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Net asset inflows to South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges fell by half from a year earlier, while net asset outflows to overseas exchanges nearly doubled, Chosun Biz reported. The shift is being analyzed as an effect of virtual asset taxation scheduled to begin in January next year. According to an analysis of data from South Korea’s five largest crypto exchanges — Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax — by Park Soo-young, a lawmaker on the National Assembly’s Strategy and Finance Committee from the People Power Party, net asset inflows to the five exchanges totaled 2.05 trillion won from January through August this year. That was down 56.8% from 4.74 trillion won in the same period last year. Meanwhile, assets flowing out to overseas exchanges increased sharply. Based on Park’s analysis of data from Korbit and Gopax, net outflows to overseas exchanges reached 480.2 billion won from January through August this year, up significantly from 275.7 billion won a year earlier.

As U.S. national debt has surpassed $40 trillion, some investors are using non-dollar assets such as gold, the Swiss franc and BTC to hedge against the risk of currency depreciation, Neoclassic Capital co-founder Michael Bucella said in a CNBC interview. Bucella added that the growing availability of BTC-backed lending products in the U.S. is creating conditions for holders to secure liquidity without selling BTC. BTC still retains the characteristics of a risk asset, however, and may remain sensitive to macroeconomic conditions.

South Korean exchange Upbit announced a temporary suspension of SXP withdrawals as SXP block production has been delayed.

A Tiger Research analysis found 73.1% of South Korean crypto investors may scale back use of domestic exchanges if cryptocurrency taxation takes effect next year. Based on a recent survey of 2,423 South Korean virtual asset investors, 73.1% of respondents said they could reduce their use of South Korean virtual asset exchanges after the tax begins, according to Tiger Research. Even among 866 respondents who had only ever used domestic exchanges, 65.4% said they might move to overseas exchanges or personal wallets once taxation starts. Based on the survey results, Tiger Research projected trading volume at the three major South Korean exchanges, Upbit, Bithumb and Coinone, will total 601.9 trillion won next year, down 30% from 859.8 trillion won this year.

An address believed to belong to an anonymous whale or institution bought an additional 15,000 ETH today at an average price of $2,751, worth $41.26 million, EmberCN reported. The address had previously accumulated 37,000 ETH through Galaxy Digital OTC about two months earlier at an average price of $1,923. Its total holdings have now increased to 52,000 ETH, worth $143 million.

South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT still groups virtual asset, or digital asset, companies in the same category as nightlife and gambling-related businesses and therefore does not recognize affiliated research institutes tied to the sector, Digital Asset reported. Documents lawmaker Hwang Jung-a of the ruling Democratic Party obtained from the ministry and released on Sept. 23 showed the ministry classifies blockchain-based digital asset trading and brokerage as an industry excluded from eligibility for corporate-affiliated research institute recognition. The documents also showed the ministry has not revised rules treating the sector as part of the nightlife and gambling category even after lawmakers raised the issue. According to materials the ministry submitted to Hwang, the ministry said in March it would complete, within the first half of the year, a revision to the enforcement decree that would make blockchain-based digital asset trading and brokerage eligible for such recognition. But the decree was not revised within the first half, and Hwang said the ministry later changed its position and said it would amend the decree within the year.

Bankruptcy liquidation addresses tied to FTX and Alameda Research transferred 27,372 ETH worth about $75.23 million to crypto market maker Wintermute through six addresses three hours ago, EmberCN reported. EmberCN said the transfer was likely intended to facilitate a sale through Wintermute.

CoinMarketCap’s altcoin season index came in at 49, down one point from yesterday. The index is calculated by comparing the price performance of Bitcoin and the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, excluding stablecoins and wrapped coins. A CoinNess analysis shows the market is considered to be in altcoin season when 75% of the top 100 coins outperform Bitcoin over the past 90 days, and in Bitcoin season in the opposite case. A reading closer to 100 indicates stronger altcoin season conditions.

