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Top blockchain and crypto news: GOPAX deal sees Binance return to South Korea. Inflation fight spooks crypto markets. Chinese liquor giant gives cheers to NFTs.

China’s Beijing Guoan Football Club has launched its first NFT collection, while building a virtual replica of its stadium.

Prosecutors flew to Serbia earlier this month as part of an investigation into Terraform Labs chief Do Kwon, who faces fraud accusations related to the US$40 billion collapse of his Terra-Luna cryptocurrency project in May last year.

Beijing’s market regulator warned that projects marketed in the country as non-fungible tokens or with metaverse-related concepts risk being involved in illegal fundraising or fraudulent activities.

Bitcoin traded back above US$23,000 on Wednesday morning in Asia after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell overnight said the “disinflationary process” has started in the economy.

Digital Currency Group has started to sell shares of its cryptocurrency funds at a significant discount, according to a Tuesday report from the Financial Times.

Gemini has agreed to put up US$100 million to the asset recovery of Earn users as part of bankrupt crypto lender Genesis Capital’s in-principle agreement with parent firm DCG and other creditors.

Ethereum’s Shanghai upgrade brings about new changes and flexibility for investors – how much of an impact could it have on the industry?

Bitcoin prices gained in Tuesday afternoon trading in Asia while Ethereum dropped with most other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization.

Nearly three out of four institutional traders surveyed “have no plans to trade crypto,” while most see Artificial Intelligence as the next big disrupter.

Yuga Labs, the company behind the leading non-fungible token (NFT) project, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), won a settlement on Monday in a trademark infringement lawsuit against Thomas Lehman, a collaborator in the controversial RR/BAYC project headed by artist Ryder Ripps.

Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com has partnered with Korean drama distributor Studio Dragon to issue NFTs inspired by popular Korean drama series, including the hit Crash Landing on You, the exchange said on Monday.

Renewable energy is plagued by financing difficulties, but blockchain technology can bridge the sector’s funding gaps, writes Brianna Welsh of Reneum.

Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, will suspend all deposits and withdrawals of U.S. dollars at its international exchanges from Feb. 8.

Bitcoin and Ether dipped in Tuesday morning trading in Asia along with all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies as Wall Street fell overnight on concern the Fed may crank up interest rates for longer than expected.

Bitcoin and Ethereum prices dropped in afternoon trading on Monday in Asia, along with all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Bitcoin continued trading under US$23,000, while Solana and Polygon led losses. 

Moutai launched NFTs that gives owners to purchase limited edition liquor.

Crypto layoffs last month matching 41% of the total industry job cuts in 2022, a new study finds.

The move marks a shift in tone from December when recipients of FTX donations were requested to “voluntarily” return the funds.

CeDeFi offers the benefits of CeFi and DeFi without their shortcomings, writes Alexander Tkachenko of VNX. Here’s how it works.

South Korea published guidelines on Monday for defining what specific cryptocurrencies would fall under regulations applicable to financial securities.

Bitcoin traded below US$23,000 on Monday morning in Asia, tracking a decline in U.S. equities as unexpectedly strong job growth numbers on Friday raised concerns markets may face more interest rate hikes to slow the economy and inflation.

Binance has stopped providing wallet services to Indian crypto exchange WazirX, asking it to withdraw any remaining assets held in Binance wallets by Feb. 3.

Bitcoin climbed more than 39% in January to break through the US$23,000 resistance ceiling in its best monthly performance since October 2021. Can the world’s first and biggest cryptocurrency maintain the upward momentum? Industry commentators share their views with Forkast.

Binance has returned to South Korea after a two-year break by acquiring a majority stake in the local cryptocurrency exchange GOPAX, Bloomberg reported Friday.

India, the current holder of the G20 presidency, has been working with the IMF and the Financial Stability Board FSB to develop a regulatory approach for cryptocurrencies.

Could there be a shift in Ethereum’s monopoly of the NFT world as new technologies arise?

Cryptocurrency exchange PayBito announced its plans to integrate ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot developed by research firm OpenAI, on Friday.

Bitcoin and Ether fell during Asian trading hours on Friday, along with the rest of the top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with Polkadot’s DOT posting the biggest gains.

China’s blanket ban on cryptocurrency trading can have the country miss critical opportunities for technological development, says former PBOC official.

NFTs and DAOs can help support Japan’s national strategy dubbed ‘Cool Japan’ to attract investment and expand the economy.

U.S. prosecutors are investigating California-based cryptocurrency bank Silvergate Capital Corp. for how it handled accounts tied to now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and its brokerage arm Alameda Research, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

DeFi is still a Wild West, and many would-be users are wary of its lawlessness and anonymity. Could decentralized IDs foster greater trust and growth in the sector?

Bitcoin and Ether traded mostly little changed Friday morning after a strong run up in the week, with other top 10 cryptocurrencies prices mixed.

Indian retail giant Reliance Retail announced on Thursday that it has started accepting digital rupee payments to become the largest Indian firm to adopt the nation’s CBDC.

