What do crypto users want to happen to Alex Mashinsky?

Crypto users are weighing in as Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius Network, prepares to stand before a judge on May 8 to face sentencing for commodities fraud and a fraudulent scheme to manipulate the price of the platform’s token.

In a May 2 filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), prosecutors released several impact statements from individuals affected by the collapse of Celsius filed after the initial deadline. Though at least one suggested clemency for the former CEO, many told the court about the financial and personal losses caused by the crypto firm filing for bankruptcy, and hinted that Mashinsky should be held accountable for misrepresenting the company.

“Many of the people who participated in this fraud, benefited from this fraud, and potentially orchestrated this fraud will get away with zero legal consequences,” said Daniel Frishberg of Hillsborough County, Florida, in an April

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Price predictions 5/5: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, SUI

Key points:

Bitcoin is witnessing a tough battle between the bulls and the bears at the $95,000 level.

Solid buying by spot Bitcoin ETF investors last week signals a positive shift in investor sentiment. 

Select altcoins have held their support levels, increasing the likelihood of a short-term up move.

Bitcoin (BTC) slipped below the breakout level of $95,000 on May 4, indicating profit booking at higher levels. The bulls tried to push the price back above $95,000 on May 5 but are facing stiff resistance from the bears. 

Glassnode senior researcher CryptoVizArt said in a post on X that Bitcoin maintaining above $93,000 was very surprising and also risky as the rally to the $93,000 to $96,000 range “pushed the profit-taking volume above the statistical levels.” CryptoVizArt added that there were more than $9 in realized profits for every dollar realized in loss.

Crypto market data

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Bitcoin investors’ expectations evolve as 88% of BTC supply is in profit

Key Takeaways:

88% of Bitcoin’s supply is in profit below $95,000, indicating a reset in investor expectations.

The current price range of $75,000–$95,000 may represent a structural bottom, aligning with market conditions from Q3 2024.

The Market Value to Realized Value (MVRV) Ratio at 1.74 acts as a historical support zone, signaling cooling unrealized gains and potential for future growth.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) market dynamics are shifting, as Glassnode data reveals that 88% of the supply is currently in profit, with losses concentrated among buyers in the $95,000-$100,000 range. This high profitability, rebounding from a long-term mean of 75%, indicates a reset in investor expectations. 

Bitcoin percent supply in profit. Source: X.com

Bitcoin’s price staged a recovery from its long-term cumulative mean percentage in profit, marking a notable shift. Previously, in August 2024, Bitcoin retested the 75% mean at around $60,000. This suggests that

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What will Bitcoin price be if gold hits $5K?

Key takeaways:

Bitcoin has historically outperformed gold, more recently by sixfold.

Gold’s climb toward $5,000 could set the stage for significant Bitcoin gains.

Weakening US dollar and rising global liquidity remain key drivers for both assets.

Gold’s march toward $5,000 per ounce and beyond has become a big topic among hard-asset bulls, including Yardeni Research’s head Ed Yardeni and billionaire investor John Paulson.

But what could happen to the price of Bitcoin (BTC), touted as “digital gold” by many, if the precious metal surges even higher?

BTC price jumped 6x last time gold rallied

Bitcoin has historically delivered far more substantial gains than gold when their markets rally concurrently.

From March 2020 to March 2022, during the Federal Reserve’s ultra-loose monetary policies, BTC’s price surged approximately 1,110%, while gold increased by

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Crypto market manipulation schemes are becoming increasingly coordinated

Opinion by: Tracy Jin, Chief Operating Officer, MEXC

Market manipulation is everywhere and yet nowhere to be seen. It is an invisible threat affecting crypto and traditional markets, leaving ordinary traders counting the costs. Sometimes, manipulation is obvious — illiquid tokens being pumped high before being dumped just as fast — but often, it’s subtler and more challenging to detect.

What’s more concerning is that these schemes are no longer the domain of rogue whales or amateur pump groups. Signs increasingly point to highly organized, well-funded networks coordinating activities across centralized exchanges, derivatives platforms, and onchain ecosystems. As these actors grow in sophistication, their threat to market integrity expands exponentially.

