CoinDesk Summary: A Challenging Week for the Movement

This week, the price of bitcoin experienced a significant rise, approaching the $100,000 mark, fueled by optimism surrounding trade relations between China and the U.S. and favorable economic indicators.

Major financial institutions, including Mastercard and BlackRock, made significant announcements related to digital assets, signaling a shift in the industry.

In the U.S. Congress, a groundbreaking stablecoin legislation is in its final stages, with a notable former congressional leader hinting at an intense legislative session ahead.

Meanwhile, the Trump Family’s involvement in cryptocurrency continues to generate headlines, raising important questions about potential conflicts of interest.

At CoinDesk, a major focus this week was on Movement, a startup that once enjoyed immense popularity but now faces serious issues.

An investigative piece by Deputy Managing Editor Sam Kessler revealed that Movement Labs may have been duped into a market-making agreement, which handed control of 66 million MOVE tokens to an intermediary. This agreement reportedly led to a $38 million selloff, impacting retail investors who had originally supported the token. The situation is particularly notable given Movement’s backing by World Liberty Financial, closely connected to the Trump Family.

Following the revelations, Nik De reported that Coinbase halted trading for MOVE tokens, while Binance severed ties with the market-maker Web3Port. Additionally, Rushi Manche, one of the company’s co-founders, was placed on suspension amid ongoing inquiries into the company’s management practices.

This represents a sharp decline for a startup that was seeing remarkable interest just weeks prior.

In other news, Sam Altman’s blockchain venture, World, has unveiled plans to roll out 7,500 eye-scanning orbs across U.S. cities by year-end, alongside the introduction of crypto-backed loans, prediction markets, and a Visa debit card for WLD token transactions.

Moreover, Cheyenne Ligon provided updates on the trial of Avraham Eisenberg, who was convicted last year for wire fraud, commodities fraud, and market manipulation linked to the $110 million breach of Mango Markets; the new conviction pertains to his possession of child sexual abuse material in 2024.

As earnings season unfolds, major exchanges and service providers have reported mixed results. Robinhood indicated a decline in crypto-related revenue for the first quarter, while Kraken reported a 29% increase in revenue during the same timeframe. Additionally, a strategic report detailed a first-quarter loss of $4.2 billion due to plummeting bitcoin prices, although the company plans to raise over $50 billion for bitcoin acquisitions in the next 32 months.

Moving forward, market trends appear optimistic, particularly if fears over tariffs diminish. However, Movement will need to engage in serious crisis management to address its current challenges.