Self-regulatory bodies overseeing China’s banking and securities industries are urging members to “resolutely curb” the “financialization and securitization” wave of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), one of the largest financial service providers in the U.S., unveiled “Project Lithium” to test infrastructure in support of a U.S. digital currency using blockchain technology.  See related article: 5 US digital dollar pilots launching to chase China’s CBDC lead Fast facts Project Lithium is based on blockchain […]

Huawei’s cloud computing arm Tuesday airdropped the brand’s first batch of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), making it the latest Chinese tech giant to join the trend. See related article: China’s Xpeng joins the bandwagon in selling NFTs on Alibaba Fast facts See related article: China’s Communist Party wants to regulate NFTs

Meta, formerly Facebook, started a trial program enabling a handful of creators to charge for what they are building for Horizon Worlds, the firm’s metaverse platform. See related article: India’s biggest telecom firm latches onto metaverse Fast facts Meta will work with a handful of creators under a test program that will enable them to […]

Former Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith was sentenced to prison and fined US$100,000 for violating international sanctions against North Korea by speaking at a cryptocurrency conference in the Hermit Kingdom in April 2019. See related article: North Korea hacked US$400M of crypto in 2021, says Chainalysis Fast facts At the conference, Griffith explained blockchain technology’s use […]

Robinhood added four new cryptocurrencies to its platform on Tuesday, including Shiba Inu token (SHIB), a listing the memecoin community has pleaded for since its inception. See related article: What is the real value of joke coins like Dogecoin and SHIB? Fast facts SHIB gained 30% following the news and has slightly retraced its pump […]

The development allows the city to emerge as a top destination for asset managers looking to launch cryptocurrency-themed funds for professional investors. See related article: More traditional investors are eyeing cryptocurrency to diversify their portfolios Fast facts The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC)-licensed blockchain and virtual assets manager can manage portfolios that may comprise up […]

The fund aims to support and speed up the time-to-market of early-stage projects that have already initiated development.

A shadow fork of the Ethereum mainnet went live on Tuesday, bringing it a step closer to the transition from proof of work (PoW) to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism for the Ethereum 2.0 upgrade. See related article: Can Ethereum’s proof-of-stake transition save the planet? Fast facts The Ethereum Foundation is currently working on a […]

Trading volumes at India’s major cryptocurrency exchanges slumped to their lowest in years after new taxes kicked in on April 1, according to research by Crebaco. See related article: Coinbase’s India launch hits road bump Fast facts U.S. dollar trading volume dropped by 72% on WazirX, 59% on ZebPay, 52% on CoinDCX and 41% on […]

South Korean mobile services company T Scientific announced Monday it will purchase a 60.36% stake in PlutusDS, the operator of local cryptocurrency exchange Hanbitco. See related article: South Korea crypto exchange underdogs: Where are they now? Fast facts T Scientific, a South Korean company specializing in the provision of mobile coupons and mobile commerce services, […]

Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng is selling “digital collectibles” as part of its marketing campaign to mark the 100,000th rollout of a complete vehicle. See related article: Lamborghini’s last all-gas Aventador to be auctioned with NFT Fast facts See related article: China’s Communist Party wants to regulate NFTs

Hong Kong-based Animoca Brands has acquired French racing game studio Eden Games, as Animoca expands its blockchain gaming business. See related article: Animoca Brands halts services to Russians: report Fast facts The acquisition is aimed at developing a series of new blockchain-based racing games, Animoca said. The US$16 million purchase comes after Animoca bought game […]

Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) will make its silver screen debut in a film trilogy produced in partnership with Coinbase, the Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange announced on Tuesday. See related article: Apes Gone Wild! BAYC ‘selling like crazy’ amid otherwise sluggish NFT market Fast facts The first film in the short animated trilogy entitled “The Degen […]

India’s Ministry of Education was one of the latest victims in a series of hacks against verified Twitter accounts promoting fake Azuki non-fungible token (NFT) airdrops.  See related article: Azuki spikes past Bored Apes in daily sales Fast facts India’s University Grant Commission (UGC), which has more than 295,000 followers on Twitter, was hacked on […]

The provinces of Guangdong, Heilongjiang, and Shanxi announced Bitcoin mining equipment seizures and other measures to phase out operations that have survived waves of crackdowns that followed the September crypto ban. See related article: China takes aim at corruption in underground Bitcoin mines Fast facts See related article: Bitcoin miners unwelcome in Hangzhou despite targeted […]

