Tokenpost and PUNKPOLL launch open beta service for Web3 news polling service

Recognition of Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 6 has led to many crypto proponents in Asia foreseeing a positive outcome for crypto within the Asian region, and globally.Photo by Kevin Lanceplaine on UnsplashBright future for cryptoAccording to a report published by the South China Morning Post (SCMP), crypto proponents in China are expectant of a bright future for crypto both on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong. The mindset seems to be that a pro-crypto stance in the U.S. will lead to other jurisdictions taking a similar approach. HashKey CEO Livio Weng expressed such a view, stating:“Trump’s pro-crypto stance is expected not only to invigorate the US virtual-asset industry, but also to encourage Hong Kong to further relax its own virtual-asset policies in its quest to become a global Web3 hub.”  Prior to being elected, Trump had promised to fire Gary Gensler, who as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has pursued a strategy of regulation by enforcement, a course of action that has been broadly criticized by crypto market participants in the United States. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse wasted no time in calling on Trump to act, and to fire Gensler. Influencing regulatory attitudesThere seems to be a consensus among commentators that the regulatory approach to crypto in the U.S. is going to become crypto-friendly. Crypto analyst Miles Deutscher suggests that “a Trump victory is a WIN for US tech innovation, as it would solidify [the United States’] status as a crypto powerhouse.” Weng believes that “this shift could also positively influence regulatory attitudes toward virtual assets in mainland China.” That view is mirrored in South Korea by KP Jang, head of Xangle Research. Jang asserts that “if Trump implements bold virtual asset policies while improving existing regulations, it is expected to accelerate regulatory reforms in Korea as well.” Sumit Gupta, CEO and co-founder of India’s largest crypto exchange, CoinDCX, outlined on X that Trump’s victory is a pivotal moment for global crypto, adding:”The direct effects of Trump’s policies might not alter India’s regulatory environment right away. However, global sentiment and investor behaviour will be influenced, eventually reaching India.” The CoinDCX CEO believes that should Trump now appoint regulatory leadership that’s crypto-positive, any resultant crypto regulatory framework adopted by the U.S. could become a blueprint for use by other nations. Gupta identified further potential upside insofar as the implementation of positive crypto policies by Trump would lead to a more attractive environment for crypto, “potentially opening up enhanced funding opportunities and partnerships for Indian startups as investors seek global growth.” Bitcoin price surgeAt the time of writing, the Bitcoin unit price is up 0.64% over the course of the past 24 hours, at $74,884. American business news channel CNBC reported that Bitcoin could reach $100,000 before Trump even takes office.  Matthew Hougan, chief investment officer (CIO) at crypto asset fund manager Bitwise, said that Trump’s election victory could herald in a “golden age of crypto,” with a friendlier regulatory environment leading to greater institutional investment and mainstream adoption.

