Korean crypto exchange Upbit adds one-second interval charts

IOTA accelerates Middle East expansion with $100M foundation launchIn a move aimed at catalyzing the adoption of its distributed ledger technology (DLT) in the Middle East, the Berlin-headquartered IOTA Foundation, the developmental force behind the IOTA-directed acyclic graph-based ledger network, unveiled a $100 million foundation in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.Photo by Imtiyaz Ali on UnsplashTokenizing real-world assetsThe IOTA Foundation announced details of the initiative, known as the IOTA Ecosystem DLT Foundation, via a blog post published on its website on Wednesday. The new foundation is designed to facilitate the transformation of tangible assets into digital entities, marking a significant stride in the convergence of real-world assets with the digital realm, according to IOTA Co-founder and Chairman Dominik Schiener.Taking to the X platform, Schiener wrote:”We will double down on our efforts to bring the real world to Web3. We will pave the way to tokenize RWA [Real World Assets] assets on #IOTA and work with the governments in the UAE, across the Middle East and Africa to digitize their trade infrastructure and tokenize assets. We will make Blockchain real, with real use cases, real adoption, real yield and real assets.”IOTA is not a blockchain, but a related distributed ledger technology. DLT has garnered attention for its diverse applications over the past decade. IOTA’s digital tokens will serve as the financial backbone for this substantial investment, signaling a strategic move amidst recent setbacks in the cryptocurrency sector.Regulatory first in Abu DhabiThe IOTA Ecosystem DLT Foundation stands out as the first blockchain-focused foundation sanctioned by the regulatory authorities of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), a key financial hub within the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The ADGM solidified its blockchain regulations in early November, creating a conducive environment for innovative blockchain-focused entities. The regulatory framework was crafted to offer a comprehensive structure specifically for DLT foundations and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs).Schiener expanded further on plans for the DLT Foundation:”With a new headquarter in the UAE, we are positioning IOTA from being an Enterprise Blockchain in Europe, to becoming one of the largest, global Crypto ecosystems. We will fully support Web3 and DeFi use cases on IOTA with the #EVM launch in Q1.”Endowed with over $100 million in IOTA tokens, the foundation’s funds will be gradually vested over the next four years.The financial infusion is earmarked for the development and expansion of the IOTA network. Additionally, IOTA will embark on asset “tokenization,” a process involving the representation of ownership rights for land or buildings as digital tokens stored on a blockchain. These tokens, akin to digital certificates of ownership, extend to virtually any valuable object.IOTA launched in 2015, and within its first two years, it rose to be a top-ten crypto project on the basis of market capitalization. Over the course of the last six years, the project has struggled to make the network less centralized. There have also been internal conflicts, which resulted in a number of the project’s co-founders stepping away from the project. With this latest development, Schiener suggested that IOTA could work its way back to being a top-ten project once again.

