Hong Kong securities group proposes ICOs as growth opportunity

XPLA to Bring The Walking Dead: All-Stars to MainnetXPLA, the blockchain gaming platform operated by South Korean gaming company Com2uS Group, has announced that it will onboard Com2uS Holdings’ mobile collectible role-playing game (RPG), The Walking Dead: All-Stars.Photo by Rebekah Yip on UnsplashBringing a fan-favorite story to the gaming worldThe Walking Dead: All-Stars is based on the globally renowned “The Walking Dead” comics, leveraging the global intellectual property owned by Skybound Entertainment. It has received acclaim for its post-apocalyptic setting, characterized by captivating artwork that captures the ambiance of the original comics. Robert Kirkman, author of the comics and Chairman of Skybound Entertainment, has been directly involved in overseeing the project, earning support from fans of the series. The game has also been labeled as an Editors’ Choice app on Google Play.“The Walking Dead: All-Stars vividly brings to life the illustrations of the original comics, which triggered a global zombie craze. We will bring new forms of fun centered around in-game ownership for users worldwide within XPLA’s Web3 ecosystem, ” said Son Kyung-hyun, CEO of FunFlow, the Com2uS subsidiary that developed the game in collaboration with Skybound Games.The Web3 update for the game is scheduled to take place later this month, XPLA said. Users who connect their crypto wallets to the game will be able to collect in-game items and exchange them for XPLA, the platform’s native token, allowing players to own and utilize the assets that they have acquired in the game. Currently, the XPLA token is actively traded on global crypto exchanges such as Crypto.com, Gate.io, and HTX (formerly Huobi Global), as well as major domestic exchanges like Bithumb, Korbit, and GOPAX.Building the game lineupXPLA has been continuously onboarding Web3 games based on hit IPs, such as action RPG Summoners War: Chronicles, casual game MiniGame Party, fishing game Ace Fishing: Crew, and massively multiplayer online RPG (MMORPG) Idle Ninja Online, establishing itself as a global Web3 content hub centered around gaming and entertainment.

WOO X, a Taipei-based cryptocurrency exchange, has successfully raised $9 million in its latest funding round, with notable investors including crypto market maker Wintermute. Jack Tan, co-founder of WOO, emphasized the significance of this funding in aligning the interests of liquidity providers rather than as a capital-raising exercise. On social media the company wrote that it “welcomes an elite group of liquidity providers to our ecosystem - as our commitment to building the best environment for traders remains steadfast.”Photo by micheile henderson on UnsplashDesignated market makersThe funding comes from designated market makers (DMMs), featuring participants like Selini Capital, Time Research, Pulsar, Efficient Frontier, Singapore’s Amber Group, AlphaLab Capital, Presto Labs and Riverside Hedge. This infusion of capital is expected to enhance liquidity on WOO X, starting with the BTC and ETH perpetual futures markets and later expanding into altcoin perpetual futures and all spot markets. WOO X plans to roll out a designated market maker (DMM) program for its spot markets in the first quarter of the current year. These strategic moves are expected to contribute to achieving a 100% custody ratio by the second quarter of 2024. Business model pivotWOO X underwent a strategic shift in its business model during the third quarter of the previous year. It transitioned to partner with multiple liquidity providers for both spot and perpetual futures markets, moving away from reliance on a single provider, Kronos Research. The decision to diversify followed a security incident in November 2023, where Kronos suffered a hack leading to an estimated loss of $25 million. As a response, WOO X took proactive measures to restructure its operations. As part of that plan to address liquidity, last month WOO X established a significant partnership with Wintermute, the leading algorithmic trading company and liquidity provider with a trading volume of approximately $3.6 trillion. This partnership positions Wintermute as the primary liquidity provider for WOO X, further strengthening the exchange's market presence. News of this development in December led to a marked increase in the unit price of the platform’s WOO token. Over the course of the last two weeks of December, the WOO token price increased from $0.2385 to $0.4718, representing a 98% increase. Contributing to its recent surge is the partnership announcement with Arbitrum by WooFi exchange, a development that attracted attention from potential investors. The exchange implemented various initiatives to fortify its position, including updates to its fee structure, technology infrastructure enhancements to accommodate multiple designated market makers simultaneously, the introduction of a maker rebate in USDT and the launch of the DMM rewards pool to further incentivize liquidity provision on WOO X. Global expansionThe newly secured funds are earmarked for global market expansion and obtaining regulatory licenses, aligning with WOO's vision for sustainable growth. In 2021, Woo Network successfully closed a $30 million Series A funding round. Subsequently, in October of the previous year, the company repurchased its shares and tokens from the bankruptcy estate of Three Arrows Capital, a participant in the Series A round.  

OKX Entering Indian Market With a Focus on Web3Cryptocurrency exchange OKX is gearing up to make its presence felt in the Indian market.Local recruitmentThat’s according to a discussion between a company executive and CoinDesk, as explained by the publication in a report published on Friday. The firm plans on recruiting local employees in its endeavor to conquer the market within the world’s most populous nation.OKX intends to rely on local employees who will spearhead its initiatives in the country. Haider Rafique, Chief Marketing Officer at OKX explained:“We’re trying to identify who’s who in the zoo and what is their contribution. There’s a large developer community. How do we help them? Build a relationship with them.”He believes that adopting a community-centric approach will pave the way for a successful entry into the local market. Rafique emphasized:“We’re going to learn about the community. We’re going to work with local folks — figure out where we can add value.”Photo by Naveed Ahmed on UnsplashFocusing on Web3 applicationsThe company also intends to take on the challenge by placing emphasis on the use of Web3 applications. Rafique revealed the company’s ambitious plans to scale up its wallet services “exponentially” by engaging with India’s developer community. Currently, there are approximately 200,000 OKX Wallet users in India, accounting for just 5% of the country’s Web3 user base.In a recent collaboration, OKX partnered with the blockchain platform Neo for an APAC Hackathon held in Bengaluru, a city in southern India. Rafique described this move as a strategic test to validate assumptions, understand the local culture, and support the burgeoning Web3 ecosystem.The global exchange already has a physical presence in world centers such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, and the Bahamas.Indian crypto environmentTrading cryptocurrencies is currently legal in India, albeit with no established regulatory framework by a central authority. Ironically India has been very active in working towards the establishment of global regulatory standards relative to crypto while coming in for criticism from its Supreme Court recently for the government’s failure to provide regulatory clarity at home.Cryptocurrencies are used and traded at the investor’s risk in India and do not hold legal tender status for banking purposes. Additionally, a 30% tax is imposed on cryptocurrency transactions in the country.Rafique believes that Indian regulators are gradually distinguishing Web3 from centralized finance (CeFi). He remarked: “They’re more concerned about venues that have fiat on-ramps, which we do but don’t offer it in India.” He expressed a readiness for the company to become a front-runner once India establishes a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.It’s interesting to note that while OKX embarks on expanding its footprint within the Indian market, Indian crypto market incumbents have been looking to downsize. Indian cryptocurrency exchanges like CoinSwitch and CoinDCX have faced layoffs amid the current market downturn.Notwithstanding current market conditions, it’s likely that OKX is taking a long-term view and positioning itself for future success in what should be a very important crypto asset marketplace in the future.Ryan Selkis, CEO and Founder of crypto market intelligence firm Messari expressed this view, stating: “I love to see companies like OKX expanding in India. The largest democracy in the world should be a haven for crypto innovation in the years to come.”