Obituary: The political titan that was former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond

Published

5 months ago

October 13, 2024

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Alex Salmond has died at the age of 69.

Love or loathe Mr Salmond – who was described as a “Marmite man” during his high-profile court case – few would dispute his skill and achievements as a politician.

Under the leadership of the keen golfer and horse racing fan, the SNP rose to power and became a titan party north of the border.

Some would argue if it were not for the political talent of Mr Salmond, there would have been no Scottish independence referendum at all in 2014.

As the tributes flood in following his death, we take a look at the man who was once first minister of Scotland.

Mr Salmond was first elected to Westminster in 1987 as the SNP MP for Banff and Buchan – a position he retained until 2010.

In 1990, he successfully defeated Margaret Ewing in the SNP leadership contest and would go on to campaign for Scottish devolution in 1997.

In 1999, after the establishment of the Scottish Parliament as a result of devolution, he led his party through the first Scottish parliament election and became MSP for Banff and Buchan as well as leader of the opposition – with Labour in power.

A year later, Mr Salmond quit as SNP leader amid a series of high-profile fallouts with party members and was replaced by current first minister John Swinney.

In 2001, he then stood down from Holyrood in order to lead the SNP group at Westminster.

Following a disastrous 2004 European parliament election for the SNP, Mr Swinney stepped aside as party leader with Mr Salmond re-elected with overwhelming support from the party’s members.

Following a highly effective campaign in the 2007 Scottish election, the SNP gained 20 seats, giving the party a total of 47 seats in Holyrood – one more than Scottish Labour.

Although the party didn’t have an overall majority, new Gordon MSP Mr Salmond became first minister of Scotland in 2007.

In the 2011 Scottish elections, the SNP secured the first outright majority in the history of the Scottish parliament, and Mr Salmond won a second term as first minister while MSP for the new constituency of Aberdeenshire East.

In 2012, Mr Salmond signed an agreement with then British prime minister David Cameron to hold a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014.

The historic event – which would have seen Scotland break away from the rest of the UK – took place on 18 September 2014 and saw more than two million people (55.3%) vote No and 1.6 million (44.7%) vote Yes.

Following the defeat, Mr Salmond stepped down as first minister and SNP leader and was replaced by Nicola Sturgeon.

In an interview with Sky News to mark the 10th anniversary of the independence referendum, Mr Salmond said he started to write his concession speech when the first result was declared.

Mr Salmond returned to the Commons as MP for Gordon in the 2015 general election but was ousted in the 2017 election by Conservative Colin Clark.

The loss marked the first time since 1987 that Mr Salmond was not in an elected position at either Westminster or Holyrood.

Mr Salmond would go on to launch The Alex Salmond Show on RT, the former Russia Today channel editorially controlled and funded by the Russian government.

Mr Salmond was criticised by Scottish politicians over the decision to host it on RT, with Ms Sturgeon saying she would have advised against it.

The show, which also featured Mr Salmond’s protege Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, was suspended following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Not to be stopped, a new show titled Scotland Speaks with Alex Salmond launched a year later via Turkish public broadcaster TRT. The first episode featured an interview with Hollywood actor Brian Cox.

Before that, however, Mr Salmond resigned from the SNP in August 2018 in the face of allegations of sexual misconduct while first minister.

Mr Salmond said he wanted to avoid internal division within the party amid calls to suspend him.

Denying any wrongdoing, Mr Salmond vowed to re-join the SNP once he had an opportunity to clear his name.

Mr Salmond went on to take the Scottish government to court to challenge the complaints procedure which had been activated against him.

The investigation was deemed by a judicial review to have been “tainted by apparent bias”, with Mr Salmond awarded £512,000 as a result.

In January 2019, Mr Salmond was arrested by Police Scotland and charged with 14 offences, including two counts of attempted rape, nine sexual assaults, two indecent assaults, and one breach of the peace.

