Korea’s Changwon City Boosts Local Art Scene with NFTs

Israel Doubles Down on Blocking Crypto Funding of HamasIn a move to disrupt the flow of funds to Hamas, Israeli authorities have ordered the closure of over 100 cryptocurrency accounts on Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.Photo by Leonid Altman on PexelsHeightened monitoring of crypto-related financingIsraeli authorities were already monitoring crypto accounts suspected of terrorism financing before the recent attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Since then, they have requested information about hundreds of accounts on Binance, suggesting that the scale of their actions has grown significantly since October 7.A statement from Israeli police last week outlined that they had frozen crypto accounts related to financing of Hamas. According to a report on Tuesday by the Financial Times (FT), the Israeli authorities have taken matters further still, having closed more than one hundred accounts on Binance.Scrutinizing 200 additional accountsSources cited by the FT as being close to the situation have revealed that these actions were initiated in response to Hamas’s assault on October 7. Authorities have also sought information on approximately 200 additional crypto accounts, with most of them being held on Binance. While Binance has acknowledged blocking a “small number” of accounts since the summer, it emphasized its adherence to internationally recognized sanctions rules and declined to provide further comment.Governments and regulators have long expressed concerns that terrorist organizations might exploit lightly regulated crypto markets for financial transactions. However, the recent attacks on Israel and the subsequent crypto-based fundraising campaigns by Hamas have made these concerns more pressing.Tom Alexandrovich, the Executive Director at the Israel National Cyber Directorate, stated that cryptocurrency has become a major tool for terror financing during these times of conflict. He noted that the amount of crypto funds involved has significantly increased since the start of the attack.Tether freezes accountsTether, the issuer of leading US dollar stablecoin USDT, announced on Monday that it had frozen 32 addresses containing more than $873,000 due to their alleged links to “terrorism and warfare” in Israel and Ukraine. The exact timing of when these accounts were blocked and the distribution of assets between Israel and Ukraine were not disclosed.Notably, US financial regulators previously alleged that money held on Binance had ties to Hamas. A lawsuit by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the United States in March claimed that senior Binance executives had knowledge of “Hamas transactions” in 2019. Binance has refuted these allegations and expressed its intent to contest the lawsuit.Commentators within the crypto space fear that opponents of the development of crypto, like US Senator Elizabeth Warren, will try to capitalize on this issue by using the opportunity to further draconian regulation.Over the past two years, Israeli authorities have seized millions of shekels from crypto accounts with suspected ties to Hamas and other militant groups in the Middle East. A recent analysis by Elliptic found that crypto wallets associated with various suspicious Middle East groups have interacted and relied on the same crypto exchange services to convert crypto into sovereign currencies.

Bitget Targets MENA Business ExpansionBitget, the Seychelles-based cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, is setting its sights on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as the region emerges as a fast-growing crypto hub.The firm announced its expansion plans via a press release which was published on Thursday. With countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain embracing crypto, more exchanges are taking notice and entering the market. Bitget has now joined the ranks of a series of crypto companies seeking to establish a foothold in the region.Photo by Kyle Glenn on UnsplashIncreasing crypto adoption and interestCiting the region’s impressive crypto adoption rate, which accounted for 9.2% of global transactions between 2021 and 2022, Bitget is capitalizing on the growing interest in digital assets. The UAE alone experienced a remarkable 400% increase in registered crypto businesses over two years, driving a surge in global digital asset trading by 10%. Moreover, blockchain-related educational programs have tripled in the region, which contributes to 8% of the overall mining hash rate. All of these are creating a favorable environment for Bitget’s expansion.Dubai officeTo support its entry into the Middle East, Bitget has opened an office in the heart of Dubai and has already hired 60 new employees for various mid and back-office positions. The company aims to scale its Middle East team further, with plans to hire 30 to 60 more professionals over the next two years.Bitget is not alone in recognizing the potential of the Middle Eastern market. Bybit, another major cryptocurrency exchange, recently obtained local licenses to operate in the digital assets space in the UAE, having moved its global headquarters to Dubai in April.OKX, one of the largest exchanges by volume, also received a Minimal Viable Product (MVP) Preparatory License from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). Binance is also eyeing the Middle East, with Binance Dubai poised to become the primary focus for the company’s development efforts, given regulatory challenges in Europe and the US.Global expansion strategyBitget’s expansion into the Middle East is part of its broader global scaling strategy. The company has already registered as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) in Poland and Lithuania, and it launched a localized Turkish website earlier this year.Founded in 2018, Bitget boasts a user base of over 8 million users across more than 100 countries, offering copy trading services. The company’s move to the Middle East showcases its determination to tap into new markets and solidify its position as a global player in the cryptocurrency exchange landscape.There’s been a lot going on at Bitget in recent months, in addition to these regional expansion plans. In May the company announced a corporate social responsibility project named “Blockchain4Youth,” cleverly identifying the importance of connecting with the younger demographic which is far more likely to drive crypto and blockchain adoption.Earlier this month it launched a crypto loans product offering while last week it provided transparency via its proof of reserves initiative, demonstrating a 223% level of reserves and outlining that the company is debt free.

Gyeonggi-do Province Mandates Senior Officials to Report Crypto HoldingsSouth Korea’s most populated province which encircles Seoul has taken a proactive step towards regulating virtual assets by notifying the legislation of an amendment to the code of conduct for public officials. As reported by local news outlet Yonhap News Agency, the Gyeonggi-do province will gather public comments on the amendment until July 25.Photo by Ryoo Geon Uk on UnsplashProvincial levelUnder the revised code of conduct, Gyeonggi-do officials will be prohibited from engaging in property transactions or investments related to virtual assets, using any virtual asset information acquired during the course of their duties. Provincial officials are also forbidden from providing virtual asset information to others to aid their property transactions or investments.Implementation next monthThe amendment compels public officials whose duties involve crypto-related projects, as well as high-ranking officials with an obligation to report their wealth, to declare their virtual assets. Once reviewed by the Ordinance and Rules Review Committee early next month, the amendment will be implemented immediately.National levelA Gyeonggi-do official explained that the decision to preemptively amend the code of conduct regarding virtual assets was made in anticipation of the implementation of the revised Public Service Ethics Act. This act, passed during the National Assembly’s plenary session in May, mandates high-level government officials to report their virtual assets and is set to become effective on December 14.Gyeonggi-do’s crypto surveyGyeonggi-do has been active in taking measures related to crypto assets. In a recent announcement, the province revealed its plan to conduct a survey among residents, aimed at hearing their experiences with unfair virtual asset trading practices. The survey is scheduled to run from August to November and was prompted by a growing number of residents suffering unfair losses from crypto investments amidst an economic slowdown.