Coins.ph, the leading crypto exchange in the Philippines, has announced its support for BRC-20 tokens. As part of that move, the exchange has successfully integrated the ORDI token, thereby becoming the inaugural platform in the country to embrace the BRC-20 standard. The platform clarified its support for BRC-20 in a recent blog post, which it published to its website. Coins.ph revealed its intention to expand its services further by adding support for additional BRC-20 tokens, showcasing a forward-looking approach to cater to the evolving needs of its user base. BRC-20 is a standard facilitating the creation of fungible tokens on the Bitcoin blockchain. The inclusion of this technical standard allows for the minting of tokens with unique features, introducing a new dimension to the capabilities of the world's flagship cryptocurrency.Photo by Kanchanara on UnsplashORDI memecoin additionORDI stands out as one of the most popular BRC-20 tokens, gaining traction and reaching an all-time high above $81 earlier this week. This surge in value followed the addition of trading support by crypto exchange Binance in early November, underscoring the influence of strategic partnerships and market dynamics on token performance. Wei Zhou, CEO of Coins.ph, expressed the company's commitment to staying at the forefront of digital asset innovation through this strategic move. Highlighting the remarkable growth in BRC-20 activity since its launch earlier in the year, Zhou emphasized the importance of enabling users to participate in these opportunities. He mentioned the recent listing of $ORDI and hinted at future product offerings enabled by the BRC-20 standard. Industry trendWhile coins.ph may have been the first exchange in the Philippines to introduce BRC-20 support, it's not the first mover in the broader Asian region. Back in May, leading crypto exchange OKX decided to support the BRC-20 standard through its OKX Wallet product. The company’s support of the standard was validated more recently when it emerged that BRC-20 support played a large role in OKX NFT Marketplace taking top rank as the NFT marketplace with the greatest trading volume earlier this month. Seychelles-based crypto derivatives platform Bitget has also identified the associated growth potential. Earlier this week, the platform unveiled a plan to support development within the Bitcoin ecosystem, inclusive of BRC-20. The fusion of ordinals and BRC-20 enables users to embed images, texts or audio, among other data, into satoshis—the smallest units of BTC. Bitcoin community controversyAmidst these developments, concerns have been raised by Bitcoin core developer Luke Dashjr. On Dec. 6, Dashjr disclosed that developers are working to remove Bitcoin inscriptions before the v27 update scheduled for the next year. This would imply the elimination of ordinals and BRC-20 from the Bitcoin landscape. Dashjr clarified that Bitcoin Core has allowed users to set limits on extra data size in transactions since 2013 through the "datacarriersize" setting. Despite this, inscriptions have found a way to bypass the limit by obfuscating their data as program code. He reassured the community that a recent bug in Bitcoin Knots v25.1 has been fixed, addressing concerns about vulnerability.

Blockchain Deposit Insurance Corporation (BDIC), an emerging crypto insurer based in Florida in the United States, with corporate headquarters in Bermuda, has disclosed that it is preparing to launch its cryptocurrency insurance platform.Photo by Kindel Media on PexelsStarting point in AsiaIn a press release published on Feb. 11, BDIC outlined that the launch would take place in Q2 2025, with its crypto insurance underwriting service commencing in key Asian markets to begin with.  The company has chosen Asia as its starting point, where it feels crypto adoption continues to build momentum. With that, it specified Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea as target markets.  While the initial launch will take place in Q2, the company foresees having expanded into Southeast Asia by Q4 2025. Broader service coverage will follow across the greater Asia-Pacific (APAC) region by 2026, with particular emphasis on entering the Hong Kong market. Company CEO Jeffrey Glusman cited a growing demand for crypto wallet security across Asia. He underlined the growing crypto adoption rate in the region, suggesting that this will encompass 300 million users by 2028. Insurance essential for mainstream adoption Speaking about the product offering more generally, Glusman said that the crypto sector has reached a critical inflection point. With that, he believes that “institutional-grade insurance solutions are essential for mainstream adoption.” He added: “BDIC introduces a new paradigm in digital asset protection, using advanced risk assessment algorithms and real-time monitoring to safeguard users’ holdings.” Token launch The company is also planning to launch a native token for its platform, “BDIC Coin,” in Q2 2025. The purpose of the token launch will be to power the BDIC Foundation Reserve Fund, a reserve which will be used for the purposes of premium payments and claim settlements. Furthermore, the token will enable holders to participate in governance voting relative to the project. BDIC claims that it has established compliance protocols and a whitelist in order to provide for a robust and equitable tokenomics structure. Glusman believes that the timing of BDIC’s launch couldn’t be better. A recent report by information services company GlobalData corroborates his view. The report, published on the back of a GlobalData survey, outlined that only 10.8% of crypto holders worldwide have insurance in place for their digital assets.  The survey data suggests that 41.9% of non-policy holding respondents would purchase such insurance given the opportunity, while a further 26.2% were open to the idea. Theft or hacking of digital assets was perceived to be the most important risk to cover in a digital asset insurance policy in the case of a quarter of respondents. The number of insurers offering crypto-related insurance remains limited. However, it would appear that there’s a significant growth opportunity for firms like BDIC, based on the survey data. While there might be a growth opportunity, there are also challenges. Nischal Shetty, founder and CEO of WazirX, an Indian crypto exchange platform that suffered a $230 million hack in 2024, described the difficulties encountered by the company in trying to get insurance when interviewed last August. He stated: “We tried to get insurance in the past, but we did not get any provider who would be willing to insure these assets. It's not an easy process.”