Real-World Asset Investment Platform Alterna Launches in Japan

Korean Crypto Expert Claims NFTs and Security Tokens Shouldn’t Be a Priority for Investors YetAlthough there has been a lot of speculation recently regarding the prospects of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and security tokens as lucrative investment opportunities, these topics should not be of concern yet, said Kim Dong-hwan, CEO of Korean crypto consulting firm Wonder Frame, at Tuesday’s 2023 FNTimes Investment Forum hosted in Seoul by the Korean Financial Times.Photo by Markus Winkler on UnsplashFrom a price-to-earnings perspective, these types of investments should not be of priority to the average investor, Kim said, stating that this argument is rooted in historical context. Bitcoin, the kingpin of cryptocurrencies, had its first breakthrough in 2012 when its price was around $13. Since then, its value has skyrocketed nearly 2,000 times. Those who profited from Bitcoin then went on to invest in Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. Ultimately, the money earned from Bitcoin was constantly circulating in the crypto market.Grappling for liquidityHowever, Bitcoin’s liquidity — the frequency at which assets are bought and sold, which can be deemed the most important aspect of investing in and trading cryptocurrencies — is currently down. Liquidity in the crypto market usually flows in order from Bitcoin first, to altcoins, then to NFTs, Kim explained, because investments in NFTs are made by people who hold cryptocurrencies, not Korean won. Therefore, NFTs, which have now experienced more than a 90% decline from their peak, must depend on Bitcoin’s price recovery for their own resurgence.Securing liquidity for security tokens is also difficult, considering the fact that while these assets share common characteristics with cryptocurrencies, they are subject to strict regulatory oversight by financial authorities such as the Korea Exchange. Therein lies the difficulty in forecasting the prospects for security tokens.Kim thus questioned whether there would be market makers or liquidity providers that would be willing to boldly step into the role of satisfying the market, given the close scrutiny of authorities such as Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). Although crypto exchanges like Upbit act as market makers by facilitating daily trading worth trillions of won, speculation suggests that securities firms that are responsible for supplying security token liquidity may find it challenging to do the same.Weak investments and negative perceptions of DeFiAnother concern for security tokens is fractional investments, which tend to be concentrated on assets of lower value. “Security tokens are fundamentally about dividing underlying assets and then selling them. However, in many cases, these underlying assets are of lower value or have no choice but to be traded this way,” Kim said.Kim also mentioned the regulatory hurdles hindering decentralized finance (DeFi) in general, despite its reputed appeal. “DeFi is perceived by international organizations like the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the US Federal Reserve System, and the European Union (EU) as a public enemy that causes financial instability in the real world,” he said.Taking all these factors into consideration, Kim recommended against investing in security tokens or NFTs at this time, given the current situation where even Bitcoin’s liquidity is at an all-time low. He suggested that, with market interest rates approaching 5%, unless there is a specific need to invest in virtual assets, it may be better to explore investment options positioned for higher interest rates.Kim is an industry expert who has previously written articles for crypto news site CoinDesk Korea for four years and has taken on the role of Chief Business Development Officer (CBDO) at Blitz Labs, a virtual asset research firm. He founded Wonder Frame in 2022, where he currently works as a professional consultant.

The Royal Government of Bhutan has moved $66 million in Bitcoin (BTC) to global crypto exchange Binance. That’s according to blockchain data analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, outlining that the assets were moved to Binance over two separate transactions. The firm took to the X social media platform on Oct. 29 to highlight the digital asset transfer. In its X post, the firm wrote:”Crypto wallets belonging to the Royal Government of Bhutan moved $66.55M BTC to Binance this morning. The last time they deposited to exchanges was 4 months ago, at the start of July.”Photo by Moose Photos on PexelsSell-off concernsSome crypto community commentators have expressed concern of a sell-off given that the nation nestled in the Himalayas still has a holding of 12,456 Bitcoin, worth in the region of $900 million. The transfer was made on a day in which Bitcoin reached a unit price in excess of $73,000.  Arkham outlined that geographical data suggests that Bhutan’s Bitcoin mines remain active. On Oct. 29, they had accumulated $600,000 worth of Bitcoin mining rewards on-chain.  In this latest market activity, the Bhutanese began selling when the Bitcoin unit price had exceeded $70,000. As Bitcoin reaches towards new all-time-high pricing, Bitcoin whales often take profits. Mining Bitcoin since $5KIt emerged in 2023 that Bhutan had been quietly mining Bitcoin over the course of a number of years, since the leading digital asset had a unit price of around $5,000. The commercial activity has been enabled via Druk Holding and Investments (DHI), the commercial arm of the Royal Government of Bhutan. The Asian nation has ample hydroelectricity resources, being the only carbon-negative country in the world. Consequently, all its Bitcoin mining is carried out using hydro. While mining activity had been ongoing for a number of years and had largely gone unnoticed by the industry, an entanglement between DHI and failed crypto lenders BlockFi and Celsius brought more attention onto the Bhutanese holding company’s activities relative to crypto.  LawsuitsDHI was sued by BlockFi with the action subsequently voluntarily dismissed. In the case of Celsius it withdrew around $65 million from the platform prior to Celsius declaring bankruptcy. As a consequence, Celsius is currently suing DHI to claw back the funds that were removed from the platform. In 2023 Singaporean Bitcoin mining firm Bitdeer entered into a partnership with DHI with a view towards jointly developing green digital asset mining operation within the Kingdom of Bhutan. At the time, DHI CEO Ujjwal Deep Dahal said that the partnership formed part of an overall strategy to ensure that Bhutan took its place at the forefront of global innovation. Arkham Intelligence outlined on X that in H2 2023, Bhutan’s Bitcoin mining operations were producing in the region of 26 Bitcoin per day, or 780 Bitcoin per month. However, over the past three months, that mining rate has decreased to 8.6 BTC per day or 260 BTC per month. Arkham suggests that the Bitcoin halving, together with the increase in the Bitcoin hashrate, explains the reduced output, although it speculated that some unknown issue with Bitcoin mining rigs may also be a contributing factor. 

Wemade has signed a deal with Maniac Panda Games, a development studio of Spanish gaming company JURVAL CORP SL, to onboard the blockchain game Underground Waifus to WEMIX PLAY, Wemade’s gaming platform, according to an official announcement on Monday (KST).Photo by Syed Ali on Unsplash“Underground Waifus proposes top-level gameplay and fun,” said Maniac Panda Games CEO Daniel Valdés. “We believe that the collaboration with WEMIX PLAY can take the game to another level, adding a wider reach and implementation among players around the world.” Unveiling the cyberpunk battlegroundUnderground Waifus is a multiplayer NFT trading card game set in a cyberpunk, post-apocalyptic universe. It is notable for its circular economy model that employs Free-to-Play (F2P) and Play-to-Earn (P2E) mechanisms within a tokenized system. The game revolves around a player-driven economy, where players can participate in player versus player (PVP) battles where the winner takes all. The game is built on blockchain technology, offering exclusive NFT collections. Gamers are subject to ownership of these assets, which they can use for collecting or playing. The ecosystem also has a utility token called Underground Waifus Token (GQ), which can be used off-game or in-game as a cryptocurrency. Wemade’s ongoing effortsWemade has been consistently growing its lineup of Web3 games on WEMIX PLAY, endeavoring into diverse genres in an effort to appeal to all gamers. The firm revealed that it is working with developers around the world, including North America, Europe and Asia, to expand the gaming platform’s ecosystem.