India’s position on digital assets remains status quo as the country’s parliamentary budget hearing leads to disappointment in the crypto sector.

Bitcoin and Ether rose during Asian trading hours on Thursday, along with the rest of the top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Polygon’s Matic posted the biggest gains

Suzhou has laid out plans to attract at least 200 companies in working with VR technology by 2025.

The non-fungible token (NFT) project by former U.S. President Donald Trump has helped its host network, Polygon, outsell Ethereum on the leading NFT marketplace OpenSea for the second straight month, according to transaction data.

Meta Platforms Inc., the former Facebook, said losses at its Reality Labs division developing virtual reality technologies widened last year, but the company’s Q4 earnings beat expectations and it projected overall stronger growth into 2023, according to its earnings report released Wednesday.

Seattle-based cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex is laying off 83 employees, according to the U.S. Employment Security Department’s layoff alert.

The future global financial system will be reliant on the cloud, especially when it comes to CBDCs and stablecoins, writes Michael Greenwald and Logan Weber.

A South Korean court approved the prosecutor’s request to issue an arrest warrant for Kang Jong-hyun for alleged embezzlement.

Bitcoin rose above US$24,000 for the first time since mid-August in Thursday morning trading in Asia before sliding back slightly.

Hackers stole at least US$3.8 billion in cryptocurrencies throughout 2022, a record-breaking year for crypto heists, says blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis.

Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX.com had around US$1.4 billion in cash reserves at the end of 2022, according to a financial update released Tuesday.

Djed, a Cardano-based algorithmic stablecoin, has collected over US$10 million in its reserves within the first 24 hours since it was launched on Wednesday.

Islamic finance has seen growth in a time where most of the world’s economy has suffered losses. How could its integration into crypto help the industry?

Bitcoin traded above US$23,000 throughout Wednesday afternoon trading in Asia, while Ethereum and other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies were mixed. Cardano led gains with 2.03% followed by XRP’s 1.13%. 

Digital yuan sales at online retail platforms in China have surged during the Lunar New Year holidays fueled by local governments’ red packet coupons.

Top blockchain and crypto news: BTC mining ETF outperforms. SBF under pressure as accusations mount. ‘China’s Instagram’ embraces NFTs.

Cryptocurrency exchanges in India had lobbied the government to reduce taxes introduced last year, arguing the levies were backfiring by driving local investment offshore.

Bitcoin has long been the world’s largest cryptocurrency blockchain, but non-fungible tokens or NFTs were always the domain of Ethereum. A new protocol could change that, and some in the Bitcoin community are not too pleased.

Troubled U.S.-based Bitcoin mining firm Greenidge Generation Holdings Inc. has restructured more of its debt to investment management service provider NYDIG and investment bank B. Riley Commercial Capital, the company announced on Tuesday.

In the SEC’s case against decentralized publishing platform LBRY Inc., the judge ruled that the secondary sale of LBC does not qualify as a security.

Bitcoin prices broke back above US$23,000 in Wednesday morning trading in Asia.

The HKMA said in a consultation conclusion that algorithmic stablecoins will not be allowed in the city.

Celsius Network may have misled its investors and spent customer funds, an independent examiner said in a Tuesday court filing.

Alameda Research has sued bankrupt digital assets lender Voyager Digital to reclaim US$445.8 million worth in loan payments before FTX filed for its own bankruptcy.

There’s always the possibility of a bigger scam or a bigger hack this year than the ones we saw in 2022. So what can the crypto industry do to survive 2023?

Bitcoin and Ethereum prices fell during Tuesday afternoon trading in Asia along with most other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies. Dogecoin was the exception in that list as it rebounded from morning losses.

Digital asset investment products reached US$117 million in the week ending Jan. 27 — the highest since July 2022 — with nearly all of that going into Bitcoin.

South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service has recommended a unified system for mandatory disclosure from issuers of cryptocurrencies.

A U.S. federal judge has granted motions to reveal the identities of the two unnamed co-signers of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s US$250 million bail bond.

Tighter regulations are necessary but not enough. The industry also needs to address its issues with custody and transparency, writes Chen Zhuling of RockX.

Bitcoin fell along with Ether and all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies in Tuesday morning trading in Asia, wiping out most of Monday’s gains.

Valkyrie’s Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin Miners exchange-traded fund (ETF), WGMI, has been the best-performing fund of 2023 so far, rising over 105% throughout January.

Bitcoin price was trading at a premium in Nigerian cryptocurrency exchanges on Monday following the central bank’s limit on ATM cash withdrawals.

Some members of the crypto community are starting to question the insistence that “code is law”. But is technology the only issue surrounding blockchain?

Bitcoin and Ethereum were up in Monday afternoon trading in Asia, while all other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies were mixed. Solana led gains at 5.08%. 

Laws to prevent another FTX blowup, crackdowns on crypto tax cheats, and a ruling on Ripple are likely imminent. A bull’s eye is also on DeFi, writes Gergo Varga of SEON.

Bitcoin’s mining difficulty level rose 4.68% on Sunday, hitting an all-time high, as the networks’ hashrate also continued to increase.