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Bitdeer leads US$250 mln fund to acquire assets from distressed miners: report

Crypto tycoon Jihan Wu’s crypto mining firm Bitdeer Technology Holdings is leading a US$250 million fund to acquire mining rigs from distressed miners amid the cryptocurrency bear market, according to Bloomberg. See related article: China mining rig maker Canaan expands despite crypto winter  Fast facts See related article: Bitmain cuts mining rig price amid crypto […]

BIS mBridge cross-border CBDC project concludes pilot, advisor says

Hong Kong’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) project with three other central banks and the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) has completed its pilot, an advisor from the BIS and a specialist from Thailand’s central bank said on Tuesday. See related article: Future of CBDCs & Stablecoins Fast facts The mBridge pilot saw 20 commercial […]

Crypto community pushes back following CFTC charges against Ooki DAO

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission faces criticism from cryptocurrency industry as opposition grows over “unprecedented” charges against the Ooki DAO.

Terra Classic surges 50% as Binance offers token burning mechanism

Terra Classic (LUNC), the original crypto token of the Terra-LUNA blockchain that collapsed back in May, gained over 50% on Tuesday following an announcement by Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume, that it would support a burn mechanism for the network. See related article: For South Korea, making Do Kwon pay for his […]

Is crypto in a deep funk? Think again

Beyond the bear market, Web3 technology is shining bright in gaming and music, writes Hannes Graah of Gro. Are we at a tipping point for mass adoption?

RBA opens submissions for 2023 CBDC pilot

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) on Monday published a whitepaper on its central bank digital currency (CBDC), or “eAUD,” pilot project that will start in January 2023 and has invited industry participants to submit use cases with economic and social benefits. See related article: World Economic Forum argues for CBDCs, Australia latest to test […]

Is the Philippines on track to becoming a blockchain hub?

The Philippines now ranks 2nd in the world for crypto adoption, but its path ahead is unclear, writes Emman Navalan. What are the hurdles it must overcome?

California governor vetoes bill requiring crypto-related businesses to obtain special license

A bill that proposed a regulatory and licensing framework for crypto companies was rejected by Gov. Gavin Newsom amid a broader national debate concerning the policing of digital assets.

South Korea’s Busan city wants to be blockchain central. Did everyone get the memo?

The coastal city was a prominent manufacturer of footwear, fabric and other light industries during the 1970s and 80s, and then grew into one of the world’s biggest container ports. Now it’s trying to reinvent itself in the digital world of blockchain.

Capital gains: How Web3 property rights can transform the digital economy

Digital ownership enabled by Web3 tech can challenge the monopolistic dynamics of Web2 and give people real equity, says Animoca Brands chief Yat Siu

World Economic Forum launches coalition to use web3, blockchain for positive climate action

The World Economic Forum is launching a new Crypto Sustainability Coalition, consisting of 30 partners within the intersection of sustainable development and web3, crypto, and blockchain technologies, the international non-government organization (NGO) announced in a Webinar on Wednesday in New York, U.S.

Future of CBDCs & Stablecoins

Can regulators strike a balance between innovation and regulation of stablecoins and CBDCs? We take a closer look in today’s episode of TDF.

U.S. Fed has growing interest in CBDCs, says Jeng at Crypto Council for Innovation

Linda Jeng, chief regulatory officer and general counsel at the Crypto Council for Innovation said the U.S. has seen the writing on the wall and is expanding the conversation about cryptocurrency, in comments at Forkast’s “Crypto Rising: CBDCs & Stablecoins: The Asia Perspective.”

Binance stablecoin conversion controversial, but what does it mean for users?

Binance generated controversy when it told customers it would convert their holdings in three stablecoins to its own stablecoin. Some analysts say the concerns are overblown, others disagree.

Blockchain’s lack of accessibility will limit its potential

Blockchain technology remains a world divided by silos that keep out developers and users, writes Manu Siddaligegowda of Lisk. What are the solutions?

Terra chief faces arrest as South Korea ramps up global manhunt

Top blockchain and crypto news: Where is Do Kwon hiding out? Ethereum Merge mood fading fast. China’s digital yuan draws scrutiny Down Under.

China says blockchain patent applications make up 84% of world’s total

China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) claimed on Tuesday in a news conference that the country accounted for more than 84 percent of the world’s blockchain patent applications, despite the country’s ban on cryptocurrencies. See related article: Ant Group and Tencent obtain the most blockchain patents in China: report Fast facts See related […]

South Korea unlikely to push out crypto regulation before the U.S., authority says

South Korea’s top financial watchdog Monday said it is difficult for the country to establish laws overseeing the cryptocurrency industry in the country ahead of a common global regulatory framework as cross-border enforcement would be a key determinant of effectiveness.

