GDAC Joins Hands with Bitgo to Fortify Crypto Wallet Security

Haru Invest Announces Withdrawal & Deposit PauseHaru Invest, a crypto yield platform founded in South Korea and headquartered in Singapore, has announced the suspension of deposits and withdrawals on Tuesday, citing concerns over the accuracy of information provided by one of its service partners.Photo by Muhammad Zaqy Al Fattah on UnsplashInternal investigationIn a statement, the company expressed its apologies to investors and customers, assuring them that the suspension was a necessary measure taken to protect their interests. In another blog post, the company stated: “For the purpose of protecting our users’ assets under our custody, we have come to make a tough decision that any deposit and withdrawal requests will be suspended until further notice, starting from June 13, 2023, at 0:40 UTC.”Following an internal inspection process, Haru Invest conducted a thorough investigation into the matter and concluded that immediate action was required. The company stated that it is currently engaged in a fact-finding process against the operator in question and intends to take the necessary measures to address the situation.“Rug pull” denialHaru Invest emphasized that this issue does not involve a “rug pull,” a term commonly associated with scams in the cryptocurrency space. The company assured its stakeholders that it remains committed to protecting its investors and is actively working towards a resolution.Earlier reports suggested that Haru Invest employees were working remotely and that the company’s offices had closed. However, Haru Invest clarified that certain media articles contained inaccurate information regarding these claims. The company expressed regret over the misinformation and emphasized the importance of factual accuracy in reporting.According to Haru Invest’s website, the platform boasts a significant user base of over 80,000 members. It has facilitated crypto-earn payouts totaling 9.8 million and processed a staggering $2.27 billion in transactions. Haru Invest aims to provide an annual yield of 12% on most of its earn products, offering investors an attractive opportunity in the crypto space.Haru MiningIn September of the previous year, Haru Invest successfully raised $4 million in funding, valuing the company at $284 million. This achievement demonstrates the confidence investors had in the platform and its potential for growth.As recently as last month nothing looked untoward when it emerged that the company had launched Haru Mining, a collaboration with Canadian crypto miner, Pow.re. In a press release at the time, the firm explained that the move would help to diversify its products, with mining always having been an area of interest for the company.In the same month, Haru had announced an integration with Mercuryo, a London-based digital asset management platform.As Haru Invest continues to address the concerns raised by the investigation, investors and customers await further updates regarding the resumption of normal operations. The company has promised that “more details will be shortly announced on the Haru Invest Blog as soon as we get to the bottom of this.”

Terraform Labs Co-Founder Daniel Shin Denies Wrongdoing in LUNA CollapseShin Hyun-seong, popularly known as Daniel Shin, has refuted accusations against him related to the $40 billion collapse of the stablecoin TerraUSD and its companion token, LUNA, according to a report by local news outlet Newspim. He presented this defense during his initial trial at the Seoul Southern District Court on October 30 (local time).Shin co-founded Terraform Labs, the company responsible for issuing TerraUSD and LUNA. His co-founder, Do Kwon, is currently serving a four-month prison sentence in Montenegro for passport forgery.Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on UnsplashProsecution’s allegationsKorean prosecutors allege that since 2018, Shin and his colleagues have concealed the fabricated nature of the “Terra project.” By manipulating trades and releasing misleading information, they purportedly misled investors into thinking the project was successful. It’s believed they sold off their tokens before the LUNA crash in May 2022, earning KRW 462.9 billion ($343.3 million) from these activities. They are suspected of personally taking KRW 376.9 billion from this amount.Prosecutors are focusing on Shin as the potential orchestrator of the LUNA crash. They speculate he began selling LUNA tokens around when Terraform Labs launched the Anchor Protocol in March 2021. This DeFi protocol increased the popularity and value of LUNA tokens. Before the crash, Shin is alleged to have gained at least KRW 154.1 billion.Defense argumentHowever, Shin’s legal team countered by asserting that Shin had cut ties with Kwon in 2020. They argued the decline of TerraUSD and LUNA was due to Kwon’s mishandling of the Anchor Protocol and an external attack, neither associated with Shin. Regarding the exploit, Terraform Labs has pursued legal action in the United States Southern District of Florida, claiming that American market maker Citadel Securities played a part in undermining TerraUSD in May 2022.Defending Shin, his lawyers emphasized that at the inception of the Terra project, there were no legal guidelines specifically for cryptocurrency transactions. Additionally, unlike Do Kwon who kept fleeing abroad, Shin willingly came back to Korea and has been cooperating with the investigation. They also noted he received only 32% of the 70 million LUNA tokens initially promised. Regarding classification, they stated LUNA isn’t legally recognized as a security.Shin’s lawyers further argued the prosecution hasn’t clearly identified victims or adequately outlined the components of fraud in this case. They said the prosecution’s case hinges on viewing LUNA as a security. However, Shin’s legal representatives maintained that under the Korean Capital Markets Act, LUNA isn’t a security, making its trades non-fraudulent.To counter a US court ruling the prosecution presented — that a token is a security — Shin’s defense highlighted that the verdict is from a lower court and remains contested. Earlier, prosecutors had cited a ruling from the United States Southern District Court of New York, which classified the XRP tokens sold to institutional investors as securities.

South Korean financial regulators have decided, at least for the time being, to maintain the current policy requiring cryptocurrency exchanges to partner with only one bank, according to a report from the Seoul Economic Daily.Photo by POURIA 🦋 on UnsplashDominance and money laundering concernsA government official cited concerns that allowing multiple banking relationships could potentially strengthen market dominance by leading platforms and increase money laundering risks. Regulators plan to revisit the issue after monitoring new developments following upcoming regulations that will permit institutional participation in the crypto market. This decision runs counter to a recent proposal put forward by the People Power Party (PPP) ahead of the presidential election that seeks to eliminate the one-bank-per-exchange requirement. Bizwatch reported that while the crypto industry initially supported the removal of this restriction unanimously, opinions have recently diverged among market participants. Divided industryMajor exchanges offering Korean won-based trading are mostly against the potential policy change. Except for Upbit, the country's largest platform, competitors express concern that modifying the rules could weaken their existing banking relationships if more financial institutions choose to partner with the market leader. Conversely, crypto-only exchanges, which cannot offer Korean won trading services, generally favor eliminating banking restrictions. These platforms believe relaxed regulations could create more opportunities to establish banking partnerships. Under current rules, virtual asset service providers must secure real-name accounts from a local bank to offer Korean won trading, placing those without such accounts at a competitive disadvantage. Banks also want changeKorean commercial banks align with crypto-only exchanges in supporting the easing of banking regulations. Jung Jin-wan, CEO of key financial institution Woori Bank, recently called for allowing multiple banks to serve individual crypto exchanges. He argues that the current one-bank-per-exchange system not only undermines systemic stability but also limits customer choice. While an official from a crypto-to-fiat exchange acknowledged the need for eventual reform of the one-bank-per-exchange system to improve customer options and market development, they also pointed out that industry stakeholders hold different views depending on their position in the market. The official said that dominant platforms perceive minimal practical benefits from permitting multiple banking relationships.