 Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) is being investigated for his role in the promotion of a cryptocurrency and for engaging in an "improper [financial] relationship" with a staffer. The American Muckrakers PAC filed a complaint last month with the Office of Congressional Ethics arguing that Cawthorn violated insider trading laws in a cryptocurrency scheme. More: - The PAC also cited Cawthorn's social media posts accusing him of having a personal relationship separate from the professional relationship between employer and employee.
- Cawthorn has faced allegations of insider trading related to the anti-President Biden "Let's Go Brandon" memecoin. In a Washington Examiner story, watchdog groups said Cawthorn may have engaged in a pump-and-dump scheme.
- On May 23, The House Committee on Ethics released a statement that said it was investigating the claims.
- The committee voted unanimously to start an official investigation on May 11.
- Cawthorn spokesman Luke Ball said the Congressman committed no wrongdoing and was being falsely accused.
- In a statement, the ethics committee noted that this announcement does not indicate that any violation has occurred, and it's merely an accusation at this point.
- Cawthorn recently lost in the state's GOP primary, meaning he will not get a chance to run for re-election in November.
- The ethics committee investigation is the latest in a long line of scandals for Cawthorn, which also include twice being found with a loaded gun at an airport security checkpoint, driving on a revoked license, and claiming that other lawmakers had invited him to cocaine-fueled orgies.
Yahoo 
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 U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis' planned crypto bill would describe the legal framework of digital assets. Under the new bill, Bitcoin would be considered a commodity token and fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as would other cryptocurrencies. More: - The new bill would categorize the multitude of protocols, currencies, and assets. Bitcoin is a commodity and would fall under Commodity Futures Trading for purposes of trading.
- If a digital asset passes the Howey Test, then it would be a security and fall under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
- SEC Chairman Gary Gensler also hinted at the same category for Bitcoin and said: "Bitcoin — maybe that's a commodity token."
- Gensler also explained that the rules are as follows: if you are raising money from the public and the public anticipates profits, then that is a security.
- In contrast, a commodity is a product like "corn, wheat, gold, or oil" that does not have an issuer, and the public does not anticipate returns based on one party's efforts.
- The bill will likely be broken into five or six distinct parts to be reviewed by several committees. Lummis believes that the bill will be passed because "digital assets are a nonpartisan issue."
Yahoo
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 The U.S. Federal Reserve Board released a report on cryptocurrency usage and found that crypto investors are high-income individuals. Roughly 12% of U.S. adults invested or used crypto in 2020, 11% held it as an investment, 2% used it to make purchases, and 1% sent it to family and friends as a gift. More: - Crypto investors also had traditional banking relationships and retirement savings.
- Roughly 46% had annual incomes of $100,000 or more, and 89% of the investors had retirement savings. Only 22% of crypto investors have earnings of less than $50,000.
- But crypto investors differ from crypto users.
- Almost 60% of users had incomes below $50,000, with 20% having incomes under $25,000. Only 24% had incomes higher than $100,000.
- Approximately 13% did not have a bank account, and 27% of the users did not have credit cards. Users that used crypto for transactions also were less likely to have a high school diploma.
Cointelegraph
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The Federal Reserve is considering launching a central bank digital coin (CBDC), as Wall Street bankers believe that it will disrupt the financial systems. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has said that he expects private stablecoins could coexist with a digital dollar. More: - Wall Street bankers argue that launching a CBDC will affect the foundation of the U.S. banking system.
- The American Bankers Association predicts that if a digital dollar is launched, deposits accounting for 71% of bank funding would be at risk of moving to the federal reserve and increasing the cost of funding.
- “Current research overwhelmingly undermines the purported benefits of a CBDC and instead indicates that a CBDC would seriously disrupt the financial system, significantly harming consumers and businesses,” said Greg Baer, who runs one of Wall Street’s lobbying arms in Washington, the Bank Policy Institute.
- The possibility of launching a U.S. digital dollar appears many times during congressional hearings and debates over regulations; however, no bill has been drafted into motion.
Coin Desk
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Fantom's FTM token rose by 16% at the start of this week, while Decentraland's MANA dropped by 3%. Bitcoin struggled to move past the $30,000 mark, and Guggenheim's CIO predicts that Bitcoin could fall to $8,000 due to Fed's interest rate hikes. More: - Investors are still proceeding with caution in the crypto market as Bitcoin struggles to move past the $30,000 mark.
- Some worry that Bitcoin can drop as much as $19,000. Sean Farrell, VP of FundStrat, explains that the recent selling pressure was driven by spot market traders and not futures traders.
- It is unlikely that we will see a large unwind of leveraged positions, similar to previous sell-off periods. "Despite the evidence of capitulation and waning investor sentiment, the current macro backdrop still poses significant headwinds for crypto asset prices," Farrell wrote in a research note.
- Guggenheim CIO Scott Minerd predicts that Bitcoin will drop below the $8,000 mark due to the U.S. Federal Reserve's hiking of interest rates and tightening of monetary policy.
- He also said that most cryptocurrency that is circulating on the market is "junk," but both Bitcoin and Ethereum are likely to survive.
CNBC
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Magic Johnson, the legendary basketball player, launched "The anthology: Magic Johnson" NFT collection on NBA Top Shot. More: - Magic Johnson tweeted, "I'm really excited to partner with @nbatopshot to release my first NFTs and bring some of my favorite moments from my career to fans everywhere."
- The collection is scheduled to drop on June 7, consisting of 1,600 NFT packs valued at $399 per pack, including moments of Johnson's basketball career.
- 1,200 packs will be airdropped to people that already have a Top Shot score of at least 150,000, and the remaining will be available for everyone to purchase.
- NBA Top Shot was created by Flow Blockchain, a proof-of-stake blockchain created by Dapper Labs in 2019.
Decrypt
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 |  | Gia Mattu is based in Calgary, Alberta. She is an entrepreneur with experience in climate technology, drones, AI, machine learning, and blockchain technology. When she's not working, she loves to hike the Canadian Rockies, try new cuisine, and travel. | | | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 Ford. | |
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