According to an earlier Cryptopolitan report, the Pentagon released the update just as the two countries kept tightening controls on technology, data, energy, and manufacturing. The Ministry of Commerce of China announced on Saturday that America went beyond its limits in terms of national security concerns, as well as exerted governmental influence to pressure the business of China. The ministry demanded the withdrawal of such decisions. It also asked Washington to deal with Chinese companies in a fair manner and build a stable relationship with China.

China warns the US to cancel its categorization of Chinese platforms

China was direct in its latest warning, noting that, “Otherwise, China will take resolute and forceful countermeasures, and the consequences and responsibility arising therefrom will rest entirely with the US side.” The Chinese embassy in Washington rejected the blacklist. Spokesman Liu Pengyu said firms from China follow the laws of the countries where they operate. “The US should stop its wrong practice and create a fair, just, and non-discriminatory environment,” Liu said.

The Pentagon list is known as the Section 1260H list. US law requires the Defense Department to update it yearly through 2030. A company can ask the Pentagon to review its case and submit evidence to challenge the label. Alibaba said there was “no basis” for adding the company, and that being named on the 1260H list does not just automatically ban exports or stop a company from serving American customers. The US Commerce Department runs a separate Entity List, and that list can block or limit access to American technology, Alibaba explained.

The 1260H list is one of several tools Washington uses as the US and China separate in sensitive sectors. On Saturday, Chinese regulators announced stricter rules for financial information services. The Cyberspace Administration of China said companies must sort data into four groups: core, important, sensitive general, and routine general. Officials said each category would depend on its value, sensitivity, and the damage a leak could cause. Six other agencies issued the rules, including the People’s Bank of China.

The rules are part of Beijing’s data security system. China passed broad laws before adding sector rules. “Financial information services are developing in an orderly manner, and the volume of data is expanding … which urgently requires standardised, classified and graded management,” the guidelines said. The new rules do not cover state secrets or military information. Meanwhile, as previously reported, Trump announced Marco Rubio as Secretary of State and Mike Waltz as National Security Advisor.

Neil Thomas, a fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis, said the choices showed that Trump planned to put China at the center of his foreign policy. Before Trump’s January 2025 inauguration, Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk met separately with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng in Washington. Han attended as Xi Jinping’s special representative. His visit showed Beijing wanted working ties with the new US administration even as both sides added more pressure in trade, technology, security, and industry.

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This group aims to give a method of reporting losses for victims who are currently without a clear path to do so. According to official government data, United States residents lost more than $11 billion to cryptocurrency fraud in 2025 alone. The FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report shows that there were 181,565 complaints involving cryptocurrency, with total losses exceeding $11.3 billion. This represents a 21% jump in complaint volume from the previous year. Investment scams were the biggest contributor to the total amount, accounting for $7.2 billion of those losses.

A report from blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs found that wallets linked to illegal activity received $158 billion in cryptocurrency during 2025, a sharp increase from $64.5 billion in 2024. These losses were driven largely by sanctions evasion and nation-state actors. However, it is worth noting that illegal activity as a share of all crypto activity actually fell slightly to 1.2% in 2025. The FBI reports that, more than any age group, people over 60 filed 44,555 complaints and lost $4.43 billion to crypto scams.

United States legislators submit a new bill to go after fraudsters

In the United States, the bureau’s 2025 Internet Crime Report logged 181,565 complaints involving cryptocurrency, with total losses exceeding $11 billion, representing a 21% jump in complaint volume from the prior year. The FBI has launched initiatives like Operation Level Up to identify and notify victims while a scam is still happening, and that has helped save an estimated over $500 million since it began in 2024. In 2025 alone, the operation saved $225.8 million. There were also 3780 recorded victims that year.

The bill, called the Federal Cryptocurrency Theft Enforcement and Coordination Act, was introduced by Republican Rep. Lance Gooden and Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer as a means to give victims, who currently have no single place to turn for help, a place to make reports. Rep. Lance Gooden is a Texas Republican who sits on the House Judiciary Committee, while Rep. Josh Gottheimer is a New Jersey Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee.

Rep. Gooden said in a statement that Americans lack a coordinated strategy to stop the crypto criminals who are stealing millions from them. The task force would be based in the Department of Justice and would bring together the FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the Treasury Department. Its job is to coordinate investigations, create a standard playbook for local police on handling crypto theft, and provide better support for victims. The Trump administration disbanded the Department of Justice’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) in 2025.