A tale as old as time 

Market manipulation is as old as markets themselves. In ancient Greece, a philosopher named Thales of Miletus used his knowledge of weather patterns to predict a bumper olive harvest, quietly leasing all the olive presses in the region

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Ripple commits $25M US school nonprofits

Ripple, the US-based crypto services firm behind the XRP Ledger, has committed $25 million in Ripple USD (RLUSD) to education nonprofits DonorsChoose and Teach For America.

According to a May 5 announcement, the grant will be processed through the crypto charity intermediary service The Giving Block. DonorsChoose CEO Alix Guerrier said “teachers are going the extra mile for their students’ education, even spending hundreds — sometimes thousands — of dollars out-of-pocket for their classrooms.” The donations are meant to provide teachers with resources for such initiatives.

Ripple cites a 2024 Gallup survey showing that 55% of US parents and adults are dissatisfied with the quality of K-12 education in the United States. This highlights “constraints and gaps in funding for education,” the reports reads. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in the statement:

“We hope to inspire others to do the same, starting with

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How a $243 million crypto heist led to a real-world kidnapping

$243M Bitcoin scam that led to kidnapping and chaos

In one of the most bizarre crossovers between digital crime and real-world violence, a group of young cybercriminals stole almost $243 million in Bitcoin (BTC). Within weeks, the fallout spilled from the blockchain into a quiet Connecticut suburb, ending in a harrowing kidnapping plot.

If this seems like the plot of a Netflix thriller, you’re not alone in thinking that. But it happened. And fast.

Let’s unpack how a Minecraft-playing teenager, an underground network of crypto thieves and a Lamborghini-driving suburban couple all became tangled in a wild web of digital deception and real-world chaos.

It all started when a Washington, D.C.-based cryptocurrency investor received a suspicious phone call. The person on the other end posed as a security representative from Google. A second call came from someone claiming to be with Gemini, a well-known crypto

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Trump to host memecoin gala dinner amid backlash, impeachment calls

US President Donald Trump will host a gala dinner for top holders of his Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin despite bipartisan criticism and renewed calls for impeachment.

In a May 5 Truth Social post, Trump announced that he will hold a gala dinner with major TRUMP holders on May 22. The announcement follows multiple US lawmakers expressing concern over the initiative.

In late April, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren called on government officials to address questions related to Trump’s memecoin and his media company. Controversies grew after Trump announced a dinner and White House tour for some holders of his TRUMP memecoin.

“President Trump’s announcement promises exclusive access to the presidency in exchange for significant investment in one of the President’s business ventures,” a letter co-signed by California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff read.

A call for impeachment over a memecoin

Also in

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Strategy, Semler bag 2K Bitcoin as price edged toward $100K last week

Michael Saylor’s Strategy, one of the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin investors, slowed its BTC purchases last week as the cryptocurrency briefly surged above $97,000.

Strategy acquired a new batch of 1,895 Bitcoin (BTC) for $180.3 million during the week from April 28 to May 4 at an average price of $95,167 per BTC, the firm announced in its latest Form-8 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Strategy’s latest Bitcoin purchase is one of the smallest made by the company this year, alongside a comparatively meagre 130 BTC purchase in March.

Source: Michael Saylor

The latest buy is 87% less than the previous purchase of 15,355 BTC announced last Monday.

Semler boosts buying despite rising prices

While Saylor’s Strategy cooled its Bitcoin buying spree last week, others upped their

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Binance co-founder CZ proposes Bitcoin, BNB for Kyrgyzstan reserves

Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has proposed Bitcoin and BNB as the first digital assets to build Kyrgyzstan’s national crypto reserves.

On May 5, Zhao shared on X that he had advised Kyrgyzstan to start with Bitcoin (BTC) and BNB (BNB) when building its national crypto reserve. In 2024, Forbes claimed that Zhao holds about 94 million BNB tokens, or 64% of BNB’s circulating supply. At the time of writing, these tokens are worth about $55 billion. 

The proposal followed Zhao’s earlier announcement that he had begun advising Kyrgyzstan’s National Investment Agency (NIA) on blockchain and crypto-related matters.

On April 3, Zhao confirmed he’s been officially and unofficially advising governments on crypto frameworks and blockchain solutions. The former Binance CEO said that he finds the work extremely

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