Archives

Launched in January, Tencent News’ NFT marketplace was shut down, citing the need to “adjust” and “transform” the business. See related article:  China’s diktat against NFT flipping spawns an ingenious industry Fast facts Wang Shimu, former head of Tencent News, left the news division in May and was reassigned to Tencent’s NFT arm Huanhe due […]

As the NFT market slumps, some savvy former American footballers and their business partners have been spurred to push the technology’s potential.

Circle Internet Financial, the issuer of USDC, on Thursday released a detailed but unaudited breakdown of the reserves backing the second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization. See related article: Questions over Circle’s USDC reserves linger despite assurances Fast facts The breakdown showed that Circle had US$42.12 billion in U.S. Treasurys and US$13.58 billion in cash as […]

South Korean prosecutors have reportedly identified what is believed to be a Terraform Labs subsidiary in South Korea, FLEXE Corporation, which was allegedly used to facilitate cash flow from overseas to Terra affiliates, according to KBS News. See related article: Terra’s S.Korean office closure ‘purely coincidental’: Do Kwon Fast facts Terraform Labs chief executive officer […]

Huobi Technology has applied to become a regulated virtual asset trading platform with Hong Kong’s securities watchdog, as the city moves on to clarify and tighten rules on cryptocurrency-related businesses.  See related article: Hong Kong to propose bill to license crypto exchanges Fast facts Huobi said on Thursday the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has […]

The Blockchain and Crypto Assets Council (BACC), the advocacy body representing Indian crypto industry interests, has been dissolved by its parent organization, the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), according to a statement seen by CoinDesk.  See related article: Coinbase blames India’s central bank for exit Fast facts IAMAI made the decision without discussing […]

Ethereum’s ninth shadow fork went live overnight Wednesday in Asia, marking one of the final steps before the merge with the proof-of-stake (PoS) Beacon Chain as part of the network’s transition to Ethereum 2.0. See related article: Vitalik Buterin defends Ethereum ahead of merge; ‘not a security’ Fast facts A shadow fork is a test […]

The embattled U.S. crypto lender wants to continue certain operations during the restructuring process but customers will have to wait for the Chapter 11 proceedings to address their claims.

Fresh claims that emerged over the weekend about the status of Circle’s USDC reserves cast doubts on the ability of the so-called stablecoin to maintain its peg. In a deep dive, Forkast examined the allegations and reached out to the company for its version of events.

HGC Info Tech (HGC) announced Tuesday that it will start offering its securities tokens at U.S. digital asset exchange INX, as Chinese firms face delisting risks in the states due to regulatory differences. See related article: SEC places Chinese crypto mining rig maker Canaan on pre-delisting list Fast facts Xiamen-based HGC provides order matching and […]

Bitcoin’s hashrate dropped by more than 27% in 24 hours to 159.41 exahashes per second (EH/s) on Wednesday, the lowest since February this year, according to data from BTC.com.  See related article: Bitcoin miners in Texas halt operations amid heat wave Fast facts Multiple crypto miners in Texas, a mining hub in the U.S., have […]

The ‘Merge’ will have a major impact on the Ethereum ecosystem and beyond, and getting it right is more important than speed, writes Kevin Loo of IDEG.

South Korea’s Ifland metaverse marked its first anniversary by announcing Ifland 2.0, which will feature an economy that allows users to earn profits in the metaverse, its operator telecommunications giant SK Telecom said Tuesday. See related article: South Korea’s SK Telecom to build its first Web3 wallet Fast facts The Ifland 2.0 economy will reward […]

Top blockchain and crypto news: Payback time for Mt. Gox investors. USDC issuer strikes back as critics circle. Chinese bank fiasco hits a nerve.

A US Judge gave liquidators authority to lay claim to 3AC’s US-based assets. Meanwhile, Buterin defends Ethereum ahead of merge.

