Hong Kong’s OSL Asset Management wins license to offer blockchain, AI, Web3 investment products
Hong Kong-based OSL Asset Management Ltd said it won a local license to offer investment products in blockchain, Web3 and AI companies.
Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Moody’s, others to join new financial industry blockchain
Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Deloitte, Moody’s and other institutions are partnering with Digital Asset for the launch of the Canton blockchain.
Litecoin transactions jump amid Bitcoin blockchain congestion, higher fees
Daily transactions on the Litecoin blockchain hit all-time highs over the past two days amid the Bitcoin network’s congestion and higher transaction fees, Glassnode data showed.
Bitcoin transaction fees surge, El Salvador users suffer consequences
Skyrocketing activity has led to a surge in average Bitcoin transaction fees — which rose to US$31.15 as of March 8 — exerting increasing pressure on users in low- and middle- income economies including Bitcoin-reliant communities in El Salvador, the first country to implement mass adoption of the digital currency.
Bittrex’s U.S. crypto exchange unit files for bankruptcy following closure, SEC lawsuit
U.S. crypto exchange Bittrex Inc. has filed for bankruptcy just days after closing operations following an SEC lawsuit and citing unclear crypto laws.
Hong Kong NFT firm Artifact Labs raises US$3.25 mln in seed round
The startup, originally incubated by the South China Morning Post, has closed a financing round led by Blue Pool Capital and Animoca Ventures.
India not against blockchain tech, but cryptocurrency should be monitored, says FM
India is not against the blockchain technology, but currencies have to be monitored by either the government or the central bank, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.
Cryptocurrencies can be used for debt settlement in China: Supreme Court
Cryptocurrencies in China can be legally used to settle basic relations debts such as exchange and labor, according to the Supreme People’s Court of China.
Binance resumes Bitcoin withdrawals after halting transactions twice in 12 hours
Binance resumed withdrawals of Bitcoin around Monday noon in Hong Kong after temporarily halting the service twice within 12 hours due to what the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange said was a “large volume of pending transactions.”
Pepe, Floki to list on Binance exchange
PEPE and FLOKI, the two top trending memecoins that saw the biggest gains on Friday, will be listed on Binance at 12 a.m. Hong Kong time Saturday
Kenya eyes 3% tax on digital asset transfers
Kenya plans to impose a 3% tax on the transfer of digital assets for the coming budget year
China’s Henan state-owned investment group sets up US$22 mln metaverse fund
Henan Cultural Tourism Investment Group, a state-owned investment enterprise in Central China’s Henan province, has set up a 150 million yuan private equity investment fund to finance metaverse ventures.
Israel confiscates suspicious Binance accounts allegedly linked to Islamic State: Reuters
Binance says it works closely with law enforcement to freeze funds and the news agency’s report left out “critical facts.”
Fed hikes rates by a quarter point, Bitcoin drops 0.48%
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, dropped 0.48% on Thursday, Hong Kong time, after the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee said it would raise interest rates by 25 basis points, as widely expected. The latest rate bump brings the target range to 5%-5.25%, the highest since September 2007. See related story: Bitcoin, Ether, […]
Crypto miner Bitdeer expands to Bhutan, partners state-owned investment arm
Singapore-headquartered cryptocurrency miner Bitdeer Technologies is planning to expand its mining operations to Bhutan and raise up to US$500 million for a fund through a new partnership with the Himalayan kingdom’s state-owned investment company Druk Holding and Investments.
Coinbase opens Bermuda-based crypto derivatives exchange amid conflict with U.S. regulators
Coinbase, the publicly listed largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., opened its offshore derivatives exchange in Bermuda on Tuesday.
Biden administration pushes for 30% electricity tax in swipe at crypto miners
The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is campaigning for a tax on cryptocurrency miners equal to 30% of the cost of the power they use, citing what it calls “negative spillovers” from the industry.
Temasek denies investment in algorithmic crypto developer Array
Temasek, Singapore’s state-owned investment firm, has denied that it had invested in Array, an algorithmic cryptocurrency developer.
