November 2022
Stablecoin project Ardana on Cardano halts operation
Ardana, a stablecoin project being built on the Cardano blockchain, announced the project has been halted due to funding and uncertainty over its timeline.
Singapore’s DBS bank completes intraday repurchase transaction on JPMorgan’s blockchain-based platform
Singapore-based DBS bank, the largest lender in Southeast Asia, has said it is the first bank in Asia to complete an intraday repurchase transaction on a blockchain-based network.
Hong Kong residents spend most time online globally: NordVPN survey
Hong Kong residents spend the most time online – almost half of their lives – mainly watching videos on YouTube followed by scrolling through social media channels, according to a new survey by virtual private network provider NordVPN.
Do all Web3 projects need a token?
Should we be questioning which Web3 projects need tokens?
Beyond crypto: Why would companies want cryptocurrency-free blockchains?
Cryptocurrencies are getting in the way of the mass adoption of blockchain technology, especially by tech businesses, says Red Date Technology chief Yifan He.
Blockchain isn’t broken
Despite the crypto meltdown, there’s plenty to be optimistic about.
China’s state blockchain infrastructure Xinghuo BIF partners Malaysian MyEG to fuel global push
China’s state blockchain infrastructure Xinghuo Blockchain Infrastructure and Facility has signed an agreement with Malaysian digital service provider MY E.G. Services Berhad to own and operate an “international supernode,” as China continues its international blockchain push.
Taiwan’s Crypto Future
Taiwan’s economy has taken a hit due to lowered demand for its number one export and repercussions of the Chinese Mainland’s zero-COVID policies. How has that shifted the Taiwanese government’s attitude towards crypto?
Japan’s NTT Docomo to develop Web 3.0 with Accenture, Astar Network
NTT Docomo, Japan’s largest mobile phone operator, has partnered information technology firm Accenture and blockchain infrastructure Astar Network to explore Web 3.0 adoption.
Japan’s Web 3.0 lawmaker urges further easing of country’s crypto regulation
Japan needs to further relax rules for its crypto industry, said lawmaker of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party Masaaki Taira.
DeFi still has a long way to go before mass adoption
Decentralized finance will stay niche unless the sector overcomes its myriad problems, including a lack of a credit system and regulations that inspire greater trust, writes Brian Pasfield.
Digital Transformation Boost
How can collaboration help advance digital age and blockchain technologies?
How sustainable is that fast-fashion minidress? Blockchain can help you find out
Fashion’s ‘greenwashing’ scandals could be a thing of the past if blockchain is used to hold companies accountable, writes Lars Rensing of Protokol.
LG Electronics seeks Web3 talent for blockchain, NFT efforts
LG Electronics is recruiting chief technical officers (CTOs) to lead the company’s growing Web3 business.
Blockchain without cryptocurrencies: How might China’s BSN change Web3?
By excising cryptocurrencies from the ecosystem, crypto-hostile China could steal a march in enterprise blockchain, says Red Date Technology chief Yifan He.
The big problem with Web3
People have been waiting seemingly forever for the arrival of Web3. So why hasn’t it changed our lives yet?
Crypto asset manager HashKey gets Singapore’s in-principle license
HashKey Capital Singapore, an investment arm of Hong Kong-based HashKey Group, said on Friday that it received an in-principle approval for the Capital Markets Services license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
India forms new crypto advocacy body with Coinbase, Polygon
Cryptocurrency exchanges and Web 3.0 companies, including Coinbase and Polygon, have formed the Bharat Web3 Association in India to strengthen regulation and consumer protection for the industry.
Token price of Ethereum-based play-to-earn company Gala Games falls some 20% after hacking scare
The network says the apparent attack was just a preemptive safeguard against an issue with a cross-chain bridge.
Dashcam maker Hivemapper issues crypto HONEY for road image contribution
San Francisco-based dashcam maker and decentralized mapping service provider Hivemapper issued cryptocurrency tokens HONEY to reward dashcam users for contributing driving data and road imagery on Friday Hong Kong time, according to a press release shared with Forkast.
