The Daily: Trump endorses a crypto project, FTX-tied former congressional candidate gets charged, Grayscale's new AVAX fund and more

It's Thursday! In today's newsletter, we look at Donald Trump endorsing a crypto project, a former congressional candidate with FTX ties getting charged, Grayscale's new investment trust and more.

Let's get started.

Donald Trump endorses a crypto project

Donald Trump has endorsed a DeFi-related crypto project spearheaded by his sons, promoting it on the social media platform Truth Social.

• In his post, Trump called for Americans to stand against big banks and financial elites, linking to the project's Telegram channel.
• The Telegram channel, named "The DeFiant Ones," has nearly 26,000 subscribers and features the tagline "Official Trump DeFi Channel."
• Donald Trump Jr. urged followers to join for official updates and to avoid speculation about the project.
• The promotion follows Trump Jr.'s earlier teaser about an upcoming crypto project.
• The channel's name aligns with recent trademark filings by AMG Software Solutions for terms related to decentralized finance, including "Be DeFiant" and "World Liberty Financial."

Former congressional candidate with FTX ties charged with unlawful campaign contributions

Former congressional candidate Michelle Bond has been charged with allegedly conspiring in an illegal campaign finance scheme involving funds from an unnamed Bahamas-based crypto exchange.

• Bond's indictment followed an investigation linked to her partner, former FTX executive Ryan Salame, who allegedly helped fund her campaign using $400,000 from a "sham consulting agreement."
• Prosecutors claim Bond falsely reported the payments as "consulting income" and acknowledged in private documents that the funds were intended for her campaign.
• Salame, who previously pleaded guilty to related charges, has accused prosecutors of using his plea negotiations to threaten Bond, though prosecutors deny this claim.

Grayscale unveils AVAX token trust

Grayscale Investments has launched the Grayscale Avalanche Trust , expanding its portfolio of crypto investment products.

• This new trust offers accredited investors exposure to AVAX +7.58% , the native token of Avalanche's blockchain network.
• The trust is now open for daily subscriptions and operates similarly to Grayscale's existing single-asset investment products.
• Other Grayscale trusts provide exposure to bitcoin, ethereum, solana and litecoin.

Bitcoin rises following dovish FOMC minutes

Bitcoin BTC +2.56% traded within a narrow range of $59,900 to $61,000 following the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes for July.

• After briefly touching $62,000 post-FOMC release, Bitcoin pulled back to hover above $61,000, reflecting market volatility.
• The bitcoin perpetual futures funding rate turned positive, indicating optimistic investor sentiment.
• Analysts attribute the recent cryptocurrency market rebound to dovish FOMC minutes and revised U.S. employment figures signaling economic fragility.

Bitcoin restaking platform SatLayer raises $8 million

SatLayer, a Bitcoin restaking platform built on the Babylon protocol, raised $8 million in a pre-seed funding round co-led by Hack VC and Castle Island Ventures.

• The funding round was oversubscribed within a month, raising double the initial target, reflecting strong investor interest in Bitcoin as a core collateral asset for decentralized applications.
• SatLayer is the first Bitcoin restaking platform on Babylon, allowing users to earn rewards by restaking bitcoin and bitcoin liquid-staking tokens from various platforms.

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