The cultural and tourism authority in Southwest China’s Sichuan province built a non-fungible token (NFT) trading platform to “encourage the music industry to actively adopt modern technology.” See related article: China’s Shandong TV to build NFT marketplace Fast facts The Sichuan government Thursday said a number of music companies are using blockchain technology to safeguard […]

Indian e-wallet service provider MobiKwik withdrew support for crypto exchanges from April 1, local media report.  See related article: Coinbase’s India launch hits road bump Fast facts MobiKwik’s withdrawal comes as the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) distanced itself from offering a payments gateway to Coinbase.  NPCI developed and operates India’s ubiquitous Unified Payments […]

Solana non-fungible token (NFT) sales have risen by more than 60% in the 24 hours coming into Monday morning Asia time after leading marketplace OpenSea added support for the network mid-last week. See related article: Solana NFT sales drop by 21% after OpenSea integration Fast facts This marks a reversal of fortune for Solana-based NFTs […]

South Korean president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is reportedly working with financial authorities to regulate security token offerings (STOs) and initial exchange offerings (IEOs).  See related article: A crypto bull wins the presidency: What it means for South Korea Fast facts STOs, currently being reviewed by Yoon’s Presidential Transition Committee, tokenize traditional securities such as real estate […]

The world’s largest crypto exchange received an in-principle approval from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) to operate as a virtual assets broker-dealer, bolstering Binance’s presence in the Middle East. See related article: Binance wins crypto license in Dubai days after FTX Fast facts Binance will offer virtual asset investment and trading services across the […]

Terraform Labs (TFL) and the Luna Foundation Guard (LFG), the non-profit behind the Terra ecosystem, have acquired US$200 million worth of Avalanche’s AVAX tokens, diversifying its TerraUSD (UST) reserves beyond Bitcoin.  See related article: Terra’s US$10 billion Bitcoin Bet Sends LUNA to Record High Fast facts LFG purchased US$100 million worth of AVAX using UST […]

Jack Mallers announced at Bitcoin 2022 Strike’s integration with Shopify to enable merchants to accept Bitcoin payments through the Lightning Network. See related article: Twitter chief says integration of BTC Lightning Network “a matter of time” Fast facts Mallers also revealed the Bitcoin payments platform bagged partnerships with NCR, one of the world’s largest point-of-sale […]

The governing body overseeing India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) said it isn’t aware of any cryptocurrency exchange using the platform, hours after Coinbase said users could use the same to buy and trade cryptocurrencies.  See related article: SEC threatens to sue Coinbase over high-yield savings account Fast facts Nasdaq-listed Coinbase launched crypto trading services in […]

Shinhan Bank became South Korea’s first domestic lender to trial real-name corporate accounts for cash-to-crypto transactions, paving the way for an institutional crypto boom in the peninsula. See related article: South Korean banks find workaround to cash in on crypto services Fast facts Local regulations permit only licensed and bank-partnered crypto exchanges to offer cash-to-crypto […]

By offering China’s digital currency in trial as a payments option in all pilot areas, payments giant WeChat Pay is paving the way for the wider adoption of the digital yuan in the world’s most advanced digital payments market. See related article: China’s digital yuan is now in 23 cities Fast facts WeChat Wednesday said […]

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Solana blockchain have been officially docked on OpenSea but sales have dropped by over 21% in the past 24 hours.  See related article: OpenSea’s Solana NFT integration, long rumored, is now real Fast facts While Ethereum continues to host the largest number of NFTs, Solana proponents argue that it is […]

The Economic Daily, a mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, called for stricter regulation of “digital collectibles” as investors continue to speculate in non-fungible tokens (NFTs). See related article: Ant Group, JD.com, Tencent pledge to resist speculation of ‘digital collectibles’ Fast facts See related article: WeChat bans NFT accounts, citing ‘crypto speculation’

News of officials planning to shrink the Fed’s balance sheet by US$95 billion a month weighed on risk assets globally including Bitcoin which dropped about 5% Thursday early morning Asia time. See related article: Bitcoin, crypto market on the rise along with global markets Fast facts Bitcoin fell as much as 4.7% on sell off […]