KB Securities is moving ahead with a tokenized securities business after signing a memorandum of understanding with global tokenization platform Securitize and the Optimism Foundation to help build a foundation for South Korean institutional investors to use tokenized assets, JikSSEUL reported. Under the agreement, KB Securities will be responsible for product supply by leveraging its capabilities in underwriting, issuance and sales of financial products, along with its institutional client base. Securitize will provide tokenization infrastructure, while the Optimism Foundation will provide a blockchain-based network.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission warned that so-called “mention market” prediction products, which use a specific person’s remarks or actions as the outcome, may be vulnerable to manipulation, CoinDesk reported. The CFTC’s Division of Market Oversight said mention markets differ from typical event contracts because outcomes are determined by an individual’s behavior, making them more susceptible to manipulation. The division noted the person involved, or people close to that person, could alter their behavior to influence the result if they are aware the market exists.

Spot CVD is an order book analysis chart for the BTC/USDT spot trading pair. The upper section shows a volume heatmap, while the lower section represents cumulative volume delta, or CVD. - The volume heatmap tracks trading volume at each price level. The background color becomes brighter when the price stays in a specific range for an extended period or makes a large move. Brighter zones may act as support or resistance levels. - The CVD indicator shows buy and sell orders by fund size. As buy orders increase, the line for the corresponding color moves higher. The yellow line is based on orders between $100 and $1,000, while the brown line reflects large orders between $1 million and $10 million.

CoinMarketCap’s in-house crypto fear and greed index came in at 78, down one point from yesterday, indicating continued greed. The index signals extreme fear when it is closer to zero and extreme optimism when it is closer to 100. CoinMarketCap calculates the gauge based on price moves among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, market volatility, derivatives-market indicators such as the put/call ratio, the stablecoin supply ratio (SSR), and CoinMarketCap’s own search data.

ZEC has risen by 3.21% in the past five minutes on the COINNESS market. Currently, ZEC is trading at $1,604.72.

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., is developing a custody security system that supports quantum-resistant signature methods, Decrypt reported. In a recent interview, Coinbase Chief Cryptographer Yehuda Lindell said the company is building a security framework that can adapt to technical changes in Bitcoin and other digital assets if cryptographically meaningful quantum computers emerge and begin to pose a real threat to Bitcoin’s security. Lindell also said Coinbase is studying an alternative architecture that combines quantum-resistant threshold decryption with programmable hardware security modules, or HSMs. He added Coinbase sees it as unlikely that every blockchain will ultimately use the same signature method and said the company needs to be prepared regardless of which approach different blockchains adopt.

South Korean crypto and blockchain venture capital firm Hashed has joined a digital-asset private credit fund targeting $300 million in fundraising as a key investor, The Block reported. Founded by Abu Dhabi-based investor Mohamed Hamdy and managed by Thoro Capital Management, the fund plans to generate returns by making direct U.S. dollar loans, settled in stablecoins, to digital-asset institutions. Unlike conventional models that simply lend against crypto collateral, it will set loan terms by assessing borrowers’ financial condition, cash flow and management situation. Hashed said the goal is to provide a new funding channel for digital-asset infrastructure companies that face fundraising difficulties under regulations affecting traditional financial institutions.

Short-term Bitcoin holders have begun taking profits as Bitcoin prices rise, adding to selling pressure, Cointelegraph reported. In a post on its official X account, the outlet said 47,600 BTC held by short-term investors was deposited to exchanges over the past 24 hours as Bitcoin approached $88,000, adding that such inflows are typically interpreted as positioning for sales and suggest profit-taking pressure is increasing among short-term holders.

UNI has risen by 4.06% in the past five minutes on the COINNESS market. Currently, UNI is trading at $9.87.

Jamie Selway, director of the U.S. SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets, said in a recent interview with Bloomberg Crypto that developing regulations and policies for tokenization and cryptocurrencies requires bipartisan support. Selway said tokenized securities should be subject to the same regulatory principles as traditional securities, rather than receiving separate advantages or disadvantages, and backed an approach of "innovation without arbitrage." Earlier, the SEC announced on Sept. 17 an Innovation Exemption that grants certain on-chain trading platforms a five-year conditional regulatory exemption for trading tokenized U.S. exchange-listed stocks, or NMS stocks. Under the measure, approved platforms can trade tokenized stocks through AMM liquidity pools.

