Greetings! It’s August 8, and we’re tracking today's top stories: Russia freezes $36M in Goldman Sachs assets, Gazprom subsidiary files $472M lawsuit against UniCredit, PayPal launches US dollar-backed stablecoin, a Hong Kong developer’s corporate ties to Chinese criminal underworld, and much more...

Plus: Check out our Top 10 List of financial crime TV series!

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Featured Story

🎯 Russia Freezes $36 Million in Goldman Sachs Assets. A Russian court froze Goldman Sachs' $36 million company shares following Otkritie Bank's allegations of a refused swap contract due to Ukraine war sanctions. Bloomberg  

Top Stories

💥 Gazprom subsidiary files $472 million lawsuit against UniCredit in Russia. RusKhimAlyans, half-owned by Gazprom, sued UniCredit for $472 million over a project delayed by EU sanctions. Reuters

💥 PayPal bets on crypto’s future with US-dollar-backed stablecoin. The PayPal USD stablecoin aims to streamline virtual payments and facilitate quicker, more affordable cross-border transfers. CNN

💥 Canadian Case Exposes Hong Kong Developer’s Corporate Ties to Chinese Criminal Underworld. Despite his philanthropy and real estate success, Hong Kong developer Yu Shunhui is linked to a company involved in a Canadian organized crime case. OCCRP

💥 How U.S. microchips are fueling Russia’s military – despite sanctions. Trade data and manifests show that Moscow has been sourcing advanced Western technologies through intermediary countries such as China. NBC News

💥 Ex-FBI Official Set to Plead Guilty to Illegally Working for Russian Oligarch. Charles McGonigal, who is facing two indictments related to his work with foreign agents, is looking to avoid jury trials. Rolling Stone

💥 China hacked Japan’s sensitive defense networks. The 2020 hack was among the most damaging in Japan's recent history, with Chinese intelligence maintaining deep and pervasive access to Japanese networks into early 2021. Insider

💥 North Korea hacked who now? For five months in 2021-2022, North Korean hackers ran wild in the systems of a top Russian missile company. G ZERO

💥 Sino Global Files $67M Claim Against FTX-Alameda. Sino Global invested in tokens heavily affected by the decline of Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX crypto empire and partnered with FTX on a fund raised with outside investors' capital. CoinDesk

💥 CoinsPaid claims North Korean hacking group used fake job interview to steal $37M. Hackers attempted to infiltrate CoinsPaid infrastructure directly starting in March 2023 but switched their approach to targeting individuals through fake high-salary job offers. Cointelegraph

💥 Migrant shelter for 2,000 men to be built on NYC’s Randall’s Island soccer fields. The influx of migrants to New York City – including hundreds arriving daily – is “stretching our system to its breaking point and beyond,” Mayor Eric Adams said. NY Post

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IN THE NEWS

Russia & China

🚩 The Mystery Behind Russia’s Secret VIP Flight to North Korea Daily Beast

🚩 Top HSBC boss calls the U.K. ‘weak’ for taking sides with the U.S. against China Fortune

🚩 How China weaponizes the capitalist system against us The Hill

🚩 Allies turn on America’s Chinese semiconductor strategy UnHerd

🚩 Live and don't learn. The lesson of China's failed Australia trade bans Reuters

Crypto & Cyber

🔐 Embassy Luanda initiates Dinheiro Digital é Melhor project to boost financial inclusion State Department

🔐 Congress, Not the SEC, Should Set U.S. Digital Asset Policy CoinDesk

🔐 Feds Reveal Hipster Crypto Couple’s Hilarious Attempt to Cover Their Tracks Daily Beast

🔐 Criminals Have Created Their Own ChatGPT Clones Wired

Corruption & Financial Crime

💵 Meet The Billionaire Who Built A Fortune ‘Price-Gouging’ Customers Like The Pentagon Forbes

💵 How to Catch Pandemic Fraud? Prosecutors Try Novel Methods NYT

💵 Three Men Battle the FBI Over Buried Civil War Gold. ‘Stuff Just Doesn’t Add Up.’ WSJ

💵 The journey of drug mules from Peru to Spain El Pais

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