Sanctions: When a leader runs a country, and they do shady things, pick fights with countries smaller than them, treat their people poorly, and a host of other shenanigans that dictators are known for, it’s not uncommon for said dictator’s nation to get financially sanctioned.
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Unfortunately, one of those countries has discovered stablecoins. And one report found that this country’s stablecoins are mostly used to bypass sanctions imposed on them. But that’s not all that’s gone down in the crypto world lately. Let’s get after it.
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From the Dypto Crypto Newsroom
Here’s Why 80% of 2025 Crypto Token Launches Failed
TLDR
A new report from Memonto Research shows that nearly all token launches from 2025 are deep in the red.
The higher the valuations, the more they dumped once the token went live.
TGEs were supposed to stop this from happening, but there has been little to no impact.
If you bought into a token launch lastyear, there’s a 4-in-5 chance you’re sitting on a loss right
now. According to data from Memento Research, a staggering 84.7% of token launches in 2025 are now trading below their initial valuation. The median token is down about 71% from its debut price. Translation? Most people who bought at launch got wrecked.
It turns out TGEs were another failed crypto experiment. And that’s ok.
2025 was a wake-up call. The era of “buy every token at launch and hope it moons” is over. Valuations were too high, hype was too strong, and fundamentals were too weak.
But that doesn’t mean crypto is dead. Far from it. The industry is maturing. Institutions are piling in. Regulations are getting clearer. Companies are going public and raising billions.
We’re seeing a shift from speculation to sustainability. Projects that focus on real value can still thrive. The rest will fade into obscurity. For 2026, expect more IPOs, more M&A (mergers and acquisitions) activity, and more consolidation.
Exchanges like Kraken and Coinbase are becoming super apps, buying up smaller players and adding new features. Stablecoins and payments infrastructure are booming. Companies are doubling down on compliance and building defensible moats.
The future of crypto isn’t about chasing the next shiny token. It’s about investing in companies and projects that are building for the long haul.
Feds Seize $61M in Crypto Tied to Pig Butchering Scams
TLDR
Pig butchering is the most common scam in crypto.
The US Department of Justice has recently seized $61 million in USDT related to one of these schemes.
They were able to track funds with help from Tether, which has frozen over $4 billion in funds to aid law enforcement.
Romance, fake trading platforms, and a whole lot of stolen money. That’s the ugly story behind a major crypto fraud operation that just got taken down by federal agents. It’s a tale we’ve mentioned a hundred times on Dypto Crypto, and it’s one every crypto beginner needs to hear.
On February 24, 2026, the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced the seizure of over $61 million worth of USDT. The funds were traced to what investigators describe as a pig butchering scheme: a type of scam that involves fake romance or fraudulent cryptocurrency investment platforms.
Why are new crypto users good targets for scammers?
Pig butchering scams are designed to exploit people who don’t yet know how crypto works. If you’re new to digital assets, here’s the hard truth — scammers are counting on your excitement and your trust. Common red flags include:
Someone you met online is pushing a “guaranteed” investment opportunity. Legitimate investments don’t come with guarantees, especially in crypto.
A platform you’ve never heard of that promises unusually high returns. If the numbers look too good to be true, they are.
Pressure to deposit more money before you can withdraw. This is the classic pig butchering trap.
Fake fees are required to release your funds. No legitimate platform charges a tax to let you access your own money.
The emotional manipulation is what makes these scams so effective. By the time the victim realizes something is wrong, they’ve often invested a ton of money.
Question of the Week
From an X DM - “With everything going on in the Middle East right now, I’m surprised that ETH and BTC are pumping. Any idea why this is happening?”
Meme of the Week
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By the Numbers - The Dypto Crypto Portfolio
Here’s a screenshot of our portfolio, which we started in late December 2024.
Original portfolio valuation - 3 ETH ($9,670)
2025 portfolio valuation - $8,049 YTD - (-)15%
2026 start - $8,813
Current valuation - $5,761 YTD - YTD - (-) 34%
Well, the move to Aave did not take long to show results! Granted, we have a pretty good idea as to why ETH is pumping. But, as CJ mentioned last week, impermanent loss was starting to take a toll, and this would not have helped that situation. So we’re happy with the move for now. We’ll keep you guys updated on how things are going.
Deep Dive - Stablecoins Have Reached a Five-Year High in Illicit Use
While stablecoins are becoming essential for everyday crypto users, they’re also attracting some seriously shady characters. According to blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs, illicit entities pocketed around $141 billion through stablecoins in 2025. That’s the highest level we’ve seen in five years.
A whopping 86% of illicit crypto flows in 2025 were sanctions-related. That happens when individuals, companies, or entire countries are trying to dodge international financial restrictions.
About half of the $141 billion, roughly $72 billion, came from a Russian ruble-pegged token called A7A5.
The token operates almost exclusively within networks, trying to sidestep sanctions. Think of it as a parallel financial system built specifically to move money where traditional banks won’t touch it.
Russian networks like this don’t operate in isolation. They connect with entities in China, Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela, creating what TRM calls “connective infrastructure for sanctioned actors”. Stablecoins let these networks move value quickly without dealing with traditional banking controls or worrying about crypto price crashes.
Okay, so criminals are using stablecoins. Should you avoid them entirely? Absolutely not.
If we approximate that $12 trillion in total stablecoin volume over 2025, the $141 billion in illicit activity represents about 1% of the total. Compare that with traditional finance: the United Nations estimates that 2-5% of global GDP ($800 billion to $2 trillion annually) is involved in money laundering.
In other words, stablecoins aren’t inherently more criminal than regular money — they’re just newer and getting more attention. It is what it is.
Question of the Week Answer
Great question. While we can’t say for absolute certainty, we can give you an educated guess. But it starts with a brief history lesson…
The term "oil dollar" often refers to US dollars earned by oil-exporting countries from the sale of oil, which is predominantly conducted in USD. The nickname has been around since the 1970s, when the practice was solidified by agreements between the US and major oil-producing nations, such as Saudi Arabia, under which oil exports were priced exclusively in dollars.
The dominance of the dollar in the oil trade reinforces its status as the world's reserve currency. In essence, the term "oil dollar" highlights the close relationship between the USD and the global oil economy.
So when a bunch of oil-producing countries start shooting missiles at each other, investors get spooked really fast. Oil directly influences the value of the dollar and vice versa. While we can’t say for sure, we’re guessing that ETH and BTC are pumping because investors are expecting short-term volatility in the US dollar’s value.
