FATF: Offshore Cryptocurrency Company Regulation Gap Fuels Fraud, Money Laundering, and Terrorist Financing

On March 12, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced via social media that he plans to deliver his first statement, which will cover seven sections: the martyrdom of the revolutionary leader, the people’s roles and responsibilities, the armed forces, the executive branch, the resistance front, regional countries, and how to engage with the enemy. (Xinhua International)

U.S. initial jobless claims declined last week, signaling limited corporate layoffs, the Labor Department reported Thursday. For the week ended March 7, claims totaled 213,000—down from 214,000 the prior week and below the 215,000 consensus forecast. Continuing claims (for the week ended Feb. 28) dropped to 1.85 million, from 1.87 million the previous week. The latest data follows the Labor Department’s weaker-than-expected February jobs report last week, which showed a 92,000 job decline—after a 126,000 gain in January. Still, the modest claims figures suggest companies are prioritizing retaining workers over large-scale layoffs.

March 12: Robinhood has listed GRT, per official sources.

March 12 — Eightco Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ORBS), the WLD Treasury Company, today announced a $125 million funding round led by BitMine (committing $75 million), with ARK Invest putting up at least $25 million and Payward (parent of crypto platform Kraken) contributing $25 million. The capital will fuel ORBS’ expansion of its investment business, focusing on next-gen AI, blockchain infrastructure, and technologies tied to global digital consumer platforms. ORBS also said it has completed $75 million in initial strategic investments, including a $50 million stake in OpenAI and a $25 million investment in MrBeast and Beast Industries. These moves establish ORBS as a hub for cutting-edge AI tech and content creation, while expanding its portfolio to include equity in top global innovators. The firm maintains long positions in Worldcoin (co-founded by Sam Altman) and Ethereum, citing strong confidence in the ERC-20 protocol. Additionally, ORBS has appointed BitMine Chairman Tom

Official sources confirm Robinhood launched W on March 12.

**March 12th Update** Chinese victims of the Qian Zhimin case are challenging a UK-proposed compensation scheme, per the Financial Times. The plan would funnel compensation through China’s domestic mechanism—but victims argue it would leave UK authorities with most of the appreciation gains from 61,000 bitcoins (BTC) seized by London police in a money laundering probe. Court filings show the dispute has been filed with the UK High Court, where the victims’ group is seeking recovery of the seized crypto assets. Bitcoin’s price has surged sharply since the seizure; the trove is now worth roughly ￡3.2 billion ($4.3 billion). Law firm Candey, representing ~5,700 victims, says the proposed plan fails to guarantee fair compensation. Court documents note the fraud impacted more than 128,000 Chinese investors. The case underscores a key legal issue with seized crypto: assets can skyrocket in value between seizure and compensation. The dispute stems from a Chinese investment fraud sc