Here’s what happened in crypto today

Today in crypto, a former Near Protocol employee found himself in hot water after he showed nude images while sharing his screen on a public call, GameStop shares got an after-hours boost after a report said it was mulling buying Bitcoin, and Bitcoin mining companies are feeling the first effects of the trade war between the US and China.Near Protocol ex-manager livestreams nudes, apologizes to girlfriendA former employee of layer-1 blockchain platform Near Protocol showed nude images while sharing his screen on a public call, coinciding with a tidy price bump for native token NEAR.Ex-business development manager Andrew Krynin was on a livestream with Near core contributor Cameron Dennis when two titillating images appeared on the screen, providing viewers with a look at the files saved on his laptop.“The only thing that I wanted to say next was, uh… God damn it,” Krynin said. After two seconds of silence, his screensharing stopped.This surprise private show — neatly coinciding with Valentine’s Day Eve — did not go unnoticed. Clips of the video swiftly made the rounds on X, prompting Near Protocol to issue some advice: “top tip: use one laptop for personal stuff, another device for crypto and work. secure your private keys and also other things.”“and never goon,” the account finished.Near issued a more formal apology hours later, stating it takes “full responsibility.” The video has been removed from its platform.GameStop jumps 18% after the bell on reports it’s mulling Bitcoin buyShares in GameStop (GME) jumped 18% in after-hours trading on Feb. 13 after CNBC reported that the game retailer is considering investing in alternative asset classes, which could include Bitcoin .One source told CNBC that GameStop might not go through the buys, however, as it’s still looking at if it makes sense for the business. If it does, GameStop will join a growing number of companies that buy Bitcoin in a bid to boost their earnings and returns to shareholders.Google Finance shows GME spiked up over 18% in after-hours trading to a high of $31.30, later cooling to $28.31 — still up around 7.5% from its $26.34 close.Speculation was already rife that GameStop was mulling buying Bitcoin after CEO Ryan Cohen posted a picture to X earlier this month with Bitcoin bull and Strategy chair Michael Saylor — who CNBC reported was not involved with GameStop’s plan.GameStop has tried to make inroads into crypto before. It previously launched a crypto wallet, but it killed the product in November 2023 due to regulatory uncertainty. It also shut its non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace in January 2024 over similar concerns.US mining companies feel supply squeeze from Bitmain shipment delaysUS mining companies are experiencing delays in receiving shipments of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) — the hardware used to mine Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies — from Chinese manufacturer Bitmain amid trade tensions between the two countries.According to a Feb. 13 Bloomberg report, the shipping delays are due to increased scrutiny of Chinese-manufactured ASICs and high-performance computing hardware by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP).The delay is part of an earlier crackdown from the CBP on Bitmain imports to the US, which began in November 2024 and resulted in ASIC shipments being detained for months by the CBP at US ports of entry.The US Department of Commerce, under the Biden administration, also added Sophgo — an AI company with links to Bitmain — to its blacklist of foreign entities restricted from receiving US AI chips in January 2025.Shipping delays are expected to hurt the profitability of US mining firms in an already competitive field as fears of a prolonged trade war between the two countries continue to mount and the BTC mining difficulty climbs.