Solana faces rising phishing threats in South Korea amid growing adoption

Credit Saison, one of the largest credit card issuers in Japan, is accelerating its global venture strategy with the creation of Onigiri Capital, a new fund targeting early-stage startups building on blockchain technology. Set up in Singapore last month through Credit Saison’s corporate venture arm, Saison Capital, the vehicle is aiming for up to $50 million in commitments and will run for 10 years, with an optional two-year extension. The fund has already secured $35 million toward its target.Photo by Markus Winkler on UnsplashBuilding on a fintech track recordThe initiative is part of Credit Saison’s broader plan to expand in emerging markets and spur innovation in financial services, drawing on Saison Capital’s track record. Established in 2019, the venture arm has backed fintech startups across Asia and, since 2021, has increasingly focused on blockchain-based finance, investing in more than 40 companies. The firm said those investments laid the groundwork for Onigiri Capital, which will also enable other financial institutions to invest alongside Credit Saison in promising blockchain ventures. Onigiri Capital will concentrate on five areas: stablecoins, payments, asset tokenization, decentralized finance (DeFi), and financial infrastructure. The fund will invest primarily at the seed and early stages, with an emphasis on long-term growth. Managing the fund are Qin En Looi, a partner at Saison Capital involved in over 40 blockchain investments, and Hans de Back, a venture investor with more than two decades of experience. Cross-border stablecoin pilotThe launch comes as Japan steps up efforts in digital assets beyond investment alone. According to Electronic Times, the first phase of “Project Pax,” a cross-border stablecoin remittance pilot involving financial institutions in Japan and South Korea, concluded successfully last week. Participants were Progmat—a tokenization platform backed by a consortium of major institutions, including MUFG—along with Datachain and Shoko Chukin Bank from Japan, and Shinhan Bank, NH Nonghyup Bank, and Kbank from South Korea. Fair Square Lab and Korea Digital Asset Custody helped develop an application programming interface (API) for the trial. The pilot demonstrated the feasibility of a network that converts fiat currency into stablecoins for on-chain transfers and then back into local currency at the destination, an approach expected to reduce the time and cost of cross-border payments. The results add momentum to Japan’s bid to modernize financial infrastructure, a backdrop that Onigiri Capital aims to capitalize on as it deploys capital into the sector. 

