dtcpay forges strategic partnership in launch of crypto payments system

Russia is moving to let ordinary investors gain limited exposure to cryptocurrencies under a draft law that would bring digital assets under the country’s existing financial market framework rather than treating them as a separate category of regulation.Photo by Michael Parulava on UnsplashAnnual retail crypto cap set at $3,800According to a Jan. 13 report by TASS, Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market, said the changes would allow digital assets to become part of everyday life for Russian citizens, but within limits. Under the proposal, annual crypto purchases by retail investors would be capped at 300,000 rubles (roughly $3,800). Aksakov added that professional investors would face no restrictions on crypto investing, noting that digital assets are expected to play a significant role in international settlements. The shift had already been signaled in a December statement from the central bank, cited by Bloomberg. The Bank of Russia said non-qualified investors would be allowed limited access to the most liquid cryptocurrencies after passing a knowledge test. Qualified investors, meanwhile, would be able to buy digital assets without restrictions—excluding anonymous tokens—after completing a risk-awareness assessment. Under the proposals, crypto transactions would be routed through existing market infrastructure. Regulated exchanges, brokers, and trust managers would operate under their current licenses, while custodians and crypto exchange services would be subject to separate requirements. Residents would also be permitted to buy digital assets abroad and transfer their holdings through Russian intermediaries, provided such transactions are reported to tax authorities. The central bank submitted the proposals to the government as part of legislative amendments intended to regulate trading by July 1. It also warned that crypto assets remain high-risk and that investors could face losses. The move marks a notable shift in tone for the Bank of Russia, which in early 2022 pushed for strict limits on the issuance and use of digital assets, likening them to pyramid schemes. Crypto’s role in Russia’s cross-border activity has since expanded amid Western sanctions, including restrictions on access to the SWIFT messaging system imposed on Russian banks after the invasion of Ukraine. Ruble stablecoin booms amid sanctionsThat environment has helped fuel the recent rise of a ruble-backed token used in cross-border flows. A7A5, launched in Kyrgyzstan in January 2025, capitalized on this demand, processing more than $93.3 billion in transaction volume over about a year, according to Chainalysis data. Operating on the TRON and Ethereum blockchains, the token has become a major tool for Russian users navigating banking restrictions. This utility had driven daily transfer volumes past $1 billion by July, according to Elliptic. The activity has persisted despite sanctions and questions about fundamentals, even as the ruble had gained roughly 40% against the dollar by early June, based on Bank of America data cited by CNBC. CoinMarketCap data show A7A5 listed only in a USDT pair on Uniswap V2, while an August Chainalysis report found that activity is concentrated on U.S. Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)-sanctioned services with Russian ties, including Meer, Bitpapa, and Grinex, a confirmed successor to Garantex. Operations on these platforms follow a strict Monday-to-Friday schedule, with volumes surging early in the week and vanishing on weekends. 

Korea’s Content Industry: Thriving Amidst Global Tech Advancements and Ambitious Plans“The global competition driven by the Internet and network platforms, artificial intelligence (AI), the metaverse, blockchain technology, and other unprecedented advancements in content technology is ushering in a new era,” Director Jo Hyun-rae of the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) said in his speech during the 10th annual South Korea Cultural Contents Forum at the Josun Palace Hotel in Seoul on Wednesday, where authorities from various agencies gathered to discuss the prospects, challenges, and hopes for the nation’s content industry.Photo by Ethan Brooke on UnsplashImportance of creative foundations and collaborative effortsJo emphasized his belief that the industry should be built on a foundation of creative talent, rich infrastructure, and financial resources, saying that the agency is actively pushing projects to provide production and financial support in the face of limited resources.“I believe that the creativity and spirit of ambition in our content industry, along with the support and efforts of our people, government, and media, including the Financial News, are shaping the status of K-content today,” he said.Growth and government initiativesAccording to the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST), the Korean content industry has seen remarkable growth over the past decade. Last year, the size of the industry exceeded KRW 148 trillion (approximately $111 billion), a growth of about 70% compared to ten years ago.Last year’s content-related exports also amounted to $13.3 billion, far surpassing the $10 billion scale of secondary battery exports and $8.1 billion in home appliance exports. “The Ministry recognizes the economic importance and potential of the content industry and is actively promoting comprehensive support measures to utilize it as an instrument of our national strategy, just like the semiconductor industry,” said Park Sung-won, Vice Minister of the MCST. He also mentioned plans to boost governmental support to encourage active investment in the industry and stimulate the creation of globally competitive works.“Even amid an overall economic downturn, the growth of K-content exports continues, which plays a significant role in our economy,” said Byun Dong-shik, President of local news outlet Financial News. “In light of this forum, I hope that the Korean cultural content industry, and our nation’s economy as a whole, can take another quantum leap forward.”

