Intella X and CARV Team Up to Revolutionize Web3 Gaming

Japan’s largest bank is stepping deeper into digital assets at a moment of political change. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) and its securities arm Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities (MUMSS) have launched a blockchain-based business, according to CoinDesk Japan. The move puts the country’s biggest lender at the center of a fresh push to bring regulated finance onto distributed ledgers while retail investors gain a new way to buy and trade tokenized products. MUMSS has begun offering bond security tokens, marking its formal entry into the security token market. At the same time, the firm introduced ASTOMO, a trading venue for retail investors built with Japanese fintech company Smartplus. The system will debut with real estate-backed security tokens. Individuals can invest from 100,000 yen (about $655) through a smartphone app. Under the partnership MUMSS will select and source the digital securities. Smartplus will run account management and build and operate the trading system using its Brokerage as a Service (BaaS) platform. MUFG also revealed that it has started preparing a public offering of subordinated bonds in token form. The bank intends the instruments to qualify as Tier 2 capital under international rules. The offering is expected to be the first of its kind for Japan’s banking sector. MUFG has submitted an amended securities registration statement to the Director General of the Kanto Local Finance Bureau in advance of the sale.Photo by Asm Arif on PexelsTakaichi’s victory sparks interest in Japan’s crypto pathThe corporate steps arrive as conservative lawmaker Sanae Takaichi rises to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. She won the party election on Oct. 4 and is set to become Japan’s first female prime minister, with lawmakers expected to make the formal choice in the middle of this month.  Several industry voices see her leadership as supportive of digital assets, according to Cointelegraph. Elisenda Fabrega, general counsel at tokenization platform Brickken, said Takaichi’s victory might reshape how Japan perceives and regulates digital assets, reinforcing the country’s commitment to clear and reliable crypto laws. Maarten Henskens, chief operating officer at Startale Group and head of the Astar Foundation, chimed in to say that a looser monetary stance under Takaichi could keep liquidity flowing and drive greater investor interest in alternative assets such as cryptocurrencies. That optimism has already spilled into Japan’s equity markets. The Nikkei index has continued to soar since the leadership vote, reaching a record high of 48,580.44 on Oct. 9. Not all signals point in the same direction. A BeInCrypto report published before the election noted market predictions that Takaichi might also back tighter oversight. The report cited her March proposal to build a framework that lets financial institutions, including crypto exchanges, share information on suspicious transactions. That system would support faster account freezes. Nikkei 225 Index Source: Google FinanceLoose fiscal tone brings new pressures for BitcoinFrom a broader economic view, the picture looks more complex. CoinDesk reported that Takaichi’s preference for easy Abenomics-style policies could weigh on Bitcoin in the short term. Expansionary fiscal measures tend to increase bond supply and drive yields higher, which often curbs risk appetite by raising borrowing costs and making assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies less appealing. Her stance has also reduced expectations for a Bank of Japan rate hike, weakening the yen and strengthening the U.S. dollar. The stronger dollar has cooled Bitcoin’s momentum, while gold has continued to attract investors seeking stability. MUFG’s blockchain venture arrives at a turning point for Japan. The bank’s push into tokenized assets shows how traditional finance is adapting to digital change just as new leadership tests the balance between innovation and control. Whether this marks the start of a broader transformation will depend on how policy, regulation, and investor confidence evolve together in shaping Japan’s financial future. 

