HashKey Enhances User Security with Exchange Insurance Partnership

BC Card Accelerates Launch of NFT Guarantees for Secondhand Luxury Goods TradesSouth Korean credit card issuer BC Card announced on Sunday that it has applied for two domestic patents for blockchain technology that will be used to issue digital guarantees for purchases of luxury goods, such as bags, watches, and more. These guarantees will be minted as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that can later be accessed by buyers or sellers during secondhand trades, which often pose risks and uncertainty regarding product quality or authenticity.Enhancing trust and securityThese NFTs will be based on paper or digital payment receipts — which contain detailed information on purchase receipts, such as product names, payment amounts, purchase dates, and shop information — that a customer receives after purchasing goods at stores that accept BC cards.Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashBecause the guarantees are stored on a blockchain, they are almost impossible to tamper with. BC Card anticipates that this service will offer advantages like boosted safety, convenience, and security for both buyers and sellers who wish to partake in transactions of secondhand luxury goods.In addition, the data distributed across servers eliminates concerns about data loss. To achieve this, BC Card plans to collaborate with telecommunications provider KT and BC’s subsidiary, VP, which specializes in electronic payment services.“Through this patent application, we expect to significantly enhance the trustworthiness of secondhand luxury goods transactions in Korea,” said Kwon Sun-moo, Director of the New Financial Research division at BC Card. “After the patents are registered, we plan to collaborate with companies under KT Group like KT Alpha as well as other distribution companies in a business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) system.”Access through a digital walletCustomers can take a photo of a receipt with their phones or download it, then upload it to BC Card’s financial platform, Paybook. The photo is then converted into an image that is automatically stored as an NFT on the blockchain network.Once a seller registers a payment receipt for a product that they bought, then the subsequent NFT guarantee can be accessed or sent through their BC Card digital wallet — a feature that the company plans to launch soon — at any time during future transactions. This offers a convenient solution to the possibility of losing receipts, which traditionally requires manually downloading them again from the card company’s website or app.Revolutionizing secondhand tradeThis new technology could play a significant role in the booming resell and secondhand goods trading market, the company said. According to data from the Korea Internet & Security Agency last year, the domestic secondhand market has grown from a scale of KRW 4 trillion in 2008 to KRW 24 trillion in 2021 and is projected to exceed KRW 30 trillion this year.“Through the registration of payment receipts, we can analyze consumption patterns and even suggest improvements in spending habits to our customers,” Director Kwon highlighted.BC Card is also considering offering luxury appraisal and authentication services along with the future launch of the NFT service.

Hong Kong Reiterates Web3 Credentials and CommitmentHong Kong is committed to growing the Web3 industry under appropriate regulations, according to government officials.©Pexels/Andrea PiacquadioAt the four-day Web3 Festival, which is the largest Web3 event that the city has hosted since declaring its intention last year to become a digital asset hub, Financial Secretary Paul Chan stated that the stability of the financial system and investor protection should not be damaged, and that appropriate regulations are a must to create a sustainable development environment and a more ideal space for development.DeFi licensing requirementSome attendees were surprised to learn that the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) believes that decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms for virtual assets need a license under existing rules. Keith Choy, interim head of the intermediaries division at the SFC, stated that people operating or performing DeFi activities should be subject to Hong Kong’s licensing requirements.This means that if Hong Kong really intends to regulate DeFi, it will have a stricter environment than Singapore. The Web3 industry has been closely watching the development of a new regulatory framework for virtual assets in Hong Kong since the city revealed at the end of October its intention to become a cryptocurrency hub. Under new regulations that go into effect in June, cryptocurrency exchanges serving customers in Hong Kong must be licensed by the SFC.10,000 Web3 Festival attendeesThe event attracted more than 10,000 people ahead of the conference, with several big-name speakers and exhibitors looking for new opportunities in the city. OKX and Filecoin were some of the large cryptocurrency firms in attendance, as were traditional tech firms like Tencent Cloud, which had a booth touting its blockchain-related services for corporate clients. Alibaba Cloud was also a co-organiser, along with Amazon Web Services and Hong Kong’s Cyberport.Binance co-founder and CEO Zhao Changpeng (CZ) also dialed in via video for a fireside chat. Last month, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) sued CZ and Binance over what it alleged was “sham” compliance with domestic regulations. The company has been scrutinized over connections to its local firm Binance.US, which legally is meant to operate as a separate entity. Zhao was not asked and did not address his legal troubles at the conference. However, he did note that Binance is in talks with regulators in many markets.“We are actively engaged with regulators all around the world,” Zhao said. “Many of them are very receptive, some of them are still skeptical, and that’s fine, but we need to engage. We need to have dialogue, we need conversations, and we also need patience.”Singapore comparisonsHong Kong has frequently been compared with Singapore, which had been considered a friendlier market for related activity until Hong Kong’s policy shift. Some attendees had hoped that Hong Kong’s shift would provide some competition for Singapore in the region. “We did see a very obvious trend of people flying to Singapore to make sure their business was part of this space,” said Luke Liu, chief core ecosystem contributor at cross-chain protocol developer Poly Network. “Hong Kong and Singapore can coexist in some sense, but there is definitely a very positive change going on recently because of the Hong Kong policy announcement.”Hong Kong has reaffirmed its commitment to growing the Web3 industry under “appropriate” regulations, with the stability of the financial system and investor protection as a top priority. This has been reiterated during the largest Web3 event in the city since declaring its intention to become a digital asset hub.

