Infinite Block Receives Certification for Information Security Management System of Blockchain…

Dunamu reports Q3 slump amid interest rate hikes and economic slowdownDunamu, the operator of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, posted a lackluster performance in this year’s Q3 due to a decrease in trading volume caused by ongoing interest rate hikes and an economic downturn.Photo by Алекс Арцибашев on UnsplashLagging performanceAccording to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), Dunamu’s consolidated operating revenue in Q3 was KRW 193 billion (approximately $150 million), marking a 29% decrease from the same period a year earlier (KRW 271.9 billion). Operating income came in at KRW 101.8 billion, and net profit was KRW 29.5 billion, down 39.6% and 81.6% from the same period last year, respectively.This underwhelming financial performance reflects the sluggish crypto market amid the nation’s economic downturn and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes. The decrease in the exchange’s net profit in particular can be attributed to a loss in the valuation of crypto assets due to crypto price declines compared to the previous quarter.Positive outlookHowever, with the expected approval of the spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) next year and the next Bitcoin halving, the market outlook is expected to improve gradually. Despite the current market conditions, Dunamu plans to continuously promote the mainstream adoption of blockchain services and explore new business ventures.“We will make efforts to revitalize the blockchain ecosystem and create an advanced investment environment,” Dunamu said. “We will strive to offer innovative services building on our unique technological capabilities.”

Hana Financial Group, one of South Korea’s largest financial institutions, plans to establish a new task force focused on digital assets, according to a report by News1. The move comes as the cryptocurrency market continues to expand and institutional adoption grows worldwide.Photo by POURIA 🦋 on UnsplashGroupwide crypto task forceThe company intends to use the task force to develop a coordinated response system linking its banking, card, and securities subsidiaries. It also plans to introduce crypto-related products, services, and infrastructure in line with forthcoming legislation on digital assets. As its first initiative, the task force will focus on stablecoin-related projects, including issuance and reserve management. Another key objective is to build a merchant network that enables customers to make payments using stablecoins. Beyond its crypto initiatives, Hana Financial Group also aims to expand the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to advance its digital finance capabilities. Ongoing AI research at the Hana Institute of Technology will serve as the foundation for integrating AI across the group’s subsidiaries, with a particular focus on enhancing sales divisions. Commenting on the initiative, Chairman Ham Young-joo said the group will strengthen its capabilities in both crypto and AI, underlining the transformative potential of digital assets in capital markets and payment networks. Paycoin expands retail acceptanceThe rising adoption of cryptocurrencies in South Korea is reflected in Paycoin’s (PCI) recent expansion into the convenience store chain Emart24. Operated by Danal Fintech, the blockchain affiliate of Danal, Paycoin now allows customers to make purchases with its PCI tokens at Emart24 locations, according to a report by Etoday. With 7-Eleven scheduled to start accepting PCI later this month, the digital asset will soon be usable across all four major convenience store chains in the country, joining CU and GS25, which already support it. Building on this momentum, Paycoin aims to expand its utility across a wider range of sectors, including restaurants, sports facilities, shopping malls, and accommodations. The platform has already established a presence at well-known eateries such as Domino’s and Pizza Hut, as well as at Dal.Komm, Danal’s coffee chain. Market manipulation probesHowever, the growing acceptance of digital assets has also brought side effects—specifically, a rise in crypto-related crimes. Amid stricter oversight, South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has voted to refer alleged cryptocurrency market manipulators to law enforcement. The decision concerns two separate cases, Edaily reported. In the first case, a suspect is accused of generating illicit profits by artificially inflating the price of a particular cryptocurrency. The individual reportedly accumulated tokens worth billions of Korean won before placing a series of sell orders at higher prices. Using an application programming interface (API), the suspect repeatedly executed these orders, prompting ordinary investors to buy in and drive prices even higher—ultimately securing profits for the manipulator. The second case involves multiple individuals accused of employing similar methods across various tokens. They allegedly used APIs to automate trades, creating false impressions of high trading volumes and inflated prices to reap unlawful gains. These developments offer a broader view of how South Korea’s nascent digital asset industry is taking shape. The growing presence of cryptocurrencies in everyday life reflects Seoul’s push to align with the global trend of embracing crypto as both a new payment method and an emerging asset class. While crime prevention and investor protection remain key concerns, forthcoming legislation is expected to give regulators clearer guidelines. Ranked 15th worldwide in crypto adoption in this year’s Chainalysis study, South Korea continues to stand out as a market that merits close attention from investors and industry observers alike. 

Singapore High Court Embraces NFTs for Financial InvestigationsA recent decision by the Singapore High Court has seen it embrace non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in financial investigations. Financial investigation firm Intelligent Sanctuary, also known as iSanctuary, has been granted permission to attach NFTs containing legal documents to cold wallets linked to a hacking incident.This innovative approach, similar to the one used in Italy and the United States to deliver court summonses recently, signals a new departure in the application of NFT technology in the legal and financial world.Photo by Choong Deng Xiang on UnsplashMoving towards tokenized legal ordersLondon-based iSanctuary set out details of the court decision in a blog post published to its website recently. A pivotal moment in this scenario was the court’s issuance of a global freezing order encapsulated within soulbound NFTs, securely linked to the specified wallets. Soulbound NFTs are special types of NFTs which are tied to a user’s account. They cannot be transferred or traded.Although these NFTs do not halt transactions, they serve as powerful deterrents, notifying counterparties and exchanges about the wallets’ dubious past involvement in a hacking event.Monitoring fund movementsFurthermore, iSanctuary has unveiled an ingenious strategy to actively monitor funds leaving these wallets through the NFTs. This innovative method ensures a permanent and unbreakable connection between the NFTs and the wallets.iSanctuary recounted on its website that it was employed by a businessperson who had lost $3 million in crypto assets and was able to track the stolen funds successfully. Their method, which combines both on-chain and off-chain evidence, was presented by an iSanctuary senior investigator to the Singapore High Court. This led to the issuance of a worldwide injunction.iSanctuary’s financial and crypto investigators identified a series of cold wallets holding the proceeds of the crime, and the court approved their use of NFTs for service delivery.Mintable collaborationiSanctuary accredited Singaporean NFT marketplace Mintable as the creator of the NFTs. As reported by local news media outlet The Straits Times last week, this case revolved around a stolen private key and the alleged involvement of Singapore-based crypto exchanges in laundering the stolen assets. The fraudsters, purportedly from Singapore, are alleged to have orchestrated this saga that spans countries from Singapore to Spain, Ireland, Britain, and other European territories.Taking to X (formerly Twitter) to comment on the saga, Mintable founder Zach Burks stated:”Happy to help clean up the crypto space and move the NFT ecosystem into a realm of utility and away from the speculation of jpegs!”In a subsequent post, Burks highlighted further NFT-related innovation when pointing to a central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot program led by Mastercard that implicated the use of NFTs to stamp out fraud. Mintable supported that particular use of the technology within that project.iSanctuary’s founder, Jonathan Benton, emphasized the impact of the recent initiative, calling it a “game changer.” The approach enables swift action, allowing for the identification of illicit asset holders and expediting the issuance of civil or criminal orders, even red flags, within hours if necessary. It also demonstrates that NFTs can be put to good use, above and beyond speculative trading.