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Swan Bitcoin targets Cantor and Lutnick in Tether mining fight

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Swan Bitcoin targets Cantor and Lutnick in Tether mining fight

Swan Bitcoin has asked a New York court for permission to subpoena Cantor Fitzgerald and its former chief executive, Howard Lutnick, as part of a legal fight over a failed Bitcoin mining venture. 

Summary

  • Swan asked a New York court to approve subpoenas for Cantor Fitzgerald and Howard Lutnick.
  • The filing seeks documents tied to Swan’s failed mining venture with Tether and former staff.
  • Former Swan employees deny wrongdoing and dispute ownership claims involving Proton Management and 2040 Energy.

The request links the dispute to Swan’s claims that former employees left the company, took internal material, and later worked with Tether on a competing operation.

Swan filed the application in the Southern District of New York on Monday. The company said it wants discovery from Cantor Fitzgerald and Lutnick because they may hold documents tied to Swan’s former mining business with Tether, known as 2040 Energy.

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The case comes from a lawsuit Swan filed in September 2024 against several former staff members. Swan claimed the group resigned, took confidential documents, and then launched Proton Management days later. The company also alleged that the former employees pushed Tether to end its relationship with Swan and back their new venture instead.

Swan’s filing said Cantor Fitzgerald may have knowledge of events surrounding the sale of Swan’s mining assets to a Tether subsidiary. Swan argued that Cantor’s advisory role with Tether and its work in Bitcoin mining may place it near documents relevant to the dispute.

The filing also drew attention because Lutnick now serves as US secretary of commerce. Swan’s move comes as Democratic senators, including Elizabeth Warren, continue to question Lutnick over possible conflicts tied to Tether. Swan has not accused Lutnick of wrongdoing in the filing described here, but it said his records may matter to the case.

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Moreover, Swan chief executive Cory Klippsten said he met Lutnick in June 2024 while Swan was considering an initial public offering. Swan said Cantor Fitzgerald wanted to serve as lead investment banker, and during those talks the company shared a “highly confidential and proprietary slide deck” and showed its mining facilities.

Klippsten later said Cantor stopped communicating with Swan after the employee exits and the disputed asset transfer. He wrote that Cantor “broke off contact” with Swan without explanation. 

Former employees reject Swan’s claims

Swan said former business development head Michael Holmes and former chief investment officer Raphael Zagury organized what it called the “rain and hellfire” plan. Zagury later became Proton’s chief executive, according to Swan’s court claims.

The defendants have denied Swan’s allegations. They argued that 2040 Energy did not belong to Swan because Tether fully funded the venture. The lawsuit against Proton Management remains ongoing.

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Crypto World

Bitcoin Stares Down Recession as BlackRock CEO Joins Oil Price Warnings

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Bitcoin Stares Down Recession as BlackRock CEO Joins Oil Price Warnings

Bitcoin (BTC) faces a new macro test as markets increasingly bet on the US entering recession in 2026.

Key points:

  • Bitcoin could face a new challenge in the form of its first recession after the COVID-19 crash.

  • US recession odds surge as BlackRock CEO Larry Fink warns over oil prices.

  • Bitcoin’s high correlation with “extremely oversold” stocks continues.

Moody’s puts 12-month recession odds near 50%

Data highlighted this week by Axel Adler Jr., a contributor to onchain analytics platform CryptoQuant, shows recession odds nearing 50%.

Bitcoin’s next bull run could come courtesy of a US economic downturn, and market participants see the latter as more and more likely this year.

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“Moody’s Analytics raised the probability of a U.S. recession over the next 12 months to 48.6%, while Goldman Sachs increased its estimate to 30%,” Adler noted on X.

Prediction traders agree, with US recession odds reaching 36% on Kalshi — the highest reading since September 2025.

US recession odds for 2026 (screenshot). Source: Kalshi

The US-Iran war and its impact on global oil prices lie at the heart of the surge. Recent claims by both sides about dialogue to end hostilities and fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz have caused confusion throughout risk-asset markets.

“That’s keeping upside pressure on oil prices, which is recently crossing a key threshold historically associated with recession,” trading resource Mosaic Asset Company commented in the latest edition of its regular newsletter, “The Market Mosaic.”

Mosaic said that oil jumping 50% above its long-term trend, a phenomenon now playing out, “has been seen before or during nearly every recession over the past 50 years.”

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“Oil prices are directly correlated to headline inflation, where a $10 increase per barrel can push inflation higher by 0.20% or more,” it added.

Oil price chart with recessions marked. Source: Mosaic Asset Company

Major players echo those concerns, including Larry Fink, CEO of the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock.

“We’ll have a global recession,” he told the BBC this week about the consequences of Iran staying a “threat” to the global economy, even if the war itself ended.

Bitcoin stays tied to “extremely oversold” stocks

Bitcoin has had little experience of recession in its lifespan of less than 20 years.

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Related: Gold slides as traders eye sub-$50K BTC: Five things to know in Bitcoin this week

In 2020, a US recession from February to April preceded a period of major BTC price upside after BTC/USD initially joined risk assets in a global crash in March.

BTC/USD one-week chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

As Cointelegraph reported, Bitcoin’s correlation to US stocks has become stronger this year, potentially increasing the potential for a relief bounce.

“While the uncertainty over inflation and the outlook for monetary are broadly weighing across the market, conditions are very favorable to see at least a short-term rally unfold,” Mosaic commented. 

“Various measures of investor sentiment and positioning are pointing to excessive bearishness in the market while breadth metrics are extending to extremely oversold levels.”

S&P 500 chart. Source: Mosaic Asset Company