Search results: startup

The former CEO of the collapsed crypto exchange “needs to keep his mouth shut” and stop making public comments that could be used against him in future court cases, lawyers tell Forkast.

Indian crypto exchange CoinSwitch has launched CoinSwitch Pro, a multi-exchange trading platform that lets users trade crypto assets in Indian Rupees across multiple exchanges with a single login. 

Yes, there is rivalry between the two global finance hubs. But their strengths are also complementary for Asia to become an even bigger crypto powerhouse, writes Lily Z. King.

The NFT ecosystem is doing better than what selective data would have us believe, writes Long Do of Anomura. But the sector should know that people want more than just a pretty picture.

What are soulbound tokens, and how can they end the ‘credit paradox’ that has been holding back the unbanked masses? Fakhul Miah of CreDA explains.

Crypto exchange Huobi Global will delist its stablecoin HUSD on Friday, refund holders 1:1 with USDT.

South Korea’s Busan signs agreements global cryptocurrency exchanges Crypto.com and Gate.io to grow the city’s blockchain ecosystem.

Cryptocurrency was created to be accessible to the masses. So why are retail investors getting shut out from the best analytical and trading tools?

India’s lack of regulatory clarity on crypto and Web 3.0 is a driving force of critical human capital flight, according to a new report by Nasscom.

Crypto.com said on Wednesday that the exchange will invest €150 million (US$145.5 million) in France to set up a European headquarters in Paris and expand operations in the region. See related article: Crypto.com enters South Korea market with two local startup acquisitions Fast facts The Singapore-based exchange said it will focus on compliance, business development […]

One company says it’s bringing solutions for confused investors in digital assets in India who grapple with hours of tax calculations.

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) can be used to preserve and spread fine art and cultural heritage, tapping into new generations of audiences and patrons, said stakeholders.

The former CEO of Huobi Global has jumped into the GameFi space.

Ripple Labs Inc., the firm whose payment network is powered by the self-described carbon-neutral cryptocurrency token XRP, has partnered with Web3 climate startup Thallo and various other companies to build a carbon credit market on the blockchain.  See related article: SEC opposes motions from two firms seeking to back Ripple in XRP lawsuit Fast facts […]

China spent billions on its ‘belt and road’ infrastructure network to expand trade so what are its plans for a domestic and international digital infrastructure built on blockchain?

Christie’s, the 256-year-old fine art auction house, is debuting Christie’s 3.0, an Ethereum-based NFT marketplace with the launch of an exclusive collection from leading Web 3.0 visual artist Diana Sinclair.  See related article: Naver and LINE launch NFT platform for K-pop fans Fast facts The New York-based auction house has made waves in the space, […]

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?

DeFi infrastructures powered by Jump Crypto will support blockchain Aptos and have been deployed on its development net.

Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Tuesday, JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s global head of payments Takis Georgakopoulos said that demand for cryptocurrencies as a payment method has seen a drastic decline in the past six months.  See related article: JPMorgan, LRC bet on blockchain startup Ownera in US$20 mln Series A Fast facts […]

Binance Labs, the incubator and investment arm of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, said it invested an undisclosed amount in Salus Security, which provides blockchain smart contract audits and automated smart contract vulnerability detection. See related article: Binance’s US$7.5 billion woman sees plenty of promise in bear markets Fast facts Binance Labs said in a […]

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

Aptos, a public chain launched by former members of failed Meta stablecoin project Diem, announced Friday a prize of up to US$1 million to encourage developers to find major vulnerabilities in the blockchain network, as the launch of the highly-anticipated blockchain fell slightly behind schedule. See related article: Binance makes additional investment in Aptos  Fast […]

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.

Diamond Standard Co. has raised US$30 million in a Series A funding round led by Left Lane Capital and Horizon Kinetics, the company announced in a statement.  See related article: De Beers to use Tracr blockchain to assure sourcing of diamonds Fast facts The blockchain startup allows institutional and retail investors to trade tokenized counterparts […]

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?

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

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 […]

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

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

Sam Bankman-Fried, chief executive officer of FTX exchange, denied a recent report by Bloomberg which stated that the venture capital subsidiary under FTX would merge with the VC operations under Alameda Research, a sister company of FTX. See related article: FTX revenue grew 1,000% in 2021 amid booming crypto market: SBF  Fast facts “This seems […]

Its operations in mainland China are continuing as normal.