Ant Group Restructuring With Implications for BlockchainAnt Group, an affiliate company of Chinese conglomerate Alibaba, is understood to be undertaking a significant restructuring that could have broader implications for the digital asset industry.Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashPotential IPOAccording to a recent report published by Bloomberg, the company is contemplating a separation of its blockchain and database management services, as well as its international business, from its core financial operations in China. It’s being speculated that the move is a precursor to Ant Group’s application for a financial holding license in China. Furthermore, it could be part of a bid to revive its suspended initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong.The company had been under regulatory scrutiny from the Chinese authorities over the course of the past three years. That investigation culminated in a hefty fine of 7.12 billion yuan ($995 million). The consequences of that regulatory investigation have taken a toll on the company’s valuation, plunging from a peak of $280 billion before the IPO cancellation in 2020 to a current estimated value of $79 billion.Blockchain business implicationsBy pursuing this restructuring, Ant Group seeks to refocus on its core financial services within China. It’s unclear what the outcome will be for non-core businesses such as blockchain-based ventures. Potentially spinning these businesses off could unlock hidden value in blockchain-related activities. However, such a move would also raise questions regarding the future of these non-core businesses and their potential impact on the broader digital asset industry.AntChain, the blockchain technology developed by Ant Group, holds a prominent position in China, being widely adopted across various sectors. Should Ant Group decide to spin off or divest this business, it could significantly alter the blockchain landscape in the country.Originally introduced as “Ant Blockchain” in 2017 alongside Alipay, AntChain expanded its services to provide blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) to Ant Group’s partners in 2018. In mid-2020, Ant Group took a step further by transforming Ant Blockchain into a separate entity and rebranding it as AntChain. Besides blockchain solutions, AntChain is also actively involved in developing Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT), risk control technologies, and other value-added tech services.The wide adoption of Ant Group’s blockchain technology has played a pivotal role in promoting blockchain implementation in China. Last year the company unveiled a blockchain storage engine called Letus, as a mechanism to lower storage costs of blockchain networks. Another project saw it partner with a Malaysian investment bank in an effort to develop a crypto trading and portfolio management app. These are individual instances of the company’s varied activities in the blockchain space.Any alterations to its blockchain operations could impact the pace and scale of blockchain adoption in the country. While the Chinese authorities have discouraged crypto trading and mining, they have very much encouraged blockchain development.The restructuring appears to be a response to the increasing regulatory pressures in the fintech industry. A further tightening of regulations on blockchain operations for fintech companies might potentially hinder innovation and growth in the sector.Most likely the guiding hand of the government in China will have a material effect on how these blockchain-based businesses develop in the event of an Ant Group restructuring that would see them being spun out.