China’s legal system is looking into blockchain technology to improve its online smart court system and enhance information sharing and evidence submission. See related article: How blockchain technology is shaking up courtrooms in Asia Fast facts China’s supreme court released on Tuesday a set of rules allowing courts to verify and recognize evidence submitted through […]

Alibaba is rewarding non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on its first blockchain game Ant Adventure, which can be played through the Alipay mobile application, one of China’s leading mobile payment providers.  See related article: Ant Group’s NFT arm punishes users for digital collectible resales Fast facts Ant Adventure is powered by Alibaba’s blockchain AntChain, and takes users […]

Hedera’s HBAR is leading a crypto market bounce with a 14% surge over the last 24 hours to trade at US$0.2306 on the back of the HederaStarter launch announcement as the ecosystem preps for its smart contract era.  See related article: Hedera Hashgraph provides provenance for data from Syrian war Fast facts HederaStarter is slated […]

The high court of China’s southeastern Guangdong province has ruled cryptocurrency investment activities are not protected by law, further clarifying that crypto is not a legitimate currency in the mainland.  See related article: China customs seizes 49 second-hand crypto mining rigs for export Fast facts The Guangdong high court on Tuesday listed a crypto-related virtual […]

Tether cut its commercial paper holdings by 21% last quarter according to the stablecoin operator’s latest quarterly assurance opinion released Monday.  See related article: Tether unveils reserves and backing for its USDT stablecoin in new report Fast facts Auditor MHA Cayman completed an attestation, finding Tether’s reserves held for its digital assets exceed the amount […]

Hong Kong-based Animoca Brands and K-pop agency Cube Entertainment announced on Tuesday the completion of a new joint venture named AniCube Entertainment, as Korean music labels race to cash in on their loyal fan bases through metaverse and non-fungible token (NFT) projects. See related article: K-pop agency Cube bets big on NFT and metaverse Fast […]

Dongguan customs in China’s southeast seized 49 second-hand Ant miners declared “shoe material” for export, at least the third seizure in February, state media reported on Monday.  See related article: Kazakhstan busts 13 illegal Bitcoin mining farms amid power concerns Fast facts See related article: China to ‘outdate’ crypto mining industry with more restrictions

Jingtan, Alibaba affiliate Ant Group’s non-fungible token (NFT) platform, has placed limitations on at least 56 accounts for participating in the resale of digital collectibles, after various collections surged in popularity in online second-hand markets.  See related article: CCTV NFTs hit resale market before transfer permitted Fast facts Jingtan, developed by AntChain, said it has […]

Amber Group has secured US$200 million in a funding round led by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek, raising the cryptocurrency platform’s valuation to US$3 billion.  See related story: Temasek-founded Affinidi launches new business unit to bring Web 3.0 to financial services to Southeast Asia Fast facts Existing investors including Sequoia China, Pantera Capital, Tiger Global […]

A former owner of a rare Bored Ape Yacht Club non-fungible token (NFT) is suing marketplace OpenSea for US$1 million or the token’s return after an exploit on the platform saw the NFT sold for a fraction of its market value. See related article: OpenSea NFT marketplace hacked for 332 ETH Fast facts Texas man […]

Dunamu, the operator of crypto exchange Upbit, signed a memorandum of understanding with credit card company BC Card on Monday to develop a non-fungible token (NFT) and metaverse-based credit card. See related article: South Korean crypto exchange acquires stake in major bank Fast facts Certain items purchased offline via the Dunamu BC Card will be […]

Solana joined Bitcoin’s free fall along with other cryptocurrencies on Tuesday, after being among the few cryptos standing in the green during a red day in the crypto market on Monday.  See related article: What Solana prices will be at the end of 2021 and beyond Fast facts Solana — currently at US$83.50 – is […]

NH-Amundi Asset Management listed its second metaverse exchange-traded fund (ETF) Tuesday that will specifically invest in metaverse-related companies in the U.S. See related article: Hong Kong gears up for its first metaverse ETF Fast facts The HANARO U.S. Metaverse iSelect ETF follows 20 key players in the U.S. metaverse, virtual and augmented reality, and the […]

Kazakhstan’s energy authority has identified and disconnected 13 unauthorized crypto mining farms in the country, as the government continues to ramp up efforts to regulate the sector. See related article: Crypto mining’s Great Migration continues — out of Kazakhstan Fast facts The Ministry of Energy said on Monday that an inspection team has shut down […]

