Thailand to move forward with $14 billion digital wallet program

Entrepreneurs to Discuss Blockchain Investment Opportunities at Korea Investment Week 2023Entrepreneurs and business leaders will convene at the Korea Exchange (KRX) PR Hall to delve into investment opportunities associated with blockchain projects and security tokens from September 14 to 15. The agenda for the first day centers around blockchain, while the second day is dedicated to security tokens. These events are part of Korea Investment Week 2023, hosted by the Korea Economic Daily and organized by the Korea Exchange, the nation’s only securities exchange operator, and KB Securities.Photo by SC Jang on UnsplashExploring blockchain investmentThe first day’s blockchain investment forum will host a lineup of distinguished speakers, including Kim Yong-beom, the CEO of Hashed Open Research; Lee Tae-yong, Chief Global Strategy Officer of Wavebridge; and Ju Ki-young, CEO of Cryptoquant.CEO Kim will explore virtual asset opportunities in South Korea, particularly in light of the market trend shifting from North America to Asia. Lee will provide an overview of the global landscape of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and exchange-traded products (ETPs) related to virtual assets and assess the likelihood of the US approving Bitcoin spot ETFs. Meanwhile, Ju’s analysis of blockchain data will offer insights into the fundamentals and risks associated with virtual assets.Security token insightsOn the second day, the security token investment conference will feature esteemed professionals, such as Ahn Il-chan, Head of Digital Business Division at the Korea Exchange; Lee Han-jin, an attorney specializing in capital markets at law firm Kim and Chang; and Ryu Ji-hae, Managing Director of Digital Asset Task Force at Mirae Asset Securities.Ahn will discuss strategies for establishing a security token market within the Korea Exchange. Lee will offer suggestions for developing the Korean security token market and safeguarding investors. Ryu will address the role of securities firms in driving the development of the security token market.These events are expected to capture the interest of both institutional and retail investors, providing valuable insights into the burgeoning industry.

Singaporean regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has awarded cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp a Major Payment Institution (MPI) trading license.Photo by Julien de Salaberry on UnsplashExpanding into APACIn a blog post published on July 3, Bitstamp proclaimed that it is “globally trusted & now licensed in Singapore.” The company described the acquisition of the license as a milestone that “marks the start of [its] expansion into the APAC region.” It emerged in June 2024 that Bitstamp had been acquired by American trading platform Robinhood. The $200 million acquisition was finally completed last month. Bitstamp signaled last September that it planned to expand its institutional business across Australia and Asia. Earlier this year, parent company Robinhood outlined that it would use Bitstamp to crypto offerings in Singapore in 2025.Acquiring licensesAt that time, Johann Kerbrat, vice-president and general manager of Robinhood Crypto, said that “part of the reason why Bitstamp was attractive was because of their licenses with Singapore, in addition to its institutional business.” This latest license award strengthens the company’s efforts in gaining more traction in Asia. Licensing is all the more relevant given the recent actions of the Singaporean regulator. Last month, MAS set a June 30 deadline for unlicensed crypto firms operating out of the city-state and serving overseas customers to cease offering such services. Over recent years, Singapore has been striving towards establishing itself as a global hub for crypto startups. It has been successful in that endeavor insofar as a whole host of international crypto businesses have established a presence there.  However, its recent move to curb unlicensed firms working out of Singapore in providing services internationally has been interpreted as a much more cautious approach being taken by the Singaporean authorities. The regulator clarified its concerns recently:”MAS has set the bar high for licensing and will generally not issue a licence. The money laundering risks are higher in such business models and if their substantive regulated activity is outside of Singapore, MAS is unable to effectively supervise such persons. Without a licence, such DTSPs [Digital Token Service Providers] will have to cease their regulated activities.”Caution in Singapore to benefit Hong KongSingapore has been competing with cities like Hong Kong to develop and maintain that crypto hub status. Some commentators have expressed the view that Hong Kong will benefit from this latest move in Singapore.  Joshua Chu, a lawyer who co-chairs the Hong Kong Web3 Association, told the South China Morning Post (SCMP) recently that “this is likely to attract quality projects [to Hong Kong] looking for a compliant, liquid, and globally connected base.” In addition to licensing achieved in Asia, Bitstamp has acquired licensing in a number of European countries such as Italy, Spain, France and the Netherlands. Last month, Robinhood launched the trading of tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for users resident within the European Union (EU). It also revealed that it is in the process of building out a layer-2 network on top of the Arbitrum blockchain with a view towards using it to host tokenized real-world assets (RWAs).

3AC Liquidators Pursue $1.3 Billion from FoundersLiquidators appointed for Three Arrows Capital (3AC), the failed Singaporean cryptocurrency hedge fund, are seeking to recover $1.3 billion from the fund’s co-founders.That’s according to an unidentified source cited by Bloomberg in a report published on Tuesday. The requested amount represents losses incurred by the founders during the months leading up to the firm’s collapse, according to a source familiar with the liquidators’ claims.Photo by Giorgio Trovato on UnsplashLiability allegationsDuring a meeting with the hedge fund’s creditors on Tuesday, the liquidators discussed the allegations against Three Arrows co-founders Su Zhu and Kyle Davies. The co-founders are accused of causing the hedge fund to accumulate significant leverage between May and June 2022, despite already suffering substantial losses from ill-fated Luna tokens and other investments.The liquidators argue that the firm was insolvent at that time. Consequently, they have taken legal action against Zhu and Davies in a British Virgin Islands court to recover the losses on behalf of the fund’s creditors.Lawyers representing Zhu and Davies have not yet responded to requests for comment. However, in a Twitter post last June, Zhu mentioned that their attempts to cooperate with the liquidators were met with resistance.Crypto failure catalystThe failure of Three Arrows Capital coincided with a downturn in the digital currency market, impacting platforms that had exposure to the hedge fund, including crypto lenders BlockFi and Voyager Digital. These platforms subsequently filed for bankruptcy in the weeks following the liquidation of the hedge fund.The liquidators’ allegations against the co-founders represent an escalation of actions taken against Zhu and Davies, whom they have accused of non-cooperation during the investigation. The liquidators, who are partners at the consulting and advisory firm Teneo, were appointed by a British Virgin Islands court last year to recover funds for Three Arrows Capital’s creditors, who are collectively owed approximately $3.3 billion.Earlier this month, the liquidators urged a New York bankruptcy judge to impose a daily fine of $10,000 on Davies. They argue that this substantial fine is warranted because he has failed to respond to a subpoena requesting business records and other relevant information.While the liquidators do not currently know the whereabouts of Davies or Zhu, court documents from earlier this month referenced a New York Times article reporting that Davies had traveled to Bali after the collapse of Three Arrows Capital.Restraining orderIn May Zhu had secured a restraining order against BitMEX Co-Founder Arthur Hayes in a Singaporean court. Hayes believes that he is owed $6 million by the 3AC co-founders. Despite significant adverse publicity within the crypto space, the 3AC co-founders have proceeded to do business within the industry.They’ve established a crypto claims trading platform, OPNX, and alongside that Dubai-based business, they’ve also established a new venture capital fund, 3AC Ventures.The Dubai regulator, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), has reprimanded OPNX and the business's founders for operating an unregistered digital assets business within the territory.