Officials at the time argued that the previous administration had used the team to regulate crypto through lawsuits rather than focusing on catching criminals, and now the new bill will fill that gap, albeit with a different approach. Federal enforcement of crypto-related crime is currently split across multiple agencies and has overlapping but fragmented rules that have produced inconsistent responses, leaving investigators and victims to navigate the inconsistent framework.

The Digital Chamber, a crypto policy organization, endorsed the idea, saying law enforcement needs better tools and training. Dennis Porter of the Satoshi Action Fund said the bill would give “victims, investigators, and local law enforcement the unified federal response they have been missing.” The bill still needs to pass through committees or be attached to a larger legislative package to become law.

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Geopolitical tensions, concerns over a risk of sanctions, and a growing desire among some countries to lessen their exposure to dollar-denominated assets have been key factors driving this shift in central bank reserve allocations. The ECB had assessed the international role of the euro over the past year and found that gold accounted for 27% of global central bank reserves as at the end of 2025. This figure stood at 20% just one year earlier. US Treasuries, however, moved in the opposite direction, falling from 25% to 22% through the same period of 2025, according to the report.

ECB report reveals central banks now hold more gold

According to the ECB report, assets linked to the euro remained steady at 15% with no increase or drop. This ‘switch’ means gold has officially displaced the dominant reserve asset for the past few decades after the World Wars. The US government debt and treasuries served as the default store of value for central banks in managing exchange rate stability and liquidity. This has now switched actively to gold as a store of value.

After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and the war that followed, the US and its allies froze Russian dollar-based reserves in support of Ukraine. This move then prompted world governments to assess how much of their national wealth sat in assets the United States could restrict, and how this could be changed, as noted by the ECB findings. ECB President Christine Lagarde addressed the trend directly in the report. “Geopolitical tensions continue to drive strong demand for gold among central banks,” Lagarde said.

Gold, on the other hand, carries no such risk and cannot be frozen by a foreign government, a trait that became more attractive to central banks and world governments after the US’ actions in 2022. The results of the ECB’s assessment do not point to an immediate drop in demand for US government debt. US Treasuries continue to account for more than one-fifth of global foreign exchange reserves, while the dollar remains the dominant currency in international trade and finance.

Notably, the ECB‘s report also found that the euro’s share of global reserves had remained the same over the time period, which ultimately suggests that central bank value purchases are flowing primarily into gold rather than into competing reserve currencies. China, India, Turkey, and Poland have been the largest buyers of gold for their central banks in recent years, as gold purchases by governments have continued to rise since 2022.

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This marks one of the largest coordinated seizures targeting crypto fraud networks operating overseas by United States authorities. The global crypto market has been witnessing a wave of minor recovery rallies. The cumulative market cap hovers around $2.6 trillion. According to the release, Authorities said that the funds were “restrained” through a mix of legal processes and voluntary cooperation from crypto exchanges. This was part of a major campaign launched to dismantle scam centers that have bilked victims out of billions.

United States government goes all out against scams

The operation went ahead with just freezing funds only. United States officials confirmed criminal charges against two Chinese nationals. They are accused of running a crypto fraud compound in Myanmar and attempting to expand operations into Cambodia. However, the crackdown also included the seizure of a Telegram channel that was used to recruit trafficked workers into scam centers,

It added that the victims were allegedly forced to impersonate banks and law enforcement agencies to defraud Americans. As reported, the authorities had shut down 503 fake investment websites tied to the scheme. US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro has described the effort as part of a government-wide push to combat cyber-enabled fraud. She stated that they have charged the Chinese bosses who ran a scam compound in Burma. She highlighted that the Office continues to work to identify funds stolen from victims.

Pirro noted that the current administration is lock-step in combating these scams, and we are not done. The $700 million figure represents funds linked to crypto scams and money laundering. Authorities are now seeking to forfeit the property and potentially return it to the victims. The effort is coordinated with multiple agencies. This includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Secret Service. However, financial regulators and international partners are also a part of it.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva said the goal is to ensure that overseas fraud networks can no longer operate beyond the reach of US enforcement. “Fraudsters who target Americans from overseas may believe they cannot be reached,” Duva said. “We are working to ensure they cannot operate with impunity.” Before the operation, the United States Treasury Department had announced sanctions against Cambodian operators linked to scam centers.

On the other hand, the State Department announced rewards for information leading to the recovery of funds linked to the so-called Tai Chang scam network in Myanmar. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the admin would continue targeting fraud networks “no matter where they operate or how well-connected they are.” Meanwhile, officials say the operation is ongoing, and the $700 million figure may not be the final tally.

