Bitmain Fined by Chinese Authorities for Tax Irregularities

Upbit Adds Polygon Staking ServiceDunamu, the blockchain and fintech firm that operates South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, announced on Wednesday (local time) the addition of Polygon’s MATIC to Upbit’s staking service, now available via the Upbit website and mobile application.Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on UnsplashStaking is a service where users entrust their cryptocurrency to a blockchain network to boost its security and receive virtual assets as rewards. The virtual assets deposited by staking users are used in the transaction verification process of generating new blocks in the blockchain network of the respective asset. Users are then rewarded with virtual assets for their participation in the process.Polygon is an Ethereum Layer 2 scaling solution that allows developers to build various decentralized applications (DApps) within the Ethereum ecosystem. Its native token is called MATIC.Expanded staking optionsAny Upbit user who has completed the Know Your Customer (KYC) process and enabled two-factor authentication can participate in staking on Upbit. The minimum staking amount is 2.7 MATIC. Users who participate in staking receive rewards once every day. They can also unstake their tokens at any time they want.“At Upbit, we utilize our world-class security measures, robust infrastructure, and years of technological expertise to operate validators and stake users’ assets for them,” the exchange said. “Users’ crypto assets that are used in staking are safely stored in a cold wallet.”Dunamu officially launched the Upbit Staking service in January of last year, serving as an intermediary in the complex staking process. The service aims to facilitate the convenient and secure staking of virtual assets. With the latest addition of Polygon, the exchange now supports a total of five staking options, namely Ethereum, Cosmos, Cardano, Solana, and Polygon.New NFT collectionsThe exchange’s non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace, Upbit NFT, also recently opened trading, deposits, and withdrawals for new NFT collections based on Ethereum and Polygon. To celebrate this additional functionality, Upbit NFT will conduct Ethereum giveaway events for lucky participants until next Wednesday.

Japan’s Mt.Gox to commence creditor repayments shortlyCreditors of Mt. Gox, the Japanese Bitcoin exchange that suffered a devastating hack in 2014, have received a glimmer of hope with an announcement from the administrators of the Mt.Gox estate that repayments are imminent.The recent announcement from Nobuaki Kobayashi, the trustee overseeing Mt. Gox’s estate was made on Tuesday when Kobayashi initiated the distribution of emails to rehabilitation creditors, hinting at the commencement of repayments. Social media reports have fueled optimism, suggesting that creditors may start receiving repayments in cash in 2023.Photo by Manuel Cosentino on UnsplashFirst round repayments in 2023The email, sent in both Japanese and English, outlined Kobayashi’s plan to initiate the first round of repayments in 2023, with the process extending into 2024. The email highlighted the complexity of the task, citing the large number of rehabilitation creditors, diverse types of repayments and varied processing times required. Despite the lack of specific timelines for individual creditors, the email conveyed a cautiously optimistic tone about progress.Cash vs. bitcoinReaction within the Mt. Gox community has been mixed. Some commentators view Kobayashi’s email as “cautiously promising,” interpreting it as a positive sign that repayments are finally on the horizon. Long-suffering creditors had been informed of a one-year extension to the repayment deadline in September. Additionally, some observers have raised concerns, noting that the email specifically references cash payments, whereas many victims of the Mt. Gox hack anticipate the return of large amounts of bitcoin.The Mt. Gox trustee currently holds 135,890 BTC across known addresses, valued at nearly $5 billion. An additional 3,795 BTC (worth $130 million) are held on unknown addresses.While the email signals progress, questions remain about the nature and extent of the repayments, with the community keenly observing developments. The email stated:“The specific timing of repayment to individual rehabilitation creditors is undetermined, and therefore, it will not be possible to provide advance notice to each rehabilitation creditor regarding the specific timing of their repayment.”Deadlines were also pushed back on other occasions, including March of this year when creditors were sent a “change of deadline“ notification.Redemption of trust assetsThis news coincided with the Mt. Gox trustee’s announcement on Wednesday regarding the redemption of trust assets. A substantial sum of 7 billion Japanese yen (equivalent to $47 million) was redeemed, intended for funding the repayment of claims. Following the redemption, the remaining trust assets stood at 8.8 billion yen, or approximately $59 million. The trustee, as per the official statement, is actively preparing for the base repayment, early lump-sum repayment and intermediate repayment.The recent events surrounding Mt. Gox have sparked discussions within the broader crypto community about the potential for a bitcoin sell-off. It’s long been speculated that the sudden release of bitcoin to creditors could lead to the market being flooded with sellers. However, as it appears that cash is being distributed as well as bitcoin, this should soften any potential bitcoin sell-off.Despite the optimism in some quarters, skepticism lingers due to the history of delays in Mt. Gox repayments. Creditors remain cautiously hopeful for the most part, awaiting further updates and tangible progress in the rehabilitation process.