News of Sky Mavis raising US$150 million to compensate users following the around US$600 million hack on its Ronin Bridge led to a surge in Axie non-fungible tokens (NFT) sales. See related article: Axie Infinity blockchain Ronin hacked for over $600M Fast facts Binance leads the round along with Hong Kong-based Animoca Brands, a16z, Dialectic, […]

Binance.US, headed for an IPO, has been valued at US$4.5 billion following a more than US$200 million fundraise in its seed round. See related article: Binance US on track for IPO Fast facts Investors include RRE Ventures, Foundation Capital, Original Capital, VanEck, Circle Ventures and inclusion-focused companies such as Gaingels and Gold House, Binance.US said […]

Near protocol, a smart-contract enabled layer 1 blockchain, has bagged US$350 million in a funding round led by Tiger Global.  See related article: Polkadot is top crypto held by VCs and hedge funds in Q4 2021 Fast facts FTX Ventures, Republic Capital, Hashed, and Dragonfly Capital participated in the funding round led by Tiger Global.  […]

John Tsang Chun-wah, the city’s longest-serving Financial Secretary, will launch 3,000 non-fungible tokens (NFT) of his portrait, becoming Hong Kong’s first civil servant to profit from the trend. See related article: Hong Kong Exchange to trial digital assets trading in ‘Diamond’ pilot Fast facts Tsang is the longest-serving Financial Secretary since the handover. He lost […]

The television station in China’s Shandong province plans to build a “digital collectibles” trading platform and issue its own non-fungible tokens (NFTs), becoming the latest state-run media outlet to join the trend. See related article: WeChat bans NFT accounts, citing ‘crypto speculation’ Fast facts Shandong Television has started developing its own blockchain to run its […]

Lightning Labs raised $70 million in series B funding to build a stablecoin and asset protocol on the Bitcoin network. See related article: Will the growing regulatory heat on stablecoins stifle innovation? Fast facts Investors include Valor, Baillie Gifford, Goldcrest, Kingsway, Stillmark, Brevan Howard, NYDIG, and others. Elizabeth Stark, co-founder and CEO of Lightning Labs, […]

The Italian luxury car maker will auction the world’s first supercar 1:1 NFT before the Aventador becomes a V12-powered plug-in hybrid.  See related article: Sotheby’s will accept Bitcoin and Ether for 101-carat diamond auction Fast facts With the Aventador approaching the end of production, Lamborghini is collaborating with Krista Kim and Steve Aoki for the […]

Kakao Piccoma, the group’s Japanese digital-comics subsidiary, acquired a major stake in Sakura Exchange BitCoin (SEBC) as part of its global expansion. See related article: Kakao Games rebrands subsidiary to focus on crypto, blockchain, Web 3.0 Fast facts Kakao Piccoma bought out SEBC Holdings’ stake for an undisclosed amount and said it will incorporate crypto […]

The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned what it called “the world’s largest and most prominent darknet market” based in Russia and a cryptocurrency exchange associated with ransomware activities. See related article: Russian-linked strains lead crypto ransomware in 2021: Chainalysis Fast facts The Treasury Department Tuesday sanctioned Hydra Market, alleging it offered a marketplace for […]

Singapore on Tuesday passed a law requiring virtual asset service providers to be licensed if they do business overseas, according to Bloomberg.  See related article: How Singapore is reimagining its ‘Asian crypto hub’ image Fast facts The new legislation is an attempt by The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to ensure that it has adequate […]

The U.K. has released a detailed plan to regulate stablecoins as payments along with an intention to create a blockchain sandbox to mark Her Majesty’s entry into the “crypto hub” race. See related article: UK regulator may cancel Eqonex’s registration over Binance, Bifinity ties Fast facts The government plans to amend the Banking Act 2009 […]

Indonesia will tax income from crypto trading at 0.1% and impose an additional value added tax (VAT) of 0.1% on crypto transactions starting May. See related article: Indonesian regulators play catch-up as crypto investment soars Fast facts The tax rate is lower than the 11% tax that the Indonesian government levies on other goods and […]

RockX Tuesday said it raised US$6 million in series A funding, valuing the crypto staking platform serving institutional and high net worth investors at about US$30 million. Fast facts The funding was led by digital asset platform Amber Group and other crypto industry leaders including Matrixport, Primitive Ventures, FBG Capital, Draper Dragon, IMO Ventures, Alpha […]

