Web3 firm AIITONE rebrands as BU Technology, adding new business objectives

Kyobo Life Insurance, one of South Korea’s largest life insurers, has become a participant in the recently launched public testnet for Circle Internet Group’s Arc. This new open layer-1 blockchain network aims to serve a broad range of use cases, including lending, capital markets, foreign exchange (FX), and global payments.Photo by Kindel Media on PexelsNotable global participants in the Arc networkAccording to a press release from Circle, published on Oct. 28, multiple prominent banks and asset managers are also engaging with the Arc network. Kyobo Life stands as the only South Korean entity involved in the initiative. Other notable global participants include BlackRock, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, SBI Holdings, and Standard Chartered. This move comes on the heels of Kyobo Life’s earlier participation in a stablecoin project spearheaded by the Seoul-based Open Blockchain & Decentralized Identifier (DID) Association. This highlights the insurer’s growing interest in exploring business opportunities within the digital assets space. Korean crypto exchanges step up oversightAs cryptocurrencies gain increasing recognition as a new asset class, South Korean exchanges have become more vigilant in monitoring user activities, partly to curb potential criminal behavior. A report by Money Today revealed that over the past six years, local trading platforms have halted a total of 82.9 billion won ($58.1 billion) in crypto withdrawals. Among these, Bithumb accounted for the largest share, suspending withdrawals totaling 50.5 billion won ($35.4 million) from 2020 to September 2025. Upbit suspended 25.6 billion won ($18 billion) in the same period, while other exchanges like Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax reported more modest suspensions. These actions are largely in response to the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, which came into effect in July 2024. The Act aims to enhance oversight and safeguard consumers, reflecting the government’s intent to regulate the sector more tightly. Surge in Korea-Cambodia stablecoin tradingParallel to these regulatory developments, a dramatic surge in stablecoin trading volume has been observed between South Korea and Cambodia. According to data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) reported by the Seoul Shinmun, transactions between five major South Korean exchanges and Cambodia’s Huione Guarantee skyrocketed to 12.8 billion won ($8.98 million) in 2024, marking a staggering 1,400-fold increase compared to just 9.22 million won ($6,500) in 2023. This rise in activity coincides with recently uncovered criminal cases originating from Cambodia and has raised concerns about illicit practices within the crypto market. In response to these concerns, crypto exchanges are bolstering their efforts to cooperate with law enforcement. Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, was recently honored with a commendation by the South Korean Minister of the Interior and Safety for its contributions to enhancing cybercrime investigations and administrative capabilities. This accolade comes amid Binance’s increasing presence in South Korea. Binance, which had acquired Gopax ahead of regulatory approval, has now received clearance from local financial authorities to become the Korean trading platform’s largest shareholder. Public sentiment on Binance’s acquisition of GopaxA recent survey conducted by CoinNess and the community-voting app Cratos, which polled 2,000 South Koreans, provided insights into the public’s perception of Binance’s acquisition of Gopax. Among respondents, 38.8% indicated that their decision to use the rebranded platform would depend on the benefits it offered compared to other exchanges, while 23.6% said they were already planning to use it. Together, these figures suggest that 62.4% of participants are open to the platform, although some are conditioned on its advantages. However, 27.5% rejected the platform entirely, and 10.2% stated they do not use local exchanges at all. As South Korea deepens its role in the global digital asset ecosystem, its growing participation in initiatives like Circle’s Arc network reflects an ambition to align with international finance trends. At the same time, stricter oversight and cross-border monitoring signal a firm commitment to transparency. The balance it strikes between innovation and regulation will define its path in the global crypto arena. 