The Hong Kong Virtual Asset Consortium (HKVAC), a digital asset group in China's special administrative region, has announced modifications to its core cryptocurrency index, reshuffling the top contenders to the detriment of XRP, the payment solution token developed by Ripple Labs.Photo by Kanchanara on UnsplashSolana takes top 5 slotEffective as of this Friday, HKVAC will replace XRP with Solana (SOL) in its Top 5 Large Cryptocurrency Index, signaling a shift in the composition of its benchmark index. HKVAC is a collaborative effort between Hong Kong-based industry participants such as crypto exchanges and licensed ratings agencies. Its aim is to optimize the risk management capabilities of the crypto sector and in that way, assisting market participants including local regulatory bodies. Crypto exchange platform HTX, previously known as Huobi, became the first member of HKVAC in 2023. It was joined by iPollo, KuCoin, LK Venture, Nano Labs, Purise, Wealthking Investment, G-Rocket Global Accelerator, Hong Kong Data Infinity Technology and others in making up the organization’s membership. The HKVAC's Top 5 index reflects the global cryptocurrency ranking based on market capitalization, maintaining a pulse on the ever-evolving crypto landscape. However, beyond market cap, the digital asset group considers additional factors such as market valuation, investability and liquidity in its index rebalancing decisions. Solana’s growth and progressionSolana, currently ranked as the fifth-largest cryptocurrency, has been making substantial strides in the market. Despite the 2022 collapse of the FTX crypto exchange, which significantly impacted SOL's price, the cryptocurrency has made an impressive recovery. Over the past year Solana has surged by 315%. Presently, SOL boasts a market cap of $41 billion, securing its position in the top echelons of the cryptocurrency market. In contrast, XRP, the ousted cryptocurrency, has experienced a more modest price growth during the same period. As of the latest data, XRP holds the sixth position in the cryptocurrency ranking, with a valuation of $31 billion. The decision to remove XRP from the Top 5 index was met with a 3.9% decline in its value, settling at $0.57. XRP had moved within the Top 5 index in October of last year. It was added to the index alongside SHIB in 2023. At the time of its formation, HKVAC emphasized that market capitalization was one of the primary criteria incorporated within the evaluation, which extends to 30 cryptocurrencies. A re-evaluation is carried out each quarter on the basis of that market cap criterion. Crypto rating reshuffleThe HKVAC's reshuffling extends beyond the Top 5 index, impacting other leading cryptocurrencies. Notable changes include the removal of Filecoin (FIL), Binance USD (BUSD), Maker (MKR), Hedera (HBAR) and TrueUSD (TUSD) from the Global Large Cryptocurrency Index. These have been replaced by Near Protocol (NEAR), Internet Computer (ICP), Immutable (IMX), Optimism (OP) and Injective (INJ). Additionally, Avalanche (AVAX) is set to replace Tron (TRX) on the HKVAC Top 10 Global Large Cryptocurrency Index, effective this Friday. These adjustments come amid Hong Kong's ongoing efforts to bolster the cryptocurrency industry within the region. In December, the financial regulator in Hong Kong signaled its readiness to accept spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This move aligns with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's review of 11 spot bitcoin ETF applications, ultimately approved on Jan. 10.