Researchers at East Texas A&M University in the U.S. have developed an implementation that applies quantum-resistant security to Bitcoin’s Layer 2 Lightning Network, Crypto Briefing reported. The outlet said the team recently unveiled PQLN, or Post-Quantum Lightning Network, a Lightning Network implementation with strengthened security designed to withstand attacks from quantum computers. The researchers replaced the cryptographic methods used in the existing Lightning Network with cryptography designed to remain secure against quantum computers, while keeping the implementation compatible with the existing network. According to the researchers, PQLN operated alongside nodes using the current approach in real-world tests, and payments were not interrupted. PQLN has been released as open source, and the team said it applied quantum-resistant cryptography to the Lightning Network’s core communication and payment processes.

U.S. Republican Sen. John Curtis of Utah recently sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee urging it to subpoena Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden, son of former President Joe Biden, to investigate their cryptocurrency businesses. Curtis argued the two men’s crypto ventures showed how presidential family status could be used for private gain, preferential treatment and access. He specifically raised concerns about Trump Jr.’s promotion of a family-backed crypto business and advisory and financial ties to a prediction market platform regulated by the CFTC. Curtis also claimed Hunter Biden had conducted business with foreign companies in China and Ukraine during Joe Biden’s presidency and presidential campaign. He added that presidential families should not be held to different standards regardless of party affiliation.

Open interest in Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana futures rose about 7.6% during the recent crypto rally, Cointelegraph reported, citing Santiment. During the same period, around $648 million in short positions was liquidated, and new leveraged positions are flowing into the market দ্রুত, according to the report.

The CEO of U.S. retirement-account digital asset investment platform iTrustCapital said the long-running crypto slump has ended. Appearing on crypto-focused YouTube channel Paul Barron Network, the executive said the crypto bear market was over and Bitcoin was continuing to gain without passage of the Clarity Act, a U.S. crypto regulatory bill. The CEO added that if Bitcoin closes a weekly candle above $85,000, it would be in a favorable position for further gains. According to CoinMarketCap, BTC was trading at $86,248.3, down 0.62%, at the time of writing.

Four Bitcoin whale addresses that had been dormant for more than 10 years transferred 1,971.03 BTC worth about $161 million out over the past two weeks, according to a Galaxy Research analysis cited by Decrypt. Galaxy Research said the whale addresses that emerged from dormancy moved the holdings between Sept. 6 and Sept. 22. The largest of the four held 1,260.78 BTC worth about $100.63 million and had been inactive for more than 10 years since July 2016. The address bought BTC at an average price of $652 and is now estimated to be sitting on gains of about 12,122%. Galaxy Research also explained that three of the four addresses carried a sender tag reading "Noah Doe," referring to a New York lawsuit in which an anonymous plaintiff and two corporate entities sought ownership after declaring thousands of dormant Bitcoin addresses abandoned property.

Signs of a new crypto bull market are emerging across the market as the sector has been recovering since August, led by Bitcoin’s sharp rally, according to AMBCrypto. The outlet said the Crypto Fear & Greed Index rose to 59 this week from 45 last week, moving into greed territory and showing a clear improvement. It added that spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $999 million in net inflows in one day, while spot Ethereum ETFs drew about $270 million, and that BTC has also moved above a key long-term moving average for the first time in around 300 days on technical charts. According to CoinMarketCap, BTC was trading at $86,219.42, down 0.45%.

The U.S. SEC is drafting rules on cryptocurrency custody and has submitted a related proposal to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review, Taylor Lindman, chief counsel for the SEC’s crypto task force, said at a CoinDesk policy and regulation event. The proposal targets investment firms and securities brokerages. Lindman said the rule is intended to clarify how securities brokers can hold non-security crypto assets in the market without special registration and allow investment advisers to place client assets with state-chartered trust institutions and similar entities. If the proposal clears the White House OMB review, the SEC plans to formally release it and gather industry feedback.