There are five stages to grieving.

Denial. Anger. Bargaining. Depression. Acceptance.

And we’re trying to skip right to acceptance, because face it, our boy the American dollar is very sick.

And in today’s newsletter, we’re going to tell you just how long the dollar has to live.

Espresso Shots

☕️ Binance Getting It From All Sides 🔎 🚨

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has been under scrutiny and investigation from several U.S. regulatory bodies.

This isn’t just the standard SEC securities charges. Binance is also facing a probe from the Department of Justice’s money laundering squad. Not to mention a lawsuit filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

As of Wednesday, Changpeng Zhao has officially lawyered up, hiring the law firm of Latham & Watkins to captain his defense through this regulatory hurricane.

William Kraus, another corporate defense lawyer, commented that the public shouldn’t be too alarmed, as what seems to be a massive legal action may just be iceberg tips emerging after prolonged investigations.

“While it might seem as if Binance is being targeted because of recent political pressure to regulate digital assets,” said Kraus, “it is important to remember most investigations are conducted confidentially for years before the public learns of them.”

Still, these actions send a strong message. If your business wants to do crypto in America, prepare to be inconvenienced and annoyed.

To prepare for his upcoming, many days in court, CZ is frantically studying Napoleon memoirs for tips on how to win a war with several fronts.

☕️ Hong Kong's New Crypto Rules 🇭🇰 ⚖️

The licensing regulation for Hong Kong, a now burgeoning crypto hub, will go into effect on June 1.

The new framework would allow retail investors in Hong Kong to trade cryptocurrencies. And though crypto exchanges are currently allowed to operate in Hong Kong, there are specific rules that apply to Hong Kong investors with portfolios under $1 million USD.

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, which means that the area can operate under different legislation than the Chinese mainland.

This can sometimes create a stark contrast. Crypto was banned in much of China in 2021 on fears of scams and money laundering. Meanwhile, Hong Kong has been in a years-long legislative push toward becoming a hot spot for crypto business.

These new regulations are the icing on a legislative cake that will hopefully usher in a new era of Chinese crypto trading.

The dawn of Hong Kong as a crypto hub, like all of China’s most serious announcements, will be heralded by a scary-looking guy banging a gong.

☕️ CBDCs will "Destroy Bitcoin" says Ted Cruz ❌ 🪙

Ted Cruz has been one of the most vocal Republicans on the pro-crypto, anti-CBDC ticket, and he’s sounding off again.

Cruz was a speaker at the Bitcoin Policy Summit in DC, where he criticized the big government agenda behind CBDCs.

“The same people that want to see a CBDC, they hate Bitcoin, and they hate cash,” said Cruz. “...they don't like cash for exactly the reason I like cash because it is not subjected to centralized control that is not subject to constant surveillance.”

Though we like that Senator Cruz’s views currently align with ours, Cruz’s perspectives are always ripe for change and hypocrisy.

For instance, he criticized Austin Mayor Steve Adler for taking a private jet to Cabo when his constituents were in the midst of a coronavirus outbreak.

But when Texas was hit by a winter storm that caused massive power failure and left Texans literally freezing, Cruz chartered a jet to Cancún and well… you know the rest.

Spilling the Beans

💵 💀 The Death of the Dollar? 💀 💵

America, like most countries with a flourishing military industrial complex, values strength.

Bodybuilding competitions. Strong jawlines. Confusingly sexy workout transformations.

America likes to feel strong, but what do we do when one of our most vital assets is weak?

Other than apple pie and baseball, nothing says America quite like the George Washington greenback.

But is the almighty dollar not so mighty anymore?

The American dollar has been struggling overseas, particularly when held up against the steadily strengthening Chinese yuan.

The Chinese Yuan is up 48% since 2010. And as sort of perfect, Black Mirror inversion, the U.S. dollar is down 47%.

And, embarrassingly, other nations have started to notice.

The U.S. dollar was once considered the gold standard for international business, particularly for importing and exporting.

But as of this week, Argentina has moved to paying for Chinese exports in their native Yuan, rather than in American dollars.

Now this might not seem like that big a deal, but it’s small motions like these that can make the entire Jenga tower fall apart.

And while this may not be a good thing for the American economy or the price of cereal at your local grocery store, this may actually be a very good thing for crypto.

If we’ve learned anything in these past months, it's that confidence in Bitcoin seems to increase as confidence in the American economy dwindles.

Bitcoin hasn’t exactly undergone the “Great Decoupling” as of yet (the moment when Bitcoin’s behavior entirely diverges from that of the greater stock market).

But if anything, Bitcoin’s rises and falls have closely followed that of gold, literally the gold standard of inflation hedges.

So, is the dollar really dying?

Not yet. But its condition may be life-threatening. Currently, the dollar has something akin to walking pneumonia. Hospitalization is certainly on the menu.

So although we never want to wish anyone, or any monetary conception of value, ill will.

If the dollar dies, Bitcoin should be able to send an expensive bouquet to its funeral.

Meme of the Day

We honestly don't know who to root for at this point.

Crypto 101

Market Capitalization: or "Market Cap" is a commonly used measure to estimate the size and value of a publicly traded company.

Market Capitalization is calculated by multiplying a company's total outstanding shares by the current market price per share, including employee-owned shares if they are part of the outstanding shares.

Market Cap is one of the most important elements to consider when investing in a company. Market Cap allows investors to understand the true size of the company they’re investing in as well as how that company stacks up size-wise to its competitors.

The Last Sip

Ok so think Magic-Treehouse-style young adults books about the ends of popular currencies. If the first in the series is, “The Death of the Dollar,” the rest would go like this:

• The Penultimate Peso

• The Funeral of the Franc

• Eulogizing the Euro

Stay Caffeinated,

Coffee & Crypto Team

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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.