In March 2020, Mr Salmond was cleared of all charges. A jury found him not guilty of 12 charges, one charge was dropped by prosecutors during the trial, while another charge was found not proven.

During a procedural hearing of the case, reporting of which was banned until the end of the trial, Mr Salmond’s defence team claimed the Scottish government and those working there turned to the criminal process to try to “discredit” him after he won the civil case into how the administration handled sexual harassment complaints against him.

Details heard during the trial were devastating to Mr Salmond’s public image, with allegations of bullying and demanding behaviour.

Defence advocate Gordon Jackson KC put it to the court that Mr Salmond was a “touchy-feely kind of person”.

Jurors heard details of inappropriate behaviour, including Mr Salmond admitting that he had a “sleepy cuddle” with one complainer and sexual contact with two complainers, neither of them his wife, Moira.

In his closing speech, Mr Jackson described his client as a “Marmite man” as well as someone who “could have been a better man”.

Two subsequent inquiries into the conduct of ministers and officials saw Mr Salmond asserting his belief that many in his former party had colluded against him in an effort to block any final return to frontline politics.

After being cleared, Mr Salmond vowed that evidence of a plot to discredit him would “see the light of day”.

While once great friends, the sexual harassment allegations and subsequent court case led to the breakdown of Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon’s relationship.

Mr Salmond did not return to the SNP and instead launched rival Alba Party in 2021.

He has often been critical of his successors, Ms Sturgeon, Humza Yousaf and Mr Swinney.

When Ms Sturgeon quit as first minister in 2023, Mr Salmond told Sky News that the SNP had “no obvious successor”.

While speaking during an Edinburgh Fringe event later that year, Mr Salmond refused to rule out a reconciliation with Ms Sturgeon and said it would be “sad” if they remained on poor terms.

Despite not achieving his dream, Mr Salmond never wavered in his belief that Scotland would be better as an independent country.

In one of his final interviews with Sky News, he said: “I don’t say that Scotland would be a land of milk and honey, but we would be a land of oil, gas and renewables and that would stand us in good stead.”

Politics

Hashdex amends S-1 for crypto index ETF, adds seven altcoins

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3 hours ago

March 17, 2025

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Hashdex amends S-1 for crypto index ETF, adds seven altcoins

Asset manager Hashdex has amended its S-1 regulatory filing for its cryptocurrency index exchange-traded fund (ETF) to include seven altcoins in addition to Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), according to a March 14 filing.

The revision proposes adding seven specific altcoins to the index ETF — Solana (SOL), XRP (XRP), Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), Avalanche (AVAX), Litecoin (LTC), and Uniswap (UNI). As of March 17, the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF holds only Bitcoin and Ether.

Previous versions of Hashdex’s S-1 suggested the possibility of adding other cryptocurrencies in the future but didn’t specify which ones.

According to the filing, the proposed altcoins additions “are decentralized peer-to-peer computer systems that rely on public key cryptography for security, and their values are primarily influenced by market supply and demand.”

The revised filing signals how ETF issuers are accelerating planned crypto product rollouts now that US President Donald Trump has instructed federal regulators to take a more lenient stance on digital asset regulation.

As part of the transition, the ETF plans to switch its reference index from the Nasdaq Crypto US Index — which only tracks BTC and ETH — to the more comprehensive Nasdaq Crypto Index, the filing said.

The asset manager did not specify when it plans to make the change. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must sign off on the proposed changes before they can take effect.

Accelerating approvals

In December, the SEC gave the green light to both Hashdex and Franklin Templeton’s respective Bitcoin and Ether index ETFs.

Both ETFs were listed in February, initially drawing relatively modest inflows, data shows. They are the first US ETFs aiming to offer investors a one-stop-shop diversified crypto index.

Asset manager Grayscale has also applied to convert its Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund to an ETF. Created in 2018, the fund holds a crypto index portfolio comprising BTC, ETH, SOL and XRP, among others.