US Treasury seeks public opinion on digital asset risks

The U.S. Department of Treasury is seeking public opinion on the “responsible development of digital assets” and has requested comments from the general public on national security and illicit financing risks posed by digital assets.  See related article: Singapore’s central bank says cryptocurrencies have ‘no fundamental value’ Fast facts Comments can be submitted until Nov. […]

Australia Senator says China’s CBDC may threaten national security

Amid the worsening relationship with China, one Australian Senator is trying to address possible national security concerns that may arise from Beijing’s Central Bank Digital Currency project.

If the UK wants to become a crypto hub, it must do better

Britain’s internal divisions could thwart its crypt ambitions, writes Nick Saponaro of Divi Labs. Will it be eclipsed by crypto-friendly Dubai?

Hong Kong encourages firms to bring STO proposals to the SFC

Hong Kong has invited firms interested in security token offerings (STO) to share their proposals with the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the regulator’s Fintech department head Elizabeth Wong told digital assets industry representatives last week, according to a press release published on Monday.  See related article: Hong Kong regulator: ramp up oversight of virtual […]

Binance’s US$7.5 billion woman sees plenty of promise in bear markets

Yi He, who manages the multibillion-dollar portfolio at Binance Labs, is looking to invest in Web 3.0 projects from infrastructure, application and data to analytics and security.

Owning a piece of history: How NFTs can help maintain our collective memory

Non-fungible tokens aren’t merely novelty items — they can play a valuable a role in preserving history and culture, says Artifact Labs chief Gary Liu

Will Ethereum ever surpass Bitcoin? This is “The Flippening”

Many believe Ethereum is destined to overtake Bitcoin’s dominance in an event known as “The Flippening.” Find out if Ethereum’s reign is inevitable in this Forkast explainer.

Digital dollar takes another step in White House’s “first ever” digital assets framework

The Fed will continue its CBDC research as Republicans pressure the central bank to clarify its stance on digital dollar issuance.

Binance makes additional investment in Mo Shaikh’s blockchain startup Aptos

Binance Labs, the venture capital arm of world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has made a follow-on investment in Aptos Labs, as a part of a broader fundraising round by the blockchain startup. See related article: Aptos raises US$150 mln from FTX Ventures, Jump Crypto Fast facts Aptos will use the funds to expand its team and […]

Animoca Brand’s Sandbox to launch metaverse in Dubai, other global cities

The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands Corp. Ltd., the Hong Kong-based game software and venture capital company, will be taking its Hong Kong metaverse strategy to a new market in Dubai, launching a “Dubaiverse,” the company said at the 62nd edition of the True Global Ventures Conference on Thursday.  Animoca Brand’s Dubai-themed metaverse will […]

Why the crypto space needs more women — as employees and at the top

The crypto labor force skews heavily male, which could impede the industry’s future growth, writes Lottie Wells of Wirex. Here are some ways to increase women’s participation.

SEC’s Gensler says proof-of-stake cryptocurrencies may be securities

When is a cryptocurrency a security and when is it not? Financial regulators around the world are raising that question. The answer that comes out of the U.S. may set the tone, but South Korea is also ahead in tackling it.

Celsius seeks court approval to monetize stablecoin assets

Amid its bankruptcy proceedings, crypto lender Celsius Network LLC has sought court approval to sell and/or exchange its stablecoin holdings for U.S. dollars in order to generate liquidity and help fund its operations.  See related article: Goldman Sachs said to raise US$2B for Celsius assets: report Fast facts “Celsius currently owns eleven different forms of […]

Ethereum’s last PoW and first PoS NFTs minted for 67.5 ETH

The last block on the proof-of-work (PoW) Ethereum chain before The Merge was filled by a VanityBlocks non-fungible token (NFT) minted for 31.5 ETH, which was succeeded by the first NFT in the post-Merge proof-of-stake (PoS) chain minted for 36 ETH.  See related article: Fungible after all? Duplicates may disrupt NFT industry after Ethereum Merge […]

Women in India start to plug into cryptocurrency trading

Crypto exchanges in India say the number of female investors isn’t huge, but it is growing even as prices slide and new taxes eat into revenue.

Ethereum says Merge upgrade successfully completed, more to come

The Merge is a milestone in slashing electricity use on the Ethereum blockchain, but there are plenty more upgrades in the pipeline.

South Korea will not rule the metaverse with game laws, science ministry says

South Korea will issue a guideline for regulating the metaverse instead of applying existing law on video games, the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) announced at a government briefing on Wednesday. See related article: S.Korea’s science ministry announces ethical principles for the metaverse Fast facts The guideline that will be used to better promote […]

JPMorgan, LRC bet on blockchain startup Ownera in US$20 mln Series A

London-based Ownera has raised US$20 million in a Series A funding round from investors including banking giant JPMorgan and private asset management firm LRC Group. See related article: Tokenized assets may make up 10% of global GDP by 2030: report Fast facts The funds will be used to deploy a global interoperability network to unlock […]

Binance launches Ethereum staking ahead of Merge upgrade

Top blockchain and crypto news: Binance bets on Ethereum Merge. What does Terra’s sudden resurgence mean? China seeks to expand e-CNY ecosystem.

