Pakistan appoints crypto advisor to PM & allocates 2K MW to Bitcoin mining

South Korea’s financial authority is moving to strengthen its ability to intervene early in suspected cryptocurrency price manipulation cases by seeking explicit legal authority to freeze related accounts. According to News1, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) plans to include the measure in the upcoming second phase of the country’s cryptocurrency legislation. Under the proposal, when financial accounts are suspected of being used to manipulate crypto prices, the FSC would be able to coordinate with financial institutions and cryptocurrency exchanges to freeze the funds.Photo by Ethan Brooke on UnsplashClosing gaps in illicit fund recoveryThe initiative is intended to address a long-standing enforcement challenge. Authorities have often struggled to recover illicit gains because funds can be moved elsewhere while investigations and court proceedings—often lasting up to three years—are still ongoing. By allowing accounts to be frozen before a formal investigation is launched, the proposal aims to close a critical gap in illicit fund recovery. An official from the authority cited a recent precedent to illustrate the measure’s potential impact. In September, a government task force disrupted a stock price manipulation case involving roughly 100 billion won ($69 million), of which about 40 billion won was illicitly obtained. It marked the first time the government implemented an early account freeze, preventing additional funds from being transferred beyond its reach. The official added that the same approach could be applied to cryptocurrency price manipulation cases when suspicious transactions are detected through Korean crypto exchanges. However, the measure would not be effective against activity conducted via overseas platforms. The proposal comes as the government continues to refine the second phase of its crypto regulatory framework, which is expected to focus primarily on stablecoin regulations. While authorities had originally planned to submit the bill to the National Assembly by the end of last year, the timeline has been pushed to this year as financial and monetary regulators work through unresolved differences. One point of contention lies between the Bank of Korea and the FSC. The central bank supports allowing only bank-majority consortia to issue stablecoins, while the FSC opposes setting a bank-ownership threshold, arguing for the inclusion of non-bank participants. Alongside enforcement and regulatory reforms, the government is also signaling a broader push to expand investor access to digital assets. A Jan. 9 document from the Ministry of Economy and Finance showed the government plans to permit trading in spot crypto ETFs to improve investor access under its 2026 economic plan. Against this policy backdrop, traditional financial firms are pressing ahead with their own digital asset initiatives, seeking to position themselves within the evolving framework. Life insurer explores blockchain collaborationsKyobo Life Planet Life Insurance, a mobile-only subsidiary of Kyobo Life Insurance, has partnered with Singapore-headquartered crypto exchange Crypto.com. According to South Korean media outlet Financial News, under the agreement, eligible users will receive benefits on Crypto.com, while reward points earned through Kyobo Life Planet’s healthcare platform can be used within the exchange’s ecosystem. The collaboration reflects broader efforts by the parent company to expand into digital assets. Last month, Kyobo Life Insurance joined Circle’s public testnet, Arc, to assess the technical feasibility of stablecoin-related infrastructure. 

Kloint and Korea University to develop on-chain data analysis solutionsKloint, a company specializing in the tracking of virtual asset transactions, revealed on Tuesday a partnership with the College of Informatics and the Center for Information System Security at Korea University. The collaboration is set to focus on the joint development of algorithms and platforms for on-chain data analysis.Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashSharing insights on regulatory frameworksAs part of this initiative, Kloint and Korea University will cooperate to understand the domestic and international demand for on-chain data analysis. They will also exchange insights on the regulatory and policy frameworks that govern the technologies involved.Growing crypto-related criminal activitiesThe collaborative effort between Kloint and Korea University is set against a backdrop where, with the expansion of the cryptocurrency market, there has been a corresponding uptick in its use for criminal activities like money laundering, drug trafficking, and embezzlement.Traditional techniques used by government bodies, such as the public prosecutor’s office and financial regulators, have proven expensive and increasingly ineffective in tracking virtual assets as they struggle to keep pace with the sophisticated methods now used to circumvent detection.Kloint was co-founded last September by three blockchain technology firms: Fair Square Lab, S2W and Ozys. With a vision set on the horizon, Kloint is gearing up to supply government entities and virtual asset service providers (VASPs) with analytical platforms and reporting services. In the more immediate term, the company is focusing its efforts on developing solutions for data collection and analysis tailored to the Korean cryptocurrency market.

The global version of Night Crows, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by South Korean game company Wemade, officially launched yesterday, as announced in the company’s press release.  Night Crows Global is currently available across 170 countries, except for South Korea and China. Players can experience the game on mobile and PC in nine languages including English, Japanese and Thai. Photo by Nik Shuliahin 💛💙 on UnsplashPowered by Unreal Engine 5, Night Crows Global maximizes visual performance by delivering highly realistic lighting and shadow effects. The game is set in 13th-century Europe and merges history and fantasy, offering an intriguing in-game universe. Players can enjoy intense battles backed by cutting-edge graphics. They can choose their weapons from four class types –  one-handed sword, staff, two-handed sword and bow – and explore various content including a Unified Exchange.  Tokenomics and character NFTs powered by blockchain technology Night Crows Global implements multi-tokenomics to tokenize a total of seven types of in-game items and adopts character NFTs, which compresses game character data into easily identifiable attributes.  These character NFTs can be exchanged for the game’s main token, CROW, within the WEMIX PLAY blockchain gaming platform, connecting the in-game and real-world economies. In addition, the omnichain network strategy enhances user accessibility, enabling users of other blockchain networks connected to Wemade’s WEMIX3.0 ecosystem to play the game with ease.  Meanwhile, Night Crows has already demonstrated its popularity before the global launch. Since its initial launch in April last year in Korea, the game topped mobile game sales on Google Play and App Store, the two most prominent mobile app markets in the country. Upcoming in-game events In celebration of the global launch, Night Crows Global holds various in-game events for up to four weeks. The month-long celebration comprises a check-in event “Festival 1: Answer to the Call,” a mission event “Festival 2: Birth of a New Member” and a ranking event “Festival 3: News from the Night Crow Perch.” By completing these events, players will be rewarded with various items such as “Dawn’s Lustrous Weapon Style Summon.”  Wemade CEO Henry Chang expressed his excitement about the global launch, saying that Night Crows Global will be able to capture global audiences’ attention by offering new omnichain experiences and high-quality multi-tokenomics. He added that Night Crows Global’s success will revitalize not only WEMIX PLAY but also spur the overall growth of the WEMIX mainnet ecosystem.