When Crypto Partnerships Become Legal Liabilities
Whistleblowers say Theta misrepresented its relationship with Google.
Good morning, everybody.
It is your Daily Crypto News.
It is Wednesday, December 17th, 2025.
My name is Matt.
We have a longer show today because there are a lot of listener questions and comments, which honestly are some of the best parts of this podcast.
Before we jump in, a couple of quick reminders.
You can follow my political work at TheAngryDem.com, which is my Substack and website for policy, politics, and hypocrisy. The Angry Democrat
Craig Cobb also has a free trading business webinar available. The link is in the show notes.
And finally, if you are looking into a self-custody crypto Roth IRA, you can check out Athenic. Use code DCN for $30 off setup. Links are in the show notes.
All right. Let us get into the news.
INDIA CONSIDERS TOKENIZATION BILL FOR FRACTIONAL ASSETS
Indian Member of Parliament Raghav Chadha urged the government in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India’s parliament, to introduce a dedicated tokenization bill.
The proposal would allow everyday investors to buy fractional ownership in high-value assets like commercial real estate, highways, infrastructure projects, and intellectual property through blockchain-based tokens.
Chadha framed the idea as an investment equivalent to UPI, arguing that India’s middle class is currently limited to bank savings, mutual funds, and fixed deposits. Tokenization, he says, could unlock access to higher-return assets with faster liquidity and fewer intermediaries.
He also called for bespoke legislation paired with a regulatory sandbox so models can be tested safely. The broader goal is to attract global capital that might otherwise flow to Singapore, the UAE, or Hong Kong.
This is India signaling that it does not want to miss the next financial rail.
THETA LABS EXECUTIVES FILE WHISTLEBLOWER LAWSUIT
Two former Theta Labs executives have filed a whistleblower lawsuit in California accusing the company and CEO Mitch Liu of deception, market manipulation, and retaliation.
The suit alleges that Theta inflated token prices through misleading partnership claims, undisclosed insider token sales, and alleged fake bidding in NFTs tied to celebrity partnerships.
A central allegation is that Theta misrepresented its relationship with Google, publicly describing it as a partnership when it was allegedly a paid cloud-services arrangement involving roughly $7 million in Google Cloud spend.
This matters because calling a vendor relationship a “partnership” was extremely common during the 2017–2019 era. Buying a service, receiving an email, or starting a conversation was often enough for marketing teams to claim a partnership and pump token prices.
Theta has not yet responded publicly to the allegations.
FTC MOVES TOWARD SETTLEMENT OVER NOMAD BRIDGE HACK
The FTC proposed a settlement with Illusionary Systems, the operator of the Nomad cross-chain bridge, over the 2022 exploit that drained roughly $186 million in crypto and caused more than $100 million in consumer losses.
Regulators say Nomad marketed itself as security-first while failing to adequately test code, lacking incident response plans, and ignoring basic secure coding practices.
According to the FTC, a June 2022 code update introduced a critical vulnerability that hackers began exploiting on August 1st. Nomad reportedly struggled to shut down the bridge because it relied on an engineer relaying fixes while traveling.
The proposed settlement would require a formal security program and the return of any recovered funds not already repaid. The agreement will be open for public comment for 30 days.
PRESIDENT TRUMP SIGNALS OPENNESS TO DEMOCRATIC REGULATORS
President Trump said he is open to nominating Democrats to vacancies at the SEC and the CFTC, a move that could revive a stalled Senate crypto market structure bill.
By law, five-member commissions like the SEC and CFTC must include minority-party commissioners. Currently, the CFTC has none, and the SEC is expected to reach the same situation in the new year.
Senate Democrats have warned that without guarantees of Democratic involvement in rulemaking, they will not support legislation that grants these agencies significant authority over crypto.
Even with nominations, uncertainty remains due to the Supreme Court signaling it may allow presidents to fire commissioners at will, weakening agency independence and complicating bipartisan support.
Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott’s office says committee markup is unlikely before early 2026.
PUDGY PENGUINS BETS $500K ON LAS VEGAS SPHERE AD
Pudgy Penguins is spending $500,000 on an advertisement at the Las Vegas Sphere, scheduled to appear around December 24th.
Despite the marketing push, the Pengu token remains down roughly 85% from its launch. The announcement reportedly moved the token up about 6%.
Pengu launched in December 2024 near 6.8 cents, fell sharply, rebounded mid-2025, and has since slid back to around one cent. Its price has largely tracked Bitcoin’s broader moves.
From a cost-benefit standpoint, this raises real questions. If insiders or treasury holders own enough tokens, a short-term pump could easily offset the advertising spend. For ecosystem participants, though, it is fair to ask how this actually adds long-term value.
LISTENER QUESTIONS & COMMENTS
Wyoming Nobody asked how concerned he should be about holding AXL while it is locked in staking.
There are two competing narratives. One argues that XLR is open-source, governed on-chain, and not dependent on a single team. The other points out the uncomfortable reality that tokens are not shares. When core developers leave or are acquired, token holders have governance rights but no claim on IP or outcomes.
Open source means anyone can continue development, but it also means original contributors can fork, repurpose, or compete. That uncertainty matters.
Obsidian En0kh argued that the next cycle will be driven by legal precedent as much as price action. I disagree. This cycle is about who controls the rails, who has the connections, and who gets institutional blessing. Privacy and self-custody matter philosophically, but very few in power actually care.
Mike suggested adding short-form stock commentary to the show. I am considering it.
Yehan admitted that Drake and Morgan Wallen are his top artists. We finally found one.
Jason, our perma bear, continues to call the recovery shaky and shared his top podcasts, which include CoinDesk, Coin Stories with Natalie Brunell, and Jack Mallers. That is solid company to be in.
Here Comes the Money.
Time: 10:21 a.m. Eastern
Fear & Greed Index: 25
RSI: 45
Bitcoin: $89,950 up 3.1%
Ethereum: $3,015 up 2.95%
BNB: $872 up 0.25%
XRP: $1.97 up 2.6%
Solana: $132 up 3.8%
TRON: $0.281 up 0.5%
Dogecoin: $0.135 up 3.1%
Cardano: $0.397 up 3%
Litecoin: $80.50 up 2.7%
Total market cap: $3.04 trillion
Bitcoin market cap: $1.79 trillion
Ethereum market cap: $363.8 billion
And the market remains cautious, but alive.
That is the show.
My name is Matt.
One of us will see you tomorrow.
Happy HODLing, Everyone.
References & Affiliates
📈 The Grow Me Co: Trading Business Webinar
🇮🇳 Indian MP Pushes Tokenization Bill to Democratize Investment Access for the Middle Class
⚖️ Former Theta Executives Accuse Crypto Firm’s CEO of Fraud and Retaliation
🔁 FTC Orders Nomad Operator to Repay Users $186M After 2022 Crypto Bridge Hack
🏛️ Trump, Democrats, SEC and CFTC Glint Hope for Senate Crypto Market Structure Bill
🐧 Pudgy Penguins Bets $500K on Las Vegas Sphere as PENGU Token Remains Down 85%
Self-Custody Crypto Roth IRA: athenic.xyz
Use Code DCN for $30 off: DCN
Where to Find DCN:
🌐 DailyCryptoNews.net
🐦 twitter.com/DCNDailyCrypto
📈 Trader Cobb on X
🌿 The Grow Me Co
Disclaimer
This content is not financial, legal, or tax advice. It reflects personal opinions for educational and entertainment purposes only.
I am not a financial advisor or expert, and I do not guarantee any specific outcome.
Always do your own research before making any investment or financial decisions.
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