Turkey sees surge in crypto license applications amid new regulations

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is reportedly disbanding the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET).NCET’s disbandment was noted in a four-page memo by United States Deputy General Todd Blanche, according to a Fortune journalist who claims to have seen the document in an April 8 report. The official is quoted saying in the note:“The Department of Justice is not a digital assets regulator. However, the prior Administration used the Justice Department to pursue a reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution.”Blanche is the second-highest-ranking official in the DOJ and served as US President Donald Trump’s defense attorney in high-profile cases, including the New York hush money case and federal cases related to classified documents and the 2020 election.Related: Trump tariff negotiations are ‘all about’ China deal — Raoul PalWhat is the NCET?The NCET’s launch was established in October 2021 under President Joe Biden. At the time, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said that the unit was aimed at going after platforms “that help criminals launder or hide their criminal proceeds.” She said:“We want to strengthen our capacity to dismantle the financial ecosystem that enables these criminal actors to flourish and — quite frankly — to profit from what they’re doing.”The NCET has been active since February 2022, and at the time of publication, its website remains online. The disbandment is reportedly effective immediately and implemented as part of the efforts to comply with Trump’s late January executive order reshaping US crypto policy.NCET website. Source: US Department of Justice websiteRelated: US federal agencies to report crypto holdings to Treasury by April 7Trump makes waves in US crypto policyBefore returning to office, Trump campaigned on a pro-crypto policy. He promised the creation of a United States strategic Bitcoin (BTC) reserve, spoke at crypto conferences both before and after his reelection and promised to make the US a global crypto leader. He also picked a pro-crypto Securities and Exchange Commission chairman.Despite the administration’s favorable stance, critics have raised concerns over potential conflicts of interest. Trump and his family are behind the World Liberty Financial (WLFI) decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, the Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin and his Trump Media is launching crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in partnership with Crypto.com.The projects themselves were also the source of multiple controversies, with the presidential memecoin being hit with insider trading allegations, later written off by some as MEV bot activity. Concerns were also raised about the WLFI’s World Liberty Financial USD (USD1) stablecoin and how it could complicate ongoing bipartisan efforts to pass stablecoin legislation in Congress.This led to Five Democratic lawmakers in the US Senate calling on leadership at regulatory agencies to consider the potential conflicts of interest caused by the USD1 stablecoin in late March. Earlier in April, California Representative Maxine Waters suggested that Trump may be looking to replace the US dollar with his stablecoin.Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions

Global trade tensions triggered by US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff measures may come to an end with a potential deal with China as investors remain concerned about escalation from both sides.Trump’s April 2 announcement of reciprocal import tariffs sent shockwaves through global equity and crypto markets. The measures include a 10% baseline tariff on all imported goods, effective April 5, with higher levies — such as a 34% tariff on Chinese imports — set to begin on April 9.However, the tariff negotiations may only be “posturing” for the US to reach an agreement with China, according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.“In the end, almost all the other tariff negotiations and rhetoric are all about getting China to agree a deal,” Pal wrote in an April 8 X post, adding:“That is the big prize and both China and the US understand it and need it. Everything else is negotiation posturing. China needs a weaker $ and the US needs tariffs.”Source: Raoul Pal“Also, the US is trying to shut down China tariff arbitrage using other channels such as Mexico or Vietnam,” Pal said.Related: Bitcoin price can hit $250K in 2025 if Fed shifts to QE: Arthur HayesChina retaliates with new tariffsConsidering China’s latest retaliatory measures, a resolution remains unlikely in the short term.In response to US tariffs, China imposed a 34% tariff on all US imports effective April 10, media outlet Xinhua News reported on April 4. China’s foreign ministry also vowed to “fight till the end” against Trump’s tariffs, which it called “bullying” by the world’s largest economy.China overtakes the US in global trade. Source: EconovisChina overtook the US in 2012 to become the world’s largest trading nation by the total value of exports and imports, surpassing $4 trillion in goods trade that year, according to The Guardian.Crypto markets watch trade outcome closelyAs the trade dispute continues to evolve, analysts say a potential agreement between the two global superpowers could serve as a key catalyst for recovery in digital asset markets.Crypto markets have a 70% chance to bottom by June 2025 before recovering, Nansen analysts predicted.Related: Crypto market bottom likely by June despite tariff fears: Finance RedefinedInvestor appetite for risk assets such as Bitcoin will depend on the global tariff responses from other countries, according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.“We have reached somewhat of a local bottom in regard to tariffs and the impact on prices,” the analyst said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X, adding:“Trump came out guns blazing, and we’ve mostly seen the worst from the US side, so we’ll see if other countries are willing to drop some of the tariffs because it’s very likely the US will do the same.”Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29

Asset manager Teucrium Investment Advisors is set to launch the first XRP-based exchange-traded fund in the US markets, a leveraged XRP (ETF) on the NYSE Arca.The Teucrium 2x Long Daily XRP ETF will seek to offer investors two times the daily return of the XRP (XRP) token with a 1.85% management fee and annual expense ratio, according to the company’s website. The XRP-based ETF will trade under the XXRP ticker beginning April 8.”If you have a short-term high-conviction view on XRP prices, you may consider exploring the Teucrium 2x Long Daily XRP ETF,” the alternative asset manager said.XXRP currently has $2 million worth of net assets.Details of Teucrium’s soon-to-be-launched XXRP ETF. Source: TeucriumTeucrium founder and CEO Sal Gilbertie told Bloomberg on April 7 that investors had shown strong interest in an XRP ETF and hinted that it may file to list more crypto ETFs in the future.Gilbertie was also pleased that XXRP would launch during a market downturn driven largely by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.“What better time to launch a product than when prices are low?” Gilbertie told Bloomberg.Likelihood of an approved spot XRP ETF still high: AnalystBloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said it was “very odd” to see a new asset’s first ETF come in leveraged form — however, he added that the odds of a spot XRP ETF being approved remain “pretty high.”Source: Eric BalchunasSeveral spot XRP ETF applications from the likes of Grayscale, Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Canary Capital and 21Shares are being reviewed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.In February, Balchunas and fellow Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart attributed 65% approval odds to a spot XRP ETF in 2025.Predictions market Polymarket states there is currently a 75% chance that the SEC will approve a spot XRP ETF in 2025.Related: XRP price sell-off set to accelerate in April as inverse cup and handle hints at 25% declineUp until recently, ETF issuers would have seen a different environment for filing for XRP ETFs as Ripple Labs — the creators of the XRP token — and the SEC battled out a four-year court battle over XRP’s security status.That case came to a close last month.Teucrium has amassed over $310 million worth of assets under management since it was founded in 2010.It offers mostly agricultural commodities, such as ETFs tracking the likes of corn, soybeans, sugar and wheat.Magazine: XRP win leaves Ripple and industry with no crypto legal precedent set