Paribu Acquires CoinMENA in $240M Deal, Türkiye’s Largest Fintech Deal

In a landmark transaction that reshapes the regional cryptocurrency landscape, Turkish exchange Paribu has acquired a majority stake in Sharia-compliant platform CoinMENA, valuing the Dubai- and Bahrain-licensed exchange at up to $240 million. This deal represents not only Türkiye’s largest fintech transaction to date but also its first cross-border acquisition of a digital asset platform, signaling a strategic pivot toward international expansion in the competitive crypto markets of the Middle East.

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Crypto Exchanges Funnel $408M in Illicit Funds: ICIJ Probe

A major global investigation reveals how criminal networks systematically laundered hundreds of millions through leading cryptocurrency exchanges. The ICIJ’s Coin Laundry project uncovered sophisticated money laundering operations involving drug traffickers, scam networks, and state-sponsored hacking groups. Despite regulatory oversight and massive fines, illicit funds continued flowing through major platforms including Binance, OKX, Coinbase, Kraken, Bybit, and Kucoin, exposing critical vulnerabilities in the cryptocurrency ecosystem’s anti-money laundering defenses.

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Web3 Success: How Community Drives Crypto Adoption

In the rapidly evolving Web3 landscape, community engagement has emerged as the critical factor determining project success. Strong communities provide the foundation for trust, innovation, and widespread adoption that transforms promising blockchain initiatives into sustainable ventures, as demonstrated by projects like Cardano and Philcoin that have leveraged their user bases to achieve meaningful growth and impact.

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Everstake & Paribu Custody Launch Institutional Staking in Turkey

Everstake, the world’s largest non-custodial staking provider, has partnered with Turkey’s Paribu Custody to bring secure institutional staking services to the rapidly growing Turkish digital asset market. This collaboration enables Turkish financial institutions to stake major cryptocurrencies directly from their custody environment, combining Everstake’s global infrastructure with Paribu’s proprietary ColdShield technology to meet the surging demand for compliant digital asset services in a market projected to reach $2.6 billion by 2026.

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Thodex CEO Dies in Prison After $2B Crypto Scam

Faruk Fatih Özer, the former CEO of collapsed crypto exchange Thodex, has been found dead in his prison cell while serving an unprecedented 11,000-year sentence for orchestrating one of history’s largest cryptocurrency scams. The incident has reignited scrutiny around the $2-billion fraud case that reshaped Turkey’s crypto regulatory landscape and left approximately 400,000 users facing devastating financial losses.

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Turkey Seizes FTX Assets in SBF Investigation

Turkish authorities have launched a comprehensive investigation into FTX’s collapse, seizing assets connected to founder Sam Bankman-Fried and warning citizens about cryptocurrency risks. The Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) confirmed legal proceedings against suspects involved in the exchange’s Turkish operations. This marks another significant development in the global fallout from FTX’s dramatic failure.

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Israel’s Crypto Economy Booms Amid National Crisis

Israel’s cryptocurrency economy has experienced remarkable growth following the October 2023 national crisis, with retail investors driving a sustained behavioral shift. According to Chainalysis data, crypto inflows surpassed $713 billion between 2024-2025 as digital assets became a financial refuge during uncertainty. The trend mirrors patterns seen in other crisis-affected nations like Ukraine and Iran.

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Turkey’s $200B Crypto Market Dominates MENA Region

Turkey has emerged as the dominant cryptocurrency market in the Middle East and North Africa region, recording nearly $200 billion in annual transactions that significantly outpace regional competitors. However, Chainalysis reports this remarkable growth is driven more by speculative activity than sustainable adoption, raising questions about the market’s underlying stability amid Turkey’s ongoing economic challenges.

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Blockchain Payments to Hit $3T by 2025, Fees Drop 80%

Blockchain technology is fundamentally reshaping global finance, with cross-border payments emerging as its most transformative application. According to a comprehensive CoinLaw report, blockchain-based international transfers are experiencing explosive 45% annual growth and are projected to reach $3 trillion by 2025, delivering unprecedented efficiency gains through dramatically reduced costs and accelerated processing times that are revolutionizing how money moves across borders.

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Stablecoins May Pull $1T from Emerging Market Banks

Standard Chartered analysts project stablecoins could attract $1 trillion in deposits from banks across vulnerable emerging markets within three years. This shift reflects depositors’ growing preference for capital preservation over interest earnings, with the trend persisting despite regulatory efforts to limit stablecoin yields through measures like the U.S. GENIUS Act.

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Turkey Expands Crypto Account Freeze Powers in New Bill

Turkey is drafting sweeping legislation that would grant its financial intelligence unit Masak unprecedented authority to freeze bank and cryptocurrency accounts linked to suspected criminal activity. The proposed measures, coming just months after Turkey’s removal from the FATF grey list, would allow direct intervention across financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms, marking a significant regulatory shift that experts warn could drive users toward decentralized alternatives while potentially increasing compliance costs for crypto exchanges.

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Turkey Expands Financial Watchdog Powers to Target Crypto & Bank Accounts

Turkey is joining a global financial crackdown with new legislation that would significantly expand the powers of its financial crime watchdog Masak, enabling it to freeze both traditional bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets. The move, designed to combat money laundering, fraud, and illegal betting operations using rented accounts, positions Turkey alongside nations worldwide implementing aggressive financial surveillance measures in what amounts to a coordinated assault on financial privacy and autonomy.

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