Survey Reveals 45.9% of Korean Crypto Investors Reporting LossesAccording to a recent survey, more than half of South Korean adults have experience of owning cryptocurrency. Most of them bought crypto for investment purposes, with 33% of respondents making gains and 45.9% losing money.Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels2,500 respondentsThe Korea Financial Consumers Protection Foundation, a public research and education institute, conducted an online survey to assess the prevalence and trends of cryptocurrency ownership among South Koreans. The study, conducted between March 3 and March 24, 2023, encompassed 2,500 participants between the ages of 20 and 69 residing in Seoul, its suburbs, and the six major metropolitan areas. The results shed light on the crypto landscape, including ownership patterns, investment purposes, asset holdings, funding sources, and the future intentions of respondents.Crypto ownership trendsAccording to the survey, 30% of the participants currently own cryptocurrency, while 23% revealed they had previously owned crypto assets but no longer possess them, indicating that more than half of the respondents have had exposure to cryptocurrencies at some point in their lives.Among current crypto holders, 74.5% stated that they had acquired their first digital assets between 2020 and 2022, which suggests a surge in crypto purchases during the COVID pandemic period.Purpose of holding cryptoRegarding the purpose of holding crypto, 80.9% of respondents who either currently own or have previous experience owning cryptocurrency (representing approximately 43% of all participants) cited investment as their primary motivation. Furthermore, 17.4% viewed crypto as a trading instrument, while 17.8% held it for specific service utilization. (Individuals were allowed to choose multiple options.) From this result, the authors estimated that around 24.2% of all respondents currently hold crypto for investment purposes.The survey revealed the distribution of virtual asset holdings among respondents, with the values quoted in Korean Won (KRW). Among the participants, 21.5% owned less than 1 million KRW ($760), while 45.8% held more than 1 million KRW ($760) but less than 10 million KRW ($7,600). Additionally, 28.8% possessed between 10 million KRW ($7,600) and 100 million KRW ($76,000), and 3.9% held more than 100 million KRW ($76,000) in crypto assets.Funding sourcesWhen asked about the sources of funds used to purchase virtual assets, 82.5% of individuals with previous crypto ownership experiences mentioned utilizing spare funds from deposits or other sources. Meanwhile, 17.7% disclosed that they had liquidated other assets, such as stocks or real estate, to invest in cryptocurrencies. (Individuals were allowed to choose multiple options.) In addition, 7.8% of respondents acknowledged borrowing from acquaintances, with a higher rate of 11.8% among those in their 20s. The proportion of respondents who borrowed from loans was 6.2%.Among those who borrowed funds to invest in crypto, 47.6% are currently facing difficulties in repaying their loans, while 28.6% experienced repayment challenges in the past. This data suggests that a significant portion of individuals who borrowed to purchase cryptocurrencies encounter difficulties in loan repayment.Regarding the financial institutions from which respondents borrowed, 57.1% borrowed from the banking sector, while the remaining 42.9% obtained funds from non-banking entities. Encouragingly, no respondents reported borrowing from loan sharks.Cumulative returnsRegarding the cumulative returns on crypto assets, 33% of respondents who currently hold crypto reported gains, with an average cumulative return of 25%. Conversely, 45.9% reported losses, experiencing an average cumulative loss of 41.5%.When liquidating their crypto assets, 24.7% of traders made a profit, while 47.9% incurred losses. The data reveals that the proportion of individuals who suffered losses in their crypto investments was nearly twice as high as those who reported gains. Furthermore, higher age groups exhibited a higher percentage of losses compared to younger respondents. Among those who profited, the average return was 38.4%, while those who suffered losses reported an average loss of 37.5%.Future intentionsThe survey also inquired about the future intentions of respondents regarding their crypto holdings. Among current crypto holders, 80.8% expressed their intention to continue holding crypto assets. On the other hand, among those who do not currently own any crypto assets, 72.8% stated that they do not plan to purchase cryptocurrencies in the future.

Foblgate Strengthens Anti-Cybercrime Measures with Chainalysis SolutionsKorean crypto exchange Foblgate last Thursday announced its adoption of virtual asset data analysis solutions from blockchain data analysis firm Chainalysis, which has significantly enhanced its ability to combat illegal money laundering of virtual assets and cybercrime.“As crimes involving virtual assets continue to rise, the introduction of Chainalysis’ solutions empowers us to address a wider range of diverse and advanced virtual asset-related crimes,” said Ahn Hyun-jun, CEO of Foblgate.Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on UnsplashChainalysis’ specialized solutionsChainalysis provides data, software, services, and research to governmental agencies, exchanges, financial institutions, insurance companies, and cybersecurity firms all over the world, aiding in solving high-profile criminal cases and expanding consumer access to cryptocurrency safely.Foblgate will use two of its products, Know Your Transaction (KYT) and Reactor, to strengthen safety and security measures on its exchange platform.KYT is a cryptocurrency compliance product that combines blockchain technology, a simple interface, and a real-time application programming interface (API) to map data, monitor crypto transactions, and provide safe access to decentralized finance.Meanwhile, Reactor is an investigation software that connects cryptocurrency transactions to real-world activity. This allows users to visualize cryptocurrency flows and trace transactions across blockchains.Both solutions automatically detect patterns of potential high-risk activities then issue alerts accordingly and link numerous addresses to actual entities (individuals or organizations associated with virtual asset wallet addresses.)By integrating this technology, Foblgate can restrict deposits and withdrawals made by high-risk entities, including unregistered overseas virtual asset exchanges. It can also ensure transparency in virtual asset trading within its domain.Taking security measures a step furtherFoblegate is also taking other measures to further earn trust as a secure exchange by bolstering its countermeasures to cybercrime. Notably, it has established a partnership with GTOne, a company specializing in governance and compliance solutions including anti-money laundering (AML). Through this collaboration, it will be able to thoroughly comply with the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information.This strategic move towards innovative blockchain data analysis solutions not only underscores Foblgate’s commitment to regulatory compliance and user security but also a proactive stance against emerging challenges in the realm of virtual assets and cybercrime.