Mocaverse strikes up strategic alliance with Halo, KuCoin and OKX

Chinese authorities have apprehended an individual suspected of identity forgery in connection with the StarkNet (STRK) airdrop. The suspect, identified as Lan Mou, allegedly assumed the identities of others to submit false Early Community Member Program (ECMP) airdrop forms. Through this scheme, the suspect claimed over 40,000 STRK tokens that originally belonged to the victims. After successfully claiming the tokens, the suspect transferred them to an OKX wallet. Subsequently, the tokens were converted into over $91,000 worth of Tether, as reported by local media on April 30. Lan Mou was apprehended by police in Guangdong Province on April 25. Authorities seized a computer and two mobile phones during the arrest.Photo by Tamara Gak on UnsplashUnprecedented scale of identity theftWhile cryptocurrency scams and phishing attacks are prevalent, the scale of identity theft observed in this case is unprecedented. The suspect's method involved claiming airdrops using stolen identities, marking a novel approach to fraudulent activity in the cryptocurrency space. A crypto airdrop is a method used to distribute new cryptocurrency tokens, typically targeting early users who engage with a specific protocol. In the case of the StarkNet Foundation's airdrop, which launched on Feb. 20, a total of 700 million STRK tokens were distributed to various participants, including Ethereum solo and liquid stakers, Starknet developers, users, external projects and developers within the Web3 ecosystem. Concerns raised by developerFollowing the StarkNet airdrop, concerns were raised by pseudonymous Yearn.finance developer Banteg regarding the eligibility criteria. Banteg warned that the eligibility list mainly consisted of airdrop squatters, individuals who exploit airdrop opportunities for financial gain. These individuals often control multiple addresses to maximize their rewards. This incident is not the first instance of airdrop exploitation. In March 2023, it was revealed that airdrop hunters consolidated $3.3 million worth of tokens from the Arbitrum (ARB) airdrop into just two wallets, highlighting the prevalence of such fraudulent activities within the cryptocurrency community. 

South Korea’s financial regulator is preparing a second major cryptocurrency bill that would expand investor protections, strengthen stablecoin safeguards, and potentially impose governance changes at the country’s largest exchanges, as domestic token projects warn that regulatory uncertainty is curbing growth. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) is drafting the Digital Asset Basic Act, a so-called “phase two” bill that follows an earlier virtual asset user protection regime which took effect in July 2024. According to Yonhap News, the bill is expected to address stablecoin risks by requiring issuers to hold reserve assets in instruments such as bank deposits and government bonds, and to deposit or place in trust at least 100% of outstanding issuance with banks or other designated custodians. It would also extend existing financial-sector rules to crypto firms in areas including disclosures, terms and conditions, and advertising. In addition, the proposal could impose no-fault liability on virtual asset service providers for losses stemming from hacks or system failures, in line with standards under Korea’s Electronic Financial Transactions Act, which governs traditional financial institutions and payment services.Photo by Timothy Ries on UnsplashGovernance dominance at exchangesA separate report by KBS said the draft bill includes measures to overhaul governance at South Korea’s four major crypto exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit—which together serve about 11 million users. The FSC has raised concerns about concentrated control by founders and major shareholders, and is considering a governance framework similar to that applied to alternative trading systems (ATS) under Korea’s Capital Markets Act. That could include limits designed to prevent any single shareholder from holding too much control, capping controlling stakes at around 15% to 20%. Under Korea’s current Capital Markets Act, an ATS is generally barred from holding more than 15% of voting shares, including those held by related parties, with limited exceptions allowing stakes of up to 30%. If similar limits were applied to crypto exchanges, the changes could affect Dunamu, the operator of Upbit. Dunamu Chairman Song Chi-hyung holds a stake in the mid-20% range and, under the proposal as described, could face pressure to sell roughly 10% of his holdings. The proposal could have implications for the deal, as Dunamu is pursuing a merger with Naver Financial through a comprehensive stock swap. While the bill’s broad outlines are taking shape, regulators are still working to narrow differences over stablecoin rules, and the final proposal is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly next year. Key unresolved issues include eligibility requirements for stablecoin issuers, whether to establish an interagency consultative body during the licensing process, initial capital thresholds, and whether a single entity should be allowed to both issue and distribute stablecoins. The core dispute centers on who should be allowed to issue stablecoins. The Bank of Korea is said to favor limiting issuance to consortia in which banks hold at least a 51% stake, while the FSC is believed to oppose writing a mandatory bank ownership threshold into law, arguing that such a requirement could limit broader participation by technology firms. ‘Kimchi coin’ listings stall amid cautionEven as policymakers push ahead, regulatory uncertainty is curbing growth among South Korean blockchain projects. News1 reported that Upbit listed only one token from a domestic project in 2025, out of 54 tokens added for trading since the start of the year—the native token of Story, a peer-to-peer intellectual property network powered by blockchain and co-founded by Korean entrepreneur Lee Seung-yoon. Upbit also removed 10 tokens during the period, seven of which were so-called “kimchi coins,” a colloquial term for tokens originating in South Korea or developed by Korean teams. Industry participants attribute the removals to increasingly risk-averse behavior by exchanges amid regulatory uncertainty, which can complicate promotional efforts and trust-building while constraining early-stage liquidity. TradFi players seek crypto integrationsWhile local token projects face headwinds, interest from traditional financial institutions appears to be picking up. Chosun Biz reported that Mirae Asset Financial Group is considering an acquisition of Korbit, with its non-financial affiliate Mirae Asset Consulting seen as a potential buyer of shares from major shareholders NXC and SK Planet. Industry analysts estimate the deal could be worth up to 140 billion won ($97 million). The group’s founder, Park Hyeon-joo, has said he is developing a strategy to bridge traditional and digital assets, arguing that it is time to prepare for the next wave of financial innovation. In payments, EBN Industrial News reported that BC Card has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with U.S.-based crypto exchange Coinbase to test USDC payments in South Korea. The pilot would integrate BC Card’s QR payment system with wallets on Coinbase’s Base blockchain to assess whether USDC can function as a viable payment method at local merchants. 

CUBE, a hybrid crypto exchange that settles trades on-chain using secure multi-party computation, announced on its official X account that it has listed ACS, the native token of Solana-based monetization platform Access Protocol.  The hybrid exchange utilizes its custom rewards platform, Blocks, to engage users through unique packages for listing traders and token holders. Participants in the listing will be eligible for campaign rewards.  Bartosz Lipinski, CEO and co-founder at CUBE, recently revealed plans around Isometric (ISO), an intent-based transaction network, enabling cross-chain trading to eliminate the need for asset bridging.  “When we started building Cube, we wanted everything to be an intent… Everyone will be able to submit intents to the network and verify settlements on multiple chains using the decentralised MPC that we’ve built,” Lipinski said during his presentation at the Solana Breakpoint conference. “Through the decentralised MPC integration layer, you will be able to actually use the value on different layer ones without cannibalising it,” he went on to share.  ISO will be the platform token powering governance, staking, and decentralized custody, according to Cube's announcement. Both Token and Mainnet launch are expected to happen some time in Q2 2025.  In a related development on Monday, Cube announced its partnership with the Argentinian government. The company plans to explore leveraging the Isometric network as a catalyst for the South American nation’s financial system.