Korean Crypto Market Outpaces Stock Exchange Amid Bitcoin ETF Optimism

Upbit Investor Protection Center Launches Second Cohort of Up!To ProgramThe Upbit Investor Protection Center of Dunamu, the operator of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, recently announced that it conducted an inauguration ceremony in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, for the second cohort of its Up!To program. This initiative encourages university students to engage in the promotion of the virtual asset industry through the creation of innovative content. Notably, this new cohort consists of 30 members, almost double the size of the initial group.The event kicked off with a warm congratulatory speech from Dunamu CEO Lee Sirgoo. Following that, appointment letters and welcome kits were presented to the attendees. Then, each participating team took the stage to deliver their presentations.Photo by Annie Spratt on UnsplashThree months of engagementUnder the slogan “Build Your Own Block,” the second Up!To cohort will engage in a range of activities for about three months. These activities will involve creating content focused on digital assets and investor protection, brainstorming ideas to enhance Upbit’s services, and attending events hosted by Upbit. The group will also take part in various environmental, social, and governance (ESG) activities to contribute to society.Financial support and incentivesThe Upbit Investor Protection Center will offer financial support to participants to help fund their activities. In addition, the top-performing team will be awarded a cash prize of KRW 5 million (approximately $3,700), while standout individual participants will receive KRW 3 million. Those who excel in the overall evaluation will also have the chance to earn a three-month internship at Upbit.At the ceremony, Lee Hae-boong, the head of the Upbit Investor Protection Center, expressed his hope that the Up!To participants would seize this opportunity to build meaningful “blocks” in their own lives. He also encouraged them to bring forward innovative ideas that would contribute to fostering a healthy culture around digital asset investment.Meanwhile, updates on the activities of the second Up!To cohort will be available on the official YouTube channel and website of the Upbit Investor Protection Center.

Standard Chartered Bank Hong Kong, a licensed bank and subsidiary of British multinational banking group Standard Chartered, has partnered with local companies to launch a Hong Kong dollar-based stablecoin in the Chinese autonomous territory.Photo by Chapman Chow on UnsplashJoint venture formed In a press release published by Animoca Brands, a blockchain-based gaming and Web3 venture capital firm based in Hong Kong, the company outlined details of the partnership between it and Standard Chartered, alongside Hong Kong Telecom (HKT), Hong Kong’s dominant fixed-line, mobile and broadband telecommunications firm. The partnership has been structured as a joint venture between the three companies, with the objective of launching the Hong Kong dollar-backed stablecoin. Local regulator and central bank, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has been working towards implementing a regulatory framework specifically dedicated to stablecoins.  Legislative framework incoming As of the end of 2024, proposed legislation that would enable such a framework had advanced to Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. Before the bill can be enacted into law, the legislative process requires three readings of the bill accompanied by a series of debates and the scrutiny of lawmakers.  Once the legislation has been signed into law, it will require stablecoin issuers to obtain a license from the HKMA. In the case of this particular joint venture, the promoters plan to apply for a license in due course. Standard Chartered is already deeply embedded in Hong Kong’s financial system, making this latest development all the more significant. Alongside HSBC and Bank of China (Hong Kong), Standard Chartered issues the local currency, the Hong Kong dollar. That activity is carried out under the oversight of the HKMA.  The HKMA launched a sandbox environment relative to stablecoins in order to provoke an exchange of views between the regulator and market participants. The three parties to this latest joint venture have been sandbox participants since July of last year, alongside JINGDONG Coinlink Technology and RD InnoTech. JINGDONG declared its intention to launch a Hong Kong dollar-backed stablecoin last year. RD InnoTech plans to launch the HKDR stablecoin in conjunction with HashKey Exchange. Stablecoins ‘starting to eat the world’Earlier this month, Rene Michau, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets, set out the bank’s thoughts on stablecoins in an article published on the company’s website and co-authored by Circle Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jeremy Fox-Green. Within it, Standard Chartered recognized the potential of stablecoins, suggesting that they are key to unlocking a future where blockchain acts as a new “internet of money.” The article went on to state that it is critical for stablecoin issuers “to maintain deep connections with strong banks and for those banks to be building digital asset capability.” The company recognizes that stablecoins are “starting to eat the world,” referring to a global stablecoin circulation that has already surpassed $100 billion.  Evan Auyang, President of Animoca Brands, pointed out that “we are still in the early stages for mass adoption of stablecoins across retail, enterprises and institutions.” He added that Hong Kong has a bright future as a global Web3 hub. Susanna Hui, Managing Director at HKT, believes that “issuing an HKD-linked stablecoin will enhance payment efficiency, streamline transactions, and provide greater security and transparency through advanced Web3 innovations.”

Seychelles-based crypto exchange OKX’s Web3 wallet service, OKX Wallet, has begun supporting Wemade’s blockchain network WEMIX3.0, according to an announcement on Friday (KST). This development will allow OKX Wallet holders to directly manage the crypto assets that they hold from the WEMIX3.0 ecosystem. Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on UnsplashSeamless access and versatile Web3 servicesOKX Wallet notably supports over 70 networks and 3,000 cryptocurrencies and provides other wide-ranging Web3 services like NFT trading, crypto swaps and a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform. In particular, it also has a hassle-free recovery process for account access that employs Multi-Party Computation (MPC) technology, effectively eliminating the need for traditional recovery methods like seed phrases.  OKX Wallet and WEMIX3.0 also vowed to work on more integrations and joint campaigns in the future to round up a larger global user base and lead the era of Web3.  A rising force in cryptoIn other news, WEMIX3.0’s governance token, WEMIX, has been making a significant impact in the crypto industry. The asset ranked ninth in CoinMarketCap’s list of largest blockchains in crypto ranked by total value locked (TVL) last month, and it possessed the largest constituent weight in terms of market capitalization in the gaming sector in the latest Crypto Sector Indices released by Sygnum, a global digital asset banking group headquartered in Switzerland and Singapore.