Major digital asset manager Grayscale has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to convert its existing Solana Trust (GSOL) into an exchange-traded fund.

Roger Ver, a Bitcoin pioneer who gained the moniker “Bitcoin Jesus” for his support for the cryptocurrency in its early days, has urged a U.S. judge to dismiss a government lawsuit accusing him of tax evasion.

The founder of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, Alex Mashinsky, is set to plead guilty to two counts of fraud in one of the last major cases stemming from the 2022 crypto market crash.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Grayscale Files to Convert Solana Trust into ETF
• ‘Bitcoin Jesus’ Roger Ver Seeks Dismissal of U.S. Tax Evasion Lawsuit
• Celsius Network’s Alex Mashinsky to Plead Guilty to Fraud Charges

Grayscale Files to Convert Solana Trust into ETF

Major digital asset manager Grayscale has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to convert its existing Solana Trust (GSOL) into an exchange-traded fund.

A 19b-4 filing submitted by NYSE Arca, the exchange that would list the fund, positions the firm as the fifth asset manager seeking approval for a Solana ETF, alongside Bitwise, VanEck, 21Shares, and Canary Capital.

Earlier this year Grayscale successfully converted its Bitcoin and Ethereum trusts into ETFs, and launched mini versions of these with lower costs for investors. The company’s closed-end Solana Trust has $120 million in assets under management.

‘Bitcoin Jesus’ Roger Ver Seeks Dismissal of U.S. Tax Evasion Lawsuit

Roger Ver, a Bitcoin pioneer who gained the moniker “Bitcoin Jesus” for his support for the cryptocurrency in its early days, has urged a U.S. judge to dismiss a government lawsuit accusing him of tax evasion.

In a recent court filing, Ver argued that the Internal Revenue Service’s exit tax, a levy imposed on US citizens with more than $2 million in assets renouncing their citizenship is unconstitutional and “inscrutably vague.”

“The ‘exit tax’ at issue violates both the Apportionment Clause and the Due Process Clause of the Constitution [...] the charges also rely on provisions of the U.S. tax laws that were, at all relevant times, inscrutably vague as to their application to digital assets of the kind that underlie the charges.”

Ver, who renounced his US citizenship in 2014, is accused of failing to report capital gains from the sale of millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin. He was arrested in Spain earlier this year and charged with tax evasion and fraud.

The US government maintains that Ver intentionally avoided paying taxes by failing to disclose his Bitcoin holdings and sales. Prosecutors allege that Ver used complex financial maneuvers to conceal his wealth and evade tax obligations.

Celsius Network’s Alex Mashinsky to Plead Guilty to Fraud Charges

The founder of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, Alex Mashinsky, is set to plead guilty to two counts of fraud in one of the last major cases stemming from the 2022 crypto market crash.

Prosecutors allege that Mashinsky artificially inflated the price of the project’s CEL token, and generated $42 million in personal profits by misleading investors through it.

Mashinsky’s attorney, Torrey Young, confirmed that his client would plead guilty at a hearing scheduled for Tuesday in Manhattan federal court.

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