Following Shanghai’s plan to develop its metaverse industry, additional local Chinese governments are adding the metaverse to their economic blueprints. Two recent plans come from Beijing’s Tongzhou District and Hengqin near neighboring Macau, just as some of China’s tech companies are shrinking their businesses to face an economic downturn. See related article: Shanghai sees its […]

Venture capital for two new investment funds from CoinFund and Shima Capital were announced, with amounts reaching US$300 million and US$200 million, respectively. See related article: New Investors and Investments Fast facts The Ventures I fund, announced Thursday by CoinFund, will focus on backing blockchain startups, including both existing portfolios and new startup teams. The […]

Can blockchain technology help starstruck little guys profit from being superfans of popular e-girls? Joel Stein joins Irene Zhao’s IreneDAO to find out.

Hong Kong’s de-facto central bank, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), has added a central bank digital currency (CBDC) section to an annual business competition in the city in order to encourage research into the use cases of digital currencies. See related article: Hong Kong to launch US$637 mln tech fund for startups: report Fast […]

Amid debate over the U.S. Treasury Department’s banning of the crypto mixer, the Ethereum cofounder said he used the service to protect recipients.

Web3 companies should issue tokens to accelerate growth, not to gather initial funds, said Binance founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Changpeng “CZ” Zhao at a fireside chat at Korea Blockchain Week 2022 on Tuesday.  See related article: Binance spent over US$1B on compliance, founder Changpeng Zhao says Fast facts “When people come into Web3 […]

Blockchain gaming will likely remain a key driving force for wider Web 3.0 adoption, and the gaming sector will be “quite hit-driven” over the next 12 months, Robbie Ferguson, cofounder of Immutable — which builds Immutable X, a layer-2 scaling solution on Ethereum — told Forkast on Tuesday at Korea Blockchain Week 2022. See related […]

2022’s marquee NFT event in America’s biggest city failed to capitalize on its namesake technology, while an iconic music festival in the California desert understood the possibilities, writes Mirwan Suwarso of Mola TV.

Kim Seo-joon, head of South Korean blockchain venture capital (VC) fund Hashed, said in an interview with Bloomberg he lost most of his LUNA investments during the crash in May but is planning a third VC fund in the first half of 2023. See related article: Scarred by Terra-LUNA, South Korea moves ahead with digital […]

Nomad loses US$200 million after over 300 suspected of participating in the hack. Meanwhile, Michael Saylor moves from CEO to Chairman of Microstrategy.

Beijing’s drive to stamp out crypto mining and the slump in crypto prices are headwinds that Canaan says it knows how to deal with, adding that the crypto winter may be shorter than expected.

A lack of certainty over future regulation and a long lockdown in Shanghai are pushing some Chinese Web3 companies to set up shop in Singapore.

Immutable has let go of about 6% of its workforce, including lead designer James Wakeham who was involved in the development of the game developer’s popular non-fungible token (NFT) game Gods Unchained.  See related article: Play-to-earn game developers pivot to engaging fans Fast facts A spokesperson from Immutable’s U.S. branch told gaming media outlet Kotaku […]

Aiming to uncover the next “BTS in finance,” Chairman Kim Joo-hyun of the Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) is calling for “bold reforms” in financial regulations, including in crypto assets.

Founded by former employees of Meta stablecoin arm Diem, blockchain company Aptos Labs announced a US$150 million Series A funding round led by FTX Ventures and Jump Crypto on Monday, according to a press release. See related article: Crypto startup funding falls by 26% in H1 2022: report Fast facts Venture capital and crypto firms […]

Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin has “no exposure to LUNA & wLUNA,” and its recent fundraising “has nothing to do with the market downtrend,” the firm’s CEO said on his verified Twitter handle.  See related article: How cold storage can ward against this crypto winter’s freeze Fast facts KuCoin CEO Johnny Lyu was responding to rumors about […]

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMBC Group), which runs one of Japan’s largest banks, said Friday it will work together with blockchain startup HashPort to develop non-fungible token (NFT) and Web3 projects. See related article: PSG sells US$220,000 NFT tickets for first Japan tour in 27 years Fast facts SMBC and HashPort plan to set up […]

The partnership will celebrate the progress, impact and innovation of exceptional women leaders across the globe.

According to a report by AAX crypto exchange and Forrester Consulting, 51% of Bitcoin owners in Southeast Asia used it to save money and preserve their wealth. See related article: Crypto trading volumes dip to 18-month low amid bear market Fast facts Some 47% of Bitcoin users in Southeast Asia sought a profit while 44% […]

Crypto trading volumes plummet as the crypto winter continues. Meanwhile, India calls on G20 to share information on crypto.