Curiosity ‘always’ fuels innovation, says blockchain co-creator Stuart Haber
U.S. computer scientist Stuart Haber, recognized with Scott Stornetta as the co-inventor of blockchain, says he is excited to see the evolution of the technology, not only in the financial sector, but also in entertainment, business, and technology industries.
Standard Chartered invests in Partior blockchain payments platform
London-headquartered banking giant Standard Chartered announced on Thursday that it had invested in the blockchain-based interbank settlement platform Partior, a joint venture of JP Morgan, DBS bank and Temasek.
Singapore’s Project Ubin+ to study cross-border FX with CBDCs
The MAS launched Project Ubin+ on Thursday, a collaborative initiative with international partners to explore cross-border foreign exchange settlements using wholesale CBDC.
Crypto Winter will only get worse as industry adjusts: Tezos cofounder
The ongoing Crypto Winter is ‘only going to get worse’ as the industry is re-evaluated amongst tighter interest rates, the cofounder of Tezos predicts.
How soulbound tokens can lift billions of lives around the world
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.
Payments platform StraitsX to show real-world stablecoin use at Singapore Fintech Festival
Singapore-based StraitsX, a payments infrastructure for digital assets, will pilot stablecoin applications at the ongoing Singapore Fintech Festival.
Can blockchain tech in green finance attract more investors and deter bad actors?
As governments look towards zero carbon emission goals, new means of creating climate-related financial products are being tested on the blockchain.
NEAR sets up Web3 hub in South Korea, eyes Asia expansion
NEAR Foundation is establishing a Web3 hub in South Korea to expand its allegiance with blockchain projects in Korea and Asia.
Singapore lender DBS explains its DeFi experiments, plans
DBS, the largest bank in Southeast Asia, said it tested trading of foreign exchange and government bonds using permissioned decentralized finance (DeFi) liquidity pools on a public blockchain as part of the city-state’s Project Guardian exploration of blockchain in finance.
Down with greenwashing
How can we utilize blockchain technologies to fight climate change as it continues to worsen?
Singapore’s Tokenize crypto exchange opens platform for institutional investors
Cryptocurrency exchanges in Singapore are shifting focus to heavy-hitter investors, such as family offices and financial institutions, in line with the central bank’s warnings about the risks in retail crypto trading.
October 2022
Hong Kong Rethinks Crypto
Hong Kong reconsidering crypto’s retail investor ban.
Sam Bankman-Fried says Hong Kong could become Asia’s Web 3 hub
The founder of crypto exchange FTX, which moved out of Hong Kong in 2021, said that the city could emerge as a Web3, blockchain and cryptocurrency hub.
Blockchain will be YouTube for finance, says CEO of South Korean blockchain firm Streami
The use of blockchain technology in finance will have an impact similar to that of YouTube on the media industry, said Lee Jun-haeng, CEO of South Korea-based blockchain company Streami.
Disrupting the media
Journalists have faced with all sorts of issues in pursuing the truth, including safety, press freedom, and more. So how can blockchain and web3 make a difference?
Gaming and NFTs will drive Web3 growth: Crypto.com COO
The future of the burgeoning Web3 sector will be gaming and non-fungible tokens, said Eric Anziani of global digital asset exchange Crypto.com.
Aptos debut underwhelms amid questions over design and performance
Top blockchain and crypto news: Aptos launch falls short. Why FTX chief is calling for crypto regulations. Is Hong Kong paving way for a retail CBDC?
BIS, Goldman Sachs, HKMA test tokenized green bond project Genesis 2.0
Genesis 2.0 aims to explore tokenized carbon credits and IoT facilities to monitor green bond issuers’ emission-reducing commitment.
‘Chinese Netflix’ iQIYI taps smart contract ERC-3475 to resolve copyright disputes
iQIYI, one of China’s largest online video platforms with over 100 million subscribers, is tapping Ethereum smart contract standard ERC-3475 to solve copyright-related issues, according to a press release on Sunday from the standard’s inventor, decentralized bond protocol DeBond.
Reinventing banking: Why is Standard Chartered so drawn to Web3?