The Klaytn Foundation and Finschia Foundation have jointly submitted a governance proposal to launch a new mainnet created by merging their respective blockchain ecosystems. The proposals have been submitted for open discussion, with voting scheduled for Jan. 26 to Feb. 2, according to an official announcement on Wednesday (KST).Photo by Shubham's Web3 on UnsplashThe main objective of this initiative is to create Asia’s largest Web3 ecosystem by combining key features of both blockchains. To do so, the two foundations plan to share their technologies, services and business networks and fortify connections between their partners like their mother companies Kakao and LINE, who have contributed to their development and expansion. “We are excited to be taking the first step toward unlocking the enormous synergy of merging the public blockchains started by Kakao and LINE, which are both leading IT companies in Asia,” the two foundations said. “We will give our best to make this merge an opportunity to innovate and lead the Asian blockchain industry in both technology and adoption.” An unprecedented mainnet ecosystemThe merger will bring together Klaytn and Finschia’s networks in different Asian countries, like Klaytn’s leverage in South Korea, Singapore and Vietnam, and Finschia’s service network in Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and Abu Dhabi. Once the combined ecosystem is launched, it will offer over 420 decentralized apps (dApps) and services, 45 governance partners and some 450 Web3 resources, becoming a mammoth Web3 network capable of swaying the trajectory of the Asian market. In addition, the blockchain will be connected with both Kakao and LINE messengers – two well-known messenger apps in Asia – opening up access to a vast continental user base of over 250 million people. The integration is also expected to catalyze the creation of new Web3 infrastructure in Asia, boosting scalability and liquidity. Future business plansThe joint foundation is specifically set to undertake projects in areas like RWA tokenization, GameFi, DeFi verticals, messenger-based Web3 services and digital commerce through partnerships with Japanese, South Korean and Southeast Asian firms. By leveraging its access to Kakaotalk and LINE users, the new public blockchain has the potential to be a springboard for IT and entertainment enterprises in Asia. Improved tokenomicsWhat may especially interest shareholders and users alike is a new native token that will be issued on the merged network, replacing the foundations’ respective tokens KLAY and FNSA. Holders of KLAY and FNSA will be able to swap their tokens for the new one. The proposed tokenomics system for the new token emphasizes sustainable value creation. This includes a lower base inflation rate and a 3-layer burning model created to encourage deflation as activity on the network increases. 24% of newly issued tokens will also be burned immediately as a trustworthy Zero Reserve Tokenomics measure. This will all be supported via an ecosystem fund and infrastructure fund that are constantly replenished via block rewards, rather than relying on reserves.Enhanced governance and interoperabilityKlaytn and Finschia also plan to bring together their experiences in practicing good governance to build a  permissionless node validation system to put the spotlight on users and the community, promoting transparency, trust and openness. To support the seamless migration and interoperability of existing dApps and services on Klaytn and Finschia, the merged chain will support the smart contract platforms EVM and CosmWasm. Ethereum and Cosmos builders will thus be able to gain access to the network. The foundations are set to host an upcoming event called Klaytn Community Town Hall on Friday to introduce the proposal and facilitate open dialogue and feedback.