Middle East crypto exchange Fasset Technologies Ltd. is collaborating with global payments technology company Mastercard to expand its financial reach in Indonesia. See related article: Crypto exchange Fasset expands to Southeast Asia Fast facts The announcement comes after Fasset said it raised US$22 million in series A funding.  According to a survey, 41% of Indonesians […]

Investor confidence in stablecoins has plummeted since the Terra fiasco. Circle’s chief of finance assesses how they’re holding up amid a barrage of “FUD”.

A large number of Japanese Web 3.0 companies are moving to or at least setting up new offices in Singapore, executives from Japanese blockchain gaming infrastructure builder Oasys told Forkast on Friday. See related article: Japan’s government approves policy to drive Web 3.0 adoption Fast facts Japanese firms operating in the Web3 sector need to […]

Decentralized autonomous organizations are spinning off new ways to bring communities together. Will ecosystem DAOs be the wave of the future?

The South Korean fintech startup that operates digital asset management and trading services reportedly had over US$20 million, or 99% of its client funds, liquidated amid the Terra-LUNA collapse in May. See related article: What lessons can we learn from Terra’s LUNA/UST meltdown? Fast facts The startup’s trading unit had placed client funds on a […]

Top blockchain and crypto news: Three Arrows target bankruptcy protection. Polium’s Web3 game plan pilloried. China’s tech giants get hands-on with NFTs.

Jordan Belfort, the man who inspired Martin Scorsese’s film “Wolf of Wall Street” and a once-avowed crypto critic, said Bitcoin is a long play while speaking on Yahoo Finance’s show The Crypto Mile.  See related article: Bank of England calls for greater crypto regulation Fast facts The former convicted financial criminal turned famous consultant and […]

Former TikTok game division executive Jason Fung is starting up a blockchain-based game developer, Meta0, to allow transfer of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) between different blockchains, according to a Reuters report on Tuesday. See related article: Game theory: What’s holding back an explosion of play-to-earn? Fast facts According to its product proposal, Meta0 aims to allow […]

Web 3.0 company Polium’s plan to make the world’s first “multi-chain gaming console” to support games across different blockchains is an ambitious goal that has met a chorus of skepticism.  See related article: What is Axie Infinity and how is it ushering in gaming 3.0? Fast facts Polium, a startup that first announced its plans […]

With NFT trading volumes slumping and regulators stepping in, Vignesh Sundaresan, who paid US$69 million for a Beeple artwork, shares his views on the space.

India’s government can’t seem to decide on following China with an outright ban on crypto trading. So is it bent instead on suffocating traders and exchanges with taxes?

In his first interview after the collapse of TerraUSD (UST) and its sister token LUNA in May, CEO Do Kwon dismissed allegations of fraud and told The Wall Street Journal, “There is a difference between failing and running a fraud.” See related article: Winning back the trust of the Terra community a tall order for […]

Hong Kong-based Babel Finance announced on Monday it has reached “preliminary agreements” on debt repayments to counterparties following a redemption and withdrawal freeze instituted last Friday. See related article: Contagion risk from Three Arrows Capital weighs on Bitcoin, crypto Fast facts A preliminary restructuring of the debt repayment period has “eased” the company’s short-term liquidity […]

Despite its rising popularity, GameFi has lessons to learn from Web 2.0 and elsewhere before it can gain a comparable user base, says Ethlas chief Wui Ngiap Foo.

Top blockchain and crypto news: Cryptos sink as inflation rises. Celsius freeze sends CEL token tumbling. Are Inner Mongolia’s miners catching a break?

Singapore investment behemoth Temasek has been in the digital asset space for several years, and it’s doubling down on its commitment, says its blockchain chief.

Hyundai Card, Hyundai Motor Group’s credit card arm, announced a joint venture with South Korean tech startup Like Lion to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace in the second half of this year. See related article: Hyundai Motor drives into metaverse branding with Meta Kongz NFT project Fast facts The joint venture, coined Modern Lion, […]

Immutable X, a layer-2 scaling solution on Ethereum, has exploded onto the scene, with secondary non-fungible token (NFT) sales volume doubling in the past month as it expands into new partnerships and collaborations.  See related story: NFT startup Immutable valued at $2.5 billion in Temasek-led financing Fast facts The Immutable X blockchain has exceeded US$100 […]

The downturn is forcing Web3 firms into a reset — and opening opportunities for Web2 entrepreneurs to enter the playing field, writes Lily Z. King of Cobo.

The prospect of tighter codes for the crypto industry has given some players the jitters. Others, such as Crypto.com’s Eric Anziani, see it as an opportunity.

Wall Street did it! At least that is one of the theories about the cause of the nearly US$50 billion meltdown of Terraform Labs stablecoin and LUNA cryptocurrency. How does that stand up?