Industry analysts say crypto index ETFs are the next big focus for issuers after ETFs holding BTC and ETH listed in January and July, respectively.

“The next logical step is index ETFs because indices are efficient for investors — just like how people buy the S&P 500 in an ETF. This will be the same in crypto,” Katalin Tischhauser, head of investment research at crypto bank Sygnum, told Cointelegraph in August.

In February, the SEC acknowledged more than a dozen exchange filings related to cryptocurrency ETFs, according to records.

The filings, submitted by Cboe and other exchanges, addressed proposed rule changes concerning staking, options, in-kind redemptions and new types of altcoin funds.

Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime

Politics

New BITCOIN Act would allow US reserve to exceed 1M: Law Decoded

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5 hours ago

March 17, 2025

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New BITCOIN Act would allow US reserve to exceed 1M: Law Decoded

The newly reintroduced Boosting Innovation, Technology, and Competitiveness through Optimized Investment Nationwide (BITCOIN) Act of 2025 by Senator Cynthia Lummis would allow the United States to potentially hold over 1 million Bitcoin (BTC) in its crypto reserves.

The bill directs the government to buy 200,000 BTC annually over five years, to be paid for with existing funds within the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department.

If signed into law, the act would allow the US to hold more than 1 million BTC as long as the assets are acquired through lawful means other than direct purchases, including criminal or civil forfeitures, gifts, or transfers from federal agencies.

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Democratic lawmaker urges Treasury to cease Trump’s Bitcoin reserve plans

US Representative Gerald Connolly, a Democrat from Michigan, called on the Treasury to cease its efforts to create a crypto reserve in the United States. The lawmaker said there were conflicts of interest with US President Donald Trump and argued that the reserve would not benefit Americans.

Connolly criticized the reserve in a letter addressed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, arguing that there’s no “discernible benefit” to Americans and that the move would instead make Trump and his donors richer.

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Argentine lawyer requests Interpol red notice for LIBRA creator: Report

Argentine lawyer Gregorio Dalbon is seeking an Interpol Red Notice for Hayden Davis, the co-creator of the LIBRA token, which caused a political scandal in Argentina.

Dalbon submitted a request, seeking the Red Notice, to prosecutor Eduardo Taiano and judge María Servini, who are investigating the involvement of President Javier Milei in the memecoin project.

In a filing, the lawyer said there’s a procedural risk if Davis remains free. The lawyer argued that Davis could have access to funds that might allow him to go into hiding or flee to the US.

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America must back pro-stablecoin laws, reject CBDCs — US Rep. Emmer

In a House Financial Services Committee hearing, US Representative Tom Emmer said that central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) threaten American values. The lawmaker called on Congress to pass his CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act to block future administrations from launching a CBDC without congressional approval.

Emmer said at the hearing that CBDC technology is “inherently un-American,” adding that allowing unelected bureaucrats to issue a CBDC could “upend the American way of life.”

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Texas lawmaker seeks to cap state’s proposed BTC purchases at $250 million

Ron Reynolds, a Democratic state representative in Texas, has proposed a cap for the state’s investment in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.

The lawmaker proposed in a bill that the state’s comptroller should not be allowed to invest more than $250 million in crypto. The bill also directs Texas municipalities or counties to not invest more than $10 million in crypto.

The proposed bill follows the Texas Senate’s approval of legislation establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve in the state.

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Politics

XRP’s role in US Digital Asset Stockpile raises questions on token utility — Does it belong?

Published

5 hours ago

March 17, 2025

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XRP’s role in US Digital Asset Stockpile raises questions on token utility — Does it belong?

Ripple’s XRP (XRP), the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, gained national recognition after President Donald Trump mentioned the “valuable cryptocurrency” alongside BTC, ETH, SOL, and ADA as part of a planned US strategic crypto reserve.

Trump’s executive order on March 6 established a new structure for the altcoins — the Digital Asset Stockpile, managed by the Treasury.

