RaonSecure Partners with Korean Savings Banks to Build Mobile ID Verification System

Zodia Custody Expands to Hong Kong to Meet Asian Institutional DemandZodia Custody, the crypto arm of British banking conglomerate Standard Chartered, is extending its digital asset custody services to financial institutions in Hong Kong, making further in-roads in terms of the company’s Asia-Pacific expansion.News of the expanded offering came via a CNBC report published on Sunday. Launched in 2020, Zodia Custody was founded to address the growing institutional demand for secure crypto asset storage, making Hong Kong a strategic addition to its service areas alongside its recent foray into the Australian market.Photo by Emily Xie on UnsplashAsia-Pacific expansionCurrently, only two companies, OSL Digital and HashKey, have obtained licenses from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to operate within Hong Kong’s regulated crypto space. In its initial phase of operations in Hong Kong, Zodia Custody intends to offer a limited range of crypto assets to its institutional clients, aligning with its commitment to prudent expansion.Zodia Custody’s expansion into Hong Kong follows a series of moves into other key Asia-Pacific (APAC) markets, including Japan, Singapore, and Australia. Moreover, the company remains open to potential partnerships and clientele from regions beyond its current operational footprint.Earlier this month, Zodia Custody made headlines in Australia with the introduction of SAF3, a digital asset custody platform tailored specifically for institutional clients. SAF3 boasts bank-grade cold wallet storage accessible in real-time, complemented by advanced risk management and fraud detection capabilities. Julian Sawyer, the CEO of Zodia Custody, emphasized the importance of responsible institutional adoption, a significant step as Australia’s digital asset industry continues to mature.Institutional demand in Hong KongIn response to the surging institutional interest in crypto assets, Zodia Custody is capitalizing on this market trend, recognizing that Hong Kong’s demand for crypto services is predominantly institutionally driven. Sawyer underlined the unique character of the Hong Kong crypto market compared to other regions, where retail consumers often dominate trading activities. The confluence of institutional demand and Zodia’s specialized services positions Hong Kong as an ideal market for the company’s expansion.Notably, Hong Kong has demonstrated a more crypto-friendly stance compared to its neighboring China, which has taken a stricter approach with crypto bans. Earlier this year, Hong Kong’s SFC introduced a regulatory framework that allows companies to register and provide regulated crypto services. In light of these developments, Zodia Custody is in talks with both the SFC and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to secure regulatory approval within the financial district.Julian Sawyer articulated this opportunity, stating:“The Hong Kong government and the regulators see digital assets as the future and also want Hong Kong to be a hub.” These discussions are poised to pave the way for Zodia Custody to operate within a well-regulated environment.Standard Chartered has been making in-roads into the Asian market, largely through its Singaporean subsidiary SC Ventures. Zodia Custody launched in Dubai in June and in Singapore last month.However, it is not just progressing solely in the Asia-Pacific region. Recently, Zodia Markets, another Standard Chartered subsidiary, achieved registration as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) with the Central Bank of Ireland. In September, Zodia Markets also made significant strides in the Middle East and Africa by securing In-Principle Approval from the Abu Dhabi Global Market.

