Animoca Brands’ Japanese market expansion via strategic partnership

Korean Crypto Exchange Alliance Launches Its Official WebsiteThe Digital Asset eXchange Alliance (DAXA), which comprises South Korea’s five major cryptocurrency exchanges Gopax, Bithumb, Upbit, Korbit, and Coinone, announced the launch of its official website on Tuesday.Photo by Markus Winkler on PexelsWebsite structure and featuresThe website has three primary sections: Introduction, News, and Archives. The Introduction section provides comprehensive information about the exchange, including a greeting from Chairman Lee Sirgoo, who also serves as the CEO of Upbit’s operator Dunamu. It also presents an organizational structure, details of the corporate identity, and links to each individual exchange.The News section provides users with announcements, press releases, and event information. Meanwhile, the Archives section houses educational videos, institutional reports, and a list of important statutes and regulations.Mitigating information disparityDAXA Vice Chairman Kim Jae-jin said the website would offer easy access to information concerning digital assets and the alliance’s self-regulatory measures. She mentioned the group’s commitment to investor protection, focusing on addressing information asymmetry.In addition to the website, DAXA runs a Youtube channel, with its first video uploaded in January of this year.Controversy surrounding the allianceEarlier this year, DAXA faced backlash after it implemented a new clause in its guidelines, which disallowed the re-listing of cryptocurrencies that had been removed from its member exchanges for a period of one year. Critics claimed that DAXA’s guideline was unclear and voiced concerns about the Alliance’s growing influence in the crypto sector. These worries are amplified by the fact that the member exchanges of DAXA command 98% of the crypto trading volume in Korea.

Wemade CEO Encourages Japanese Game Developers to Embrace BlockchainHenry Chang, the CEO of South Korean gaming company Wemade, delivered a speech on Tuesday at the annual Japanese Web3 conference, WebX, in Tokyo to encourage Japanese game developers to venture into the blockchain industry.Photo by Louie Martinez on UnsplashIntegration of economies and gameplayChang expressed his belief that the integration of economies and gameplay across various games can be achieved through blockchains and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). He emphasized that this combination is innovative in the sense that it overcomes three significant barriers in the gaming world: giving users ownership of in-game assets, creating connections between different games, and tearing down the boundary between games and reality.Chang predicted that all games would evolve into blockchain-based games within the next three years. He presented WEMIX Play, the company’s blockchain game platform, as being fully equipped to support such a transition, with all the necessary features to provide blockchain game services.In a significant move towards realizing this vision, WEMIX Play has recently inked onboarding contracts with two gaming firms. One of them is MetaTokyo Studio, a game developer based in Japan, and the other is Skyjet Software, a Lithuania-based game publisher. WEMIX Play users will soon have the exciting opportunity to enjoy MetaTokyo Studio’s futuristic science fiction game, Chromata, and Skyjet Software’s thrilling 3D helicopter shooting game, Skybreakers.Prime Minister Kishida’s speechNotably, the event also saw a video speech from Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who expressed his enthusiasm for Web3 and its potential to revolutionize society by innovating the existing Internet framework. According to Minister Kishida, the Japanese government is committed to fostering an environment conducive to Web3 initiatives.The Japanese Prime Minister further anticipated that the WebX conference would lead to enhanced business cooperation between Japanese and foreign companies. He also highlighted that leading Japanese firms would unveil major projects aimed at establishing valuable economic zones within the metaverse.

3AC Liquidators Pursue $1.3 Billion from FoundersLiquidators appointed for Three Arrows Capital (3AC), the failed Singaporean cryptocurrency hedge fund, are seeking to recover $1.3 billion from the fund’s co-founders.That’s according to an unidentified source cited by Bloomberg in a report published on Tuesday. The requested amount represents losses incurred by the founders during the months leading up to the firm’s collapse, according to a source familiar with the liquidators’ claims.Photo by Giorgio Trovato on UnsplashLiability allegationsDuring a meeting with the hedge fund’s creditors on Tuesday, the liquidators discussed the allegations against Three Arrows co-founders Su Zhu and Kyle Davies. The co-founders are accused of causing the hedge fund to accumulate significant leverage between May and June 2022, despite already suffering substantial losses from ill-fated Luna tokens and other investments.The liquidators argue that the firm was insolvent at that time. Consequently, they have taken legal action against Zhu and Davies in a British Virgin Islands court to recover the losses on behalf of the fund’s creditors.Lawyers representing Zhu and Davies have not yet responded to requests for comment. However, in a Twitter post last June, Zhu mentioned that their attempts to cooperate with the liquidators were met with resistance.Crypto failure catalystThe failure of Three Arrows Capital coincided with a downturn in the digital currency market, impacting platforms that had exposure to the hedge fund, including crypto lenders BlockFi and Voyager Digital. These platforms subsequently filed for bankruptcy in the weeks following the liquidation of the hedge fund.The liquidators’ allegations against the co-founders represent an escalation of actions taken against Zhu and Davies, whom they have accused of non-cooperation during the investigation. The liquidators, who are partners at the consulting and advisory firm Teneo, were appointed by a British Virgin Islands court last year to recover funds for Three Arrows Capital’s creditors, who are collectively owed approximately $3.3 billion.Earlier this month, the liquidators urged a New York bankruptcy judge to impose a daily fine of $10,000 on Davies. They argue that this substantial fine is warranted because he has failed to respond to a subpoena requesting business records and other relevant information.While the liquidators do not currently know the whereabouts of Davies or Zhu, court documents from earlier this month referenced a New York Times article reporting that Davies had traveled to Bali after the collapse of Three Arrows Capital.Restraining orderIn May Zhu had secured a restraining order against BitMEX Co-Founder Arthur Hayes in a Singaporean court. Hayes believes that he is owed $6 million by the 3AC co-founders. Despite significant adverse publicity within the crypto space, the 3AC co-founders have proceeded to do business within the industry.They’ve established a crypto claims trading platform, OPNX, and alongside that Dubai-based business, they’ve also established a new venture capital fund, 3AC Ventures.The Dubai regulator, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), has reprimanded OPNX and the business's founders for operating an unregistered digital assets business within the territory.