Sony Network Invests $3.5M in Startale Labs to Drive Global Web3 Adoption

Korean Financial Authority Grants This Year’s First VASP Approval to Infinite BlockThe Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), a division operating under the South Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC), has recently granted approval to Infinite Block, a blockchain fintech company, to function as a virtual asset service provider (VASP), as reported by the local news outlet Business Watch.37 registered VASPs in KoreaInfinite Block is the first entity to secure such approval from the national financial regulatory authority this year. This development takes the roster of registered VASPs in Korea to a total of 37.When submitting its application in May, Infinite Block declared that its business is tailored for transferring, storing, and managing virtual assets. Its core operational domain centers around virtual asset custody services.Custodian service for institutional investorsFounded last year by Jung Gu-tae, who previously served as a banker at NongHyup Bank and held a C-level position at digital asset custodian Cardo, Infinite Block leverages his extensive experience in banking and virtual assets. Building on this industry insight, Infinite Block is about to introduce Karbon Custody, a specialized service targeting institutional investors.Furthermore, Infinite Block raised about 2 billion KRW ($1.5 million) last year from renowned financial institutions including Daegu Bank, SK Securities, and Infobank. However, the company did incur an operating loss exceeding 200 million KRW due to its nascent stage and the absence of revenue streams.This accomplishment of Infinite Block is noteworthy in light of the decline observed in new VASP filings. While 2021 saw approximately 30 companies applying for VASP approval, the numbers dwindled to merely two new applications last year, followed by only one so far this year.

South Korean blockchain firm Ozys announced today that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Creder, a company dedicated to integrating traditional assets into the blockchain realm, to tokenize physical assets like precious metals into real-world assets (RWAs), according to Korean news site Digital Today on Thursday (KST). "Gold is one of the major RWA assets as the market value of assets linked with physical goods is increasing in the global market. We will take a transparent approach in expanding the RWA token ecosystem and showcase our business performance through our cooperation," said Lim Dae-hoon, CEO of Creder.Photo by Jingming Pan on UnsplashDriving innovationAs a member of the Klaytn ecosystem, internet juggernaut Kakao’s blockchain, Ozys operates platforms like Allbit.com, a layer 2 decentralized exchange (DEX), and a cross-chain token transfer platform dubbed Orbit Bridge. The firm utilizes blockchain-based technologies like smart contracts and Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) to develop and run its platforms. Meanwhile, Creder is currently working on The Mining Club, a project that mints solid gold into NFTs for safe storage and transfer. The gold NFTs are available for purchase on the NFT marketplace OpenSea. It is also developing Gold Station, a platform that allows for the digitized purchase, storage and investment of gold through the Gold Pegged Coin (GPC). GPC is a physical gold-based RWA issued on the Klaytn network. Expanding the scope of Web3The two companies will work together to onboard GPC to KLAYswap – Klaytn’s on-chain swap protocol – which will be issued via smart contract on Jan. 3. The two companies also plan to tokenize other precious metals like silver, copper and palladium. By combining physical assets and blockchain technology, the companies aim to expand the Web3 ecosystem and lead next-generation markets. "The tokenization of gold, which is considered a safe asset, is expected to diversify the Web3 ecosystem," said Choi Jin-han, CEO of Ozys. "We plan to explore various collaborations with Creder, starting with the onboarding of the gold-based token GPC on KLAYswap."

KDIC Seizes Crypto from Debtors Linked to Losses at Financial FirmsDuring the first half of this year, the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) tracked the cryptocurrency holdings of 1,075 individuals and debtors responsible for causing losses at financial entities, including savings banks, according to documents obtained by local news outlet Herald Economy, from the office of lawmaker Kim Han-kyu, a member of the National Assembly’s National Policy Committee. From this scrutiny, KDIC identified 29 wrongful cases and proceeded to confiscate cryptocurrencies in 16 of those instances.KDIC is a semi-state body that has been instrumental in tracing and recovering assets from culpable employees at troubled financial firms and debtors in arrears. Meanwhile, methods for hiding wealth have become more sophisticated, typically unfolding behind the curtain.Photo by Georg Bommeli on UnsplashFirst crypto seizureOut of these individuals, 900 had taken out loans of at least KRW 3 billion ($2.2 million) from beleaguered financial institutions, while the remaining 175 were employees of these institutions, held responsible for their failures. This occasion represents the KDIC’s first seizure of virtual assets.Until recently, the KDIC struggled to reclaim hidden assets funneled into cryptocurrency exchanges, given their limited authority to seek documentation. KDIC’s purview mainly extended to requesting information from public institutions, banks, insurance companies, and securities firms. However, KDIC has now found a way to seize crypto assets by investigating the bank accounts linked to these exchanges. In Korea, crypto exchanges facilitating Korean won trades are legally mandated to secure real-name accounts from banks.Call for expanding KDIC’s authorityGiven the evidence of using cryptocurrencies to conceal wealth, many suggest that amendments to the Depositor Protection Act are necessary, enabling KDIC to directly request relevant data from exchanges and recover more hidden assets effectively.Furthermore in August KDIC secured a court order allowing them to liquidate these assets. Following this successful confiscation, the debtors’ cryptocurrencies have been frozen in their wallets, rendering them unresponsive to any market shifts. Discussions are now underway regarding the method of liquidating the debtors’ cryptocurrencies at market value on exchanges. This includes deliberations on whether KDIC will assume ownership of the cryptocurrencies and directly proceed with their sale.In a chat with Herald Economy, Lawmaker Kim emphasized the need for KDIC to have the authority to access information from virtual asset service providers. This would enable them to more effectively retrieve assets from responsible debtors. Kim further stated that such steps would enhance both the efficiency of debt collection and overall market fairness.