USDT stablecoin receives full regulatory approval in Abu Dhabi

Do Kwon Loses Fight to Conceal Singapore RecordsDo Kwon, the founder of Terraform Labs has failed in his attempt to deny the United States’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from accessing company records in Singapore.©Pexels/George BeckerIn February, the SEC filed a complaint against Terraform Labs and its founder in a US court. The move followed an investigation that the agency had carried out into the collapse of a number of digital assets established by the company. The lawsuit claims that both the company and Do Kwon had engaged in fraud, together with the sale of unregistered securities to US citizens.Jurisdictional challengeLawyers for Do Kwon had claimed that in trying to access documents related to the Singapore-domiciled company, the SEC was acting far beyond its jurisdiction. According to court filings, his defense team argued that Do Kwon is a Singapore resident while Terraform Labs is a Singapore-based company that operates on a global basis and not specifically in the United States.The filing pointed to the fact that the Terraform Labs CEO had “limited contact with the US.” “Most of the company’s business is essentially global, and it’s not specifically aimed at the United States,” it stated.His lawyers had filed a request for the SEC to withdraw its documentation request. In a recent hearing, US District Judge Jed Rokoff turned down Terraform’s request. The documents are understood to be held by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) although the specific nature of the documentation sought remains unclear.The SEC claims that in founding the Terra US dollar stablecoin (TUSD) and associated cryptocurrency LUNA, Terraform Labs and Do Kwon were responsible for wiping out more than $40 billion dollars in value following their collapse. The Luna Foundation Guard (LFG), which was established to provide funds to keep the TUSD stablecoin at a $1 value, is another entity that the SEC intends to access documents from with the court’s permission. Singaporean police had stated last month that they had launched an investigation into the collapse of the TUSD stablecoin.Meanwhile, both the South Korean and US authorities are seeking the extradition of Do Kwon to face related charges. He was arrested last month in the southeastern European country of Montenegro where he was charged with having used forged documentation to enter the country. Although he had denied it on social media, in effect Do Kwon had been on the run from the reach of South Korean authorities over the course of a number of months, spending a portion of that time in Montenegro.Asset huntAn investigation by authorities in South Korea in recent weeks revealed that they were unable to find any assets held in the country owned by the Terraform Labs founder. The trail in chasing down any such assets has led to the United States. It is understood that Do Kwon bought real estate in the United States under his mother’s name. This is a common tactic for those who attempt to evade future confiscation of assets.Earlier this week, South Korean prosecutors confirmed that they are investigating a transfer of funds by Do Kwon to a leading law firm based in Seoul.

Global crypto exchange Binance has carried out a survey which reveals that the security habits of Asian platform users are evolving positively.Photo by Vadim Artyukhin on UnsplashUsers responding to more sophisticated scamsIn a blog post published by the crypto exchange platform on May 6, Binance revealed that it had carried out a survey of nearly 30,000 platform users across Asia. The company’s takeaway following analysis of the survey data is that “scams are evolving — and so are crypto users.” The firm suggested that users are “stepping up their security game,” with exchanges facing growing demand from their users for real-time protection and smarter security tools. Increasing use of 2FAThe exchange platform found that 80.5% of survey respondents now use Binance two-factor authentication (2FA). While the use of 2FA is definitely a move in the right direction, it doesn’t guarantee the safety of a user’s digital assets.  In an article published by Forbes last month Forbes Contributor Davey Winder warned that infostealer malware can compromise 2FA codes in as little as 10 seconds. In June of last year, an OKX user lost $2 million in crypto to a hacker who utilized AI despite the victim having used Google’s 2FA. Double-checking transfersThe survey found that 73.3% of users double-check transfers before sending digital assets. Due to the nature of decentralized cryptocurrency, crypto transactions are not easily reversed and are usually irreversible. That puts a greater responsibility on crypto users to ensure that they are sending funds to the appropriate wallet address. Double-checking transfer addresses is not only necessary due to human error. Malware is also used by hackers to spoof such addresses, tricking the sender into sending the digital assets to their address rather than the one that was originally intended. It emerged in May 2024 that a Bitcoin trader had lost more than $70 million in Bitcoin in an “address poisoning” scam. Binance itself had warned users last September that “clipper malware,” which intercepts clipboard data on a user’s phone or desktop, replacing copied wallet addresses with alternative addresses under the hacker’s control, is increasingly being employed in hacking attempts. While the survey has revealed a positive evolution in the security habits of Asian platform users, there’s still room for further improvement. Just 17.6% of survey respondents utilize address whitelisting, a measure that restricts account user access to a safe list of pre-defined trusted addresses. Only 21.5% of survey respondents use anti-phishing codes as a security mechanism. The objective of phishing is to steal data, install malware on a user’s device or otherwise gain account access. An anti-phishing code aids the user in verifying the authenticity of emails and texts from a specific service. Security remains a major issue within crypto. Last month, hackers employed social engineering tactics to steal $330 million in Bitcoin from an elderly American victim. Exchange platforms themselves continue to struggle to safeguard user funds. Earlier this year, Binance competitor, Dubai-headquartered Bybit, suffered a $1.5 billion hack believed to have been perpetrated by North Korea’s Lazarus Group. Lazarus is also thought to have been behind a $235 million crypto theft at Indian crypto exchange WazirX in July 2024.

CPLABS and Protocol Capital to collaborate on blockchain-enhanced autonomous driving in QatarKorean blockchain development firm CPLABS (formerly known as Coinplug) announced on Wednesday (local time) that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Qatar-based company Protocol Capital to collaborate on blockchain-driven ventures in the Middle Eastern country.Protocol Capital is known for partnering with institutional clients and delivering bespoke solutions to investors in sectors such as real estate, energy, construction, and manufacturing.Photo by Lucca Belliboni on UnsplashBlockchain and autonomous drivingThrough this agreement, the two companies aim to execute projects that leverage and champion blockchain technology, with initiatives including an autonomous driving pilot project. They also plan to register with Qatar’s Tasmu Digital Valley, established by the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC) and the Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA), as part of their collaborative efforts towards Qatar’s National Vision 2030.CPLABS plans to integrate its blockchain platform and upcoming 2024 Web3 portal into the autonomous driving pilot project. This move will grant the Korean firm an avenue to offer identity verification and payment services, further broadening its footprint in the finance and information communications technology (ICT) sectors.”As a dedicated Web3 tech firm, CPLABS possesses around 320 blockchain patents both domestically and internationally. Its projects encompass areas such as decentralized identifiers (DIDs), decentralized finance (DeFi), security token offerings (STOs), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs).Commenting on this joint effort, Uhr Joon-sun, CEO of CPLABS, stated that the company aims to deliver Web3 platforms that connect Korea with the global community.