize a purchase, they need to specify an amount of tokens they want to buy and select a network, either Ethereum or Tron. Upon payment, the coins are credited to their wallet. Traders can also sell their stablecoins and receive Russian rubles that will be transferred to the bank accounts linked to their payment cards. The threshold for purchases is 100 tokens. Withdrawals are possible for at least 600. The monthly limit is 1.2 million A7A5, split equally between purchases and sales. A7A5 can be exchanged for U.S. dollar-tied Tether (USDT) stablecoins or stored in a wallet, which yields around 8% in annual interest. Only citizens of the Russian Federation who have accounts with the PSB can currently take advantage of the card-based service. Ruble stablecoin grows amid worries about its purpose The A7A5 is a relatively new stablecoin project. Launched in February of this year, it’s advertised as a cryptocurrency backed by deposits in PSB, formerly Promsvyazbank. The latter is a state-owned Russian institution, targeted with sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union, the U.K. and Canada over Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. A7A5 holders are paid daily passive income amounting to half of the accruals on the bank deposits. The stablecoin is issued by a company called Old Vector, an entity registered in a Central Asian jurisdiction, which allows legal operations with both Russian currency and digital assets, Bits.media remarked. The cryptocurrency has been linked to the Kyrgyzstan -based crypto exchange Grinex, believed to have succeeded the Russian crypto exchange Garantex, whose website was seized by U.S. law enforcement earlier this year. Weeks after Garantex was shut down, Grinex started processing withdrawals with A7A5 tokens. The Financial Times alleged in an article that the stablecoin has been used to transfer over $9 billion in just four months. In a report published last month, TRM Labs said it found that “Kyrgyz-registered exchanges have repeatedly facilitated transactions linked to sanctioned Russian entities.” The blockchain forensics firm pointed to “a growing pattern of Russian actors exploiting the Central Asian nation to evade sanctions and procure dual-use goods for the war in Ukraine.” While the A7A5 team claims its project is “fully independent,” the stablecoin was created by A7, a Russian company with a majority stake owned by Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor. After being convicted of bank fraud in his home country, Shor fled to Russia a few years ago. The businessman, now a Russian citizen, has been accused of buying votes during the latest elections in the former Soviet republic. Promsvyazbank holds shares in A7, too. Last year, the Chief of Moldova’s General Police Inspectorate, Viorel Cernăuțeanu, alleged that PSB was also involved in buying votes in his country. The smartest crypto minds already read our newsletter. Want in? Join them .

11 Aug 2025, 22:16

Paxos Makes Landmark Play for National Trust Charter from OCC

In a renewed, high-stakes bid for federal legitimacy, PayPal’s stablecoin issuer, Paxos Trust Company, applied on Monday for a national trust charter, escalating the regulatory race against rivals Circle and Ripple. If approved, the charter would upgrade the firm’s New York license to a federal one, placing it under direct OCC oversight and allowing it to operate nationwide with greater regulatory credibility. Today, we announced that we have filed an application to convert our NYDFS trust charter into a national trust charter under the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. https://t.co/gVMdwteuLI — Paxos (@Paxos) August 11, 2025 From State Limits to National Reach: Paxos eyes OCC approval Paxos has operated under the NYDFS regime since 2015, when it became the first blockchain and tokenization platform to receive a limited purpose trust charter. That license allowed Paxos to issue regulated products, including the first regulated stablecoin in 2018, but limited to New York and states with reciprocal agreements. Applying for a national trust charter, Paxos is seeking to lift its New York-only restrictions, granting it nationwide authority without the need for separate state licenses, while also strengthening its reputation through unified OCC oversight and opening the door to possible access to federal payment networks. The OCC has relaxed its restrictions on banks engaging with crypto, just hours after @realDonaldTrump pledged to end regulatory barriers. #OCC #Trump https://t.co/GEYG4fCXHu — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) March 8, 2025 Notably, OCC supervision might cement Paxos as one of the most heavily regulated blockchain entities globally, a factor the company believes will appeal to major financial institutions considering stablecoin and tokenization solutions. “By applying for a National Trust Bank charter, we are continuing to offer enterprise partners and consumers the safest, most trusted infrastructure available,” said Paxos’s CEO Charles Cascarilla. The timing coincides with the recent passage of federal stablecoin legislation under the GENIUS Act , which set a clearer regulatory framework for digital dollar-pegged assets. Paxos says this alignment between federal rules and its own compliance history creates “a crucial moment to scale our services nationally.” Under a multi-jurisdictional framework, Paxos already operates with oversight from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Financial Supervisory Authority in Europe (FIN-FSA), and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) in Abu Dhabi . In Cascarilla’s view, it’s the next logical step in building infrastructure that “powers financial freedom through blockchain” while meeting the demands of increasingly stringent global regulators. OCC Charters Become the Latest Prize in Crypto’s Expansion Push Paxos’ OCC application follows similar moves from Circle and Ripple , two other high-profile stablecoin and blockchain firms seeking national trust bank charters. @Ripple has applied for a national banking license from the OCC, seeking federal oversight for its Ripple USD stablecoin, $RLUSD . #Ripple #RLUSD https://t.co/G4cNNRBBzz — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) July 2, 2025 But so far, Anchorage Digital remains the only active crypto entity with an OCC national trust charter, granted conditionally in January 2021. Anchorage’s experience shows both the potential and pitfalls of the model; while its charter enabled expanded crypto-native services, compliance lapses around AML triggered an OCC consent order in 2022 . The hurdles of securing and maintaining a national charter are steep. Not all past applicants fared well; both Protego Trust and the earlier Paxos application failed to meet OCC expectations and ultimately expired . Meanwhile, lobbying groups such as the American Bankers Association, along with four other major trade groups, have raised strong objections to new crypto charter applicants. In a July 17 letter , the groups argued that the public portions of these applications lack sufficient detail for meaningful scrutiny, urging the OCC to release more information on business plans before proceeding. They warned that granting such charters, which do not involve insured deposits or lending, would represent a significant policy shift that warrants deeper public input. This year, Paxos has expanded its footprint through partnerships with Mastercard , Interactive Brokers, and MercadoLibre, while continuing to issue and manage stablecoins like PayPal’s PYUSD and gold-backed PAXG. Paxos once collaborated with Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, to issue and distribute the Binance USD (BUSD) stablecoin. In early 2023, the New York Department of Financial Services ordered Paxos to halt BUSD issuance , prompting the company to terminate the partnership. Paxos Trust Company has agreed to a $48.5 million settlement with the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) over allegations it failed to monitor illicit activity tied crypto exchange Binance. #Paxos #Binance https://t.co/u6PVFMrn46 — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) August 7, 2025 Just last week, Paxos agreed to pay $48.5 million to settle New York State charges alleging it failed to adequately monitor illicit activity tied to Binance. The settlement follows Binance’s former CEO pleading guilty to U.S. anti-money laundering violations as part of a $4.3 billion resolution reached in 2023. The post Paxos Makes Landmark Play for National Trust Charter from OCC appeared first on Cryptonews .