Institutional adoption of Web3 in finance means getting traditional banks involved, which will in turn reshape the way banks work, says SC Ventures’ Alex Manson.
What is XRP and what is Ripple?
Why has Ripple Labs been in the U.S. SEC’s crosshairs and what’s the difference between Ripple and XRP?
India Web3 talent driven away by lack of regulatory clarity, industry body says
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.
The Lord of the Rings NFT comes with a Web3 AR movie journey in 4K
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. will launch Lord of The Rings non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Eluvio, as part of the entertainment giant’s Web 3.0 movie experience coined “Movieverse.”
Twitter user prevents 200 billion BitBTC bridge exploit, highlighting major vulnerability
A Twitter user highlighted a vulnerability in BitBTC’s Optimism bridge and averted what could have been the latest in a string of bridge exploits this month.
Horizon Worlds fails to lift Meta as users stay away
Top blockchain and crypto news: Mark Zuckerberg’s empty metaverse. South Korea to roll out blockchain IDs. Macau bets on digital money.
Bitcoin makes the Guinness World Records list as the first decentralized cryptocurrency
Bitcoin also received additional entries to the annual list, now a record holder for the “oldest cryptocurrency,” the “most valuable cryptocurrency” and the “first blockchain.”
Aptos rollout faulted for slow processing speeds; native token plunges
The blockchain network was built by former members of the Meta stablecoin project, with well-known investors and considerable buzz as the new ‘Solana killer.’
Japanese gaming giant Konami is recruiting for expansion into Web3, metaverse
Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd., a Tokyo-based video game company, announced a recruitment effort for 13 new positions to integrate its game titles with Web3 and metaverse technologies. See related article: NFTs may be the next killer app for video games, but some traditional players object Fast facts The game developer is planning to launch […]
India’s headache, or opportunity?
India’s crypto sector has been having a tough time – we’re taking a look on what has been happening lately.
Magic Eden, largest Solana-based NFT platform, makes royalty fees optional
The platform said the move was in line with growing market trends, but some are concerned about what it means for the industry.
The evidence is in: Chinese courts use judicial blockchain platform to store data
China’s judicial blockchain platform has stored more than 2.6 billion pieces of evidence, a Supreme People’s Court spokesman said at a press conference on Thursday, according to a report by the local media Legal Daily. See related article: China has seen blockchain’s future and it doesn’t include cryptocurrencies Fast facts See related article: How blockchain […]
India police launches blockchain-based complaint portal on Polygon
The Indian police unit in Firozabad city in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh has launched an online complaint portal powered by Ethereum scaler Polygon. See related article: Blockchain in India got off on wrong foot, says former finance chief Fast facts The pilot portal, policecomplaintonblockchain.in, leverages blockchain technology’s immutability, which means complaints cannot be […]
Binance says BSC hard fork successful after hack
Binance Global Inc., the operator of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, says it successfully completed a hard fork of its BNB Smart Chain (BSC) network around 5 p.m. Hong Kong on Wednesday. See related article: Binance to hard fork BNB Smart Chain amid heated debate around decentralization Fast facts A hard fork is a split […]
Binance to hard fork BNB Smart Chain amid heated debate around decentralization
The crypto world has been watching how one of the world’s largest blockchains responds to a hack last week and the questions it raises about the state of decentralization in the industry.
Google Cloud partners Coinbase for crypto payments, data services
Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., has formed a strategic Web 3.0 partnership with Google Cloud, the Nasdaq-listed exchange said in a statement on Tuesday. See related article: Coinbase gets nod from Dutch central bank to offer crypto services Fast facts As part of the partnership, Google Cloud will allow select customers to […]
Malaysia’s Blockchain Ambitions
Malaysia looks towards blockchain in its future plans- but how could a national public blockchain help?
Why appchains are critical to Web3’s future
What’s wrong with ‘fat protocols’ like Ethereum and Solana, and why should there be alternatives for the little guys? Yaoqi Jia of AltLayer explains.