India is strategically navigating the development of its digital rupee, with the Reserve Bank (RBI) actively addressing privacy concerns through technological solutions in its central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot programs. According to a recent report by CoinDesk, a senior official with insights into these initiatives revealed that while progress is evident, the RBI is proactively exploring ways to ensure privacy in the use of the digital rupee.Photo by Julian Yu on UnsplashPursuing mechanisms to maintain anonymityThe RBI has introduced a new dimension to the discourse on privacy concerns associated with CBDC usage. The central bank official suggested that the RBI may seek legal backing from India’s finance ministry to enact legislation allowing customers to delete transactions for the purpose of maintaining anonymity. New-found urgencyPublic statements from the RBI suggested a lack of urgency in implementing a full-scale retail CBDC, coupled with a reluctance to provide a specific timeline. However, recent events indicate that an underlying sense of urgency may be emerging. In the past month, the retail CBDC achieved a notable milestone, processing one million transactions in a single day, with support from various banks. Several banks, including HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, Canara Bank, IDFC First Bank and Union Bank of India, reportedly encouraged their employees to deposit funds in CBDC instead of fiat currency, contributing to this achievement. The official overseeing the CBDC development emphasized the necessity for experimentation and substantial efforts to ensure the security of the digital currency. While the settlement aspect is considered straightforward, addressing latency remains a priority for the RBI. No mandate on taxThe RBI, historically known for its opposition to crypto both domestically and globally, clarified that crypto taxation is not within its mandate. This clarification suggests that the RBI might not object if the Indian government decides to reduce the stringent taxes currently imposed on cryptocurrencies. The central bank clarified that it lacks the mandate to express a viewpoint on reducing a contentious tax that has stirred debate within the crypto industry. The RBI has been a driving force behind the adoption of wholesale and retail CBDC since late 2022 when it initiated pilot programs. The official emphasized that taxation matters fall under the government’s purview, reinforcing the RBI’s focus on its designated responsibilities. Similarly, the country’s judiciary recently turned down a plea to have it formulate a crypto regulatory framework, outlining that this too is up to the government to address. The central bank has a historical context of attempting to ban cryptocurrencies, with effective prohibitions in place between 2018 and 2020 until a Supreme Court order overturned the ban. Since then, the RBI has consistently expressed concerns about cryptocurrencies in various forums, including the Group of 20, where India played a leading role in coordinating global regulation in the crypto space. Recent utterances from the RBI governor, Shaktikanta Das, suggest that the regulator is disinterested in seeing the offering of spot crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in India despite that eventuality coming to pass last month in the United States. Das also spoke positively recently about the tokenization of real-world assets using blockchain technology.

Malaysia Ushering in Fifth Digital Asset ExchangeKuala Lumpur-headquartered crypto platform Hata has become the latest entrant in the local digital asset exchange (DAX) business, securing licensing and regulation from the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC).The brainchild of David Low, former Asia Pacific General Manager at Luno, Hata Digital Sdn Bhd, is now the recipient of conditional approval from the SC, enabling it to facilitate cryptocurrency trading once it fulfills the regulator’s stipulated requirements over the next six to nine months. The firm now joins Luno Malaysia, MX Global, Sinegy DAX, and Tokenize Technology to become the fifth regulated DAX to trade within the Southeast Asian country.Photo by Esmonde Yong on UnsplashFirst digital brokerOne interesting aspect of Hata’s approval is that it also marks the first DAX to receive digital broker status from the SC. This unique status allows Hata to display trade orders from other exchanges on its website or mobile application, giving users access to a broader spectrum of trading opportunities.Hata can match its users’ trades with those available on other exchanges or provide them with cryptocurrency prices from these exchanges. However, it is essential that the exchanges Hata collaborates with are licensed by authorities in “competent jurisdictions,” such as the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and gain approval from the SC.Low shared his vision, stating:“With the goal of challenging the existing norms, we plan to make digital assets investing easier for institutional investors, businesses, and high-net-worth individuals in Malaysia. And we look forward to launching the platform soon.”Luno competitorLow’s departure from Luno adds an intriguing dynamic to Malaysia’s digital asset industry, given his pivotal role in expanding Luno’s presence in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. At the time of his departure, Luno was widely acknowledged to have commanded over 90% of the local cryptocurrency trading market share, with some estimating it as high as 98%.Low is now stepping into the realm of competition with his former colleagues and company, where he had previously invested significant effort and resources to foster growth.Hata boasts two other Co-Founders, Darien Ng, Chief Revenue Officer, and Chong Kwai Kun, Chief Technology Officer, both with extensive expertise in blockchain technology and software development in Malaysia since 2018.Low stated that the “SC’s decision to grant us conditional approval to operate a DAX represents a vote of confidence in us and the digital asset industry. This is a significant milestone for my team and I at Hata, after months of extensive efforts.”One-stop crypto platformHe continued: “Hata wants to enable safe and effortless cryptocurrency access and we look forward to being a one-stop and reliable platform for our customers, with our suite of products and services.”Low emphasized their goal of challenging existing norms, making digital asset investing more accessible to institutional investors, businesses, and high-net-worth individuals in Malaysia.The exchange’s founder also commended the SC’s efforts in expanding the regulated market operator framework to allow DAXs to operate as digital brokers. In addition, Hata has obtained a money broker license from the Labuan Financial Services Authority, reinforcing its efforts to operate as a compliant and secure platform.