Crypto-Friendly Xapo Bank Enters Indian Market

With the Chinese autonomous territory of Hong Kong having introduced its new Stablecoins Ordinance on August 1 and local taxi operators required to facilitate two forms of digital payment from April 1, 2026, a case is being made that this eventuality lends itself to an ideal test case for stablecoin payments.Photo by The Transport Enthusiast DC on UnsplashA perfect test caseIn an opinion piece published by Bloomberg on Aug. 3, columnist Andy Mukherjee asserted that Hong Kong taxis would be “a perfect stablecoin test case,” suggesting that the timing is ideal for stablecoins, given that a new licensing regime has come into effect via the city’s Stablecoins Ordinance.  In an interview, Franz Bergmueller, CEO of Switzerland-headquartered crypto bank AMINA Bank, said that “stablecoins for me are a killer use case.” On social media, AMINA Bank claimed that it would be “a major step in the right direction” if Hong Kong taxis start to accept stablecoin payments from customers. It emerged last December that the city’s taxi drivers would be required to install both electronic payment facilities and navigation systems, based on a filing made to Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. The filing outlined that while some taxi drivers currently offer electronic payment options, many insist on cash payment. The city’s Transport and Logistics Bureau suggested that “drivers offer at least two electronic payment options, including both QR code and non-QR code methods.” Stablecoin payments overseasThere has been some limited use of stablecoins as a payment method by taxi services in places with unstable currencies such as Argentina and Venezuela. The world’s most popular ride-hailing service, Uber, is understood to be studying the feasibility of offering stablecoin-based payments. In 2024, Asian rival Grab commenced accepting crypto, including the USDT and USDC stablecoins, as a means of payment for ride-sharing and food delivery services in Singapore. Last month, it extended that facility to its platform users in the Philippines.In June it emerged that Tawasul Transport, a taxi service in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), had partnered with Al Maryah Community Bank (Mbank) and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport to launch a pilot program implicating the use of AE Coin, a UAE dirham-pegged stablecoin, as a means of payment. Bloomberg’s Mukherjee suggests that for entities now applying for stablecoin licensing, this new digital payment requirement for Hong Kong’s taxi services could provide an immediate segue to onboard users and make a new stablecoin product popular. Mukherjee places specific emphasis in this regard on what actions Ant Group may take. It emerged recently that Ant Group, an affiliate of the Alibaba Group, intends to apply for stablecoin licensing across Asian markets, including Hong Kong. The company is already a leader in Asia in digital payments through Alipay, which serves 1.3 billion users.Although Ant Group is based in mainland China, Hong Kong would offer the company the opportunity to test the establishment of a stablecoin for retail payments.

Korea Blockchain Week to Expand Online Next YearFactBlock, the organizer of South Korea’s largest blockchain event Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) 2023, has unveiled its vision to bring KBW online, aiming to resolve information asymmetry and cater to a larger audience.Photo by Sergey Zolkin on UnsplashExpanding accessThe company’s CEO, Jeon Seon-ik, shared future plans to extend KBW’s reach to the digital realm during the event’s main conference, Impact, at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul on Tuesday. “Next year, we plan to implement online passes to enable people overseas who cannot attend the event in person to do so online,” he said.Growing popularityKBW has experienced continuous growth since its inception in 2018. Last year’s Impact conference attracted over 8,700 attendees, and this year’s event is expected to host more than 10,000. The number of speakers at Impact increased from around 140 last year to over 200 this year, while side events have also doubled.“As KBW grows every year, we are preparing for the event with a greater sense of mission,” Jeon said.This year’s KBW has also come back bigger than ever with events like The Gateway: Korea — an annual Web3 event held to celebrate the NFT community and digital artists — and the SEOULBOUND EDM festival, integrating a diverse range of realms like tech, art, and music.The driving force behind KBWNotably, Jeon also emphasized the importance of the blockchain community. He underscored that KBW’s planning and growth have been achieved with the help of the community and expressed a commitment to continue working closely with it. “We will always strive to make KBW an event with the community, by the community, and for the community,” he said.Jeon also mentioned FactBlock’s plans to provide communities with information on blockchains and virtual assets through its upcoming online platform Fablo, where these communities can learn, interact, and grow together.

About three years ago, in March 2021, the South Korean financial regulators implemented the Specific Financial Transaction Information Act to ensure that local cryptocurrency exchanges provide safe and sound crypto trading services to investors. It was also a move to prevent exchanges and investors from engaging in illicit money laundering practices.  However, the law has come across as a hassle to many crypto exchanges, as they were required to undergo verification processes to prove their reliability and to receive real-name accounts from banks. These accounts enable their users to trade crypto against the Korean won, helping exchanges stand out in the fiercely competitive crypto market amid surging Bitcoin prices. At the moment, only five crypto exchanges in Korea are qualified to provide such services. Bithumb, one of these few qualified fiat-to-crypto exchanges, has renewed its real-name account contract with NH Nonghyup Bank (NH Bank) for six more months, according to local news media Yonhap News Agency. Photo by Robin Jonathan Deutsch on UnsplashVarious factors in play for relatively short renewalCrypto insiders say that extending the contract for only six months appears to be quite a conservative move, as Bithumb has been making a year-long contract with NH Bank every year since 2018. Experts suggest various factors may have influenced Bithumb's decision, including the volatile crypto market, the Virtual Asset User Protection Act becoming effective in July and the exchange's planned initial public offering (IPO).  Some say the relatively short renewal of the contract comes after a flurry of complaints from Bithumb users about the unfavorable user experience, including the cumbersome process they must go through to increase the deposit limit of their real-name accounts linked to Bithumb. This appeared to have prompted Bithumb to feel reluctant about the 6-year-long collaboration and seek a partnership with another bank such as KB Kookmin Bank or the online-only Kakao Bank, according to local media Bizwatch. One bank official said that the relatively short renewal reflects Bithumb and NH Bank's commitment to addressing the inefficiencies of crypto transaction services, as the two companies plan to enhance their investor experience and marketing efforts over the next six months.  Crypto boom drives partnership between exchanges and banks NH Bank appears to be persuading Bithumb to maintain their partnership, one bank official said, because providing real-name accounts to crypto exchanges not only benefits exchanges but also banks. Having young crypto investors – mostly in their 20s to 40s – open real-name accounts at banks is seen as a significant opportunity to expand their customer base. One crypto insider said the ability to issue real-name accounts usually puts banks in a superior position when entering a partnership with crypto exchanges, but that doesn't seem to be the case in times like this when the crypto market is bullish more than ever.