11 Aug 2025, 22:16

Bitcoin Pulls Back to $119K as Looming Inflation Data Could Bring Price Swings

Bitcoin’s (BTC) overnight push towards fresh records met with profit-taking on Monday, knocking prices down to $118,500. The pullback left bitcoin 2.8% off its session high of $122,200, though the largest crypto remained up 0.4% over the past 24 hours. Ether held above $4,200, modestly up 0.8% during the same period, while major altcoins Solana’s SOL (SOL), dogecoin (DOGE) and Sui's native token (SUI) slipped 3%-4%. James Van Straten, senior analyst at CoinDesk, noted that bitcoin’s weekend rally left a gap in the CME futures market, which trade only on weekdays, between Friday’s close at $117,430 and Monday’s open at $119,000. History suggests that BTC could pull back to revisit and "fill" that gap, he said. Tuesday’s U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report could be the week’s biggest catalyst for traders, with Producer Price Index (PPI) data following later in the week. Whether bitcoin's momentum continues will likely depend on those U.S. macroeconomic data reports, Bitfinex analysts said in a Monday market report . "With market sensitivity to macro events running high, traders should prepare for increased volatility and the possibility of a retracement toward $110,000 in the near term," the Bitfinex analysts wrote. "We believe that the ranging conditions and oscillation between the range highs and lows will continue, since price is constantly moving above and below the cost-basis of fresh buyers allowing for charged sentiments around key macro data releases," they added. Read more: Watch Out Below: Bitcoin’s Weekend Surge Leaves CME Gap

11 Aug 2025, 22:06

Strategy Expands Bitcoin Holdings to 628,946 BTC Amid Price Surge, Suggesting Continued Investment Potential

Strategy has acquired 155 BTC for $18 million, bringing its total holdings to 628,946 BTC as Bitcoin price nears record highs. Strategy purchased 155 BTC for $18 million at an

11 Aug 2025, 22:05

Bitmine Secures Largest Global ETH Treasury With $4.96B Holdings

Bitmine now holds the world’s largest ethereum treasury, valued at over $4.96 billion. The company’s holdings total 1,150,263 ETH tokens as of August 10, based on a price of $4,311 per token. Bitmine Boasts World’s Biggest ETH Stash Held by a Public Company This valuation marks a significant $2 billion increase from the $2.9 billion

11 Aug 2025, 22:03

200,000,000 ADA in Just 2 Days: Are Cardano Whales Preparing for Something?

TL;DR Whales accumulated almost $160 million worth of ADA in the span of only 48 hours. Continuous buying efforts, paired with non-declining demand, could trigger a price rally. Increasing Exposure The renowned analyst Ali Martinez revealed on X that Cardano whales (those having between 100 million and 1 billion tokens) scooped up more than 200 million ADA in the last 48 hours. This quantity equals around $157 million (at current rates), while these investors now collectively hold 3.72 billion coins, or 10.3% of the asset’s circulating supply. ADA’s price has increased by approximately 6% over the past week, reaching around $0.78, and the whales’ activity suggests another pump might be incoming. After all, such purchases leave fewer tokens on the open market, which can be followed by a rally (if demand doesn’t decline). In addition , the accumulation may encourage smaller players to hop on the bandwagon with fresh capital. Crypto X is rammed with analysts who believe ADA has yet to post substantial gains. JRNY Crypto thinks the $1 target will be reached soon, whereas Chris believes the valuation could spike to $2 this cycle. For his part, Martinez argued that ADA’s price chart has been mirroring the structure of the bull run witnessed in 2021, “but unfolding more slowly.” “It looks like we’re at the very start of an explosive move,” he claimed. Are They Waiting for Something? It’s a common belief that crypto whales often have access to inside information for an important event that can have a major impact on the price of a certain asset. So let’s check what the big ADA investors might be waiting for. Perhaps it is the potential approval of the first spot ADA exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States. The entity that wants to introduce such an investment vehicle is Grayscale. The product will let people gain exposure to Cardano’s native token without purchasing it from exchanges or worrying about self-custody methods. This could have a positive effect on the price in the long term. The approval odds before the end of 2025 dropped below 60% on August 6; however, they are currently around 75% (according to Polymarket). ADA ETF Approval Odds, Source: Polymarket The post 200,000,000 ADA in Just 2 Days: Are Cardano Whales Preparing for Something? appeared first on CryptoPotato .