CFA Report Pegs US Crypto Fraud Losses at $80.7B

Nexo signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with the Audi Revolut Formula 1 team, following a recent partnership with the Australian Open. The agreement, valued at tens of millions of dollars, grants Nexo category exclusivity for digital assets in a strategic brand embedding move.

Ondo Finance is gearing up for its third round of token unlocks, increasing the circulating supply by 61%. Private sale investors, including Pantera Capital and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, will be able to cash out $122 million. Token unlocks aim to prevent immediate selling and promote long-term value creation.

Two Prime has been chosen by Digital Wealth Partners to manage approximately $250 million in bitcoin for its clients, showcasing increasing institutional trust in specialized crypto managers. The partnership aims to provide professional strategies integrating risk management, yield generation, and operational transparency.

The shift towards political announcements driving market movements over internal metrics is evident in Bitcoin's lagging performance in 2025. Policy signals are now exerting more influence than the traditional four-year cycle, with quasi-QE and fiscal dominance shaping the market backdrop.

Nexo has been fined $500,000 by California regulators for issuing unlicensed loans to over 5,000 state residents, leading to regulatory troubles in the U.S. The firm must transfer funds of California residents to a licensed U.S. affiliate within 150 days.

Brian Garry Sewell, a Utah man, received a three-year federal prison sentence for defrauding investors of nearly $3 million through an unlicensed cash-to-crypto business. The judge also ordered over $3.8 million in restitution to investors and the Department of Homeland Security.

Rep. Maxine Waters and other lawmakers criticized the SEC for its handling of enforcement actions against crypto firms, particularly involving Tron founder Justin Sun's case. The letter raised concerns about potential political influences on the SEC's decisions and the security risks posed by Sun's connections with China.

CME Group plans to introduce futures contracts for Cardano, Chainlink, and Stellar on February 9, pending regulatory approval. The contracts will be available in standard and micro sizes for each cryptocurrency, expanding CME's existing crypto offerings beyond Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP.

BitMine Immersion Technologies, chaired by Tom Lee, announced a $200 million investment in Beast Industries, founded by MrBeast. The deal, one of the most novel for a crypto treasury firm, is expected to close soon. Beast Industries plans to incorporate DeFi into its financial services platform.

X is cracking down on apps that incentivize users to post on the platform, causing a drop in the price of Kaito's token by over 15% in just 30 minutes. Head of Product Nikita Bier announced the initiative to improve user experience by eliminating AI spam.