Why Ethereum Merge will be game-changing for DeFi and crypto investing

Ethereum post-Merge will be much more attractive to institutional investors keen on ESG and earning stable yields, writes Wei Zhou of Coins.ph. Here’s why.

Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky floats restructuring as custody business amid bankruptcy proceedings

Amid its bankruptcy proceedings, crypto lender Celsius Network LLC, one of the major players in the contagion that struck the industry earlier this year, plans to reorganize as a crypto custody business, according to audio shared by a customer of the company and a report by the New York Times. See related article: Celsius files […]

Tokenized assets may make up 10% of global GDP by 2030: report

Tokenized assets are expected to expand into a US$16 trillion business opportunity by 2030 — making up 10% of global GDP by the end of the decade — from US$310 billion in 2022. This is according to a new report by global consulting firm BCG and the digital exchange for private markets ADDX. See related […]

All aboard the good ship Ethereum for The Merge. Next stop? 

The most critical upgrade in Ethereum’s history is just around the corner, so what will it mean for prices of cryptocurrency?

Why Ethereum Merge won’t be able to overcome the ‘Scalability Paradox’

Ethereum’s completion of its much anticipated ‘Merge’ this week will unlikely improve the network’s long-term speed or scalability, writes Mark Lurie of Shipyard Software. Why is this so, and why will it still be good for innovation?

NEAR Foundation, Forkast announces Women In Web3 winners

The eleven winners highlight the achievements and importance of women in the burgeoning Web3 space.

Central banks of France, Nigeria latest to join Hyperledger Foundation

Banque de France and the Central Bank of Nigeria will headline the newest batch of eight members joining the Linux Foundation’s enterprise blockchain ecosystem, the Hyperledger Foundation. See related article: Back to the future: Blockchain returns to the real world Fast facts See related article: How enterprises are fueling blockchain adoption among SMEs

Hacks, losses in cryptocurrency offer vast opportunity for insurers

Cryptocurrency-related insurance is a vast untapped market, with less than 1% of crypto investments covered amid hacks and losses in the industry running into the billions of dollars, Cointelegraph reported, citing an executive from decentralized insurance protocol InsurAce. See related article: DeFi insurance: Why buy coverage for your digital assets? Fast facts Dan Thomson, the […]

The metaverse is already here. What’s holding back the party?

Interoperability is a key characteristic for the metaverse to be useful, writes Dr. Dimitry Mihaylov of National Univ. of Singapore. But the technology and laws are still lacking.

US raises red flag on crypto mining with concerns over carbon emissions

White House says carbon footprint of crypto industry does not align with goals to decarbonize the economy.

Regulator alleges Celsius resembled Ponzi scheme in new filing

A financial regulator in Vermont has all but said that bankrupted Celsius Network LLC resembled a Ponzi scheme at times, alleging the crypto lender had used new investor funds to repay previous investors, as well as misled investors about its financial health and bolstered its balance sheets by using its CEL token. See related article: […]

Binance pushes out USDC in aggressive move to boost its own stablecoin

Top blockchain and crypto news: USDC gets the boot from Binance. MicroStrategy looks for Lightning strikes. STEPN heads to Hong Kong.

China has seen blockchain’s future and it doesn’t include cryptocurrencies

China’s Blockchain-based Service Network wears two hats in building blockchains: one for business in China and one for everywhere else, but it doesn’t see a role for crypto in either.

Crypto could pose ‘major’ risk to S.Korea’s financial stability, think tank says

The country’s growing ties to crypto could expose its financial sector to volatility and ‘damage its credibility,’ a researcher says.

World Economic Forum argues for CBDCs, Australia latest to test use-case technology

With over 100 countries experimenting with the technology behind Central Bank Digital Currencies, the World Economic Forum of Davos fame lays out its views on the potential benefits and drawbacks of CBDCs.

Slowdown in crypto interest to continue for rest of the year: KPMG

A slowdown in crypto investment — particularly in firms offering coins, tokens and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) — will continue in the second half of the current year, according to a new report by global audit and consulting firm KPMG.  See related article: Siloed regulatory efforts unlikely to help bring oversight to highly decentralized crypto industry […]

Crypto influencer collects, then returns, US$100K from investors in fake scheme

Crypto influencer Fatman Terra pitched his own fake investment scheme on Twitter — and found willing investors instantly — in an attempt to educate people about scams in the industry.  See related article: Terra’s Mirror Protocol fixes exploit that drained more than US$2 million Fast facts “In two hours, I received over one hundred DMs,” […]

Why play-to-earn gaming is losing steam and where GameFi must go next

Axie Infinity’s decline shows that earning can’t be everything, writes Riaz Lalani of Gambit Games. What went wrong with P2E and what can we learn from it?

