What happened
Several cryptocurrencies were trading lower Monday as the backdrop for the sector remained difficult and as investors waited on the latest inflation data, which is due out Tuesday morning.
![Dogecoin [DOGE] to rise beyond 40%? Whale activity may spur rally](https://crypto.newswireservice.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/doge-wale-1000x600-120x86.jpg)
Between late afternoon Sunday and 10:46 a.m. ET Monday, the price of the meme token Dogecoin (DOGE -2.89%) fell by roughly 6.4%. Its fellow meme token Shiba Inu (SHIB -1.38%) was off by 3.2%, while Solana (SOL -1.47%) was down about 3.7%.
Now what
The crypto industry continues to face major backlash in the wake of the FTX debacle. FTX, one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world, recently filed for bankruptcy, and many media reports and other information sources indicate that its founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, likely committed systemic fraud by using customer deposits to prop up his trading firm, Alameda Research.
Image source: Getty Images.
Investors are now questioning how much trust they can place in the entire crypto industry, which is also receiving fresh scrutiny from lawmakers. Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana) recently said on Meet The Press that he personally sees no reason why crypto should exist. That was only Sen. Tester’s opinion, but it gives you an idea about the way attitudes toward the crypto space are shifting in Washington.
Additionally, a Reuters article published Monday morning, citing anonymous sources, said Justice Department prosecutors are divided on whether or not to file criminal charges against the large crypto exchange Binance.
Prosecutors have been investigating Binance since 2018 over whether the company violated U.S. anti-money-laundering laws. Some prosecutors believe they already have enough evidence to move against Binance and even file charges against its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, according to the Reuters article. The prospect of a high-profile Justice Department case against one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world is only adding fuel to the negative sentiment around the industry as a whole.
Investors also await the…
![Dogecoin [DOGE] to rise beyond 40%? Whale activity may spur rally](https://crypto.newswireservice.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/doge-wale-1000x600-350x250.jpg)
