Turkey crafts new crypto regulations with FATF grey list removal objective

OSL Group, a publicly-listed digital asset and blockchain platform company headquartered in Hong Kong, is set to acquire Indonesia’s Evergreen Crest Holdings.Photo by Kelly Sikkema on UnsplashAs the proposed acquisition of Evergreen Crest, a business that includes a virtual assets exchange platform, will involve a share transaction, OSL filed details of the acquisition with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on June 2. OSL will take a 90% stake in Evergreen Crest in return for $15 million worth of consideration shares, which will be issued by OSL to the seller. This share issuance will account for 1.48% of the total issued shares in the company. Once the acquisition goes through, Evergreen Crest will become a subsidiary of OSL Group, with Evergreen’s financial results consolidated into the overall financial statements of OSL going forward.  ‘Strategic benefits’The filing suggests that OSL management believe that the acquisition “will bring substantial strategic benefits to the Group,” as it opens up access for the company to the Indonesian digital asset market. The company is optimistic about the outlook for the Indonesian crypto market. It stated: “Indonesia possesses key attributes conducive to growth in this sector, including a substantial and youthful demographic, robust economic growth fundamentals, and a rapidly increasing rate of cryptocurrency adoption.” Acquiring licensesOne interesting aspect of the acquisition is that Evergreen Crest has acquired the requisite licensing to operate within the Indonesian market. Those cryptocurrency and futures trading licenses are likely to be of significant value to OSL as it means that through the acquisition, OSL can now enter the Indonesian market in a fully compliant manner. Using the existing compliant platform, OSL intends to expand the range of services offered within the Indonesian market. It indicated that it would do so in respect of payment finance (PayFi) and tokenized real-world asset (RWA)-related products and services, subject to acquiring the necessary licensing. OSL is encouraged by the opportunity that exists within Indonesia as far as tokenized RWAs are concerned. It claimed that the country has already demonstrated significant tokenized RWA-related activity. PT Multikripto Exchange Indonesia (also known as Koinsayang), the exchange business owned by Evergreen Crest, was awarded a virtual asset trading license by the Indonesian regulator, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), in March. At the time, the exchange outlined that it intended to expand its service reach, while creating a better trading experience for users located within Indonesia and overseas. In September 2024, the exchange was awarded a license to offer crypto asset perpetual futures contracts by Indonesia’s Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency (Bappebti).  OSL expanding its reachOSL appears to be making a concerted effort to expand beyond its Hong Kong base. In February it acquired CoinBest, a Japanese crypto exchange, rebranding the business as OSL Japan. At the time it was reported that the company was also looking at opportunities to expand in European markets. OSL was amongst the first digital asset exchange platforms to be licensed in Hong Kong, receiving Type 1 and Type 7 licenses from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in December 2020.

The government of Bhutan, the Buddhist kingdom nestled in the Himalayas, has partnered with cryptocurrency payment service Binance Pay to launch the world’s first national-level crypto tourism payment system. In a recent blog post, Binance outlined details of the collaboration. Alongside the government and Binance, Bhutanese digital bank DK Bank will also play a role. The payment system enables international visitors to Bhutan who also happen to be Binance account holders to pay for a range of services within the kingdom.Photo by Mariia Shalabaieva on UnsplashFacilitating spending of over 100 cryptosUsing the Binance app, tourists visiting Bhutan can use dynamic or static QR codes in order to complete secure transactions via participating merchants in real time. The system supports users in spending over 100 cryptocurrencies to pay for goods or services, including hotel stays, tour guides and entrance fees to touristic sites. Payment using these digital assets will be settled instantly in Bhutan’s sovereign currency, the Ngultrum (BTN), with that settlement facilitated by DK Bank. Binance also asserted that the initiative facilitates inclusion and innovation by enabling small businesses in remote areas to accept crypto and in that way, to go digital. Bridging ‘cultures and economies’Binance CEO Richard Teng said that the initiative not only advances the use of crypto in the tourism sector, it also sets a precedent for “how technology can bridge cultures and economies.” Teng added:“This initiative exemplifies our commitment to innovation and our belief in a future where digital finance empowers global connectivity and enriches travel experiences.” Damcho Rinzin is also of the opinion that the initiative adds value beyond just being a tourism-related payment system. He stated:“This is more than a payment solution – it’s a commitment to innovation, inclusion, and convenience.” Binance described the new payment system as the first of its kind to offer end-to-end crypto-based payments at a national level, in a fully integrated manner. It added that previous systems established elsewhere had limitations and that by offering real-time confirmations, near-zero fees and a regulatory-compliant bank handling settlements, this system overcomes past limitations. Early adopterWhile Bhutan appears to have established a world-first with this system, it is no stranger to being innovative related to crypto. The kingdom has amassed a Bitcoin holding with a value in excess of $1 billion. It has collaborated with Bitcoin miner and Bitcoin mining equipment manufacturer Bitdeer on crypto-related ventures. In January it was announced that the Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC), a special administrative region within Bhutan, is moving forward with plans to hold Bitcoin, Ethereum and BNB, a digital asset that was created by Binance back in 2017, within its strategic reserve. Bhutan’s early interest in crypto hadn’t gone unnoticed by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ). Last November, CZ commented on the X social media platform, in response to the news that Bhutan had accumulated in excess of $1 billion in Bitcoin, that many countries will use Bitcoin as a strategic asset going forward. The following month he visited the kingdom, meeting with the King of Bhutan.  During a panel discussion at Token2049 in Dubai in April, CZ commented that Bhutan is already advanced in its efforts to implement a national Bitcoin strategic reserve.

