The White House Ties Digital ID to Crypto, Illinois Enacts Crypto Consumer Protection Laws, Figure Files to Go Public, and Someone Is After Russian Solana Devs | August 19, 2025
Description
The White House issues a public call for innovation centered on a secure national digital identity framework (1:16 ). At the state level, Illinois is moving forward with its own consumer protections, signing two bills to regulate crypto exchanges and cash-to-crypto kiosks (2:48 ). Meanwhile, Wall Street is preparing for a landmark IPO from Figure Technologies, the fintech company using blockchain to bring liquidity to traditional financial assets like mortgages and private equity (4:13 ). And a critical security warning for developers as researchers uncover an "infostealer" malware campaign targeting the Solana ecosystem, with a potential geopolitical motive behind the attack (5:59 ).
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More on stories and articles discussed or referenced in this episode:
Form S-1: Registration Statement Under the Securities Act of 1933. Figure Technology Solutions, Inc., 18 August 2025, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2064124/000162828025040673/ftintermediateinc-sx1.htm.
Kimery, Anthony. “U.S. Pushes Digital Identity as Cornerstone of Crypto Ambitions.” Biometric Update, 18 August 2025, https://www.biometricupdate.com/202508/u-s-pushes-digital-identity-as-cornerstone-of-crypto-ambitions.
Main, Frank and Tom Schuba. “Pritzker, Taking Aim at Trump, Crypto ‘Bros,’ Signs Laws to Regulate Digital Currency Industry, Crypto ATMs.” Chicago Sun-Times, 18 August 2025, https://chicago.suntimes.com/2025/08/18/crypto-jb-pritzker-donald-trump-digital-currency-cryptocurrency-scam-illinois.
Sharwood, Simon. “Someone's Poking the Bear with Infostealers Targeting Russian Crypto Developers.” The Register (UK), 18 August 2025, https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/18/solana_infostealer_npm_malware/.
Wheatley, Mike. “Crypto Lending Firm Figure Technology Files for Nasdaq IPO.” SiliconANGLE, 18 August 2025, https://siliconangle.com/2025/08/18/crypto-lending-firm-figure-technology-files-nasdaq-ipo/.
The music in this episode was composed by Liborio Conti, and you can find more of his fantastic work at his YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/liborioconti.
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