Public Confidence in Crypto Wanes in Hong Kong Amid JPEX Scandal

Lemon Healthcare launches blockchain-based electronic prescription serviceSeoul-based healthcare data platform company Lemon Healthcare’s blockchain-based, personalized electronic prescription service dubbed “LemonCare” has officially been launched in three major hospitals in the North Gyeongsang Province region of South Korea, according to an article published by local news outlet Etnews on Thursday. This comes after the recent end of the service’s development and pilot operation period.Photo by Christina Victoria Craft on UnsplashRevolutionizing healthcareThe aim of the project was to replace paper prescriptions with electronic prescriptions through a blockchain-based mobile service that offers patients an additional layer of security as well as the ability to view and manage their prescription history. It also reduces and prevents risks such as duplicate prescriptions.Kyungpook National University Hospital, Kyungpook National University Chilgok Hospital and Daegu Fatima Hospital — all located in Daegu Metropolitan City in North Gyeongsang Province — were selected as participants in the pilot project, during which they were responsible for electronically prescribing medication to patients, which would then be compounded and delivered by nearby pharmacies. They will also be the first to implement the app as an official service.Advancing healthcare accessLemon Healthcare stated that it has also hired new personnel, applied for patents related to electronic prescriptions and issued some 500 electronic prescriptions.Patients who have received treatment at any of the three hospitals and want to utilize the electronic prescription service can do so under the “Electronic Prescription Delivery” option on the hospital’s mobile app. After completing user authentication, the patient’s prescription is transmitted to the pharmacy of their choice, from which patients can pick up their medication.Leveraging its blockchain technology, Lemon Healthcare plans to bring secure and accurate electronic prescription services to more people in the future.

With local regulator the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) having set out guidelines for crypto firms regarding the provision of crypto staking services, two prominent Hong Kong companies have moved forward with staking-related offerings. HashKey Capital, a crypto-focused institutional asset manager, and crypto trading platform OSL, have announced the addition of staking to an Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) and in the case of OSL, a partnership with Kiln to offer ETH staking.Photo by Raymond Yeung on UnsplashFirst spot crypto ETF in APAC to support stakingIn a press release published on April 11, HashKey Capital outlined that its Bosera HashKey Ether ETF, which was jointly launched with Bosera Asset Management in April 2024, has received approval from the SFC to engage in Ethereum staking activity from April 25 onwards.  HashKey claimed that its ETH ETF product is the first spot crypto ETF within the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region to support staking. The company stated: “By enabling staking, the ETF aims to enhance potential returns for investors, creating a new avenue to participate in the Ethereum ecosystem through a regulated virtual asset investment vehicle.” The staking service will be extended to the ETF by another HashKey Group company, HashKey Cloud, a Web3 infrastructure provider. HashKey Capital and HashKey OTC Global CEO Deng Chao said that the institutional-grade staking infrastructure of HashKey Cloud was being leveraged in order to provide a secure, efficient and regulated vehicle to access staking rewards with ease to both professional and retail investors.  The ETF is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX). It tracks the price of Ether via the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate, a daily benchmark index price that aggregates Ether trade data from various sources. Competitive edgeBoth HashKey and the Hong Kong authorities have stolen a march on their international counterparts with the launch. In recent months, efforts have been building in the United States by spot ETH ETF providers to add a staking element to these offerings.Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets at the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, told last month’s Digital Asset Summit in New York that the lack of availability of a staking yield as part of U.S. spot ETH ETFs is likely to be holding the development of the products back. He added:”A staking yield is a meaningful part of how you can generate investment return in this space, and all the [ether] ETFs at launch did not have staking.” HashKey and OSL were the first two entities to be issued trading licenses by the regulator in Hong Kong. OSL is also looking to take advantage of the new regulatory clarity related to crypto staking in Hong Kong. On April 10, it published a press release, outlining details of a partnership that it has formed with enterprise-grade staking infrastructure firm, Kiln. By integrating with Kiln’s API infrastructure, OSL is now enabled in offering clients of its custody platform access to staking services.Kiln co-founder and CEO Laszlo Szabo underscored the significance of regulatory approval of staking in Hong Kong, while stating:”With the future integration of staking, these products will offer investors both exposure to ETH price movements and rewards for securing the Ethereum network.”

Coinbase Effects International Expansion By Extending Singapore OfferingIn further proof of Coinbase’s recently-adopted strategy of focusing on global expansion, the company has just extended the range of its product offering to Singaporean customers.Photo by Meriç Dağlı on UnsplashNo Fees on USDCThe move was announced by way of a blog post published to the company’s website on Tuesday. The expansion entails the introduction of fee-less purchases of the USDC stablecoin for users who buy it with the Singaporean dollar (SGD). Furthermore, it is enabling Singaporean customers to earn rewards on the USDC that they hold on the platform. USDC trading pairs are being added that will allow users to trade USDC directly with over two hundred digital assets.Taking staking overseasAdditionally, Coinbase Global is rolling out staking to the Singaporean market. Users will be empowered with the ability to stake the following digital assets: ETH, SOL, ADA, ATOM, and XTZ.It’s interesting that Coinbase feels enabled in rolling out a digital asset staking service in this overseas market. In March of this year, the company received a Wells Notice — a formal notice informing the recipient that there are firm plans to bring enforcement actions against it — from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States. The notice was sent in relation to digital assets covered under Coinbase’s staking product offering, Coinbase Earn.In highlighting the issue, the company bemoaned the fact that the SEC had gone down the route of issuing a Wells Notice without it expressing a single specific concern about any specific digital asset offered by the platform in advance of taking the action.Global strategyCoinbase Founder and CEO Brian Armstrong has been outspoken in criticizing the regulatory approach to crypto in the United States. He expressed that at the time of having received the Wells Notice earlier this year, and again last week, when he and key Coinbase executives visited Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.On the day of SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s appearance before the House Financial Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. a few weeks ago, Armstrong signaled that unless there was a more accommodating regulatory approach taken to crypto in the US, Coinbase would increasingly be looking to expand operations overseas.A short time later, it emerged that the company had obtained a license to trade in Bermuda. At last week’s Dubai Fintech Summit, Armstrong applauded the regulatory approach taken by the UAE and indicated that the company is interested in opening a base in Abu Dhabi.Positive survey resultsAgainst this background, it’s not surprising to hear that Coinbase has expanded its service offering in Singapore, another aspiring global hub for crypto business. As part of reviewing and updating its business offering in the city state, Coinbase carried out a survey of prospective customers in Singapore. It found that 25% of Singaporeans consider crypto as the future of finance, on a par with findings in the US, and higher than the 17% reported in the UK.Among its other findings, security concerns and price volatility of digital assets are still a barrier to entry for many. Of those who are already crypto-native, they tend to trade higher trade amounts, and with greater frequency, if from higher income backgrounds.