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China says it busted US$5.6B crypto money laundering ring

Chinese police said they have busted a criminal group that used cryptocurrencies to launder 40 billion yuan (US$5.6 billion) as authorities crack down on illicit fund flows in the country. See related article: China lashes out at crypto fraud on World Consumer Rights Day Fast facts Police in Hengyang, a county in China’s southern province […]

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.

Interpol issues red notice for Do Kwon, says South Korean prosecutor

South Korea is pursuing different options to get custody of Do Kwon as the Terraform Labs CEO faces charges for his alleged involvement in the multibillion collapse of the Terra-LUNA stablecoin project.

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

Helium bound for Solana as community favors proposal

The Helium network is set to deploy on the Solana blockchain as 81% of its community voted in favor of HIP 70, an improvement proposal for operational efficiency and better user experience. See related article: Helium announces new token to scale 5G in multi-network expansion Fast facts The proposal will move Helium’s proof-of-coverage algorithm and […]

Cross-chain bridge Wormhole, oracle Pyth deployed on Aptos

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

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.

DBS offers self-directed trading for accredited investors

DBS Bank Ltd., Southeast Asia’s largest lender, has launched a self-directed cryptocurrency trading service for accredited wealth clients.  See related article: Asia banking giant DBS jumps into The Sandbox metaverse Fast facts The bank’s wealth clients have been favoring self-directed options, with digital trades dominating 90% of equity transactions, DBS said in a press release […]

Dunamu looks to K-pop group BTS NFTs to beat ‘Crypto Winter’

Dunamu Inc., the mother company of South Korea’s largest crypto exchange Upbit, will focus its future endeavors on Levvels, its Los Angeles-based non-fungible token (NFT) joint venture with Hybe Co., Ltd., the entertainment agency behind K-pop group BTS. See related article: Dunamu’s NFT venture with BTS’s HYBE to launch services later this year Fast facts […]

Coinbase gets nod from Dutch central bank to offer crypto services

Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, has obtained regulatory approval in the Netherlands, as the U.S.-based exchange looks to expand its presence globally. See related article: Coinbase hit with lawsuit over allegedly poor security Fast facts Coinbase said on Thursday in a statement that it has registered with De Nederlandsche Bank, the central […]

UK bill allows law enforcement to ‘seize, freeze, recover’ crypto assets

The United Kingdom has introduced a bill that would enable its law enforcement agencies to “seize, freeze and recover” crypto assets, to prevent cyber crime and money laundering.  See related article: UK watchdog: Crypto firms fall short on anti-money laundering rules Fast facts The reforms to the governmental Companies House, including issues beyond crypto, are […]

Japanese banking giant Nomura’s crypto unit to be based in Switzerland

Tokyo-based financial services group Nomura Holdings, Inc., recently announced its new digital asset subsidiary named Laser Digital and respective holding company Laser Digital Holding, which will be active in Switzerland. See related article: Japan’s government approves policy to drive Web 3.0 adoption Fast facts Laser Digital will focus on secondary trading, venture capital and investor […]

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.”

Philippine central bank sees stablecoins as key to make payments more efficient

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Director Mhel Plabasan said the central bank has adopted a flexible approach on the digital assets.

Cryptocurrency lobby group gets court approval to weigh in on SEC vs Ripple’s XRP lawsuit

Cryptocurrency lobby group Chamber of Digital Commerce (CDC) has received approval from a U.S. federal court to be an amicus curiae (Latin for friend of court) in the lawsuit that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed in 2020 against Ripple Labs. See related article: Ripple objects to SEC’s relief suggestion in XRP lawsuit […]

Huobi Technology considers name change

Crypto exchange Huobi Global’s Hong Kong-listed sister company, Huobi Technology Holdings, is proposing renaming the group to “New Huo Technology Holdings Limited,” while its sister company, the crypto exchange Huobi Global, is reportedly seeking a buyer for the majority of its company. See related article: Huobi-incubated Chinese NFT platform iBox ends international operations  Fast facts […]

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.

Naver and LINE launch NFT platform for K-pop fans

South Korea-based internet giant Naver Corp. launched its non-fungible token (NFT) platform, NOW.Drops, with LINE NEXT on Wednesday. The platform will let K-pop music fans create customized NFTs. See related article: Naver’s Zepeto metaverse starts blockchain initiative with Solana Fast facts NOW.Drops allows users to mint NFTs of their favorite musical acts that they crop […]

FTX in talks to raise US$1B in fundraising round: CNBC report

Sam Bankman-Fried‘s FTX is in talks with potential investors about a funding round that would keep the company’s valuation in line with prior financing at the start of the year, CNBC reported Wednesday.  See related article: Binance and FTX lead bidding for bankrupt Voyager Fast facts FTX Trading Ltd.’s latest funding round in January raised […]

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?

