Crypto News Today: Malone Lam Pleads Guilty in $245M Bitcoin Theft; Visa Ties Stablecoin Cards to Onchain Lending

Singaporean national Malone Lam pleaded guilty on Tuesday to participating in a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) conspiracy that US prosecutors say orchestrated the theft and laundering of more than $245 million in cryptocurrency. According to the US Justice Department, Lam organized the international operation, identified prospective victims, and coordinated co-conspirators using connections formed on online gaming platforms. The enterprise operated from no later than October 2023 through at least May 2025, employing social engineering tactics and home break-ins to extract digital assets from targets, including the theft of more than 4,100 Bitcoin — valued at over $230 million at the time — from a Washington, DC resident. Lam entered his plea before US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, with a status hearing scheduled for December 8 and a sentencing date pending.

Visa is moving deeper into blockchain-based finance by linking its VisaNet settlement data with onchain lending infrastructure, opening a new working-capital pipeline for businesses behind its growing stablecoin-linked card programs. Under the model announced Tuesday, lenders can combine traditional settlement records with onchain transaction data to underwrite borrowers and finance payment obligations, giving card issuers access to blockchain-based credit without relying solely on conventional financing channels. Visa cited Credit Coop as an early adopter; the blockchain credit protocol has financed more than $2.5 billion in cumulative settlement volume since 2023 across 3,000 borrowing events and 9,000 repayments. The rollout coincides with surging stablecoin adoption on Visa's network, which now supports more than 160 stablecoin-linked card programs with payment volume up nearly 200% year-over-year.

In corporate crypto treasury news, Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) skipped its weekly Bitcoin purchase this week, opting instead to repurchase $176 million of its STRC preferred shares. The move signals a tactical pivot toward strengthening shareholder returns through capital structure management rather than direct BTC accumulation, reflecting Strategy's continued effort to optimize its holdings of more than 629,000 Bitcoin. Meanwhile, broader crypto markets traded modestly higher, with Bitcoin holding near $78,900 and Ether above $2,490 as traders weighed regulatory developments and stablecoin infrastructure expansion across major payments networks.