China’s National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) said on Monday that 16,000 trademarks containing the word “metaverse” have been filed.  See related article:  Why the metaverse is a trillion dollar opportunity Fast facts CNIPA opposed the high number of filings, vowing to crack down on “malicious registrations” of trademarks, such as piggybacking on the rising popularity […]

Play-to-earn superstar Axie Infinity became the first non-fungible token (NFT) series to cross the US$4 billion mark in historic sales early Tuesday morning Asia time, according to CryptoSlam data. See related article: Axie Infinity fans play their way to payday as game token prices soar Fast facts Running on the Ethereum sidechain Ronin, Axie Infinity’s […]

Indian authorities arrested 11 individuals over the weekend, connected with a crypto scam case that allegedly used the allure of high gains to dupe 2,000 investors out of US$5.4 million (INR 400 million), local media reported.  Fast facts Four of the accused were apprehended on Saturday after being on the run since March last year, […]

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs), or digital collectibles, issued by China Central Television (CCTV), the nation’s largest state-owned broadcast media, are appearing in China’s largest online second-hand market for at least 10 times the original price in a pre-sale bid, even before trade embargoes on the assets have lifted.  See related article: China’s mouthpiece newspaper is giving […]

Trading volumes on non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace LooksRare dropped by more than half its daily volume since developers withdrew roughly US$30 million of its native LOOKS token and cashed out in wrapped Ether (wETH) Fast facts LooksRare was averaging daily sales volumes of around US$550 million but fell more than 50% overnight in early February […]

Cardano is projected to skyrocket to US$58.04 by the start of the next decade, while closing 2022 at more than double its current value at US$2.79, according to Finder’s panel of 17 crypto experts.  See related article: Ethereum price expected to hit $7,609 in 2022: report Fast facts Cardano, which was trading at US$0.96 at […]

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, continues to tank along with other cryptocurrencies in the global market, with investor sentiment at “extreme fear” at Bitcoin’s Fear and Greed Index.  See related article: Bitcoin leads market-wide downturn as Russia fears rise Fast facts Bitcoin is currently down by almost 2% to trade at US$39,185. Bitcoin’s […]

South Korea’s KB Asset Management launched a committee on Monday that will develop investment strategies for releasing digital asset products such as exchange-traded funds (ETFs). See related article: South Korean banks find workaround to cash in on crypto services Fast facts The ‘Digital Asset Management Preparatory Committee’ aims to be the first to launch digital […]

BIT Mining, a Hong Kong-headquartered cryptocurrency miner, has terminated its data center construction in Kazakhstan due to an unstable local power supply, the company said in its quarterly report. See related article: Crypto mining’s Great Migration continues — out of Kazakhstan Fast facts BIT Mining now abandons a US$9.3 million pledge to a Kazakh data […]

OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer has responded to an apparent phishing scam that targeted its users in a US$1.7 million theft of popular non-fungible tokens (NFTs) such as Bored Ape Yacht Club and Azuki.  Fast facts “As far as we can tell, this is a phishing attack. We don’t believe it’s connected to the OpenSea website. […]

Circle’s USDC, the world’s second-largest stablecoin, is gunning for the title of the world’s top stablecoin as it closes in on Tether’s market capitalization after doubling its valuation to US$9 billion in a revised merger deal.  See related article: Stablecoin issuer Circle to go public in US$4.5B SPAC deal Fast facts USDC’s market cap has […]

Azuki, an anime avatars NFT collection, is in a tight race with the CryptoPunks for the weekly sales volume title, building on its successful debut month in January, according to CryptoSlam data.  See related article: ‘All eyes are on it:’ CryptoPunks at center of copyright legal dispute Fast facts Azuki traded the top spot with […]

Hong Kong’s first metaverse-themed exchange-traded fund (ETF), the CSOP Metaverse Concept ETF, is scheduled to be listed on Feb. 21 on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong, according to a CSOP Asset Management disclosure document.  See related article: NFTs, metaverse listed as top ‘must watch’ security risks in Hong Kong Fast facts The metaverse ETF […]

Foshan city of China’s southeastern province Guangdong launched a blockchain-based corporate social credit system with an automated credit rating function, state-backed media reported on Thursday.  Fast facts See related article: Beijing budgets $37M for government affairs blockchain platform Foshan’s blockchain-based corporate social credit system rates enterprises into four credit levels using data from various sources.  […]