Bitcoin recovers from steep drop after Fed hikes rates by 75 basis points

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, rose more than 3% on Thursday to recover from a sharp drop to under US$19,000 after the Federal Open Market Committee said it would raise interest rates by 75 basis points, or in line with market expectations, to rein in inflation. See related article: Digital dollar takes another […]

Why YOU should back Ethereum’s Fork

The SEC’s plans for POS regulation could make Ethereum’s POW fork more attractive. Chinese miner Chandler Guo joins us to talk about it.

Ripple objects to SEC’s relief suggestion in XRP lawsuit

Ripple Labs Inc. has objected to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s suggestion that it may seek additional time and pages if other amici curiae (Latin for friends of the court) submit briefs, as the lawsuit the SEC filed in 2020 against Ripple drags on. See related article: SEC, Ripple seek summary judgment in attempt […]

China to expand digital yuan trials within its most populous provinces

The entirety of the provinces of Guangdong, Jiangsu, Hebei and Sichuan will be piloting the e-CNY by end 2022, says central bank official.

JPMorgan Chase executive says crypto usage for payments decreasing

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 […]

Girl group AKB48’s producer to launch metaverse idol; IEO in the works

J-pop is increasing ties with immersive metaverse technology, with Japan’s top record producer Akimoto recently announcing his ambitious virtual idol project.

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 […]

Binance and FTX lead bidding for bankrupt Voyager

Crypto exchanges FTX and Binance have reportedly made the highest bids on bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital Ltd. and its assets, but neither offer had been accepted as of Tuesday, according to a Wall Street Journal report.  See related article: Sam Bankman-Fried lashes out at Voyager for rejecting FTX’s proposal  Fast facts The WSJ article […]

Binance’s crypto keys; What’s after the Merge?

Binance takes the headlines today as they lead the funding of blockchain security specialists Salus Security.

India’s CoinDCX Twitter handle hacked to peddle XRP

CoinDCX, India’s first crypto unicorn, asked users not to click on any link or messages from its official Twitter handle as the company lost control of the social media account following a hack. See related article: How Twitter hackers social-engineered their way into VIP accounts to shill for bitcoin Fast facts “We are in the […]

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. […]

Binance leads funding round in blockchain specialist Salus Security

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 […]

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.

India’s WazirX to delist USDC, apply auto convert to Binance’s stablecoin

WazirX, India’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trade volume, said it has stopped deposits of stablecoins USDC, USDP and TUSD, and will automatically convert users’ existing balances to Binance’s USD-backed stablecoin BUSD at a 1:1 ratio.  See related article: India’s WazirX introduces new ‘learn and earn’ campaign with The Sandbox Fast facts WazirX will begin the […]

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?

South Korea and Meta to ramp up metaverse safety

South Korea’s official media regulation agency met with Andy O’Connell, vice president of product policy and strategy of Meta Platforms, Inc. on Monday to discuss ways to boost user protection on the metaverse. See related article: South Korea will not rule the metaverse with game laws, science ministry says Fast facts Ahn Hyoung-hwan, the vice […]

Do Kwon says “not on the run” as S.Korea calls for Interpol’s red notice

South Korean prosecutors are in the process of requesting Interpol to issue a red notice for Terraform Labs Pte. Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Kwon Do-hyung, also known as Do Kwon, according to media reports.  See related article: Terra CEO Do Kwon faces ‘illegal alien’ status in Singapore as Seoul cancels passport Fast facts An Interpol […]

Could blockchain save the planet?

Could blockchain – despite it’s high carbon emissions, also be part of the fight against climate change? We’ll take a closer look at that in this episode of The Daily Forkast.

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 […]

Why DeFi interest rate swaps may be the next frontier of finance

Already a big part of global finance, interest rate swaps can be a boon for DeFi — if it can overcome these challenges, writes Simon Jones of Voltz Labs.

Aptos offers US$1 mln bug bounty for catching critical vulnerabilities

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 […]

Cross-chain DOT staking dApp wins Polkadot’s North America hackathon

A decentralized application (dApp) “XCM DOT Autostake” developed by a team called Entity 54 won the grand prize at Polkadot’s North American hackathon, Polkadot announced on Sunday. See related article: Polkadot Defi hub Acala burns some 1.3 bln mis-minted stablecoins Fast facts See related article: Polkadot to hold first hackathon centered in Latin America 

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.

Busan’s big blockchain plans

Welcome to The Daily Forkast – September 16, 2022 – presented by Joel Flynn. Coming up on today’s show: Could Busan be the next crypto hub? Will help from Binance and FTX finally establish South Korea’s second largest city as the crypto haven it’s trying to be? We’ll have more on those stories — and […]

For South Korea, making Do Kwon pay for his alleged crimes easier said than done

A member of the prosecuting team tells Forkast additional charges are likely to be leveled against Terraform Labs Chief Executive Officer Do Kwon following this week’s issuance of an arrest warrant for violating the country’s Capital Markets Act.