Animoca Brands has raised US$75 million in a new round of fundraising in a move toward an “open metaverse,” defying plummeting markets and a drop in non-fungible token (NFT) sales during the crypto winter season, the Hong Kong-based blockchain game specialist announced on Tuesday.  See related article: Animoca says crypto winter ‘a great time’ for […]

SM Entertainment (SM) announced it is establishing Studio Kwangya, a company specializing in content production in the metaverse, the leading South Korean idol agency announced on Tuesday.  See related article: Second K-pop agency taps Binance for NFT partnership Fast facts SM has represented some generational acts in K-pop since 1995 such as H.O.T., SNSD, EXO, […]

Shanghai released a policy paper setting a goal to cultivate its metaverse-related industry to a total value of 350 billion yuan (US$52 billion) by the end of 2025.  See related article: Hong Kong gears up for its first metaverse ETF Fast facts See related article: China’s zero-Covid policy realigning global economy, financial markets

The failure of a crypto market player may have spillover effects on traditional finance such as short-term funding markets, says the Basel-based international body.

Singapore wants to attract institutional capital while shielding its people from crypto — but it can’t have it both ways, writes Donovan Choy.

BTC remains a safe haven for investors for the long term amid this year’s soaring inflation and market volatility, writes Josef Tětek of SatoshiLabs.

Gains made by two of the world’s largest cryptocurrencies were partially eroded as speculation of a glut of Bitcoin from Mt. Gox’s customers and creditors and Celsius Network’s payback of its debt circulated over the weekend.

SK Telecom has partnered with blockchain firms AhnLab Blockchain Company and Atomrigs Labs to develop and operate a digital wallet for cryptocurrency management and Web3 access, the South Korean telecommunications giant announced on Monday.  See related article: South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate to issue own cryptocurrency Fast facts SK Telecom said users of its wallet will […]

Binance’s third approval in Europe came after the Bank of Spain allowed its Spanish subsidiary to register as a virtual asset services provider (VASP), the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume said Friday.  See related article: SEC said to probe Binance for rule violation in 2017 initial coin offering: report Fast facts The registration will […]

The U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) said federal employees of the executive branch owning cryptocurrencies or mutual funds investing in the sector need to recuse themselves from any matter related to the industry. See related article: CFTC Commissioner Pham suggests regulators stay tech-neutral on stablecoins Fast facts The July 5 memo clarified that the […]

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”.

In an exclusive interview with Forkast Editor-in-Chief Angie Lau, Circle Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Fox-Geen said reserves backing the so-called USDC stablecoin are ring-fenced from any potential fallout from the contagion engulfing crypto markets.

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 […]

The U.K. Treasury on Friday named Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) CEO Ashley Alder as chairman of the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). He is expected to start in January next year. See related article: UK finance watchdog to spend £11M to warn young people off crypto investment Fast facts See related article: […]

In a letter to the U.S. Commerce Department, the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions (NAFCU) warned that the cost of developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) outweighs the “hypothesized benefits.”  See related article: Hong Kong to research retail CBDC cybersecurity with Israel, BIS Fast facts The organization’s July 5 letter was in line […]

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

The crypto market gained along with traditional markets overnight in Asia as investors responded to updated guidance on Thursday from U.S. Federal Reserve officials claiming recessionary concerns are overblown. See related article: Bitcoin, Ether recover as Fed guidance reduces policy uncertainty Fast facts Bitcoin gained 8% to trade above US$22,000 in the past 24 hours […]

Will fashion shows move from Paris and Tokyo catwalks to potential audiences of millions in the metaverse? China’s Xiaohongshu social media site is testing the idea.

SBF’s Alameda Research debt to Voyager emerges. Meanwhile, South Korea agrees to cooperate with the US on Terra-Luna investigation.