Sotheby’s launches NFT marketplace for transactions on Ethereum, Polygon networks
Sotheby’s, which accounts for 24% of global art auction sales, has launched an online secondary marketplace for its curated NFTs as the 279-year-old auction house for fine art expands its push into digital assets.
Mad Lads tops weekly NFT sales in first week since launch
Mad Lads has been the best selling NFT collection in the world since its launch that was delayed last week due to a DDOS attack.
Bitcoin, Ether rise amid renewed recession fears after weaker-than-expected U.S. GDP
Bitcoin and Ether rose during Asian trading hours on Friday, while the top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization closed mixed. The SOL token saw the biggest gain. Asian equity markets strengthened after the Chinese central bank boosted short-term cash injections for the 11th day.
HKMA urges local banks to provide services to regulated digital asset firms
Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, urged local lenders to provide banking services to regulated crypto firms.
Binance says it built 700-member compliance team to handle crypto crime, legal enquiries
Binance said it has more than 700 employees in its compliance team, which includes 170 staff working to combat crypto fraud.
Bitcoin gains after week of bank turbulence, Ether dips, U.S. equity futures lose steam
Bitcoin rose on Friday morning in Asia amid worries about U.S. banks and a possible recession. Ether edged lower. along with most other top 10 tokens.
Polygon developers get access to Google Cloud’s node service
Google Cloud has announced that its node hosting service, the Blockchain Node Engine, will be available for developers on the Polygon blockchain.
Bitcoin, Ether inch up; equities strengthen after phone call between China’s Xi Jinping, Ukraine’s Zelensky
Bitcoin and Ether rose during Asian trading hours on Thursday, while most top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization declined. Cardano’s ADA token saw the biggest gain.
Hong Kong’s SFC to release crypto exchange licensing guidelines in May: Bloomberg
Hong Kong’s Web3 industry can look forward to more regulatory clarity, with the city set to release its cryptocurrency exchange licensing framework in May
Investment bank H.C. Wainwright says ‘crypto winter over,’ rates Coinbase a ‘buy’
New York-based investment bank H.C. Wainwright has initiated a “buy” rating on publicly traded Coinbase Global Inc., the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., saying the company is poised to benefit from growth in the global digital asset economy as the so-called “crypto winter” of falling prices is over.
Investment giant Franklin Templeton connects US$270 million fund to Polygon network
Franklin Templeton said Wednesday that its OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund is now supported on the Polygon network.
Meta’s Zuckerberg says he is keeping focus on metaverse development despite losses
Meta Platforms Inc. Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg said the social media giant is not moving away from its metaverse focus despite reporting repeated losses in the billions of dollars at its division dedicated to developing the virtual reality online world.
Bitcoin, Ether rebound after early morning fall; U.S. equity futures gain on Meta outlook
Bitcoin rose above US$29,000 on Thursday morning in Asia, rebounding from an earlier drop. Ether gained. Other top 10 non-stablecoin tokens traded mixed.
Mad Lads briefly boosts Tensor’s NFT trading volume past Magic Eden
Tensor topped Magic Eden’s sales volume on Wednesday afternoon in Hong Kong, giving it a brief stint as Solana’s top NFT marketplace.
Bitcoin, Ether, top 10 cryptos rise; Asian equity markets mixed
Bitcoin and Ether rose on Wednesday trade in Asia, along with all top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies, with Solana and Cardano leading the way.
South Korea’s cryptocurrency bill gets nod in first phase of review, may pass this year
South Korea’s legislation on how to regulate digital assets passed the first phase of review in the country’s National Assembly on Tuesday.
Binance.US cites ‘hostile’ regulator, yanks US$1.3 billion deal to buy Voyager Digital
Binance.US, a cryptocurrency exchange set up by Binance chief Changpeng Zhao to serve U.S. clients, has pulled out of a US$1.3 billion deal to buy bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital, the company said Tuesday, citing a lack of clear regulations in the country for the crypto industry.
Bitcoin bounces back to US$28,000, Ether gains; U.S. equity futures up on tech earnings
Bitcoin rose in Wednesday morning trading in Asia to reclaim the US$28,000 mark, with Ether and all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies moving higher.
