This case highlights the need for enhanced blockchain forensics and regulatory 
measures to protect investors in decentralized finance.
The post South Korea arrests criminal group in first DEX rug pull case 
appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

This case highlights the need for enhanced blockchain forensics and regulatory measures to protect investors in decentralized finance. The post South Korea arrests criminal group in first DEX rug pull case appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

South Korea arrests criminal group in first DEX rug pull case

Arthur Hayes said NEAR and Zcash form the core of his privacy trade, arguing 
that crypto markets are beginning to reprice assets tied to private value 
transfer, AI-era sovereignty and real protocol economics. In an interview with 
The Rollup, the Maelstrom CIO said NEAR could offer “20x potential,” while 
Zcash may have “5x potential” over the next year, framing both assets as part 
of a broader reaction to “big tech, big government” and AI-driven 
surveillance. Hayes’ thesis starts with a macro shift. Earlier this year, he 
said he had been cautious because Bitcoin appeared to be pricing in an “AI 
deflationary credit event,” with monetary authorities unlikely to print 
aggressively until a crisis forced their hand. That changed, he argued, after 
the Iran conflict crystallized a liquidity-positive setup for markets. 
“Governments print money to win war. AI is part of war. The AI capex will be 
underwritten, both in the United States and China, by the governments,” Hayes 
said. He added that governments in the US, China and Europe would likely fund 
a wartime economy and AI infrastructure through monetary expansion, with some 
of that liquidity leaking into Bitcoin and selected crypto assets. Why NEAR 
And Zcash? Hayes’ strongest comments were reserved for privacy. He once again 
confirmed Zcash as his “second biggest bag” and said the asset had become 
investable again after earlier concerns around its trusted setup, issuance 
profile and developer subsidy faded into the background. The old Zcash trade, 
in his view, was too early and too messy. The new one is cleaner, more liquid 
and more relevant to the current political and technological moment. Related 
Reading: Zcash (ZEC) Soars To Six-Month Highs After 110% Rally – Can It Break 
The $700 Barrier? “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to have private money 
over the internet,” Hayes said. “And that’s what Zcash represents, that’s what 
Monero represents. And as we are learning the ability for big tech, big 
government and AI to essentially know everything about us and to trace 
everything that’s going on in our lives, to have pure, just cryptographically 
proven privacy with money is going to be super needed.” Hayes said his renewed 
interest in Zcash accelerated after a conversation with Naval Ravikant during 
Tokyo 2049. According to Hayes, Ravikant argued that Monero’s ring signatures 
were weaker than commonly assumed and referenced a Japanese law-enforcement 
case involving deanonymization. Hayes said he bought $1 million of Zcash 
“right then and there,” then continued accumulating as he researched the 
thesis further. The price target came as Hayes connected Zcash to NEAR’s role 
in making private value transfer more usable across assets and chains. He 
argued that shielded Zcash alone is important, but the larger opportunity 
comes when users can move from shielded ZEC into other assets, including 
stablecoins, through NEAR Intents. “Within the ZODL app, I can now send any 
crypto asset I want to anyone across the Internet in an anonymous way. From 
Shielded Zcash, using Near Intents. Now I’m into, you know, USDT on Tron and 
I’ve sent it to whoever I’m going to send it to in an anonymous fashion. 
That’s huge,” Hayes said. That is where his upside estimates diverge. Hayes 
said Zcash remains the primary expression of the privacy trade, but NEAR may 
offer the more asymmetric setup because it is tied to the execution layer 
behind confidential transfers. “I think Near has a 20x potential where, you 
know, Zcash might have a 5x potential over the next year or something like 
that,” he said. “So you scale the capital that you allocate accordingly to the 
risk.” Related Reading: Why Multicoin Is Betting Big On Zcash: Tushar Jain 
Lays Out The Bull Case NEAR co-founder Illia Polosukhin reinforced the 
economic side of that argument, saying NEAR Intents is approaching $20 billion 
in lifetime volume, with $18.9 billion cited during the interview, and has 
generated $33 million in fees. He said NEAR takes a fee from every transaction 
and uses it to buy back NEAR, while the ecosystem has already halved inflation 
and may push for further reductions as revenue grows. Hayes also tied the 
trade to token structure. He said NEAR benefits from being “fully diluted,” 
avoiding the large overhang of venture allocations that still weighs on many 
L1 assets. For a token expected to move in an upmarket, he argued, that clean 
supply profile matters. The risk, in Hayes’ own framing, is macro. He said he 
intends to hold until the broader liquidity backdrop changes, but warned that 
reduced government support for AI capex or a worsening war scenario would 
alter the setup. For now, he sees privacy, AI-linked sovereignty and exchange 
revenue as the trades with the clearest market validation. At press time, 
Zcash traded at $624. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from 
TradingView.com

