Wemade Reports Loss of $30.6M Despite All-Time High Quarterly Revenue

Korea’s KFTC launches blockchain-powered loan service for public servantsThe Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute (KFTC) today launched a new blockchain-based loan service tailored specifically for public servants. This initiative is a collaborative effort with the Government Employees Pension Service (GEPS) and involves five banks: BNK Kyongnam Bank, Busan Bank, Woori Bank, Kwangju Bank and Jeonbuk Bank.Photo by REDioACTIVE on PixabaySimplified loan processAdministered by GEPS, this loan program offers loans up to KRW 50 million (approximately $38,600) to government employees based on their projected retirement benefits and years of service. Leveraging the joint financial blockchain system, KFTC has established an infrastructure to issue and verify digital loan recommendation letters, simplifying the loan application process for public servants.Up until now, the loan application process has been cumbersome, requiring government employees to obtain a recommendation letter from GEPS and physically submit it at a bank branch. The new service streamlines this process by allowing them to apply for loans at bank branches or through mobile banking using digitized recommendation letters.More banks to joinKFTC and GEPS are set to increase the number of participating banks, allowing government employees to access loan services at a total of 10 banks. Furthermore, KFTC and GEPS intend to introduce additional financial products that utilize recommendation letters and verification processes underpinned by blockchain technology.The plan indicates that starting early next year, five additional banks will participate in this initiative. These banks are KB Kookmin Bank, Nonghyup Bank, Daegu Bank, Hana Bank and Korea Post.In a statement, KFTC stated its plans to further expand identification verification services within the financial sector, aiming to streamline the application processes for various financial products, including deposits and loans.

Crypto.com, the global crypto exchange platform headquartered in Singapore, has recently added an “AED Fiat Wallet,” allowing its users based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to deposit and withdraw UAE dirhams to and from their Crypto.com accounts. In a statement published on its website on Dec. 11, the firm outlined details of the added feature. So as to be able to access the AED Fiat Wallet, UAE residents will need to be registered on the platform with a UAE phone number. Once users configure platform settings to reflect the AED as their default currency, the platform displays the relevant deposit information to enable users to deposit the currency to their accounts. The minimum deposit has been set at 10 AED per transaction with a maximum of four million AED per day.Photo by Katerina Kerdi on UnsplashFacilitated by Standard CharteredCrypto.com claimed on X that the new feature could be set up easily, enabling fast and simple transfers. Additionally, the company is not charging users a deposit fee for AED deposits. Tarik Erk, Crypto.com’s General Manager for Middle East & Africa, explained that a collaboration with British multinational bank Standard Chartered had enabled the offering. Erk stated: “This new wallet launch is made possible through our global banking partnership with Standard Chartered which we announced in August, alongside the ongoing and valued support of VARA [Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority], which enables us to continue our expansion across the UAE. We’re extremely focused on offering our customers a seamless world-class experience and, at its very core, that includes ease of deposits and withdrawals – enabling our customers to interact with our products and services with as much flexibility as possible.” Crypto.com launched its service in the UAE in August, and at the time, it recognized the significance of its partnership with Standard Chartered. In September Standard Chartered announced the launch of crypto custody services in the UAE in collaboration with Brevan Howard Digital. The service was licensed by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).  In November of last year, Crypto.com was awarded a license by VARA to provide virtual asset services. Last week, it emerged that the company had acquired Orion Principals Limited, an Abu Dhabi-based securities firm. The brokerage firm is licensed by the local regulator within the Abu Dhabi Global Market, an economic free zone and financial center. Crypto.com said that the acquisition will lead to the company rolling out new services to eligible platform users, including securities, options, futures and contracts for difference. Deutsche Bank partnershipHaving forged a partnership with TradFi banking giant Standard Chartered in the Middle East, Crypto.com announced a similar partnership with another TradFi giant, Deutsche Bank, last week. The collaboration will see Deutsche Bank provide the company with banking support and corporate banking services within its home base of Singapore, as well as in Australia and Hong Kong. Back in June, Deutsche Bank partnered with another crypto exchange business, Bitpanda, to assist it in offering real-time inbound and outbound payments on its platform. 

Indian multinational technology firm Jio Platforms, a subsidiary of India’s largest private sector company, Reliance Industries, has launched JioCoin, a rewards-based token, on the Polygon blockchain. While Jio Platforms has yet to make an official announcement related to JioCoin, Kashif Raza, the founder of Indian crypto education startup Bitinning, took to the X social media platform on Jan. 16 to highlight his discovery that JioCoin had been launched and that the tokens could be accumulated via the JioCoin Wallet, a Web3 wallet. Polygon Labs partnershipLast week, it emerged that Jio Platforms had entered into a partnership with Polygon blockchain developer Polygon Labs. Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal told Cointelegraph that Polygon Labs intends to support Jio to enable blockchain integration across a spectrum of Jio applications. In a follow-up post, Raza provided a more detailed account of the offering. The crypto educator explained that the token “is a mechanism to reward internet users for surfing the internet on the JioSphere browser.”Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on UnsplashUse case speculationOn that basis, it’s likely that the emergence of JioCoin is the first demonstration of one of the outcomes of that collaboration.  In the absence of an official announcement and a specific clarification of the intended use case for JioCoin, Raza speculated that its likely use case will be to act as a currency within the Jio network. He explained that within Jio’s sphere, thousands of companies are interacting with each other. Raza speculated that in the future, users would be able to use JioCoin to pay for gas at gas stations or renew mobile phone services. Jio’s parent company operates a network of gas stations in partnership with BP. He believes that JioCoin could potentially give Jio an edge in competing with other internet browser providers like Google, Brave and Microsoft, while suggesting that Reliance Industries group companies could run one of the most significant rewards programs in the world via JioCoin. Polygon adoptionIndian venture capitalist and blockchain enthusiast Aditya Singh suggested that the move will help Polygon from an awareness and adoption perspective. However, he outlined that while this is a big deal, it’s not the first time that Polygon has struck big-name partnerships, having done so in the past with Meta, Disney, Nike, Adidas, Adobe, Reddit and others. Raza believes the partnership provides significant validation for Polygon, given Jio's reputation. He suggested that, as a consequence, other large Indian corporations may choose to launch an ecosystem coin on the Polygon blockchain. If JioCoin fulfills its potential and turns out to be a success, the Polygon network will see a significant rise in the overall number of transactions processed. In a similar vein, Jio could bring a substantial user base to Polygon.  While Singh and Raza see JioCoin as a largely positive development, its introduction hasn’t occurred without criticism. Author and crypto analyst Sunil Aggarwal took to social media to warn the community to investigate the token further before automatically assuming it to be a huge milestone for Polygon and crypto generally. He cited concerns related to the transparency and integrity of the token offering.