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Grewal also mentioned that policymakers are starting to realize they need to find the right balance between encouraging innovation and providing clear regulations. The biggest point of debate right now is whether stablecoin yields could cause money to flow out of traditional bank deposits. Banks have been pressing lawmakers to put crypto platforms under the same rules they follow. Grewal pushed back on that fear, saying there’s simply no real-world evidence to back it up.

Coinbase challenges bank concerns

In his statement, Grewal admitted the theory might sound reasonable on paper, but stressed that the actual data doesn’t show any deposit flight happening. “I can understand why people worry that stablecoins might pull deposits away from banks, especially community banks,” he said. He also cautioned that policymakers should not make significant decisions on hypotheticals and what-ifs.

Grewal argues that the issues with the banking industry cannot be attributed to the innovation of stablecoins. He reiterated that the law must safeguard consumers but leave space for new technology to develop. Even as things look like they’re moving ahead, there’s still plenty of friction. In a recent X video, Cardano founder Charles Hoskin heavily criticized Coinbase.

He stated that the exchange is more concerned with stablecoin yield revenue than with increased regulatory transparency. “Coinbase is the ONLY GROUP Blocking CLARITY Act,” Hoskinson noted. According to Hoskinson, Coinbase’s actions will delay the legislative process, including token classification under federal law. Senate leaders plan to hold a markup session of the Senate Banking Committee sometime in the second half of April.

Senator Cynthia Lummis said that the debate over stablecoin yield is pretty much settled, “99% resolved.” At the same time, Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks just put forward a compromise proposal. The proposal would ban passive yield on idle stablecoin balances. Meanwhile, Tim Scott is expected to announce the exact schedule for markup soon, once everyone’s back from the Easter break.

The Clarity Act is on a very strict legislative timetable. Once a committee markup is successful, the bill must go to the Senate floor, iron out some differences with the House version, and finally pass before it reaches the president’s desk. Notably, back in July 2025, the House of Representatives passed its version of the Clarity Act with a solid 294–134 vote.

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The headlines concerning the TRUMP token were positive after it returned to the green column after it was announced that President Trump would invite the top 297 holders to a dinner at Mar-a-Lago. The other update about the House Oversight Committee’s show of intent to keep digging into the Epstein files is a more ambiguous issue, especially for people like Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, who believe that the Trump administration is using the Iran military conflict as a distraction from criticism of its handling of the files.

TRUMP token gains value amid the Iran war

Since the beginning of the conflict in Iran, there have been conspiracies and theories concerning the situation. In addition, political critics have suggested that the Trump administration leaned into the “war machine” to distract people from the long-awaited release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. However, today’s news headlines were dominated by prison guard testimonies and Mar-a-Lago luncheons, showing that the public’s demand for accountability is still active.

The Solana-based memecoin TRUMP witnessed a massive surge of over 50% earlier today after it was announced by the token’s team that the top 297 holders of the coin would be invited to an exclusive Gala Luncheon at the Mar-a-Lago residence on April 25, 2026. The event has been explained as a high-level crypto and business conference featuring President Donald Trump as the keynote speaker.

A previous dinner held last year at a Trump-owned golf club also caused a significant price increase. Lawmakers have also shown concerns about the President profiting from the crypto industry, and criticized the dinner. Before this spike, TRUMP was trading near an all-time low of approximately $2.75, a 96% drop from its January 2025 peak of $75.35. However, despite this poor performance, whales have been quietly accumulating the token.

Is the Iran conflict overshadowing the Epstein files update?

The House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) announced on national television that the committee intends to bring in Tova Noel for a transcribed interview. Noel was one of the two Metropolitan Correctional Center guards on duty the night Epstein died. Records show that Noel made a $5,000 cash deposit just ten days before Epstein’s death, but the Department of Justice allegedly never investigated it.

Comer noted that suspicious activity reports are rarely filed for sums under $10,000. Documents suggest Noel searched Google for the “latest on Epstein in jail” just minutes before he was found dead. Comer stated that “most people on the committee aren’t confident 100% that Epstein’s death was by suicide,” and they are seeking answers on whether the government was involved in destroying or hiding evidence.

A second batch of Epstein-related documents containing FBI interview materials that allegedly implicate several high-level elites was released on March 5, but public interest in these files plummeted almost immediately as U.S. and Israeli air campaigns against Iran began dominating the news. Senator Jeff Merkley suggested that the two events are connected, claiming the administration wanted to get the files “off the front page.”