Dating platform Mingout has introduced metaverse dating in India by organizing a virtual date for two of its users in a moon-based setting. See related article: Phillips to auction metahuman-made NFTs for Valentine’s Day Fast facts Metaverse or virtual dating is a nascent concept in India, and Mingout hopes to create a dating revolution and […]

South Korea’s Hoseo University will issue non-fungible token (NFT) degrees and certificates to all 2,830 graduates of its 2021 batch at its graduation ceremony on Friday. See related article: Samsung-backed university to issue NFTs to select graduates Fast facts The university hopes the pivot from a paper-based degree to NFTs will improve access to administrative […]

Israel’s capital market watchdog is asking major cryptocurrency exchange Binance for clarifications on its services in the country and licenses under which it operates, local media reported Thursday. See related article: Binance US under probe for ties with trading affiliates: report Fast facts Binance has stopped all Israel-focused activities and marketing, the Globes reported, citing […]

Bitcoin led a market-wide sell-off Thursday night Asia time by losing almost 8% coming into business hours Friday Asia time, and was trading at US$40,578 at press time. See related article: Is Bitcoin’s rocky start to 2022 a sign of things to come? Fast facts All other major tokens were down around the same amount, […]

President Biden’s executive order directing agencies to devise a comprehensive strategy to regulate cryptocurrencies and other digital assets and examine a digital dollar may be issued next week, according to Yahoo! Finance. Fast facts The order, expected weeks ago, was delayed by a disagreement between the White House and the Treasury over its scope, Bloomberg […]

Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) has announced Brisbane-based crypto exchange Swyftx will be the league’s first official crypto sponsor until 2025, with a one-year extension option. See related article: Crypto.com inks AU$27M deal with the Australian Football League Fast facts For an undisclosed amount, Swyftx will support all NRL and NRLW games and finals, as […]

Hong Kong-based blockchain unicorn Animoca Brands’ Japanese strategic subsidiary started operations on Tuesday to bridge the nation’s exclusive intellectual property (IP) with the Web 3.0 ecosystem. See related article: Animoca Brands valued at US$5B after latest fundraise Fast facts The subsidiary, Animoca Brands KK, is building a blockchain-powered platform for Japanese IP holders to launch […]

The Chinese State Council approved on Wednesday a plan to build computing and data hubs that use blockchain technology to secure data in four regions including the Greater Bay Area (GBA). Fast facts See related article: China writes blockchain and digital currency into nation’s future The four hubs are set to join four more approved […]

The price of NEO climbed by 6.2% over the last 24 hours to US$25.13 on Thursday morning Asia time, following China-based Neo’s Tuesday announcement of its Jiuquan Chain’s integration to China’s state-backed blockchain network. See related article: BSN to integrate Neo’s chain to bolster NFT issuance in China Fast facts NEO hit a daily high […]

Indian media staple Viacom18’s Youth, Music and English Entertainment Cluster (YME) released 3,000 Fully Faltoo non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that sold out within 48 hours since launching, the company said in a press release on Wednesday. See related article: WazirX launches India’s first NFT marketplace Fast facts Fully Faltoo is a local award-winning sitcom program that […]

Two of South Korea’s top cryptocurrency exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb, are among the seven local businesses that achieved unicorn status last year, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) reported on Tuesday. Fast facts The nation’s top four crypto exchanges dominated 96% of total deposits in the South Korean market, while exchange GOPAX is attempting […]

Oracle Red Bull’s Formula 1 (F1) racing team announced on Wednesday a multi-year sponsorship deal with Singapore-based derivative exchange Bybit in what it claims to be the largest annual crypto sponsorship to date. Fast facts While the scale of the sponsorship hasn’t been disclosed officially, media accounts cited an unnamed source in reporting the deal […]

Over 1,200 non-fungible token (NFT)-related trademarks were registered in the U.S. in 2021, a 420-fold increase from the previous year, according to data acquired by Finbold. Fast facts More than 400 trademarks were filed in the month of December 2021 while none were filed in January 2021. There were 450 filings in January 2022, a […]

The Philippines is offering residency in one of its special economic zones known as ecozones with low tax rates for users staking the utility token of Oz Finance, TOTOZ.  Fast facts The residency is offered at the Freeport Area of Bataan, one of over 400 operating ecozones in the Philippines, which is located across the […]