Singapore eyes blockchain-based payment systems for faster cross-border transactions
The Monetary Authority of Singapore is exploring blockchain-based payments solution to solve the challenges in cross-border transactions. See related article: Singapore warms up to crypto industry — on its own terms Fast facts The current state of cross-border payments “is slow, costly, opaque, and inefficient, relying on an archaic network of correspondent banks,” Ravi Menon, […]
UAE crypto market expected to grow 10-fold: report
The cryptocurrency market in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is expected to grow 10 times, according to a new report from MENA blockchain ecosystem, Crypto Oasis, released Monday at a blockchain conference organized by the Dubai World Trade Centre. See related article: New hire in Saudi Central Bank to work on crypto regulations: report Fast […]
BNB Chain back online after devs deploy update to save funds
Through quick identification and cooperation of network validators, most funds were saved in last week’s BNB Chain exploit.
Want the next-generation internet? Start legislating for it
Web3 communities need to join forces with policymakers to draft rules for the next iteration of the online world, says Haun Ventures’ Tomicah Tillemann
Malaysia to get its own national public blockchain
MY E.G. Services Berhad (MYEG) and Mimos Technology Solutions Sdn Bhd (MTSSB) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Thursday to co-develop and operate Malaysia’s national blockchain infrastructure to onboard the nation’s private and public sectors to Web 3.0. See related article: Huobi Global talking to Malaysian regulator about being put on investor alert list […]
Ethereum liquidity staking protocol Lido links to L2 networks Arbitrum, Optimism
Ethereum liquid staking protocol Lido has announced the expansion of its staking token stETH to Ethereum layer 2 networks Arbitrum Bridge and Optimism, according to a Friday tweet. See related article: Vitalik Buterin: Layer 2 the future of Ethereum scaling Fast facts This expansion comes with the launch of a token called wstETH — a […]
Software firm Spexi raises US$5.5 mln to develop Flow blockchain-based drone imagery platform
Software company Spexi has raised US$5.5 million in seed funding to create Spexigon, the world’s first crypto-powered fly-to-earn drone imagery platform based on the Flow blockchain, according to a press release on Tuesday. See related article: X-to-Earn: Eat, sleep, do almost anything for pay in crypto Fast facts See related article: Run-to-earn protocol Stepn announces […]
Ripple Labs joins blockchain carbon credit partnership
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 […]
S.Korea financial regulator restates support for blockchain, crypto protections
Kim Joo-hyun, the chairman of South Korea’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), said on Thursday the agency will promote blockchain technology and user protections in the crypto market. See related article: South Korea’s all-encompassing crypto law is coming — what we know so far Fast facts “In cooperation with the National Assembly, […]
Is that bottle of ‘Grand Cru’ for real? An NFT can nose out the truth
The tradition-bound wine world is not always open to change, writes Sebastian Schier of vinID. But new technology can solve the age-old problem of wine fraud.
Asus launches NFT platform to plug into Web 3.0
Taiwanese laptop maker Asus has launched a non-fungible token (NFT) platform, marking its first attempt to venture into the burgeoning Web 3.0 industry, the company announced on Tuesday. See related article: Apple iPhone maker’s founder distances himself from crypto fraudsters using his image Fast facts Asus launched Art Black hole on Tuesday, a platform for […]
‘It raises really interesting questions’: How regulators are approaching DAOs
Panelists at Forkast’s live-streamed event ‘Crypto Rising: The Role of Law: An International Debate post Tornado Cash’ co-hosted by the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI) said attempting to regulate DAOs highlights the shortcomings of international enforcement.
US$4B in money laundering happened on DEXs, bridges and coin swaps: Elliptic
Criminals have used decentralized exchanges (DEX), cross-chain bridges and coin swap services to launder more than US$4 billion worth of illicit crypto gains, according to a research report by blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. See related article: SWIFT, Chainlink announce cross-chain interoperability pact Fast facts See related article: Chainalysis says $2 bln stolen in cross-chain bridge […]
Japan’s PM announces NFT and metaverse expansion
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced plans to expand investments in non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse in a policy speech on Monday. See related article: Japan plans new crypto transfer rules to combat money laundering Fast facts Kishida says the country will further its investment in digital transformation and expand the use of Web3 […]