South Korea’s Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon met with U.S. investigative agencies in New York on Tuesday amid the countries’ separate investigations into Terra and its cofounder Do Kwon. See related article: South Korean authorities cite LUNA debacle to call for speedier crypto oversight Fast facts The minister met with Andrea M. Griswold, co-chief of the […]

After Voyager Digital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday, the Toronto Stock Exchange suspended trading in Voyager shares on Wednesday, announcing an expedited delisting review.  See related article: Voyager crypto firm loaned US$377 mln to Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research Fast facts According to Voyager’s bankruptcy filing, the firm has over 100,000 creditors and US$1.1 […]

Bad mortgages once dragged the world into a financial crisis. Can smart contracts prevent the worst from happening again?

Alameda Research, the crypto trading firm cofounded by Sam Bankman-Fried, owes Voyager Digital Holdings US$377 million in loans, according to the crypto broker’s new bankruptcy filing. See related article: Three Arrows, Voyager failures raise questions of who is next in crypto fall from grace Fast facts Voyager Digital entered a loan agreement for a revolving […]

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.

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 […]

Notwithstanding this bear market, Web3’s more pressing issue is its inability to handle large volumes, writes Greg Gopman. Can sidechains offer a solution?

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 […]

Tencent on Monday said it started testing non-fungible token (NFT) profile picture (PFP) avatars and the “virtual room” Music Zone on its QQ Music app. See related article: Tencent launches XR unit to develop ‘benchmark’ VR products Fast facts These NFT PFP avatars are two-dimensional cartoon characters based on Tencent’s blockchain, Zhixin Chain. QQ Music […]

Crypto industry sales are slumping, but it’s not just hedge funds and lenders that have been hit hard by the crypto winter. The NFT industry has also begun to feel the chill.

Hong Kong-listed beauty app Meitu said on Friday it is expecting a net loss of up to 349.9 million yuan (US$52 million) in the first half of 2022, driven by tumbling cryptocurrency prices.  See related article: Hong Kong-listed Meitu buys more Bitcoin, now has US$100 million in crypto Fast facts See related article: Software firm […]

South Korean tech giant Samsung has started producing chips using its latest 3-nanometer (nm) technology, the company said Thursday. The new chips can be used for Bitcoin mining hardware.  See related article: LG to follow Samsung adding NFT features to flagship TVs Fast facts One of the earliest clients for Samsung’s 3nm chips could be […]

Crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in a federal bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York on Friday, in hopes to shield its U.S. assets after a court in the British Virgin Islands reportedly ordered the firm into liquidation last week. See related article: Three Arrows Capital […]

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.

Investment firm VanEck has filed an application for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), despite Grayscale’s application getting rejected on Tuesday.  See related article: Next step for spot Bitcoin ETF in the US may be a courtroom battle Fast facts VanEck had filed for a spot Bitcoin […]

Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange OSL is reportedly laying off 40 to 60 employees, or about 15% of its workforce, to join a growing list of digital asset companies in scaling down operations amid tanking cryptocurrency prices. See related article: Coinbase, biggest US crypto exchange, cuts workforce by 18% Fast facts The job cuts are not […]

Chinese tech giants including Ant Group, Tencent, Baidu and JD.com are joining yet another self-disciplinary initiative on eliminating speculation of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), also known as “digital collectibles.” See related article: China’s diktat against NFT flipping spawns an ingenious industry Fast facts The companies pledged to resist secondary trading and ensure real-name identification in a […]

The crash of Terra-LUNA threw the entire crypto space into a dark funk, and raised questions about the safety and role of stablecoins. CFTC Commissioner Caroline D. Pham offers a regulators’ viewpoint at a Forkast+ exclusive event.

Bitcoin dropped below US$19,000 for the first time since December 2020 as the crypto market wrapped up Q2 with further downturns as of Friday morning in Asia. See related article: Bitcoin, crypto fall amid reports of 3AC’s court-ordered liquidation Fast facts The world’s largest cryptocurrency hit a low of US$18,729 and was trading at US$20,352 […]

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?

