Trump’s tariffs, Bybit’s $1.4B hack and SBF’s return — Here’s what shook crypto this week

I’m WendyO, I talk about everything crypto every single day, and today I'm bringing you the top news for the week of Monday, Feb. 24.

It seems like everyone is freaking out, mainly because in a 24 hour period earlier in the week, the entire crypto market saw over $1.59 billion in liquidations , with Bitcoin dropping below $88,000 for the first time since November 2024.

Most people are blaming the huge dump on some recent political news. The price action came after Trump confirmed that tariffs on Canada and Mexico will move forward after a temporary pause.

According to CNBC, these include 25% duties on general imports and 10% on Canadian energy products. Trump justifies the move as a response to crime at the borders. Additionally, he has imposed a 10% tariff on Chinese imports, escalating trade tensions. Canada and Mexico had prepared counter-tariffs before the pause, raising concerns about a potential trade war.

As of Feb. 27, Trump has now confirmed that the tariffs on Mexico and Canada will go into effect March 4. He also announced an additional 10% tariff on China.

Another reason for the crypto market crash could be related to the $1.4 billion ETH hack on ByBit, a crypto exchange. The platform is recovering, having nearly bought back all of the lost funds.

According to the FBI , the hackers have converted stolen assets to Bitcoin and other crypto assets dispersed across thousands of addresses on multiple blockchains. ByBit has launched a bounty program where users can trace the stolen assets and earn 5% of frozen funds. The team at OKX Explorer has also flagged around 1,000 suspicious addresses tied to the hack. In my opinion, this hack has shown us how transparent and helpful the crypto industry is.

In a surprise return, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of defunct crypto exchange FTX who was sentenced to 25 years in jail, posted on X for the first time in nearly two years, causing the platform’s native token, $FTT, to pump. The recent post follows SBF’s parents asking President Trump to pardon their son. His X post focused on the challenges of firing employees, though it remains unclear why he resurfaced now.

And finally, according to The Block and CNBC, the U.S. SEC has dropped its investigations into both Uniswap Labs and Robinhood Crypto, signaling a huge shift in crypto regulation. Uniswap, the world's largest crypto DEX, was previously accused of operating as an unregistered securities exchange but will now face no enforcement action. Similarly, Robinhood Crypto, which had been under scrutiny for potential securities violations, announced that the SEC closed its probe without charges.

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