At least 500 Ether looted from the US$600 million Ronin hack has been transferred to Tornado Cash. See related article: Axie Infinity blockchain Ronin hacked for over $600M Fast facts An Ethereum address associated with the hack made two 100 ETH deposits to Tornado Cash on Monday morning Asia time. Over an hour later, the […]

Singapore’s largest lender won’t expand cryptocurrency trading on its exchange to retail investors any time soon due to “regulatory restrictions” in the island state. See related article: How Singapore is reimagining its ‘Asian crypto hub’ image Fast facts CEO Piyush Gupta said that regulatory agencies are “rightfully concerned” about holding back cryptocurrency trading for retail […]

Prices of Pudgy Penguins non-fungible tokens (NFTs) collection recovered as the community got a new leader. They now trade at 2.85 ETH on marketplace OpenSea, and 2.98 ETH on LooksRare after hovering around 1 ETH for most of March. See related article: Why Asia is poised to be the next big market for an NFT […]

The People’s Bank of China said it expanded its digital yuan pilot program to 11 more cities, including in Hangzhou, which hosts the Asian Games in September. See related article: The digital yuan’s de-dollarization Fast facts The 11 cities that will trial China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) are Tianjin, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen, and […]

Sky Mavis, the developer of the popular blockchain game Axie Infinity, delayed its highly anticipated Origin upgrade in response to the recent hack worth over US$600 million on its Ronin network.  See related article: Top NFT game Axie Infinity generated $1.3B in revenue last year Fast facts The Vietnam-based developer’s new Origin upgrade will now […]

Circle has selected one of America’s oldest banks, BNY Mellon, as the primary custodian for the world’s second-largest stablecoin USDC’s reserves. See related article: USDC to be 100% backed by cash, US Treasuries Fast facts USDC issuer Circle chief Jeremy Allaire had claimed the stablecoin became 100% backed by cash and short-term treasury bills after […]

The Korea Federation of Banks (KFB) may request South Korea’s incoming presidential administration to approve local banks servicing cryptocurrencies, according to a leaked draft report. See related article: South Korea’s largest financial group mulls crypto ETFs Fast facts KFB, the largest body representing domestic lenders, wrote in its report that banks should be permitted to […]

Residents in five more Chinese cities were able to access digital yuan wallets starting Thursday, marking a major development for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) globally.  See related article: Asian Games set for digital yuan, metaverse pilots, tech firm claims Fast facts See related article: Digital yuan pilot attracts Chinese province bordering Russia

India’s 30% flat levy on all capital gains made on cryptocurrencies kicked in on April 1 in a development likely to stifle the relatively nascent industry in the country. See related article: India’s crypto tax will incur losses for government, says WazirX CEO Fast facts Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has been facing investor backlash over […]

The operator of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange will become the first-ever official crypto exchange partner for the annual Grammy Awards for musical achievement. See related article: Binance to take $200M stake in Forbes Fast facts Binance will bring various Web 3.0 technology solutions and experiences to the organization’s members, events and initiatives, a press release […]

European lawmakers have voted to introduce new legislation designed to stop illicit flows amid industry pushback claiming the measures will stifle innovation and infringe on privacy. See related article: EU votes against de facto Bitcoin mining ban Fast facts The proposal requires crypto service providers to collect information on senders and beneficiaries in all crypto […]

Polkadot parachain Acala and its Kusama-based counterpart Karura are integrating with cross-chain bridge Wormhole, bridging its decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems with eight major Layer 1 blockchains.  See related article: Polkadot is top crypto held by VCs and hedge funds in Q4 2021 Fast facts The Wormhole integration will bridge Acala and Karura to Ethereum, Solana, […]

WeChat has blocked more than a dozen accounts belonging to non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces from its social media platform, citing prevention of “crypto speculation.” See related article: China state-backed paper’s NFTs surge in price on second-hand market Fast facts When visited, the banned accounts of the NFT marketplaces displayed a message from WeChat: “No legal […]

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is voicing concerns over the adoption of cryptocurrencies in India, suggesting it poses significant risks to the country’s financial stability, local media report. See related article: Killing it softly or regulating to innovate? India at the crypto crossroads Fast facts Crypto assets pose significant risks, including to financial stability in […]

Zilliqa is leading Thursday’s crypto market with an 80% charge over the last 24 hours, part of a 270% weekly pump since its metaverse-as-a-service platform Metapolis launch event was announced.