Monthly Active Users of Binance in South Korea Surpasses 230,000The monthly active user (MAU) count for the virtual asset exchange app Binance has surpassed 230,000 in South Korea, according to a recent analysis reported by local news outlet Etoday. This places Binance as the fourth-largest exchange in terms of user base, following more prominent local won-denominated exchanges Upbit, Bithumb, and Coinone.Photo by Vadim Artyukhin on UnsplashSoaring numbersAccording to data from the insights platform Mobile Index, the MAU for the Binance app in Korea averaged 230,965 users from February to July this year. Starting from 238,487 users in February, the number peaked at 240,000 in April, followed by a slight decrease to 219,010 in June and 215,743 in July. These figures significantly outpace the 131,799 average for Korbit and 36,123 for Gopax, recorded over the past six months.The abundance of users is also reflected in the app’s high trading volume in Korea. In May this year, Binance reportedly accounted for around $58.3 billion in trading volume from Korean users, representing approximately 13% of the total trading volume, according to the Wall Street Journal. This makes Korea the app’s second-largest market after China in terms of trading volume.These statistics are notable considering the fact that Binance does not support won-denominated trading nor has a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license for Korean operations. They can thus be attributed to the availability of futures trading, which is not offered by local exchanges. According to the Journal, futures trading accounts for 98% of the transactions conducted by Korean users.Regulatory validationMoreover, Binance is registered on the travel rule whitelists of three of the country’s largest exchanges: Upbit, Bithumb, and Coinone. This travel rule regulation was put into effect last year, requiring financial institutions to share data on cryptocurrency transactions.Being whitelisted means that users of the aforementioned exchanges can easily make trades on Binance after completing Know Your Customer (KYC) identification procedures.Each exchange follows its own criteria to add virtual asset service providers to its whitelist, allowing only whitelisted entities to send and receive transactions.Industry experts claim that this is yet another depiction of just how lucrative Korea’s crypto market is, as is the case with the significant trading volumes recorded by domestic exchanges. This is likely driving the active efforts of foreign exchanges, including Binance, to penetrate the market.Binance’s ongoing regulatory challengesEarlier this year, Binance acquired a majority stake in Streami, the operator of Korea’s KRW-to-crypto exchange Gopax, aiming to solidify its presence in the Korean market. Following this acquisition, Streami underwent leadership transitions that saw Lee Joon-haeng step down, making way for Binance’s APAC head Leon Sing Foong. Subsequently, the leadership baton was passed to Lee Joong-hoon, the former Vice President of Gopax.For these shifts in leadership, Streami submitted reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) under the Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) to inform the regulatory body about changes in company representatives. However, despite these notifications, the financial regulator has not yet granted its approval, likely influenced by the ongoing legal challenges Binance is facing in multiple jurisdictions, including that of the United States.In a seeming effort to address this regulatory impasse, Streami has recently decided to undergo yet another change in its CEO position. This marks the third leadership alteration within a span of six months. Meanwhile, the identity of the incoming CEO is yet to be disclosed.Oscillating trends of growth and declineIn related news, Mobile Index also reported that Upbit had the highest MAU among virtual asset exchange apps in Korea. From February to July, Upbit averaged an MAU count of 3,280,746, surpassing the 1,005,432 average for Bithumb, marking a threefold difference. Coinone’s average MAU during this period was calculated at 316,277.However, over the same six-month period, all won-denominated exchanges except for Korbit experienced a decline in MAU. Gopax witnessed a 22.3% drop from 42,556 users in February to 33,059 users in July. This was followed by 20%, 14.8%, and 6.8% declines for Coinone, Bithumb, and Upbit, respectively. Binance also experienced a 9.5% dip.In contrast, Korbit saw a 16.5% increase, rising from 118,816 MAU in February to 131,799 in July.

Uzbekistan’s New Private Bank Joins National Crypto Card InitiativeIn a step towards enhancing its cryptocurrency ecosystem, the Republic of Uzbekistan has given the green light to include another private bank in its ongoing national crypto card project. The development was announced through an official press release earlier this week by the National Agency of Perspective Projects (NAPP), the country’s regulatory authority for digital assets.Photo by engin akyurt on UnsplashBuilding upon a crypto frameworkUnder the provisions outlined by the Uzbekistan Ministry of Justice on December 30 of last year, the Special Regulatory Sandbox Regime was established. This unique framework empowers specific entities within Uzbekistan’s crypto sphere to provide specialized services. JSV Ravnaq Bank has now been registered as a member of this regime, enabling its active participation in the pilot phase of the nation’s crypto card project.Virtual bank cardThis initiative is poised to introduce a virtual bank card named “CRYPTO CARD — UzNEX.” The card’s standout feature is its ability to facilitate automatic fund addition to users’ primary accounts. This is achieved by swiftly converting crypto assets from a digital wallet on a partner crypto exchange platform.A vital aspect of the crypto card’s development lies in its compatibility testing with various financial systems, including the widely used Mastercard payment platform. According to NAPP’s statement, the participant bank within the special regulatory regime will be rigorously testing the integration of the automated banking system, crypto-exchange information system, bank processing center, and the MasterCard international payment system.December launchNotably, the addition of Ravnaq Bank marks the second entrant into the project, with Kapital Bank being the first participant approved in May. While Kapital Bank’s testing phase commenced at the end of June 2023, Ravnaq Bank is set to initiate its test launch by the end of October 2023. Both banks are expected to launch the full project by late December, in accordance with NAPP’s timeline.Beyond these private banks, the Special Regulatory Sandbox Regime also includes UZINFOCOM, a company authorized to develop NFT certificates based on distributed data registry technology.