Iran has continued to threaten that it will keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, which could drive oil prices to $120 a barrel. General Michael Flynn, who briefly served as national security advisor for the first 22 days of the first Trump administration, made it clear that a reckoning would come for the “degenerates” that Epstein enticed. “Make Accountability Great Again” has become a rallying cry for those who believe the still unnamed contacts of the disgraced financier must finally face the consequences of their actions.

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The two courts dismissed all claims against the exchange, finding them lacking in merit. According to the details of the report, the two US courts cleared the exchange of claims under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). The US federal court in Alabama is the latest court to dismiss all claims against the cryptocurrency exchange in a lawsuit under the Anti-Terrorism Act. Binance announced on Thursday that it will not “tolerate attempts to misuse the legal system” against the crypto industry.

Federal court dismisses claims against Binance

The Alabama court issued a 19-page ruling finding the plaintiffs’ complaint legally and factually deficient and dismissing the case. In the ruling, the judge said that the complaint did not clearly specify the claims and improperly grouped all defendants, thereby failing to distinguish individual conduct. The accusers have until April 10, 2026, to file an appeal addressing the necessary deficiencies in the claims.

The judge also emphasized that the entire case will be dismissed if the plaintiffs fail to meet the court’s requests to clarify their claims. The recent Alabama victory follows a similar victory the crypto exchange got in the U.S. federal court in the Southern District of New York, where a federal court dismissed all claims against the company in another case under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Binance said that both courts found the claims “to be without merit” and that the exchange was committed to working in line with regulatory standards. In that New York case, the court sided with Binance and dismissed all ATA claims brought by 535 plaintiffs against the crypto exchange. The accusers claimed that the crypto exchange had supported 64 terrorist attacks by providing the terrorists with supportive materials.

The exchange initiates legal proceedings against WSJ

The judge issued a 62-page ruling that highlighted deficiencies in the accusers’ claims. The judge said that the plaintiffs had not established any of their central allegations. Binance’s General Counsel Eleanor Hughes spoke on the matter, saying that the two decisions illustrate Binance’s commitment to protecting the company and its community members. Binance said in a blog that it will continue to invest in compliance infrastructure and regulatory engagement.

The exchange also vowed to continue defending itself against what it termed “unfounded claims” or complaints that misrepresent the entity’s operations. This comes after the exchange launched a defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal. Cryptopolitan reported on March 11 that the digital asset exchange sued the news outlet following a publication released on February 23 claiming Iran used the exchange to evade sanctions.

Binance said in a lawsuit against the news outlet that the report published in late February damaged its reputation and prompted government officials to initiate what it called baseless and unnecessary inquiries. Binance’s Global Head of Litigation, Dugan Bliss, said the report erodes trust in the broader crypto industry and undermines players committed to protecting users and advancing positive innovation.

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The decision by the Trump administration put Anthropic in a category usually linked to hostile foreign players, not a US company creating AI models for both government and commercial work. In its complaint, filed in the Northern District of California, Anthropic argued that the administration acted outside the law and used federal power as punishment after the company pushed back on how the Pentagon wanted to use AI.

Anthropic initiates lawsuit against the Trump administration

The lawsuit named the Defense Department, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. Anthropic told the court that the government’s actions threaten one of the fastest-growing private AI companies in the country and could set a dangerous example for other businesses that disagree with Washington.

The company asked the court to rule that the moves were unlawful. The White House hit back fast. A spokeswoman said, “President Trump will never allow a radical-left, woke company to jeopardize our national security by dictating how the greatest and most powerful military in the world operates.” A while after the suit was filed, 37 AI researchers from rivals OpenAI and Google submitted a brief asking the court to side with Anthropic.

The support showed how far this clash has spread beyond one company and one contract. Their filing warned that punishing a leading US AI firm over safety limits could hurt the country’s wider position in artificial intelligence. “If allowed to proceed, this effort to punish one of the leading US AI companies will undoubtedly have consequences for the United States’ industrial and scientific competitiveness in the field of artificial intelligence and beyond,” they said.

Pentagon defends its use of the technology

The brief added more pressure to a case that was already drawing attention across the tech sector. The deeper fight centers on what rules should exist when the Pentagon uses AI systems. During contract talks with the Defense Department, Anthropic wanted clear guarantees that its tools would not be used for mass domestic surveillance or autonomous weapons. The Pentagon rejected that approach.

