Cronos Labs $100 Million Accelerator Program Enters Hiring Phase

NEOPIN and MEVerse Join Hands to Expand Blockchain EcosystemCentralized decentralized finance (CeDeFi) protocol provider NEOPIN said Tuesday that it has teamed up with MEVerse, the blockchain mainnet operated by gaming company ME2ON Group, to expand the global blockchain ecosystem and optimize the accessibility and functionality of their respective platforms.Photo by Gerd Altmann on PixabayPromoting blockchain worldwideBoth parties have agreed to collaborate on integrating their platforms to build a global user base consisting of those who have completed necessary verification procedures like Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML). They will also support each other’s global partner networks, contributing to service enhancement and ecosystem expansion. NEOPIN has also vowed to introduce MEVerse to its global user community.“Initiating the integration of NEOPIN and MEVerse platforms, we are poised to play an active role in fostering the growth and widespread adoption of the blockchain ecosystem. This includes the enduring fusion of blockchain technology with Korean content.” said Ethan Kim, CEO of NEOPIN.Collaborative synergyMEVerse possesses various blockchain infrastructures, including the Web3 P2E casual game portal MEVerse GameZ, non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace MEVerse DEX, blockchain explorer MEVerse Scan, and more. The platform said that it is currently in the process of establishing a borderless Web3 ecosystem by boosting compatibility with its mainnet ecosystem and leveraging cross-chain technology.“MEVerse’s strengths lie in its possession of a wide range of blockchain platforms and content, from its blockchain mainnet to the Web3 gaming ecosystem and Korean content,” Kim commented.Meanwhile, NEOPIN has accumulated knowledge and expertise on blockchain operations during its time as a node validator for various blockchain networks such as Ethereum and Cardano since 2017. Last year, the platform launched its CeDeFi protocol, providing a secure and user-friendly DeFi platform.“We are thrilled to partner with NEOPIN, a pioneer in the DeFi sector. Through tangible integration examples, we look forward to facilitating user engagement and cultivating an expanded Web3 ecosystem,” said Jong-ho Hong, CEO of MEVerse.

Alchemy Pay, a Singapore-based platform that supports fiat to crypto purchases across 173 countries using Visa, Mastercard, regional mobile wallets and domestic transfers, has announced that it now provides a rupee-denominated on-ramp using India’s UPI real-time payments system.Photo by rupixen.com on UnsplashIn a recent blog post, the fiat to crypto payments solutions provider outlined that it now has the capacity to more effectively on-ramp India’s 1.4 billion citizens by enabling domestic transfer payments to effect crypto purchases through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a popular instant payments system in India. Processing domestic transactionsThe move means that Indian citizens can interact with the platform by way of simple, real-time domestic transfers, with a minimum purchase value of 1250 INR. First introduced in 2016, UPI has been wildly successful. In September 2022, the system recorded a monthly transaction volume of 6.7 billion transactions, representing a movement of $140 billion.The platform has partnered with 358 banks and continues to grow and expand its network. In Alchemy Pay’s home territory of Singapore, UPI has recently secured an integration with PayNow, a Singaporean secure funds transfer service. Referring to the PayNow/UPI integration in its blog post, Alchemy Pay is likely to be extending its UPI-based transfer service as a direct consequence.The payments facilitator claims that its plugin is “now being used by many wallets, DeFi, gaming and NFT marketplaces, as well as exchanges like OKX and LBank.”The Alchemy Pay platform has focused in particular on emerging regional real-time payments platforms. Within emerging markets it supports similar systems such as Pix, SPEI, GCash, Dana and OVO. As the Singaporean start-up puts it, ”simplifying the on-boarding process is crucial for the widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies and by enabling local payment options, Alchemy Pay makes the adoption by a growing number of users possible.”Off the back of this expanded service offering, the company is currently inviting developers of Web3 platforms and dApps to get in touch so as to enable them in adding its plugin and integrating its API. Importance of bridging crypto with fiatIn another blog post on Monday, Alchemy Pay underscored the importance of an ability to on/off ramp to and from the crypto ecosystem. The company points out that in its recent history, the crypto space has been a complex and intimidating environment to enter or exit to/from the conventional world. It claims to be playing its part in changing this.According to the firm, its available options of transferring fiat currency to a user’s credit card, savings card or bank account via SWIFT, IBAN or local bank transfer is far more seamless than what has been offered to crypto space participants up until now. These transfers can be effected in minutes, with the platform supporting 22 currencies and payouts facilitated in over 60 countries.The digital assets space doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Current generations were all born into fiat-based monetary systems and naturally enough, the overwhelming majority of wealth is tied up within traditional systems.While digital assets have garnered quite a bit of attention over the course of the past few years, the overall market capitalization of crypto, which stands at $1.2 trillion at the time of publication according to cryptocurrency data aggregator CoinGecko, is only a drop in the bucket by comparison with the wealth that exists within the conventional system. More seamless bridging in line with what Alchemy Pay is offering will be necessary for this space to have a realistic chance of conquering mass market adoption.

South Korea’s financial regulator outlined plans on Jan. 28 to transition crypto exchanges from a registration system to a licensing regime to boost capital market appeal, Financial News reported. Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Lee Eok-won stated that the proposed licensing framework—part of the Digital Asset Basic Act—would grant exchanges ongoing authorization while assigning them broader responsibilities.Photo by Tara Winstead님 on PexelsRuling party plans Lunar New Year crypto bill filingThe FSC has recommended capping individual ownership stakes in exchanges at 15–20% to prevent ownership concentration, a view broadly supported by the ruling Democratic Party’s Digital Asset Task Force, according to Edaily. However, party officials noted that internal disagreements remain over whether to include these limits directly in the bill, which they aim to submit before the Lunar New Year holiday next month. Progress on the legislation faces hurdles regarding stablecoins. The Democratic Party has presented a mediation proposal, but the Bank of Korea and the FSC remain at odds. The central bank argues that stablecoin issuance rights should be restricted to consortia where banks hold a majority stake of at least 51%. The regulatory push coincides with a surge in crypto participation. Data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS)—cited by People Power Party lawmaker Lee Heon-seung and reported by the Asia Business Daily—shows the number of won-based traders rose about 70% over the past three years. Users on the five major exchanges (Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Gopax, and Korbit) reached 9.91 million last year, up from 5.82 million in 2023. Despite the growing user base, trading volumes have been volatile. Volumes surged to 2,411 trillion won ($1.8 trillion) in 2024 from 1,122 trillion won ($801.6 billion) in 2023, before easing to 2,140 trillion won ($1.6 trillion) last year amid a market slowdown. Tax rulings and crime cases test crypto oversightAs regulations tighten, courts are clarifying tax treatments. According to the news outlet Digital Asset, a court recently upheld the National Tax Service’s decision to tax digital assets received through promotional events. The court rejected a claimant’s request for an 80% tax deduction, dismissing the argument that the promotion was a competition determined by participant rankings. The ruling clarified that the giveaways did not meet the legal definition of a competition eligible for such tax benefits under the Income Tax Act. Authorities are also grappling with crypto-related crime. According to another Edaily report, the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office has launched a probe into five investigators after 320 seized Bitcoin was stolen from a phishing site during a handover of duties in August. Prosecutors have denied internal collusion. Separately, MBC News reported that Seoul police are investigating two teenagers accused of luring a buyer to a face-to-face trade in Gangnam on Jan. 27 and fleeing with 28 million won ($21,000).