Arthur Hayes said NEAR and Zcash form the core of his privacy trade, arguing that crypto markets are beginning to reprice assets tied to private value transfer, AI-era sovereignty and real protocol economics. In an interview with The Rollup, the Maelstrom CIO said NEAR could offer “20x potential,” while Zcash may have “5x potential” over &#8230;

Arthur Hayes Sees 20x Upside For NEAR, 5x For Zcash Within One Year

The US&#8217;s tariff stance may strain North American trade relations, impacting 
future negotiations and potentially altering regional economic dynamics.
The post US to maintain tariffs on USMCA countries as Greer cites &#8216;giant trade 
deficit&#8217; appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The US&#8217;s tariff stance may strain North American trade relations, impacting future negotiations and potentially altering regional economic dynamics. The post US to maintain tariffs on USMCA countries as Greer cites &#8216;giant trade deficit&#8217; appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

US to maintain tariffs on USMCA countries as Greer cites ‘giant trade deficit’

Crypto firms, including Galaxy Digital, Gemini, Sharplink, and Bitmine 
Immersion Technologies, have appeared on FTSE Russell’s preliminary lists for 
possible inclusion in the Russell 3000 indexes, opening the door to automatic 
buying from index-linked funds and new institutional exposure. According…

Crypto firms, including Galaxy Digital, Gemini, Sharplink, and Bitmine Immersion Technologies, have appeared on FTSE Russell’s preliminary lists for possible inclusion in the Russell 3000 indexes, opening the door to automatic buying from index-linked funds and new institutional exposure. According…

Russell 3000 preliminary list features Gemini, Galaxy and Bitmine

Hong Kong&#8217;s nuanced tax policy could position it as a leading hub for 
institutional crypto investment, intensifying regional competition.
The post Hong Kong introduces 0% capital gains tax on Bitcoin, but the full 
picture is more nuanced appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Hong Kong&#8217;s nuanced tax policy could position it as a leading hub for institutional crypto investment, intensifying regional competition. The post Hong Kong introduces 0% capital gains tax on Bitcoin, but the full picture is more nuanced appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

Hong Kong introduces 0% capital gains tax on Bitcoin, but the full picture is more nuanced

A permissionless exchange protocol called Exchange OS has gone live on OKX’s 
Xlayer network, allowing any developer to deploy spot markets, perpetual 
futures, and prediction markets on shared infrastructure, with Glassnode 
serving as the official onchain data provider. Glassnode Powers Exchange OS 
Launch on OKX’s Xlayer Onchan analytics provider Glassnode confirmed on May 
26, that […]

A permissionless exchange protocol called Exchange OS has gone live on OKX’s Xlayer network, allowing any developer to deploy spot markets, perpetual futures, and prediction markets on shared infrastructure, with Glassnode serving as the official onchain data provider. Glassnode Powers Exchange OS Launch on OKX’s Xlayer Onchan analytics provider Glassnode confirmed on May 26, that &#8230;

South Korea arrests criminal group in first DEX rug pull case

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