Bitcoin, all top 10 cryptos fall; Asian equity markets drop on rising Covid fears
Bitcoin fell in Tuesday afternoon trade in Asia, along with all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies. Polygon was the biggest loser followed by Solana.
South Korea indicts Terra co-founder Daniel Shin; Shin rejects accusations
South Korean prosecutors on Tuesday indicted Terraform Labs co-founder Daniel Shin for alleged fraudulent transactions related to the collapse of the Terra-Luna crypto project.
CoinShares says weekly investment in Ethereum-linked products rebounds after hard fork
Ethereum-linked digital asset investment products saw inflows of around US$17 million in the week ending April 21, up from US$300,000 in the previous week, appearing to show investor confidence following the blockchain’s milestone upgrade, Coinshares report shows.
Coinbase ups the ante with SEC, asking court to require crypto clarity from regulator
Coinbase sued the U.S. SEC on Monday, asking that a court require the regulator to publicly respond to the Coinbase July 2022 petition asking for clearer crypto regulation guidelines.
Bitcoin loses ground, Ether dips even as inflows rise; Litecoin edges up, with halving cited
Bitcoin fell below US$27,500 support on Tuesday morning in Asia. Ether and most other top 10 tokens traded lower amid a broader correction.
Russia is 2nd biggest Bitcoin miner after U.S.: report
Russia is now the second largest Bitcoin miner after the U.S., according to a report by Russian media Kommersant.
Memecoin PEPE falls 18% at start of trading week
PEPE, a memecoin launched on April 14, fell 18.81% to US$0.0000002626 in the 24 hours to 7 p.m. on Monday in Hong Kong. The coin is still up over 392% on the weekly chart and has a market capitalization of US$116 million, according to DEXTools.
Bitcoin extends drop, stays below US$28,000; Solana, Polygon leads losers in top 10 cryptos
Bitcoin extended losses in Monday afternoon trade in Asia, along with all top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with Solana and Polygon as the biggest losers.
India’s finance minister lauds DLT, says crypto regulation does not mean technology control
India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in commending the potential of distributed ledger technology (DLT), has urged for a global consensus in regulating crypto while emphasizing that regulation did not equate to government control over the technology.
China’s Changshu city to pay civil servant salaries in digital yuan
State employees in China’s Changshu City will receive their salaries in digital yuan from May, as China’s CBDC expands in daily uses.
Terraform Labs Kwon to get Montenegro court hearing May 11 on passport forgery charges
Kwon Do-hyeong will have a court hearing on May 11 in Montenegro on charges of allegedly attempting to travel using a false passport.
Bitcoin, Ether gain, but hold losses for the week; U.S. equity futures lose ground
Bitcoin rose on Monday morning in Asia but was boxed in below US$28,000. Ether and most other top 10 tokens gained, but not by enough to erase losses for the past week.
Abu Dhabi calls for feedback on proposed legal framework for decentralized economy: CoinDesk
The UAE’s registration authority of Abu Dhabi Global Market is seeking feedback on its proposed legislative framework for distributed ledger technology, which will focus on disclosures, liquidation, and governance structures, according to a report by CoinDesk
Bitcoin, Ether decline; equities fall amid U.S.-China tension
Bitcoin and Ether fell by the end of Asian trading hours on Friday afternoon, together with all top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization apart from the BNB token. Asian equities declined along with U.S. futures, amid mounting political pressure between China and the U.S. Fast facts See related article: EU green lights MICA but […]
Sotheby’s to auction off NFTs owned by defunct hedge fund Three Arrows Capital
Leading auction house Sotheby’s said it will sell NFT artworks owned by the bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.
Bitcoin mining difficulty rises 1.7% to record high, hashrate jumps
Bitcoin’s mining difficulty level rose 1.72% on Thursday to a record high, while the network’s hashrate increased, showing miners are applying more computing power.
Bitcoin falls to near US$28,000, Ether flat, U.S. equities slide on rate hike worries
Bitcoin fell to near US$28,000 on Friday morning in Asia, with Ether trading flat and most other top 10 non-stablecoin tokens losing steam.
