Sam Kessler (@skesslr) / X

Sam Kessler

1,615 posts

Sam Kessler

@skesslr

Investigations + Data @WSJ || sam.kessler(at)wsj.com || Signal available on request || @Skesslr on TG || (Tips 👍, PR 👎)

Brooklyn, NY

Joined June 2011

Pinned
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Feb 1
SCOOP: Days before the inauguration, the Trump family secretly signed away 49% of World Liberty Financial, their crypto company, in a deal with a U.A.E. royal, acc. to documents and people familiar. The $500M investment came months before the U.A.E. won access to U.S. AI chips🧵
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Oct 2, 2024
SCOOP: My latest investigation exposes how DPRK IT workers have embedded themselves deep into the fabric of the crypto industry. More than a dozen projects confirmed that they inadvertently hired workers from the DPRK – exposing themselves to massive security and legal risks.
How North Korea Infiltrated the Crypto Industry
From coindesk.com
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Apr 30, 2025
NEW: @movementfdn signed a deal loaning ~50% of its circulating ecosystem supply to @Web3Port_Labs. The day after MOVE debuted on exchanges, accounts linked to @Web3Port_Labs dumped 66M tokens, leading @binance to ban it. 🧵@CoinDesk obtained the contracts and much more:
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Jan 4, 2023
if you’re in Williamsburg eating ramen and talking about how my parent company might be dead please stop i’m just trying to eat
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
May 15, 2025
NEW: Movement Labs — the crypto startup backed by Trump’s World Liberty Financial — quietly promised early insiders access to up to 10% of its token supply, according to new documents obtained by @CoinDesk. None of it was disclosed to investors.
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Jun 20, 2025
Personal update! Today is my last day at @CoinDesk. I’m joining @WSJ as a data reporter, where I’ll apply some of the sleuthing skills I’ve learned covering crypto to a broader range of topics.
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Oct 2, 2024
Replying to @skesslr
North Korean IT workers with fake identities got jobs at @cosmos, @SushiSwap, @yearnfi, @FantomFDN, @zerolendxyz and several other big-name blockchain protocols. This investigation marks the first time any of these projects have publicly disclosed that they unknowingly hired the
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Jul 9, 2024
Scoop: @polychain accused its ex-GP, Niraj Pant, of breaking its policies. Pant made a deal with Neel Somani of Eclipse, a Polychain portco, to receive 5% of the project's tokens (later lowered to 1.3%, worth $13M ). The kicker: Polychain also invests in Pant's AI startup,
CoinDesk
@CoinDesk
Jul 9, 2024
SCOOP: Giant VC firm @polychain says an ex-general partner broke its policies by secretly striking a personal token deal with a crypto startup the fund invested in. @skesslr reports trib.al/jIngEMj
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Sep 3, 2024
SCOOP: We got our hands on the white paper for Trump's new crypto project. It looks a whole lot like a platform that was hacked over the summer, and it shares some of the same team.
CoinDesk
@CoinDesk
Sep 3, 2024
SCOOP: CoinDesk got details on the upcoming Trump crypto venture. Barron is listed as its "Defi Visionary." Team members built a platform that was hacked for $2m in July. One founded Date Hotter Girls LLC. By @skesslr, @realDannyNelson, @cheyenneligon trib.al/FSknujU
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Apr 30, 2025
Replying to @skesslr
Movement, backed by Trump’s World Liberty Financial, had raised $38M and was rumored to be closing a $100M series B round. Instead, the layer-2 blockchain is now at the center of an insider-dealing scandal that has exposed a seedy corner of crypto deal-making.
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Apr 30, 2025
Replying to @skesslr
22 y/o Movement co-founder @rushimanche circulated a Rentech deal internally and was briefly placed on admin leave. He says he was duped by someone at the Movement Fdn. Sam Thapaliya — described by insiders as a “shadow co-founder” — was cc’d on key emails. He denies
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Oct 27, 2022
The leading rollups (Optimism and Arbitrum) – while impressive/important – are still WAY more centralized than people realize. Here's how 🧵 1/13
CoinDesk
@CoinDesk
Oct 26, 2022
#Ethereum layer 2 rollups tackle a huge problem for the blockchain by cutting transaction fees, but the potential for trouble hasn't gotten a close enough look. @skesslr reports trib.al/TcAUk0G
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Jun 11, 2022
Speaking with @GabrielShipton, brother of Julian Assange, at 3:30 at the DAO House. We’ll cover @AssangeDAO and Gabriel’s activism in support of his brother. Should be an interesting talk — please join if you’re in Austin and interested!
Sam Kessler
@skesslr
Oct 2, 2024
Replying to @skesslr
This reporting project would not have been possible without the help of my incredible editors @Liqquidity and @MarcHochstein. Thanks also to @chainalysis and @tayvano_ for the expert insights. And lastly, massive thanks to @zachxbt for setting this train in motion. ZachXBT was