The rapidly growing crypto market could pose a threat to global financial stability, according to a Financial Stability Board (FSB) report published on Wednesday. Fast facts The FSB, an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system, identified vulnerabilities related to unbacked assets such as Bitcoin, stablecoins such as USDT and […]

Binance has rebranded its two blockchains as one BNB Chain on Tuesday, in a push toward the metaverse and decentralized finance (DeFi), an ecosystem the company calls “MetaFi.”  Fast facts Binance has taken its name out of its two blockchains, the Binance Chain and Binance Smart Chain, which are now respectively called BNB Beacon Chain […]

The U.S. securities watchdog has launched a probe into crypto exchange Binance’s relationship with two trading firms with ties to founder Changpeng Zhao, the Wall Street Journal reported. Fast facts The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is examining whether Binance’s U.S. arm properly discloses to users its links to two trading firms — Sigma Chain […]

Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development proposed to greenlight crypto mining in regions with steady electricity surplus, local media reported on Tuesday, days before Friday’s expected crypto regulation draft. Fast facts The ministry also suggested introducing taxes for realized profits on liquidated cryptocurrencies earned through mining. Last week, Russia’s central government agencies reached an agreement to […]

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor Reza Baqir said in this year’s MASIC Annual Investment Forum that cryptocurrency risks far outweigh their benefits and threaten financial and monetary stability for developing countries. Fast facts The SBP recommended a ban on cryptocurrencies last month, with one of the nation’s largest banks quickly heeding the advice by […]

A new NFT gallery owned by the People’s Daily online arm is airdropping this week its first batch of “digital collectibles” minted on Tencent’s blockchain since the gallery’s opening last January. Fast facts Digital collectibles is a phrase now commonly used by Chinese companies to avoid the term “NFT” since Chinese state media began denouncing […]

South Korean crypto exchange GOPAX revealed Tuesday it has partnered with Jeonbuk Bank to provide clients with real-name withdrawal and deposit accounts, qualifying the exchange to offer cash-to-crypto services. Fast facts After registering its new partnership with Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), GOPAX is set to become the fifth digital asset exchange that offers Korean […]

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway purchased US$1 billion of Brazilian neobank Nubank Class A stock in Q4 2021 while selling billions of dollars of stock in Mastercard and Visa. Fast facts Buffett’s holding company dumped US$1.3 billion and US$1.8 billion from Mastercard and Visa, respectively, according to a Feb. 14 filing with the U.S. Securities and […]

China’s state-backed Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) announced the addition of Neo’s Jiuquan Chain to its open permissioned blockchain ecosystem to support the legal issuance of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the mainland. Fast facts Jiuquan Chain, powered by China-based Neo, will run as one of the 10 BSN open permissioned blockchains, as part of the BSN […]

Popular video game Genshin Impact developer miHoYo announced on Monday the launch of HoYoverse for its global expansion while hinting its entry into the metaverse race. Fast facts The China-based game developer wants to provide a virtual world with a “high level of freedom and immersion,” miHoYo CEO Haoyu Cai said in a statement.  MiHoYo […]

T Rabi Shankar, the deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s central bank, proposed an outright ban on cryptocurrencies on Monday, assuring the central bank’s position to prohibit digital assets has not changed since the 30% tax on crypto income was announced.  Fast facts Shankar said he found no merit in the […]

DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx), one of Asia’s first bank-backed digital exchanges, recorded over SG$1.1 billion (US$818 million) in trading value in FY2021, the company said in a press release on Tuesday. Fast facts DDEx is currently a members-only exchange that provides corporate and institutional investors, accredited investors, and family offices that bank with DBS, access […]

Hong Kong’s Ocean Park announced on Monday that it is entering The Sandbox metaverse to offer virtual experiences through non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and gaming, as visitors to its physical venue dropped throughout the pandemic.  Fast facts The government proposed last January that it will transform the physical theme park into a resort and leisure destination […]

A South Korean financial watchdog announced it will strengthen monitoring of new trade assets, including non-fungible tokens (NFTs), in its annual work plan released on Monday. Fast facts The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said it will prepare countermeasures against factors that cause damage to consumers in the rapidly growing digital assets market. Earlier this month, […]

A Hong Kong government-run internet security watchdog has listed risks associated with non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse as a top “must watch” security threat this year, while both trends continue to thrive in the city. Fast facts The Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre said in a statement last week that criminals […]

