State-Owned Newspaper to Launch NFT Platform in China

Ripple Labs, the American technology company that developed and supports XRP and the XRP Ledger (XRPL), has partnered with Japan’s Web3 Salon initiative, while in a separate development, the company is also funding crypto-related academic research within the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.Photo by Moose Photos on PexelsDriving Web3 adoption in JapanIn a statement published to its website on June 9, the company outlined that it has partnered with Japan’s Web3 Salon project, a Web3 initiative with the objective of educating businesses and developers, nurturing blockchain startups and driving Web3 adoption through the provision of startup incubator programs and running hackathons and workshops.One of Japan’s most active Web3 projects, Web3 Salon has the backing of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO). The project has also collaborated with a range of Japanese Web3 startups, Asia Web3 Alliance Japan (AWAJ), institutional investors and venture capital firms, as well as a number of key industry stakeholders. Grant fundingAs part of its involvement in this collaboration, Ripple will provide grant funding of up to $200,000 to Japanese startups who have developed their projects on XRPL. Ripple’s grant funding forms part of its broader initiative to finance XRPL-related startups in Japan and Korea. Earlier this month, it confirmed that it had established the XRPL Japan and Korea Fund for this purpose.  At a broader level still, Ripple said that this latest funding commitment also falls under its one billion XRP commitment. Back in 2022 the company committed one billion XRP to advance XRPL ecosystem projects. Christina Chan, Senior Director of Developer Growth at Ripple, commented on the development, stating:“Ripple is proud to collaborate with Web3 Salon to unlock new opportunities in Japan’s thriving startup ecosystem. Together, we hope to fuel innovation and support the next generation of leaders.” Supporting APAC university researchIn a separate blog post published to its website on June 10, Ripple outlined that it was committing $5 million in funding within the APAC region as part of its University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI). The funding will cover blockchain-related academic research projects in Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Australia. $1.1 million has been allocated to South Korea’s Korea University in funding that will be released over a six-year period. The funding builds on another relationship that had already been established with Yonsei University via the UBRI in 2024. Equally, Japan’s Kyoto University had engaged with the UBRI last year. That support is now being renewed while funding is also being allocated to the University of Tokyo. The two institutions will be able to avail to funding in excess of $1.5 million.Other APAC region educational institutions to benefit include the National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology (NKUST) in Taiwan, the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore and the Australian National University (ANU) in Australia.’An epicenter of digital finance’Ripple called APAC “an epicenter of digital finance.” Expanding further on that assertion, it stated that the region has shown “an appetite for experimentation and boasting thriving communities for builders.” Consequently, it views the APAC region as a leader in payment technologies and digital asset adoption.

HK Regulators Facilitate Dialogue between Banks and Crypto EnterprisesIn a recent column, Arthur Yuen, Deputy CEO at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), stated that the HKMA and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) will jointly convene a meeting on Friday to share opinions on providing banking services to virtual asset service providers (VASPs).Proportionate CDD measuresYuen said that banks should “differentiate the risk levels of customers and apply proportionate CDD [customer due diligence] measures,” and “refrain from adopting a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to reject account opening applications.” To address misconceptions about CDD, the HKMA issued a circular on Thursday, offering further clarification and sharing notable cases and best practices.The HKMA called on banks to enhance employee training on account opening procedures and create task forces to help companies seize new business opportunities. The HKMA plans to actively take part in developing and introducing international standards, and provide guidance and support for banks to adopt appropriate anti-money laundering measures.SFC’s guidelines in MayMeanwhile, SFC CEO Julia Leung said in a discussion with Bloomberg that the SFC will issue virtual asset guidelines in May.Reactions on TwitterIn his tweet, Justin Sun, the founder of blockchain DAO ecosystem Tron, hinted at the potential development of a Tron-based stablecoin in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Innovation Encryption Fund (HKIEF), an investor in blockchain projects, also took to Twitter to predict the details of a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in the city.According to HKIEF, USDT and USDC will be classified as security tokens, while BTC and ETH won’t be deemed securities. Exchanges trading non-security tokens will need both a VASP license and a trust license. Hong Kong-based virtual asset exchanges will be required to obtain a full license by May 31, 2024.

MHC Digital Group, an Australian digital assets management platform, has entered into a partnership with USDC stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Financial, with a view towards increasing the circulation of USDC within Australia and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. MHC was founded by well-known venture investor Mark Carnegie, with the company having offices in Sydney and Singapore. The firm will work with Circle to distribute USDC in Australia and within the APAC region. MHC has been marketing its services towards institutional investors and it’s that same client group that the two firms want to target in order to increase USDC circulation. The firm will provide “cost-effective and efficient USDC access” where institutional clients are concerned.Photo by Catarina Sousa on PexelsCrypto ‘a better mousetrap’ In a media release published on behalf of the two companies, Carnegie claimed that while many people still claim that there is no use case for crypto, hundreds of billions move globally at a fraction of the cost experienced via the traditional financial system. “Crypto is simply a better mouse trap for the vast majority of international payments,” he added. Commenting on the development in an interview with the Australian Financial Review, Carnegie stated:“I’m hoping we can show there are hundreds of millions of dollars of forex [foreign exchange] trading fees, where super funds are getting their faces ripped off by Macquarie Bank and the other incumbent banks.” Appealing to pension funds Carnegie wants to get large pension funds on board in using USDC. He pointed to the fact that global banks make $170 billion from corporations and individual investors through the movement of funds over the SWIFT network. He can see that major savings can be made if USDC is used relative to these fees. Despite all this, Carnegie acknowledges that it will be a hard sell to get them on board. As part of these plans, MHC Digital will be launching an over-the-counter (OTC) trading desk, which will be targeted towards hedge funds, crypto enterprises and high-net-worth individuals. APAC opportunity Kash Razzaghi, Circle’s chief business officer (CBO), identified APAC as presenting with an adoption opportunity beyond institutional clients. Razzaghi stated: “With its young, mobile-first and digital wallet-ready population, the Asia Pacific region is ahead of the curve when it comes to digital asset adoption." Carnegie appears to be similarly enthusiastic when it comes to the APAC region. In an interview with CNBC back in January, he suggested that the crypto bull run was “an Asian story this time round.” It’s understood that the two companies are also considering collaborating on the issuance and distribution of an Australian dollar (AUD) denominated stablecoin. This development is the latest in a string of initiatives taken by Circle to bring about USDC adoption in the APAC region. In 2023 the company partnered with SBI Holdings with the objective of enhancing the circulation of USDC within the Japanese market. The very same rationale resulted in it partnering with Tokyo-based crypto trading platform Coincheck in February 2024. The company has also tried to trigger adoption at a retail level, through collaborations with FamilyMart convenience stores in Taiwan and Southeast Asian super app Grab.