FTX Opts Out of Plan to Sell off FTX JapanThe FTX Debtor that was brought in to manage the bankrupt estate of the failed FTX cryptocurrency exchange has decided to not follow through with a plan to sell off the Japanese business.That’s according to a report by Nikkei on Thursday. In November 2022 a new management team was brought in to restructure the FTX business immediately following the business having filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the courts in Delaware in the United States.Photo by Jezael Melgoza on UnsplashOptimizing value for creditorsThe original plan was to look to sell off subsidiary companies within the group such as FTX Japan, FTX Turkey, and FTX Europe. Those plans have now at the very least been delayed. Nikkei cited an FTX executive who claimed that it’s not so much that plans have been delayed but rather that the FTX Debtor has identified another approach that will likely optimize value for creditors.“They hope to increase the price by selling the entire group, rather than selling subsidiaries in various regions,” Nikkei’s FTX source stated.Rebooting the exchangeThe response from creditors to this news has been largely positive. While the notion of a rebooted FTX business has proven to be controversial within the crypto space, most creditors recognize that the business can provide much greater value for them if it is restarted internationally.Global investment banking firm Perella Weinberg Partners (PWP) was brought in by the FTX Debtor in November 2022 to carry out a strategic review of the assets held by the FTX group. In a recent bankruptcy court hearing in Delaware, one of its partners stated that they are currently in the process of inviting bids from interested parties.At that time, PWP indicated that the Debtor was looking to revive the international FTX business. That would likely mean an entity headquartered outside the United States. It remains to be seen what will happen in the case of the FTX US business. Due to an unwelcoming regulatory approach in the US right now, setting up a crypto business there is seen as having additional risk factors.Asian interestA number of weeks ago, the Debtor filed a list of interested parties. The list included a number of high-profile Asian companies, although it’s not clear if their interest lies in the business in its entirety or specific FTX assets.Among them was Japanese telecoms firm Docomo. Tokyo-headquartered global financial services company Nomura also featured. Japan’s largest Ecommerce company, Rakuten, also signed a letter of intent in expressing its interest. FTX Japan had attracted 41 bidders. It’s being speculated that some of these Japanese entities will now bid on the entire business or join consortiums who will do so.FTX Japan solventCreditors of FTX Japan have fared much better than their international counterparts. In the wake of the collapse of the Mt.Gox cryptocurrency exchange in 2014, the Japanese authorities set to work on providing greater protections for customers. As a consequence, FTX Japan was required to ring-fence customer funds. For that reason, Japanese customers have already been given access to their funds.In a recent exchange on Twitter, well-known American investor Mark Cuban pointed out that Japanese regulators had been successful in protecting FTX investors in Japan. Cuban made the point to former US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulator John Reed Stark, underscoring the failure of US regulators in doing so.