While the crypto community remains divided on whether XRP is truly as valuable as President Trump suggests, a closer look at the altcoin’s utility is warranted.

XRP’s potential role in banking

Launched in 2012 by Ripple Labs, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) was designed for interbank settlements. It initially offered three enterprise solutions: xRapid, xCurrent, and xVia, all later rebranded under the RippleNet umbrella. XCurrent is real-time messaging and settlement between banks, xVia is a payment interface allowing financial institutions to send payments through RippleNet, and xRapid, now part of On-Demand Liquidity (ODL), facilitates cross-border transactions.

Only ODL actually requires XRP; the other services allow banks to use RippleNet without ever holding the token. This means bank adoption of Ripple technology does not always drive XRP’s price.

Some of the world’s largest banks have used xCurrent and xVia, including American Express, Santander, Bank of America, and UBS. There is less data on the entities that use XRP-powered ODL service. Known adopters include SBI Remit, a major Japanese remittance provider, and Tranglo, a leading remittance company in Southeast Asia.

XRP’s role in Web3

XRP is also used as a gas token. However, unlike the Ethereum network, where fees go to validators, a small amount of XRP is burned as an anti-spam mechanism.

XRP’s role in Web3 is minimal. Unlike Ethereum, Ripple does not support complex smart contracts or DApps. It offers only basic Web3 functionality, such as a token issuance mechanism and native NFT support under the XLS-20 standard, introduced in 2022.

The XRPL Web3 ecosystem is small. Its modest DeFi sector holds $80 million in total value locked (TVL), according to DefiLlama. XRPL’s tokens have a combined market cap of $468 million, according to Xrpl.to. Most of them are DEX tokens (SOLO) and memes (XRPM), as well as wrapped BTC and stablecoins.

So far, XRPL’s Web3 sector remains niche and trails true smart contract platforms like Ethereum and Solana.

Crypto pundits split hairs on XRP’s role in a strategic reserve

Ripple Labs representatives have long advocated for equal treatment of cryptocurrencies, with CEO Brad Garlinghouse reiterating this on Jan. 27.

Garlinghouse said,

“We live in a multichain world, and I’ve advocated for a level-playing field instead of one token versus another. If a government digital asset reserve is created—I believe it should be representative of the industry, not just one token (whether it be BTC, XRP or anything else).”

However, not all cryptocurrencies serve the same purpose. Bitcoin’s primary role is to be a “geopolitically neutral asset like gold,” in the words of crypto analyst Willy Woo. XRP’s purpose remains less clear, but few in the crypto space would argue that it could qualify as independent money.

This is primarily due to one of Ripple’s most uncomfortable aspects—its permissioned nature. Unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, Ripple does not rely on miners or staked tokens to secure the network. Instead, it uses a Unique Node List—a group of trusted validators responsible for approving transactions. While this optimizes speed and efficiency, it raises concerns about censorship, corruption, and security risks.

Bitcoin proponent and co-founder of Casa Jameson Lopp didn’t hold back when discussing XRP’s potential:

“There’s Bitcoin, then there’s Crypto, then there’s Ripple. Ripple has attacked Bitcoin at a level rivaled only by BSV’s lawsuits. Ripple explicitly wants to power CBDCs. They have always been focused on servicing banks. Few projects are as antithetical to Bitcoin.”

There’s no love lost between Bitcoiners and Ripple supporters, especially after Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen partnered with Greenpeace to fund an anti-Bitcoin campaign.

However, Lopp’s comparison to CBDCs holds some weight, given XRPL’s permissioned nature. It reflects a common view in the crypto community that XRP functions more like a banking tool than a truly independent cryptocurrency.

While the XRPL blockchain sees widespread use in banking, XRP’s utility remains a point of concern. It is underscored by the fact that approximately 55% of the 100 billion pre-mined coins are still held by Ripple Labs. This concentration raises concerns about potential market manipulation and the coin’s long-term stability.

This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.