Where will DeFi be after crypto winter ends?

The collapse of Celsius and Anchor wasn’t a failure of DeFi, writes Kaaran Kalantari of WingRiders. They failed to assess risk, and crypto Darwinism took shape.

Do I really need another picture of an ape? NFT market slumps in August

The NFT hype from earlier in the year is dying off as the market continues its downward path into the final third of the year. Fire sale coming for apes and cats?

Hong Kong hosts Digital Asset Series seminars for mass literacy

Hong Kong is hosting the Digital Asset Series (DAS) educational seminars, which started in August to continue into November this year. See related article: Why children around the world need crypto education Fast facts The free educational seminars will be delivered by industry experts, legal professionals, regulators and scholars from the finance-technology (fintech) sector, according […]

Binance says it complies with regulators following US anti-money laundering probe report

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, said it has worked with regulatory agencies from around the world to address outstanding compliance questions, following a Reuters report that U.S. federal prosecutors asked the exchange to offer internal records involving founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao for anti-money laundering checks in late 2020. See related […]

How did Big Tech gain such power over our data, and how do we take it back?

Google earns hundreds of billions annually by monetizing its users. Can blockchain return meaningful control over personal data back to the people?

Fed’s inflation fight batters crypto market as pressure mounts

Top blockchain and crypto news: Is crypto in for a long cold spell? Ava Labs lashes out at CryptoLeaks claims. China eyes blockchain power trading.

The X-to-Earn model: Eat, sleep, do almost anything and get paid in crypto

Are you a good runner? Or eater? Or sleeper? Chances are whatever you’re good at, there’s a Web3 project out there to reward you in crypto. But do the tokenomics stack up?

Temasek to lead US$100M funding round in Animoca Brands: report

Singapore state-backed fund is leading a US$100 million funding round into Hong Kong-based blockchain and game venture Animoca Brands, Bloomberg reported.  See related article: Singapore’s Temasek says doesn’t own Bitcoin, but prepping for tokenized assets Fast facts Temasek will make the investment through convertible bonds, according to unnamed sources cited by Bloomberg. Temasek has been […]

Crypto lender Hodlnaut placed under creditor protection by Singapore court

Singapore-based crypto lender Hodlnaut has been placed under Interim Judicial Management (IJM), a form of creditor protection, and will now be managed and controlled by interim judicial managers appointed by court order. See related article: Singapore’s central bank says cryptocurrencies have ‘no fundamental value’ Fast facts Hodlnaut said its legal representatives attended the IJM hearing […]

India’s CoinDCX says it’s hiring to prepare for DeFi expansion

Despite the Indian government’s hostility towards cryptocurrencies, the CoinDCX exchange says more traditional financial products will shift to DeFi platforms.

Bank of Korea to institutionalize ICOs in new crypto law

South Korea will have to institutionalize initial coin offerings (ICO) when establishing its new crypto law, tentatively named the Digital Asset Basic Act, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). See related article: South Korea’s all-encompassing crypto law is coming — what we know so far Fast facts South Korea’s Financial Services Commission banned ICOs […]

What in crypto hell just happened to all your money?

Crypto investors were blindsided when firms like Voyager suddenly froze their accounts. How can we improve digital asset protection in the future?

Most crypto “still junk”, JPMorgan’s blockchain lead claims

Excluding a few dozen tokens, most cryptocurrencies are bound to “go away,” according to Umar Farooq, Chief Executive Officer of JPMorgan’s blockchain unit. See related article: Singapore’s MAS says needs to do better job explaining crypto policy Fast facts “Most of crypto is still junk,” he said at the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Green Shoots […]

Singapore’s MAS says needs to do better job explaining crypto policy

The city-state hosted a seminar with a title that it hopes sums up its crypto approach: “Yes to digital asset innovation, No to cryptocurrency speculation.”

Why the crypto world needs more women as leaders and investors

Women foster a better environment for innovation and are sober with money — which is what the industry needs, writes Gracy Chen of Bitget.

Grayscale says XLM, ZEC and ZEN may be securities after SEC inquiry

In recent filings, the crypto asset management firm has said Stellar (XLM), Zcash (ZEC) and Horizen’s (ZEN) native cryptocurrencies may be securities. Grayscale was responding to questions from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding the company’s crypto trusts. See related article: Grayscale sues SEC over spot Bitcoin ETF rejection Fast facts In its […]

An internet of blockchains: Interoperability in a multi-chain future

Interoperability among blockchains will be central to the next phase of the technology’s evolution, says Cosmos cofounder Ethan Buchman.