OKX enables zero-fee SGD transfers in Singapore

Upbit upgrades matching engine to process KRW 1 quadrillion trading volumeSouth Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit has enhanced its matching engine — which matches buy and sell orders from users on the exchange — to be able to handle a daily trading volume of KRW 1 quadrillion (approximately $757.3 billion), according to local news outlet Kyunghyang Games.Photo by Maxim Hopman on UnsplashBecause the crypto market operates nonstop without limits to time or borders, having a solid infrastructure that can seamlessly handle large amounts of data is crucial. Upbit has thus been working on its so-called “Stairway to Heaven” project for the past two years to upgrade its trading infrastructure, including its matching engine.Constant upgradesThe Stairway to Heaven is a long-term project in which Upbit’s operator Dunamu has invested a total of KRW 10 billion (approximately $7.6 million) to adjust to the rapidly advancing crypto industry and improve the performance of the entire market system. The upgradesThe main goal of the project is to upgrade Upbit’s matching engine to be cloud-native and horizontally scalable. The engine is now capable of supporting more than 40,000 transactions per second — a 25-fold increase from the previous version of the engine — allowing it to respond efficiently to surges in user traffic. In the event of a traffic spike, the system can handle more than 100,000 transactions per second with additional servers, the exchange said.“Unlike the way traditional finance approaches ledger management, our cloud-native architecture allows us to flexibly respond to surges in traffic,” Upbit said. “We will continue to make various system improvements to offer a stable investment environment.”Elevating the user experienceIn addition to upgrading its matching engine, Upbit has recently revamped its UI/UX to include price chart updates by second increments and an overview of profits and losses. The exchange plans to continue its multifaceted efforts in service quality, security and investor protection to become a domestically and globally recognized exchange.

Hong Kong has launched a pilot program for the digital yuan, marking the People’s Bank of China's (PBoC) central bank digital currency’s (CBDC) first major deployment outside mainland China.  This initiative, facilitated by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), represents another step forward in the integration of the digital yuan into Hong Kong's financial ecosystem.Photo by bady abbas on UnsplashCross-border transactions rather than P2PAccording to a press release, the HKMA and PBoC are working together to enable Hong Kong users to set up personal e-CNY wallets using just their Hong Kong mobile phone numbers. The faster payment system (FPS) will support these e-CNY wallets, allowing users to top up their wallets through 17 retail banks in the Chinese autonomous territory. However, the e-CNY wallets are primarily designed for cross-border payments between Hong Kong and the mainland, and currently do not support person-to-person transfers within Hong Kong. This pilot aims to facilitate transactions for Hong Kong residents using their digital yuan wallets, marking the first integration of a CBDC through a major central bank. The Digital Currency Institute (DCI) is managing the interoperability infrastructure between the FPS and the digital yuan, with a focus on enhancing cross-border payments, a key objective on the G20 countries' roadmap. More functionality promisedLike blockchain protocols, the digital yuan pilot offers 24/7 payment capabilities. Eddie Yue, the chief executive of the HKMA, stated that the e-CNY application and wallet would gradually gain more functionality as the HKMA and PBoC work to encourage more retail merchants to adopt the system. Yue stated: “By expanding the e-CNY pilot in Hong Kong and leveraging the 24x7 operating hours and real-time transfer advantages of the FPS, users may now top up their e-CNY wallets anytime, anywhere without having to open a Mainland bank account, thereby facilitating merchant payments in the Mainland by Hong Kong residents.” The HKMA and DCI are planning upgrades to the e-CNY wallets through real-name verification, aiming to enable corporate use cases for cross-border trade settlements in the future. Adoption strugglesWith at least 140 countries exploring CBDC pilots, China's digital yuan is among the most advanced. China has been actively promoting its CBDC, even paying monthly salaries in e-CNY to government workers and employees of state-owned enterprises. However, as reported by the South China Morning Post, many recipients are hesitant to use the digital yuan due to privacy concerns and other limitations. China's central bank aims to increase the use of the yuan in Hong Kong, especially in tourist areas. Last June, digital yuan ATMs were installed in the resort city of Sanya in an attempt to target use of the currency by tourists. Although the city of Jinan embarked upon an initiative last year to enable digital yuan payments on its bus system, the currency is not yet widely accepted for public transportation across China.  Meanwhile, Hong Kong is in the second phase of its own CBDC pilot, the e-HKD, and has launched a regulatory sandbox for stablecoins to foster communication between regulators and issuers of fiat-pegged stablecoins in the region. 

The launch of Hong Kong's inaugural spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is expected to occur by mid-2024, according to one of Hong Kong’s leading crypto executives. Gary Tiu, the executive director and head of regulatory affairs at OSL, a licensed cryptocurrency exchange based in Hong Kong, made that assertion in discussion with The Hong Kong Economic Journal. Tiu provided the publication with insights into the accelerating pace of negotiations between cryptocurrency exchanges and fund companies in the region.Photo by Stella P on UnsplashUp to ten firms contemplating ETF launchOSL is actively engaged in discussions with multiple fund companies, with five to ten firms contemplating the introduction of spot crypto ETFs. Tiu revealed that certain firms have made notable progress, raising the possibility of the debut of these ETFs in Hong Kong by the middle of the year. Additionally, the OSL executive emphasized the significance of maintaining reasonable fees in collaborations between OSL and fund companies, given the limited presence of licensed crypto exchanges in the city – a total of two at present. This suggestion from Tiu aligns with similar recent soundings emanating from HashKey, another licensed crypto exchange in Hong Kong, which recently disclosed its ongoing discussions with asset managers exploring the potential launch of spot crypto ETFs. Livio Weng, the CEO of HashKey, indicated that approximately ten fund companies are considering the introduction of such ETFs in the city. VSFG’s ETF plansAligned with Tiu’s thoughts on the matter, according to a Bloomberg report last week, Venture Smart Financial Holdings Ltd (VSFG), a Hong Kong-based financial services firm, expressed plans to potentially launch a spot bitcoin ETF within the first quarter of this year. Bloomberg reported the company's goal of growing the ETF's assets under management to $500 million by the end of 2024. The regulatory landscape in Hong Kong is actively adapting to accommodate spot crypto ETFs, with the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announcing in December that they have reviewed their existing policies. Two circulars were published, outlining the requirements for spot crypto ETFs, with the SFC stressing that transactions should be conducted through SFC-licensed crypto platforms or authorized financial institutions. Currently, Hong Kong has listed several futures-based crypto ETFs, including the Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF, CSOP Bitcoin Futures ETF and CSOP Ether Futures ETF. Hong Kong venue for Bitcoin conferenceIn a related development, local lawmaker Johnny Ng revealed on social media on Monday that Hong Kong will host The Bitcoin Conference this year. Earlier this month Ng urged the local administration in Hong Kong to swiftly follow the United States' approval of spot bitcoin ETFs and position the city as a leading hub in the cryptocurrency space. With Hong Kong and Singapore vying for hub status in the Asian region relative to the digital assets space, the launch of ETF products would give the Chinese autonomous territory a competitive head start given that Singapore doesn’t appear to be close to accommodating crypto ETFs for the time being.