$100M Pyramid Scheme Linked to Prominent Chinese Filecoin ProjectA courtroom showdown currently playing out in the People’s Court of Pingnan County in northeastern Fujian province in China is laying bare an intricate pyramid scheme entwined with one of China’s flagship ventures in the Filecoin ecosystem.The lawsuit thrusts five defendants into the spotlight, alleging their orchestration of an expansive pyramid scheme under the guise of their enterprise, Shenzhen Space-Time Cloud Company. The operation is purported to have siphoned off millions of dollars, leaving in its wake a trail of financial wreckage.Photo by Traxer on UnsplashAggressive project marketingAccording to a local media report published on Monday, the saga began in June 2018 when Lai Mouhang and Lai Moujun established the Space-Time Cloud Company. Subsequently, co-defendants Hu and Liang joined the ranks in the following months. However, it wasn’t until September 2019 that Lai Mouhang escalated the company’s operations, leveraging the ipfs.cn domain to aggressively market and peddle investments linked to distributed storage technology and Filecoin’s intricate economic model.Central to Filecoin’s model is its block reward system, where miners validating new blocks receive Filecoin tokens (FIL) as a reward. In a stunning revelation, the prosecution claims that Lai Mouhang and his accomplices crafted a scheme mirroring this economic structure.Their brainchild, the filpool.io platform, served as a conduit for joint mining, masquerading as a storage server vending operation for FIL mining. This platform, intrinsically linked to Space-Time Cloud Company, allegedly formed the epicenter of the defendants’ fraudulent maneuvers.Almost 60,000 usersThe gravity of the scheme becomes evident when considering the staggering numbers: a reported 57,122 members registered on the filpool.io platform and an additional 143 partners on the bpool.io platform, a sibling project of Space-Time Cloud Company. These platforms collectively amassed a jaw-dropping RMB 607 million ($83 million), alongside RMB 62 million in diverse cryptocurrencies.The modus operandi of the defendants was rooted in enticing participants with rosy prospects of exponential profits. By acquiring a minimum of 8 terabytes of cloud computing power, individuals could attain bronze membership status or higher, unlocking the ability to further recruit participants. Unsurprisingly, the magnitude of returns correlated directly with the size of investments and the recruitment spree — classic hallmarks of a pyramid scheme.The prosecution contends that the defendants exploited these platforms as bait for participants, perpetuating the myth of high returns. This alleged deception led to substantial financial losses for many unsuspecting victims. Furthermore, these actions purportedly sowed discord and upheaval in both economic and social spheres, potentially transgressing criminal law boundaries.As the investigation into this convoluted case unfurls, its implications resonate far beyond China’s territorial confines. The intertwining of cryptocurrency, blockchain, and pyramid schemes punctuates the ever-evolving narrative of financial crime. The case highlights the importance of vigilance and regulatory scrutiny in an innovative industry that has more than its fair share of bad actors.

China's highest judicial authorities, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, have released a judicial interpretation that includes the use of virtual assets to transfer illicit funds as a recognized method of money laundering. This move aims to strengthen the legal basis for investigating and prosecuting cases linked to cryptocurrency and money laundering activities.Photo by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on UnsplashClarifying the legal status of crypto transactionsThe new judicial interpretation classifies virtual asset trading as a potential channel for money laundering. It specifies that using virtual-asset transactions or financial-asset exchanges to transfer or convert the proceeds of crime falls under the act of “disguising or concealing the source and nature of criminal proceeds and their gains by other means” as outlined in the country’s criminal law. Liu Honglin, founder of the Shanghai-based Man Kun law firm, clarified in a social media post that the interpretation does not equate all cryptocurrency trading with money laundering. According to Liu, the directive is not intended to criminalize the possession or trading of cryptocurrencies domestically but to provide clear legal guidelines for prosecuting specific illegal activities linked to crypto transactions. Impact on crypto trading and enforcementShao Shiwei, a fintech lawyer based in Shanghai, suggested that this interpretation could pose challenges for stablecoin merchants and increase legal risks for those involved in receiving illicit funds through crypto trading. The interpretation is part of broader efforts to regulate the virtual asset space, following the comprehensive ban on crypto trading activities by the People’s Bank of China and other authorities in September 2021. Despite the ban, many investors have continued to find ways to engage in crypto trading, sometimes circumventing capital control measures. For example, in May, Chinese police dismantled an underground bank that utilized the USDT stablecoin for foreign currency exchanges involving over 13.8 billion yuan ($1.9 billion). This incident underscores the ongoing challenges in enforcing existing regulations against the backdrop of innovative methods to bypass legal restrictions.