In its defence, the Pentagon claimed that it follows the law, it would not do those things, and the company should trust the military to use AI in any lawful situation. That disagreement helped blow up formal negotiations, which the Pentagon has since said are over. The fight also spread into politics and trade. The two sides have clashed over Trump’s decision to allow AI chips to be exported to China. There has also been friction over Anthropic’s links to organizations that donated to Democratic causes.

Supporters of Anthropic say the administration’s case looks shaky for another reason: the Pentagon has used Claude in Iran operations, and until recently, Anthropic was the only AI model developer cleared for classified settings. An Anthropic spokeswoman said, “Seeking judicial review does not change our longstanding commitment to harnessing AI to protect our national security, but this is a necessary step to protect our business, our customers, and our partners.”

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The proposals cover a wide range of topics, from banning returns on stablecoins completely to preventing government officials from making money through cryptocurrency investments. Changes to how digital asset mixing services are classified have also been put forward. Members from both major political parties have submitted these modifications.

US Senators submit updated crypto bill ahead of hearing

The Senate Banking Committee is expected to convene for a markup session on Thursday. Legislators will debate the suggested amendments, cast votes on whether or not to approve any of them, and then determine whether or not the main measure should proceed. A similar meeting had been set by the Senate Agriculture Committee, but it has been rescheduled until the end of January.

Just before midnight on Monday, the Banking Committee’s original legislation became accessible. Legislators and business officials have been attentively examining the specifics since then. Several of the proposed modifications have support from members of both parties. Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks have jointly submitted three changes.

Two of those changes focus on the part of the bill dealing with stablecoin rewards. One would take out the word “solely” from the current language, which states that “a digital asset service provider may not pay any form of interest or yield (whether in cash, tokens, or other consideration) solely in connection with the holding of a payment stablecoin.”

Their other proposal would change reporting rules and introduce risk guidance requirements for yield payments. Several additional proposed modifications also target the stablecoin rewards section, with some aiming to remove yield payments altogether. During typical congressional markup sessions, most proposed amendments fail to pass, and others could also be withdrawn.

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President Trump issued an executive order allowing cryptocurrency to be included in US 401(k) retirement plans. Hougan revealed that, despite the 401(k) institution being slow, it’s moving in that direction to allow allocations to BTC investments. The retirement plan institution manages roughly $12.2 trillion, providing a significant capital inflow into the crypto ecosystem. For instance, a modest 1% allocation could mean roughly $122 billion being directed into the crypto market.

Bitwise CIO likens BTC volatility to stocks

Hougan believes retirement plan institutions are headed toward crypto allocations, with potential inflows expected to arrive late this year due to slow processing across the institutions. If actualized, BlackRock and Fidelity ETFs could greatly benefit, as they are the largest providers of retirement plans. So far, BlackRock’s IBIT ETF has recorded approximately $62.3 billion in cumulative inflows.

Meanwhile, Fidelity’s FBTC has recorded $11.8 billion, based on on-chain data. As of now, Bitcoin ETFs have a cumulative net inflow of $56.5 billion with a total net assets of $118.6 billion. That is roughly 6.5% of BTC’s total supply. The Bitwise CIO highlighted how the legislative landscape will influence the crypto markets this year during an interview with an Investopedia host.

Hougan stated that if the Clarity Act passes, the market is expected to reach new all-time highs across the cryptocurrency landscape. He said the Digital Clarity Act will provide a clear regulatory framework that will attract more institutional capital into the market. Hougan added that he believes more ETFs will be launched this year, noting that the industry needs index-based crypto ETFs.

Criminal charges against Powell stirs the crypto market

He also estimated that the market could attract at least $10 billion into the crypto landscape. He also disclosed that Bitwise is planning to launch index-based exposure ETFs, which will combine exposure to multiple crypto tokens for its customers. When asked about BTC’s 4-year cycle, Hougan said that 2026 will be a ‘negative’ year for Bitcoin.

The Bitwise CIO attributed this to the diminishing significance of Bitcoin’s halvings. So far, not much BTC is being produced, and at the same time, interest rates are reducing. According to Hougan, the 4-year cycle will be broken in 2026 and replaced by a 10-year grind. Meanwhile, the market is uncertain following the Department of Justice in the District of Columbia’s investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, led by Jeanine Pirro.

Powell defended the Fed, noting that the threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Fed setting interest rates based on an assessment of what serves the public best rather than the President’s interests. “This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions or whether, instead, monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation,” he said.

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