BitMEX Launches Bespoke Service in Hong Kong

With Kazakhstan having recently indicated that it would create a national crypto reserve, the administrators of Kazakhstan’s existing sovereign fund now want to invest in crypto assets as well. According to a report published by Kursiv, a business media outlet covering Central Asia, the Kazakhstani authorities are planning to invest a portion of the country’s existing gold and foreign exchange reserves in crypto assets. The publication outlined that this was conveyed by Timur Suleimenov, governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, in a recent press conference. Photo by ANSAR ARCHITECTS on UnsplashFollowing an international investment trendHe stated that the country has a portfolio of alternative investments, which includes gold and foreign exchange reserves. Within that particular portfolio, more aggressive investment strategies are pursued in an effort to generate higher investment returns. He added: “We looked at the experience of the Norwegian fund, the American experience, and the experience of Middle East funds. They have certain investments in either crypto assets directly, or in ETFs and shares of companies that are closely related to crypto assets. They are very small.” In 2024, it emerged that Norway’s sovereign wealth fund had indirect exposure to 2,446 Bitcoin. By January of this year, the sovereign fund had increased its indirect exposure further through an investment in pioneering American Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy). In the Middle East, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), which manages the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, has been exposing the fund to Bitcoin indirectly through investments in BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), IBIT. Considering asset volatilityWhile moving towards a crypto investment within the alternative investments portfolio, Suleimenov struck a cautious note, stating: “This is not an easy question, so there is no need to rush here. Yes, such assets can bring high returns, but at the same time they are characterized by high volatility.” This latest development in Kazakhstan coincides with the release of a report by German multinational investment bank, Deutsche Bank. The research report has found that Bitcoin has reached a new all-time-high unit price amid a dramatic drop in the volatility of the leading digital asset when compared with times past.  The bank explained that this was a sign of a maturing market, while suggesting that Bitcoin’s volatility is likely to decline further as adoption grows. Reduced volatility is making crypto assets like Bitcoin more appealing to long-term capital allocators like sovereign wealth funds and pension funds. In an interview with Bloomberg back in May, Mike Novogratz, founder and CEO of American digital assets firm Galaxy Digital, said that he has had conversations with heads of large sovereign wealth funds that have said “if America is buying Bitcoin, we’re buying Bitcoin.”In March, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order setting out the establishment of a strategic Bitcoin reserve in the United States. In moving to establish a crypto reserve in Kazakhstan recently, Suleimenov suggested that international practice demonstrates that such a reserve may include confiscated crypto-assets, with Kazakhstan planning to proceed with the formation of the reserve on that basis.

Blockchain security audit firm Verichains has joined as one of WEMIX’s 40 WONDERS, or Node Council Partners (NCP), on the WEMIX3.0 blockchain, according to an official announcement on Tuesday (KST).Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashEmpowering community governanceThe 40 WONDERS make up a governance council that represents the interests of the WEMIX community by participating in on-chain voting processes for improving or changing WEMIX3.0’s protocol. They are also responsible for validating transactions and operating nodes on the mainnet to boost and maintain its integrity and security. Each member gets to choose their own WONDER number, and Verichains has joined as WONDER 12. Securing the Web3 frontierVerichains is a leading provider of blockchain security services, specializing in crypto analytics, security audits and application protection. Recognized for its participation in investigating and mitigating some of the most notorious hacks to date in Web3 history, such as the Ronin Bridge and BNB Chain Bridge hacks, the company merges groundbreaking research with practical security solutions to deliver comprehensive protection solutions catered to the blockchain industry. Verichains’ world-class security and cryptography research team has successfully identified critical vulnerabilities across the industry capable of causing disruptions worth billions of dollars through key actions like uncovering flaws within Multi-Party Computation (MPC) and Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) mechanisms developed by major vendors. As a trusted security partner to leading Web3 companies and cryptocurrency exchanges like BNB Chain, Polygon Labs, Aptos, Klaytn, Bullish, DWF Labs and now WEMIX, Verichains leverages its background and expertise in traditional cybersecurity to be translated into the upcoming Web3 era, delivering cutting-edge solutions for a safer, more secure Web3 ecosystem. The firm’s participation as an NCP is poised to boost the security and stability of the WEMIX platform, laying the necessary groundwork for fostering the expansion of the WEMIX ecosystem. Ubisoft’s recent joiningAside from Verichains, global gaming company Ubisoft also joined the council as WONDER 26. Ubisoft is known for world-renowned games like Assassins’ Creed, Just Dance, Far Cry and Watch Dogs, and has been developing a new game called Champions Tactics, built on the Oasys blockchain. 

The Dubai Land Department (DLD), a government agency responsible for the registration of real estate in Dubai and the promotion of real estate investments, has signed an agreement with the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), a local regulator, to better integrate tokenized real estate within existing systems. In a statement published on the DLD website on April 6, the government agency set out further details on the collaboration. The purpose of the agreement is to better accommodate fractional ownership of Dubai real estate through tokenization. Photo by Precondo CA on UnsplashLinking fractional ownership to DLD registryTo that end, a governance system will be put in place in order to link the DLD’s land and property registry with tokenized, fractional ownership of property. The parties believe that this approach will lead to greater operational efficiency for stakeholders such as property management firms. Furthermore, greater accommodation of tokenized ownership will lead to enhanced liquidity within the Dubai real estate market.  As a consequence of this improved liquidity and facilitating a more seamless approach in terms of operational efficiency for property management firms, it’s believed that a greater share of global investment in local real estate can be achieved. Broadening the investor baseFractional ownership via tokenized real estate opens the market up to a broader range of potential investors. On this basis, the collaboration can play a role in contributing towards the objectives of Dubai’s Real Estate Strategy 2033, which sets out to boost the local property sector’s contribution towards gross domestic product (GDP). That initiative targets a real estate market value of AED 1 trillion ($272 billion). The DLD said that the initiative also feeds into the broader objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), a ten-year plan that has been set out to double Dubai’s economy by 2033, through focusing on innovation, achieving competitiveness at a global level and sustainable growth. Helal Almari, the director general of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, commented on the partnership, stating that it reflects the future-focused innovation, which he claims Dubai has already become associated with. He added: “Real Estate and Virtual Assets are key pillars of the D33 Economic Agenda D33 and by joining forces DLD and VARA will be creating the blueprint for RE 2.0 in a Decentralised Future Economy.” Almari expressed the belief that putting legal safeguards in place to recognize fractional ownership rights where real estate is concerned will facilitate “more inclusive economic participation” in this market sector.  The DLD recently launched a real estate tokenization pilot project in collaboration with VARA and the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF). At that time, DLD Director General Marwan Ahmed Bin Ghalita recognized the potential that tokenization can bring to the real estate sector. He stated: “By converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology, tokenization simplifies and enhances buying, selling, and investment processes.”Last month, Scott Thiel, founder and CEO of Dubai-based real-world asset (RWA) token marketplace Tokinvest, outlined that RWA asset tokenization in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is gaining momentum. Commenting on this latest development, Thiel said that it’s a demonstration that “the future of real estate investment is onchain.”