EU Parliament approves its first crypto regulation MiCA
The European Parliament has approved the Markets in Crypto-Assets Act (MiCA), a legislation aimed at standardizing regulations and establishing harmonized rules for crypto assets across the European Union
Bitcoin trades below US$29,000, Ether slips, as market eyes Europe’s MiCA vote
Bitcoin and Ether fell during afternoon trading hours in Asia on Thursday, while most other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization strengthened. Crypto investors were cautious ahead of Europe’s vote on the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) bill.
Crypto miner Bitdeer falls 35% since Nasdaq debut, reports net loss in 2022
Shares of Singapore-based cryptocurrency miner Bitdeer have slid more than 35% since their Nasdaq debut on April 14, and were trading at US$6.41 at closing on Wednesday.
Bitcoin falls below US$29,000, Ether slumps, U.S. equities stall on inflation concerns
Bitcoin slid below the US$29,000 mark on Thursday morning in Asia. Ether lost hold of US$2,000 in a sell-off across all top 10 non-stablecoin tokens.
Trump’s Series 2 sells out, tops daily NFT sales chart
Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s second set of NFTs sold out within the first 24 hours since launch, according to the project’s website.
Hong Kong court deems crypto as property, in ruling on defunct exchange Gatecoin
Hong Kong’s High Court has recognized cryptocurrency as property in a March 31 landmark ruling in a legal tussle involving defunct crypto exchange Gatecoin
US chip giant Intel abandons Bitcoin ASIC production
Intel has announced it would shut down its Bitcoin mining chip production a year after launch.
Bitcoin gains, holds above US$30,000; Solana, BNB biggest losers in top 10 cryptos
Bitcoin rose and traded above US$30,000 on Wednesday afternoon in Asia, while Ether fell along with most top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Solana lost the most, followed by Binance’s BNB token.
U.K. could push out crypto regulation within a year: lawmaker Andrew Griffith
The U.K. could see digital asset regulation in the next 12 months as part of a push to turn the nation into a hub for digital assets, said economic secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Griffith
Bitcoin to peak at US$42,000 in 2023, end the year above US$35,000: Finder survey
Bitcoin is expected to hit a high of US$42,225 in 2023 and close the year around US$35,485, according to a survey by Finder.
United Arab Emirates opens licensing applications for cryptocurrency companies
UAE’s Securities and Commodities Authority said Monday it has started accepting applications for operating licenses from cryptocurrency businesses.
Bitcoin reclaims US$30,000, Ether heads higher after grilling of SEC’s Gensler; Polkadot leads winners
Bitcoin rebounded above US$30,000 on Wednesday morning in Asia. All top 10 tokens rose after SEC chair Gary Gensler was criticized at a congressional hearing for his approach to digital assets.
SEC’s Gary Gensler dodges question on whether Ethereum is a security
SEC Chair Gary Gensler did not give a direct answer when asked whether Ether is a security or a commodity at a congressional oversight hearing on Tuesday.
Trump announces more NFTs but the first collection’s price tanks
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a second drop of his NFT trading cards, but the first collection’s price is sinking.
Bitcoin slips, Ether inches above US$2,100
Bitcoin dropped on Tuesday afternoon in Asia but remained above US$29,000, while Ether and most top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies gained. Dogecoin and Solana fell on the day and rose on the week.
Ethereum inflows slow following Shanghai upgrade, exchanges see Ether influx
CoinShares data showed Ethereum-linked products saw little investment interest with inflows of around US$300,000 in the week ending April 14, accounting for a tiny portion of the total US$114 million weekly inflow into digital assets and despite the blockchain’s milestone upgrade last week.
Bitcoin, Ether, other crypto fall as SEC waves big stick; Dogecoin gains; U.S. equity futures flat
Bitcoin, Ether and most other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies dipped Tuesday morning in Asia after the SEC sued crypto exchange Bittrex on Monday.
Bank of England says stablecoins need limits on use to prevent financial instability
The Bank of England may set limits on use of stablecoins, citing concern rapid introduction of such digital currencies could lead to financial instability, Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe said in a speech on Monday.
Do Kwon retained law firm in South Korea before Terra collapse: Bloomberg
The founder of Terraform Labs, Do Kwon, reportedly retained a law firm in South Korea before the April 14 wipeout in TerraUSD’s value, according to a Bloomberg report.