Busan to Merge Blockchain and Coffee through Smart Logistics Platform

Thailand’s KBank Furthers Crypto Business Through Satang AcquisitionKasikornbank (KBank), Thailand’s second largest bank, is expanding its involvement in the digital assets sector through the acquisition of a majority stake in the local crypto exchange Satang.Photo by Lisheng Chang on UnsplashTradFi embracing cryptoThe acquisition, involving a purchase of 97% of Satang’s shares, is a significant move in the context of an ongoing trend of traditional financial institutions embracing digital assets. The deal was officially announced on Monday, as disclosed on KBank’s official website.KBank executed the acquisition through its newly established subsidiary, Unita Capital, whose registered capital is valued at 3.7 billion Thai baht (approximately $103 million). Unita Capital specializes in investments within the digital asset sector. This move underlines the bank’s commitment to stay ahead in the dynamic world of digital finance.Subsidiary formationIn light of the acquisition, Satang Corporation is set to undergo a name change and will soon be known as Orbix Trade Company Limited. Unita Capital has established a number of other subsidiary companies as a consequence of the buy-out.KBank’s cryptocurrency venture will be structured into three distinct divisions. Orbix Custodian has been formed, focusing on secure digital asset storage and management. There is a growing demand for reliable digital asset custody services. KBank will use Orbix Custodian as a vehicle to capitalize on that growth opportunity.Orbix Invest has been established to act as the venture arm of the business relative to the digital assets space. It will focus on fund management in meeting the needs of clients looking for exposure to the digital assets sector. Lastly, Orbix Technology has been established to concentrate on blockchain technology development.Satang, a prominent player in the Thai cryptocurrency scene, operates a cryptocurrency exchange alongside a range of digital asset services. Notably, Poramin Insom, the founder of Satang, is recognized for his role in launching Firo (formerly Zcoin), a privacy-centric cryptocurrency. Insom confirmed the acquisition via a Facebook post on Monday, acknowledging the evolution of Satang as it transitions under KBank’s ownership.Insom stated: “I’ve been at Satang since 2017 until now, six years have passed. Currently, Satang on the trading board has already exited according to the news. And there should be an official announcement soon.” He also highlighted Satang’s diversified ventures, including Satang Technology, a blockchain service platform, and Satang Space, focusing on space-related endeavors.This strategic move by KBank follows its recent launch of a $100 million fund, introduced in September, targeting investments in Web3, fintech, and artificial intelligence (AI). In 2022, KBank launched Bigfin, a digital asset investment analysis platform. Bigfin has since been integrated with the Binance platform.Last year the bank backed Thai digital asset and blockchain startup Forward, a project that is working on developing a decentralized derivative platform.KBank is recognized as the second largest lender in Thailand based on assets, trailing behind Bangkok Bank. Thai NVDR Company Limited is the largest shareholder of KBank, as per data from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), with the SET itself owning 99.9% of NVDR’s shares.

Wemade Partners with Etherscan to Enhance Transparency in WEMIX 3.0 EcosystemWemade, a leading company in the South Korean blockchain gaming industry, announced on Monday a partnership with Etherscan, a renowned block explorer and analytics platform. The objective of this collaboration is to enhance transparency within the WEMIX 3.0 ecosystem.Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashNew block explorerAs part of this partnership, both companies will work together to develop a dedicated block explorer for the WEMIX 3.0 mainnet and Kroma, an Ethereum Layer 2 project developed by Lightscale, a subsidiary of Wemade. The new block explorer will provide advanced functionality, enabling users to access a more transparent transaction history. The explorer is expected to be launched in the first half of this year.InteroperabilityKroma is Lightscale’s Ethereum Layer 2 project whose goal is to establish a layer 2 blockchain based on zero-knowledge rollups. Thanks to Kroma’s interoperability, the WEMIX ecosystem is anticipated to extend beyond the WEMIX blockchain, linking to external blockchains.Etherscan, one of major block explorers for Ethereum, is an established platform offering extensive analytics capabilities. It has previously developed and operated various block explorers, including BscScan for Binance Blockchain, PolygonScan for Polygon Blockchain, and Arbiscan for Arbitrum Blockchain.Through this partnership, Wemade continues its commitment to decentralizing the WEMIX 3.0 mainnet and driving innovative advancements of a transparent mega-ecosystem.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) last Tuesday, prompting South Korean investors to flock to cryptocurrency exchanges to make transactions. However, the revenues recorded by these exchanges showed a mixed performance in response to this development due to their differing transaction fee policies, according to local news outlet DealSite on Monday.Photo by Maxim Hopman on UnsplashTrading volumes surge and retreatAccording to crypto analytics platform CoinGecko, as of 9 a.m. on Jan. 12 (KST), Upbit's trading volume on Dec. 11 and 12 was approximately $5.1 billion and $6.1 billion, respectively, for a total of about $11 billion. During the same period, Bithumb recorded $2.6 billion and $2.4 billion, respectively, totaling nearly $5 billion. However, as of this writing at 11 a.m. on Jan. 15, Upbit’s 24-hour trading volume has dropped back down to $2.1 billion and Bithumb to $874 million. "After the SEC's approval, crypto exchanges were simultaneously flooded with transactions," an anonymous industry employee commented. "Bitcoin and Ethereum were mainly traded." Fee divergenceAlthough the ETF approval caused a general uptick in trading volumes, the amount of revenue that the exchanges earned from transaction fees varied. Upbit charges a fee of 0.05% for both buying and selling crypto, meaning the exchange made an estimated KRW 14.8 billion in revenue from the fees from Dec. 11 to 12. Bithumb, on the other hand, hasn't earned any revenue from trading fees since its zero-fee policy was implemented in October last year.  Bithumb had previously charged 0.25% for transactions and 0.04% with coupons. By implementing the former, the exchange lost about KRW 15.8 billion ($12 million) in revenue, and with the latter, it lost about KRW 2.5 billion. For crypto investors, Bithumb's zero-fee policy has made investing more accessible, but the exchange is unlikely to reap its own rewards. Significant investor interestMoreover, with trading for the spot bitcoin ETF beginning on the 11th, the influx of funds is expected to boost trading. "All told there were 700,000 individual trades today in and out of the 11 spot ETFs," Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas told X (formerly Twitter). "For context, that is double the number of trades for $QQQ." $QQQ refers to the Invesco QQQ ETF. According to an image that accompanied Balchunas’ post, the total trading volume across all 11 spot ETFs was reportedly $4.3 billion. Grayscale's GBTC had the highest volume at $2.1 billion, followed by BlackRock’s IBIT at $1 billion and Fidelity’s FBTC at $673 million.