butterscotch is the only media outlet exclusively covering news about inclusion in Web3, DeFi, crypto. CHEWS is our inaugural, weekly newsfeed, providing timely policy updates, industry trends, market research.      

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*** AI FACTOID ***
Is Synthetic data an appropriate solution to gaps in historical data?

Artificially generated information designed to mimic real-world scenarios is rapidly gaining traction in AI development...Engineer Raul Salles de Padua warns of the “risk of the synthetic data not accurately representing the diversity of the real-world population, producing potential bias in models that fail to perform equitably across different demographic groups.” [Source IBM]

Last week, John E. Mitchell II, Senior Manager at Consumer Technology Association, moderated a policy roundtable with Congressman Bryan Steil, Chair of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence. Participants included butterscotch's Cleve Mesidor, Circle's Ashley Scott, and other industry leaders. 

This Friday, March 7, 2025

White House to convene first crypto summit hosted by new crypto and AI czar.

House Financial Services Full Committee Hearing: “Navigating the Digital Payments Ecosystem: Examining a Federal Framework for Payment Stablecoins and Consequences of a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency”

SEC says memecoins aren't securities but fraud still a risk. [Read Guidance]

Stablecoins and the role of Congress in addressing future digital assets legislation took center stage during one of the Senate Banking Committee's first hearings to focus on what a regulatory framework for crypto may look like. The hearing, framed as the jumping-off point for further Congressional action on digital asset regulations, was the first hosted by the banking committee's new digital assets subcommittee and chaired by Wyoming Republican Cynthia Lummis, a longtime crypto proponent. [WATCH HEARING]

Federal consumer protection measures have historically helped to lockout key segments of the country from accessing the full financial system. Exclusion has been at the center of these rules, at the expense of prioritizing policies to foster wealth creation, economic opportunity, access to capital for entrepreneurs and small businesses. 

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird has filed a lawsuit against Iowa’s two largest cryptocurrency ATM operators that she says scammed over $20 million from Iowans.

Cryptocurrency ATM scams on the rise as Colorado lawmakers consider regulation 

As interest in cryptocurrency increases in the United States, the number of ATMs which facilitate cryptocurrency transactions is as well. With that convenience in place, scammers have emerged. They have been taking thousands of dollars from vulnerable Coloradans by taking advantage of both the ATMs and a lack of regulation around those machines.

North Korea’s $1.5 Billion Heist Puts the Crypto World on Notice. Hackers drained Ether, other tokens from “cold” crypto wallet. Exchanges must step up spending on security, experts say.

Natasha Barrientos

Natasha, former Instructor at the School of Professional Studies at Columbia University, is now Head of Strategic Opportunities at Galaxy Digital.

Rashan A. Colbert
Rashan has left dydx and is now Director of U.S. Policy at Crypto Council for Innovation.

Natalia Li
Natalia, former Director of the Office of Consumer Policy at Treasury, is now Head of U.S. Policy at Galaxy Digital.

Tyler Williams 
Tyler, former Global Head Policy at Galaxy, is now Counselor to the Secretary of U.S. Treasury, advising the Secretary on digital assets and blockchain technology policy. 

butterscotch Media was a proud sponsor of the  #DiversityAcrossTheAisle event to commemorate the 119th Congress and recognize diverse staff associations on Capitol Hill. Cleve Mesidor attended, along with top Washington leaders.

It's Women's History Month and women have a deep bench in Web3 and DeFi.

butterscotch is a digital news studio broadcasting stories about Black, Latino, Indigenous DeFi retail investors, Web3 consumers, founders, executives, officials. The virtual newsroom - featuring eNews, Podcast, Live Events – seeks to deepen mainstream understanding of diverse segments of the emerging $3+ trillion crypto industry.

Cleve Mesidor, CEO & Managing Editor

Ashlynn Mesidor, CTO & Co-Founder