The aggregate sales volume of the four crypto exchanges that advertised during the Super Bowl on Monday Asia time accounted for under 60% of the world’s largest exchange Binance, which did not. Fast facts The four exchanges — Coinbase, FTX, Crypto.com and BitBuy — saw a total of US$6.75 billion in the past 24 hours […]

Ransomware revenue in crypto in 2021 has been traced to strains connected to Russia with most of the extorted funds laundered through services that primarily cater to Russian users, blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis reported. Fast facts Around 74% of the over US$400 million worth of crypto ransomware revenue last year was directed to strains that […]

The Indian government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are working in “complete harmony” and any decision on cryptocurrency will be made jointly, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a press conference on Monday.  Fast facts Discussions on crypto have been ongoing between the government and the RBI — India’s central bank — even […]

Ethereum’s price is expected to reach US$7,609 this year, although it is expected to end the year at around US$6,500, according to Australian fintech Finder’s panel of 33 crypto specialists.  Fast facts In the long term, the panel predicted that Ethereum’s price will reach US$10,810 by the end of 2025, and US$26,338 by the end […]

Union minister Bhagwat Karad said on Saturday that cryptocurrencies are not legal in India and that their future is uncertain at the moment.  Fast facts Many investors and exchanges had viewed a decision to impose a 30% tax on cryptocurrency profits as a step toward validating the industry. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, however, clarified last […]

Bitcoin has continued to outperform traditional investment vehicles with the digital asset leading over major tech stocks in the last 30 days, according to Finbold. Fast facts Bitcoin outperformed the top six tech stocks by an average return on investment (ROI) of 12.24% as of Feb. 13. Bitcoin significantly outpaced Meta by 46.74%, followed by […]

Advertisements for several crypto exchanges vied for the spotlight in this year’s Super Bowl, including one for Crypto.com that aired during the showcase halftime break. Fast facts Following a widely publicized ad featuring Matt Damon, Singapore-based Crypto.com’s new ad featured basketball star LeBron James talking to his younger self in 2003 insinuating the creation and […]

Bitcoin’s hashrate reached an all-time high over the weekend, despite many miners being forced to move operations out of Kazakhstan. Fast facts The total Bitcoin hashrate surged by 31.7% to an all-time high of 248.11 exahashes per second in raw values on Saturday, according to data from Blockchain.com. The latest hashrate read at 209.63 EH/s […]

South Korea’s Sungkyunkwan University will issue non-fungible token (NFT) certificates to three students who won in-school competitions at the institution’s upcoming online graduation ceremony on Wednesday. Fast facts Sungkyunkwan University said NFT certificates can be used any time as official proof of graduation without the risks of losing the original or fear of forged copies.  […]

Phillips, a global auction house, launched a nine-day non-fungible token (NFT) auction on Monday, Valentine’s Day, in Hong Kong. Fast facts Six artworks are being auctioned as NFTs. One NFT for bidding is an auction data-generated NFT “Drowning in Love” made by MonoC, a virtual artist developed by Gusto Collective. MonoC is a virtual metahuman […]

The Philippine Digital Asset Exchange (PDAX) has raised US$50 million in a Series B funding round led by Tiger Global.  Fast facts UBX, the venture fund of UnionBank of the Philippines, Kingsway Capital, Jump Capital, U.S. blockchain payments company Ripple, among others, also participated in the round.  The funding round started in August last year […]

North Korea’s foreign affairs ministry wrote on its website Tuesday that the U.S. is behind the claim that the socialist state hacked millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency. Fast facts The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) warned that it considers the act of spreading rumors about a “non-existent” cryptocurrency theft to be a serious […]

Ransomware payments in crypto tallied higher than US$602 million in 2021, according to blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis, with average payments recording US$118,000, or 34% higher than the 2020 average.  Fast facts

Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das said in a press conference that cryptocurrencies have no underlying value and that they are “not even a tulip,” warning investors of its risks.  Fast facts Das’s comments come just over a week after India’s central government announced a 30% taxation plan on income from crypto assets as well […]

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, plans to take a US$200 million stake in Forbes through a private placement, making it one of the two largest shareholders of the 104-year-old business magazine. Fast facts The investment comes as Forbes seeks to go public on the New York Stock Exchange via a deal with a special […]