Emurgo Looks to Fill in Missing Cardano Ecosystem ComponentsEmurgo, the Singapore-based commercial arm and a founding entity of the Cardano blockchain network, plans on working towards filling in the gaps relative to needed Cardano ecosystem components.So said Emurgo Founder and CEO Ken Kodama, in a recent discussion with Andrew Fenton, the Editor of Cointelegraph’s magazine. Emurgo is one of the three entities governing Cardano and has taken on the task of addressing what it perceives as “missing” components in the Cardano blockchain when compared to other leading blockchains.Photo by Traxer on UnsplashAddressing 21 categoriesKodama outlined a strategic shift in Emurgo’s approach, describing it as a transition to a venture studio model to address 21 specific categories that he and his team believe require attention. According to Kodama, the solutions to these gaps will either be built by Emurgo themselves or sourced through investments, hackathons, or grants to incentivize developers within the Cardano community. Kodama stated: “So, that’s what we need to focus on, shifting from where we are today into a venture studio model.”One area that the Emurgo CEO is looking to address is the need to introduce layer 2 solutions to enhance Cardano’s scalability. While other blockchains have seen significant development in this area, Kodama feels that Cardano needs to catch up. Therefore, it’s a priority for Emurgo to cultivate a similar environment within the Cardano network.Along those lines, Emurgo is exploring zero-knowledge rollups and optimistic rollups, indicating the firm’s commitment to exploring and investing in what is the latest cutting-edge blockchain technology. To this end, they’ve already organized hackathons centered around these themes.Developer proficiency issueThe Emurgo boss feels that one of these 21 shortfalls is more pressing than the rest. Kodama acknowledged that the barrier of having developers proficient in more obscure programming languages like Haskell and Plutus is a difficulty. He believes the current pool of developers with expertise in these languages is insufficient. To address this, Emurgo is keen to promote Aiken, a toolkit and a new programming language designed to facilitate the development of smart contracts on the Cardano blockchain.Another one of the highlighted gaps is the absence of a robust decentralized identity (DID) system for enterprise adoption within the Cardano ecosystem. Kodama voiced his concern in this respect, stating: “We don’t see that much DID application being built on Cardano. So, that’s the first gap, or primary gap that we need to fill in.”“Aiken and other programming language applicability are quite important to broaden the number of builders able to build on top of Cardano. We have been educating builders to code in Haskell and Plutus. We had more than 2,000 graduates. However, that’s not really enough,” Kodama added.Emurgo has high hopes for Aiken and similar programming languages that can be integrated into Cardano, with the aim of diversifying the pool of developers capable of creating smart contracts on the platform, using a variety of programming languages.

OSL Group, a Hong Kong-based publicly listed digital asset exchange platform, has raised $300 million to finance further expansion of the business.Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashLargest publicly disclosed crypto equity raise in AsiaIn a press release published on July 25, the company claimed that it has completed the largest publicly disclosed equity raise to date within Asia’s digital asset sector. It suggested the funding signaled market confidence in the digital asset business model that the firm is pursuing.  OSL intends to allocate the funding across three primary areas. Acquisition opportunities are one core area the company plans to home in on. It says that it will continue its “aggressive global expansion drive” through a combination of licensing, partnerships and acquisitions.  As part of its global expansion strategy, last month the company acquired a 90% stake in Evergreen Crest Holdings, an Indonesian crypto exchange operator. In February, it rebranded CoinBest, a Japanese crypto exchange, as OSL Japan after acquiring it late last year. Stablecoin initiativesOSL plans to pursue new global business initiatives, including initiatives related to stablecoins and payments. It stated that it will accelerate its “build-out of global business and payment networks, integrating fiat currencies, stablecoins, and major digital assets.” The company feels that investment in infrastructure of this nature will facilitate its institutional and enterprise clients, giving them access to “secure, efficient, and seamless cross-border payment solutions.” The third core area it will allocate funding to is working capital. OSL believes that enhancing the strength and depth of its working capital will give the firm a competitive advantage over its rivals in terms of reach, coverage, scale and volume. The company’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Ian Wong, commented on this latest development, stating: "This US$300 million equity raise marks a major milestone in our journey and reflects strong conviction in OSL's digital asset strategy and execution.” OSL is already well established as a key player in the digital assets space in Hong Kong. Founded in 2003 as BC Technology Group, it later rebranded and in 2018 the company expanded its services to cater to the digital assets sector. In 2023, OSL, alongside rival HashKey, became the first digital assets companies in the Chinese autonomous territory to be licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). Supporting spot crypto ETF issuersOSL supports asset management firms that have listed Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), through its staking and digital asset custody infrastructure. In April, the company was approved by the SFC to offer Ethereum staking services. In July 2024, the company claimed that 88% of spot digital asset ETF trading in Hong Kong had been carried out by firms that it has partnerships with. The timing of the announcement of this latest development is interesting, given that one of the focuses for the funds raised is to develop stablecoin-related business, against a backdrop of Hong Kong’s new Stablecoins Ordinance coming into effect in less than a week from now.Bloomberg reported last week that around fifty companies have expressed interest in obtaining stablecoin licensing in the city, with the local regulator and central banking institution, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), likely to issue ten licenses.