Ant Group preparing to apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong & Singapore

Metabora Singapore officially launches blockchain-based app for golf fansMetabora Singapore, a subsidiary of South Korean blockchain game developer Metabora formerly known as Kakao Friends Games, has officially launched BirdieSquad, a blockchain-based community platform for fans of professional golfers in the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA). This comes after the beta version that was launched in August quickly gained popularity, topping the ranks of sports-related apps.Photo by Splash Pic on UnsplashRevolutionizing the golf fandomBirdieSquad was developed by Kakao VX, the digital sports arm of Korean internet juggernaut Kakao, with the goal of creating an innovative and fun playground for golf fans to interact and create a fandom-based community. Users can own NFTs of their favorite golfers — which come in six tiers: Uncommon, Rare, Super Rare, Epic and Legendary — which are stored in personal wallets, and earn various rewards based on players’ actual performance results. They can also interact with other users and compete in “cheer-offs”. During off-seasons, Metabora plans to host various events such as AI-based championship tournaments.The platform is currently working with 46 professional golfers, including Han Jin-seon, Park Hyun-kyung, Lee Ye-won and Kim Min-byul. The platform said that it would bring more athletes in the future.“As we strive to create a new fandom culture where pro golfers and fans can interact, we will expand our ecosystem by onboarding various entertainment content revolving around gaming and sports,” said Lim Young-joon, Chief Business Officer of Metabora Singapore.Expanding partnershipsMeanwhile, the company has been expanding its partnerships with various global blockchain networks such as Polygon, NEAR Protocol, Ethereum and BNB Chain to expand its global ecosystem.

Zodia Custody to Commence Yield Offering on StablecoinsIn a play that’s designed to entice institutional investors, Zodia Custody, a portfolio company of Japanese financial services conglomerate SBI, is gearing up to offer a yield on digital assets.Photo by CoinWire Japan on UnsplashIntroducing “Zodia Custody Yield”The crypto startup has introduced “Zodia Custody Yield,” a crypto staking option designed to reward holders of crypto assets stored within its platform. The initiative has been launched in partnership with Singapore-based DeFi platform OpenEden. It promises returns on stablecoins although full details on the offering remain undisclosed.Jeremy Ng, Co-Founder of OpenEden, expressed his belief in the potential of cryptocurrencies to generate substantial passive income for their holders. Ng stated:“There are billions of dollars worth of stablecoins sitting on the sidelines when they could easily be generating yields for investors.”TradFi embracing digital assetsZodia’s move aligns with a growing trend in the financial industry. Yesterday, a leading US bank, Citi, disclosed its collaboration with Maersk to facilitate services that convert funds into digital assets. The primary goal is to enable the bank’s customers to execute nearly instantaneous payments, unrestricted by traditional business hours.Simultaneously, several prominent asset management firms are awaiting a pivotal decision from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding their applications to launch a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). This list includes major players such as BlackRock, Invesco, WisdomTree, ARK Invest, Valkyrie, and Franklin Templeton. BlackRock, the frontrunner in the efforts being expended towards ETF approval, submitted its application for a spot Bitcoin ETF on June 16.In a recent interview, Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas said that he expects $150 billion in capital to flow into the Bitcoin market within two years of a spot Bitcoin ETF approval in the US.The financial strategies of these entities now prominently feature blockchain and crypto-based products, once considered niche but now integral to their operations. Nonetheless, even with widespread anticipation of the approval of BlackRock’s ETF, the firm faces substantial obstacles. US regulators have subjected BlackRock to intense scrutiny due to concerns regarding its ties to China. Additionally, political figures have criticized the asset manager for prioritizing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria over investor returns.Zodia was spun out of British multinational banking firm Standard Chartered. The bank has a positive outlook relative to crypto. In a bold prediction made in June, the UK-based bank forecasted that the value of Bitcoin could potentially surge to $50,000 by the end of the year, with an even more optimistic projection of $120,000 for 2024.In 2021 Standard Chartered, in collaboration with Northern Trust, a leading asset servicing firm, founded Zodia Custody. Since its inception, the venture has garnered a respectable level of success. It successfully secured $36 million in investments and solidified a partnership with SBI Digital Asset Holdings, enabling its expansion into the Japanese market.In May, the firm launched its crypto custodian service in Dubai, having signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC). In June, Zodia partnered with blockchain infrastructure provider Blockdaemon, in an effort to further its crypto staking offering. Earlier this month, the company announced its arrival in Singapore, with a view towards expanding its digital asset custody service there.

The Dubai Land Department (DLD), a government agency responsible for the registration of real estate in Dubai and the promotion of real estate investments, has signed an agreement with the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), a local regulator, to better integrate tokenized real estate within existing systems. In a statement published on the DLD website on April 6, the government agency set out further details on the collaboration. The purpose of the agreement is to better accommodate fractional ownership of Dubai real estate through tokenization. Photo by Precondo CA on UnsplashLinking fractional ownership to DLD registryTo that end, a governance system will be put in place in order to link the DLD’s land and property registry with tokenized, fractional ownership of property. The parties believe that this approach will lead to greater operational efficiency for stakeholders such as property management firms. Furthermore, greater accommodation of tokenized ownership will lead to enhanced liquidity within the Dubai real estate market.  As a consequence of this improved liquidity and facilitating a more seamless approach in terms of operational efficiency for property management firms, it’s believed that a greater share of global investment in local real estate can be achieved. Broadening the investor baseFractional ownership via tokenized real estate opens the market up to a broader range of potential investors. On this basis, the collaboration can play a role in contributing towards the objectives of Dubai’s Real Estate Strategy 2033, which sets out to boost the local property sector’s contribution towards gross domestic product (GDP). That initiative targets a real estate market value of AED 1 trillion ($272 billion). The DLD said that the initiative also feeds into the broader objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), a ten-year plan that has been set out to double Dubai’s economy by 2033, through focusing on innovation, achieving competitiveness at a global level and sustainable growth. Helal Almari, the director general of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, commented on the partnership, stating that it reflects the future-focused innovation, which he claims Dubai has already become associated with. He added: “Real Estate and Virtual Assets are key pillars of the D33 Economic Agenda D33 and by joining forces DLD and VARA will be creating the blueprint for RE 2.0 in a Decentralised Future Economy.” Almari expressed the belief that putting legal safeguards in place to recognize fractional ownership rights where real estate is concerned will facilitate “more inclusive economic participation” in this market sector.  The DLD recently launched a real estate tokenization pilot project in collaboration with VARA and the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF). At that time, DLD Director General Marwan Ahmed Bin Ghalita recognized the potential that tokenization can bring to the real estate sector. He stated: “By converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology, tokenization simplifies and enhances buying, selling, and investment processes.”Last month, Scott Thiel, founder and CEO of Dubai-based real-world asset (RWA) token marketplace Tokinvest, outlined that RWA asset tokenization in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is gaining momentum. Commenting on this latest development, Thiel said that it’s a demonstration that “the future of real estate investment is onchain.”