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 […]

Terra CEO Do Kwon faces ‘illegal alien’ status in Singapore as Seoul cancels passport

Prosecutors investigating the man behind the US$37 billion wipeout of the Terra-LUNA cryptocurrency project are raising the stakes to get him back to South Korea.

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 […]

As “The Merge” succeeds, rival ETHPoW fork falters

ETHPoW, the Ethereum hard fork blockchain intended to preserve proof-of-work after the native chain transitioned to proof-of-stake, is facing technical difficulties despite months of anticipation.  See related article: Ethereum says Merge upgrade successfully completed, more to come Fast facts Prior to the fork, it was announced that ETHW tokens would be airdropped to Ethereum holders. […]

F2Pool, Poolin, Antpool launch ETHW mining pools

Mining pools F2Pool, Poolin and Antpool have launched their ETHW (EthereumPoW) mining pools, according to their respective websites, while a few other large mining pools have also said they would support the mining of the fork token. See related article: Ethereum says Merge upgrade successfully completed, more to come Fast facts F2Pool said on Thursday […]

Singapore Deputy Prime sees “tremendous potential” in tokenization and DLT

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is preparing for the future of finance by exploring distributed ledger technology use cases, such as asset tokenization and cross-border payments, the city-state’s Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Thursday at an event organized by the central bank.  See related article:  Filecoin service provider RRMine leaves China for […]

Thailand bans crypto lending and staking services

The Thailand Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has prohibited cryptocurrency companies from offering digital assets lending and staking products, or depository services.  See related article: Thailand’s SCBX scraps plan to buy 51% stake in crypto exchange Bitkub Fast facts The regulator said in a press release on Thursday that the decision was made to protect […]

CEL price rallies to US$4.26 during Ethereum’s Merge

The bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network’s native CEL token suddenly spiked to US$4.26, during Ethereum’s much-anticipated Merge, according to data from CoinGecko. See related article: Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky floats restructuring as custody business amid bankruptcy proceedings Fast facts CEL’s price has since dropped to US$1.94, making it the 61st largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, […]

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 […]

Asia dominates Chainalysis’ 2022 crypto adoption index, China returns to top 10

APAC is leading in crypto use and adoption, according to a new report from U.S. blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis released on Wednesday, with China returning to the report’s top 10 countries for crypto adoption after it fell out of the list last year. APAC accounted for six of the top 10 countries in the index. […]

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.

Polkadot to hold first hackathon centered in Latin America

Polkadot will hold its first hackathon that focuses on Latin America starting Sept. 26 to engage local developers in the network and promote the uses of blockchain around the world. See related article: Polkadot is top crypto held by VCs and hedge funds in Q4 2021 Fast facts See related article: Polkadot-based Acala Dollar burns […]

Cryptocurrency lobby group seeks to weigh in on SEC vs Ripple’s XRP lawsuit

Cryptocurrency advocacy group Chamber of Digital Commerce (CDC) has sought to be an amicus curiae (Latin for friend of court) in the lawsuit between the Securities and Exchange Commission and Ripple Labs. See related article: Ripple opposes SEC request to seal expert witness identities in XRP lawsuit Fast facts CDC Wednesday filed several documents in […]

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 […]

South Korea’s Seongnam city to provide citizenship rights through NFTs

Seongnam, the 12th most populated city in South Korea, is planning to recreate the city in the metaverse and will issue non-fungible token (NFT) citizenships to give access to municipal information, according to local media reports. See related article: South Korea’s capital city launches first stage of “Metaverse Seoul” Fast facts The city will finalize […]

Fed vs The Merge; Crypto regulation conversations

Welcome to The Daily Forkast – September 14, 2022 – presented by Megha Chaddah. Coming up on today’s show: Will the Merge solve the market’s woes? Regulators paying heed to crypto. We’ll have more on those stories — and other news shaping the cryptocurrency and blockchain world — in this episode of The Daily Forkast […]

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.

Tencent Cloud, Strange Universe Technology to explore virtual space for enterprise

Tencent Cloud, the cloud computing services arm of the Chinese tech giant, on Tuesday, announced it signed a memorandum of understanding with Web 3.0 firm Strange Universe Technology to create and host virtual reality (VR) spaces for businesses. See related article: Tencent Cloud continues blockchain expansion with two new platforms  Fast facts See related article: […]

KKR offers tokenized exposure to private equity fund on Avalanche

Global investment firm KKR has partnered with digital assets securities firm Securitize to offer tokenized positions for its clients with at least US$5 million in investible assets, exposing them to its US$4 billion health care equity fund, the Wall Street Journal reported. See related article: Guide to tokens and NFTs: what is ‘tokenization’ and how […]