A district government in Maharashtra, India, has started stamping 65,000 caste certificates through LegitDoc, a document-verifying system on the Polygon blockchain.  See related article: India releases ‘National Strategy on Blockchain’ for e-governance Fast facts In India, caste certificates are used by marginal communities such as tribes to gain access to certain government benefits and subsidies.  […]

Sushil Kumar Modi, a member of Parliament (MP), has urged India’s finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to consider raising the capital gains tax on crypto income to over 30%, the flat rate scheduled to kick in from April 1.  See related story: India’s tax bogeyman is scaring off young crypto investors Fast facts The minister argued […]

Augmented reality (AR) glasses maker Nreal raised US$60 million in its Series C+ led by Alibaba, which joins rival Chinese tech giants Tencent and ByteDance in a race into the metaverse.  See related article: Why the metaverse is a trillion dollar opportunity Fast facts See related article: Foxconn’s Taiwan subsidiary receives investment from Google for […]

The Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX) Tuesday revealed plans to launch “Diamond,” a trading platform to pilot digital assets in 2022.  See related article: China’s e-CNY pilot to boost Hong Kong as offshore yuan trading center Fast facts See related article: Hong Kong to propose bill to license crypto exchanges

Decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocol Aave’s governance token surged 84% since its March 16 V3 upgrade, and was trading at US$220.01 at press time, according to CoinGecko data.  See related article: DeFi lending platform Aave to ‘build Twitter on Ethereum’ Fast facts Aave is also the top gainer in the past 24 hours with a […]

Leading non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea has released a teaser of its long-rumored integration of NFTs on the Solana blockchain, now planned for April. See related article: What is the Solana ecosystem and how is it fueling SOL’s stratospheric rise? Fast facts OpenSea’s teaser video shared on Twitter on Tuesday morning Asia time displayed a […]

Bharti Airtel Ltd., India’s largest wireless telecom services provider by active users, is planning to cash in on the metaverse by leveraging its upcoming fifth-generation radio waves (5G) network, according to local media reports.  See related article: Who are the biggest players in the metaverse today? Fast facts Airtel is seeking partnerships with content providers […]

Ethereum sidechain Ronin, where play-to-earn blockchain game Axie Infinity runs, has been hacked for over US$600 million in crypto, making it one of the biggest hacks in crypto history. See related article: Axie Infinity becomes first NFT series to break $4B in sales Fast facts Ronin said the hacker compromised four of their own validator […]

Terra’s LUNA, the eighth largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, reached a new all-time high of US$106.14 on Tuesday early afternoon Asia time, following a US$135 million purchase of Bitcoin.

Gaming fintech ZEBEDEE launched ZBD Streamer on Tuesday, enabling content creators to collect Bitcoin tips while live streaming on online platforms including Twitch and YouTube.  See related article: PlayNFT plug-in to enable streamers to offer NFTs on Twitch Fast facts Viewers can send tips using a Bitcoin Lightning wallet, with an option to send custom […]

Xiamen has revealed its three-year action plan to nurture its cluster of metaverse firms involved in non-fungible tokens (NFTs), VR/AR, chips and related hardware with over 100 million yuan (US$15 million) in revenue, according to the local government’s working plan. See related article: ‘Metaverse’ enters government radar at China’s Two Sessions Fast facts See related […]

Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchanges Crypto.com and Bybit have announced that they will be setting up offices in Dubai, as the industry continues its migration towards the United Arab Emirates (UAE).  See related article: As Binance shrinks away in Asia, will it put down roots in the Middle East? Fast facts See related article: Ripple launches first […]

Australian crypto exchange BTC Markets has partnered with Mastercard to allow its customers to make direct debit, prepaid or credit card payments to purchase cryptocurrencies from the platform. See related article: Mastercard partners with Australian exchange for crypto card Fast facts The move is part of a broader trend by payments giants like Mastercard and […]

Greyscale Investments might sue the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) if its filing to convert its US$30 billion Bitcoin trust into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) is rejected, company CEO Michael Sonnenshein told Bloomberg. See related article: Bitcoin price hits all-time high after ProShares ETF debut Fast facts The SEC’s deadline to approve or reject […]

Binance US is on track for an initial public offering (IPO) in two to three years, with a “couple of hundred million dollars” in funding to be announced in April, Binance US CEO Brian Shroder said at the Binance Blockchain Week on Monday.  See related article: Binance US under probe for ties with trading affiliates: […]