Happy Monday! It’s March 3, and we’re tracking top stories to start the week: Cocaine cartels of the French Riviera, White House seeks plan for Russia sanctions relief, the ‘Hustling Expert’ behind Argentina’s $250M crypto scandal, Russia and China are attempting to recruit disgruntled federal employees, and much more…

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🎯 FEATURED STORY

‘It’s packed with dealers. Look around you’: life amid the cocaine cartels of the French Riviera. Nice may be at the heart of France’s upmarket Mediterranean coast, but violent drug gangs making €1.5m a month are colonizing part of it. Guardian

🌎 TOP STORIES

White House seeks plan for possible Russia sanctions relief Reuters

The ‘Hustling Expert’ Behind Argentina’s $250M Crypto Scandal WSJ

U.S. intel shows Russia and China are attempting to recruit disgruntled federal employees CNN

Treasury Department will not enforce anti-money laundering law Reuters

PKK declares ceasefire with Turkey after more than 40 years of conflict Guardian

The New Ransomware Groups Shaking Up 2025 Hacker News

Iranian Nuclear Dealmaker Quits as U.S. Sanctions Tighten Newsweek

The D.C. Power Broker Embroiled in a Global Hacking Scandal WSJ

U.S. senate to vote on overturning IRS crypto rule Crypto News

Singapore Probes Fraud in Nvidia AI Chip Shipments Bloomberg

Who are Rafael Caro Quintero and the 28 other alleged criminals extradited to the US from Mexico? CNN

🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA

How Nearly $200M in Russian Oil Reached the U.S. Despite Sanctions Newsweek 

What to know about TikTok’s uncertain future in the US and the people who want to buy it TechCrunch

Russia’s old economy is gone, and its wartime transformation has the military primed for a resurgence Fortune

Putin ally pushing for US, Russia restart of Nord Stream 2 FT

💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

Two Tech Executives Face Trial Under a Bribery Law Trump Has Put on Hold WSJ 

Judge tosses 4 counts in ComEd bribery case in wake of Supreme Court bribery ruling CST 

Who is the international community sanctioning in Venezuela? Atlantic Council

Blatter and Platini back in court in Swiss FIFA fraud case BBC

Malaysian ex-PM Ismail Sabri now a suspect in corruption probe SCMP

Trump’s return rekindles hope for freedom in Venezuela and Cuba Hill

🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

Copper Hires Tammy Weinrib as Chief Compliance Officer for Americas as it Expands in U.S. CoinDesk

Kraken says U.S. SEC to dismiss lawsuit against the cryptocurrency exchange Reuters

US Court Dismisses SEC Case Against Richard Heart, Hex Decrypt 

One Trader Made Millions Betting $200M on BTC Just Before Trump's Crypto Reserve News CoinDesk

Inside DeFi exchanges caught in North Korea’s $1.4B laundering spree DLN

$1.5B crypto hack losses expose bug bounty flaws Cointelegraph

🚚 TRAFFICKING

Cartel-plagued Mexican city pins hopes on Trump’s anti-drug trafficking pressure AP

A showdown between Mexico and American gun companies hits the Supreme Court USAT 

Sinaloa, flooded with fentanyl: Mexico hits Los Chapitos in its drug stronghold El Pais

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