MicroStrategy chief executive Michael Saylor announced via Twitter an additional purchase of 480 Bitcoins (BTC) for roughly US$10 million, as the company remains steadfast on its Bitcoin strategy after speculation of a margin call on a US$205 million loan.   See related article: MicroStrategy, crypto firm shares plunge with Bitcoin’s freefall Fast facts MicroStrategy, a business […]

Lack of public trust remain a big barrier to crypto adoption, writes Tristan Roozendaal. Here’s why regulators should ‘move fast and break things.’

Top blockchain and crypto news: Three Arrows fallout spreads. BIS calls BS on crypto. Chinese regulatory vacuum chills an NFT platform.

Sky Mavis’ Ronin Bridge is back online after one of the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) heists in history prompted a three-month network hiatus, Ronin announced in a Tuesday newsletter. See related article: Are we helpless against attacks on blockchain bridges? Fast facts Ronin Bridge is used by non-fungible token (NFT) game Axie Infinity players to […]

Crypto hacks facilitated by North Korea help fund its weapons of mass destruction, U.S. Treasury Department’s Brian E. Nelson said on his recent visit to South Korea. See related article: North Korea behind Ronin hack: US Fast facts Nelson met with representatives of South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) on […]

Whither Singapore in the cryptocurrency world? The Monetary Authority of Singapore has some views on that and as with most markets, there are winners and losers.

Crypto broker Voyager Digital issued a notice of default on Monday to hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), for failing to service a loan worth about US$665 million. See related article: Amid 3AC exposure, Voyager Digital cuts daily withdrawal limit Fast facts Last week, Voyager said it had asked for US$25 million worth of USD […]

Harmony’s Horizon cross-chain bridge is now the third of its kind to suffer a major hack this year. What are the alternatives that may be more secure?

The Victor Smorgon Group has used ANZ Banking Group’s Australian dollar-pegged stablecoin, A$DC, to purchase tokenized carbon credits in a transaction facilitated by crypto asset investment firm ZeroCap. See related article: Australian crypto industry watches as sole trader charges two top banks with ‘debanking’ Fast facts The carbon credits were tokenized to create digital security […]

The legal and ethical dilemmas plaguing technology today will only grow more acute in the metaverse, writes Brian Harley. How will real-world laws apply?

Deeper structural flaws in crypto make it unsuitable as the basis of a monetary system that serves society, the Bank for International Settlements said in its annual report.

The U.S. investment bank is looking to raise the money to buy up distressed assets from the troubled crypto lender, a Fortune report said, citing people familiar with the matter. See related article: Celsius said to be hiring restructuring attorneys, exploring financing options Fast facts A deal would allow investors to buy up Celsius Network’s […]

As traditional finance sector firms continue to seek upside crypto exposure, bringing DeFi yields to TradFi has a bright future, says B2C2’s Phillip Gillespie.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and multiple cybersecurity companies have started investigating the US$100 million hack on Harmony Protocol’s Horizon cross-chain bridge. See related article: Axie Infinity hack proceeds continue to be laundered despite US sanctions Fast facts Harmony Protocol announced it was attacked on Friday morning Asia time, adding it had alerted exchanges […]

One door closes and another opens, which seems to be what’s happening in Singapore as the crypto price slump restructures the trading environment.

In a decentralized society envisaged under crypto, everybody is reportedly equal. But as the market strains under considerable stress, it’s showing some are more equal than others.

Cryptocurrencies were listed for the first time as a means to launder and transfer money related to the drug trade by the China Ministry of Public Security on Thursday. See related article: China explores ways to classify cryptocurrency crimes Fast facts See related article: The SEC is building a SWAT team to combat crypto crime

Testifying before the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday, the chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve said the central bank is “not really seeing significant macroeconomic implications so far” with regard to the recent cryptocurrency volatility. See related article: Bitcoin, Ether recover as Fed guidance reduces policy uncertainty Fast facts Powell testified at the Senate Banking […]