AhnLab Blockchain Company to integrate digital wallet into Sogang University’s education metaverse

MHC Digital Group, an Australian digital assets management platform, has entered into a partnership with USDC stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Financial, with a view towards increasing the circulation of USDC within Australia and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. MHC was founded by well-known venture investor Mark Carnegie, with the company having offices in Sydney and Singapore. The firm will work with Circle to distribute USDC in Australia and within the APAC region. MHC has been marketing its services towards institutional investors and it’s that same client group that the two firms want to target in order to increase USDC circulation. The firm will provide “cost-effective and efficient USDC access” where institutional clients are concerned.Photo by Catarina Sousa on PexelsCrypto ‘a better mousetrap’ In a media release published on behalf of the two companies, Carnegie claimed that while many people still claim that there is no use case for crypto, hundreds of billions move globally at a fraction of the cost experienced via the traditional financial system. “Crypto is simply a better mouse trap for the vast majority of international payments,” he added. Commenting on the development in an interview with the Australian Financial Review, Carnegie stated:“I’m hoping we can show there are hundreds of millions of dollars of forex [foreign exchange] trading fees, where super funds are getting their faces ripped off by Macquarie Bank and the other incumbent banks.” Appealing to pension funds Carnegie wants to get large pension funds on board in using USDC. He pointed to the fact that global banks make $170 billion from corporations and individual investors through the movement of funds over the SWIFT network. He can see that major savings can be made if USDC is used relative to these fees. Despite all this, Carnegie acknowledges that it will be a hard sell to get them on board. As part of these plans, MHC Digital will be launching an over-the-counter (OTC) trading desk, which will be targeted towards hedge funds, crypto enterprises and high-net-worth individuals. APAC opportunity Kash Razzaghi, Circle’s chief business officer (CBO), identified APAC as presenting with an adoption opportunity beyond institutional clients. Razzaghi stated: “With its young, mobile-first and digital wallet-ready population, the Asia Pacific region is ahead of the curve when it comes to digital asset adoption." Carnegie appears to be similarly enthusiastic when it comes to the APAC region. In an interview with CNBC back in January, he suggested that the crypto bull run was “an Asian story this time round.” It’s understood that the two companies are also considering collaborating on the issuance and distribution of an Australian dollar (AUD) denominated stablecoin. This development is the latest in a string of initiatives taken by Circle to bring about USDC adoption in the APAC region. In 2023 the company partnered with SBI Holdings with the objective of enhancing the circulation of USDC within the Japanese market. The very same rationale resulted in it partnering with Tokyo-based crypto trading platform Coincheck in February 2024. The company has also tried to trigger adoption at a retail level, through collaborations with FamilyMart convenience stores in Taiwan and Southeast Asian super app Grab. 

South Korea’s blockchain venture Creder and IT solution company ITCEN Group (ITCEN) announced today their partnership with Green-X, a Malaysia-based exchange, local media outlet Decenter reported. Through the partnership, the three companies plan to launch a security token offering (STO) business, introducing tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) to investors. Creder is a joint venture founded in 2022 by ITCEN and blockchain service developer BPMG.  The planned business aims to tokenize various RWAs – including jewelry, real estate, rare earth, antique goods – and issue them in the form of NFTs, which will then be fractionalized and traded on Goldstation, the gold-pegged coin (GPC)-centered DeFi platform developed by Creder. Photo by Jingming Pan on UnsplashThe initial project of the RWA business would be to offer trading services for Dignity gold tokens (DIGNITY) on Goldstation, a digital token issued by Dignity Gold LLC. The company owns a gold mine valued at over $6 billion in Nevada, U.S., according to data from Green-X. As of March 26, gold reserves yet to be excavated from the mine reportedly stand at 3.44 million ounces. Green-X, a Malaysia STO exchange accredited by Sharia certificate The Malaysia-based STO exchange Green-X is a wholly owned subsidiary of Greenpro Captial Corp., a company listed on Nasdaq. In February 2022, Green-X received an STO exchange license along with Sharia certificate, a proof of compliance that is only given to firms that follow the Islamic law, Sharia. This religious certificate is known to serve as a significant criterion for Islamic investors.  James Lim, CEO of Creder, said that the company aims to expand its business to the global market by further introducing more RWAs in cooperation with Green-X.  

Huobi Rebrands as HTX to Mark Tenth AnniversaryIn a move marking its 10th anniversary, Seychelles-registered cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has decided to rebrand itself as “HTX.”Rebranding confusionIn crypto-centric discussions on social media, the decision has sparked controversy and raised eyebrows, drawing comparisons to the now-defunct exchange FTX.The announcement of Huobi’s rebranding to HTX was made on Wednesday. According to the company, the new name is a combination of symbolic elements. The “H” represents the first letter of “Huobi,” the “T” is a nod to Justin Sun’s blockchain project Tron, and the “X” stands for the exchange itself.Alternatively, some interpret “HT” as a reference to the exchange’s native Huobi Token (HT), while the “X” symbolizes the Roman numeral for 10, commemorating the company’s 10th anniversary. Huobi’s new slogan accompanying the rebranding is “HTX, Just Trade It.”Before the official announcement, Huobi changed its social media account names to align with the new brand. The exchange’s Twitter handle is now HTX_Global, and its official Telegram group is named “HTXglobalofficial.” As of the time of writing, the website domain still retains the original Huobi name.Photo by Kate Trysh on UnsplashFTX comparisonsThe rebrand immediately drew attention on social media. In one of a range of similar comments, a user lined up the Huobi logo next to that of FTX and wrote: “I think I’ve seen this movie before.” Although a matter of speculation, there has been some chatter on social media in recent weeks, questioning the health of the Huobi business. It didn’t help the firm that in August, rumors swirled that some of the company’s executives were subject to an investigation by Chinese authorities.This isn’t the first time a crypto-related entity has seemingly borrowed part of its name from FTX. In January, the founders of the collapsed cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital announced plans to raise $25 million for a proposed crypto exchange called “GTX.” Huobi’s rebrand has amused some FTX creditors who had faced criticism from some in the crypto sector for wanting to resurrect the business while maintaining the same branding.In early August, Huobi refuted reports suggesting insolvency and the arrest of senior executives by Chinese authorities. Additionally, the exchange had previously been ordered to cease operations in Malaysia following regulatory actions by the country’s securities regulator in May.International marketing effortHuobi’s rebranding to HTX has undoubtedly stirred debate and curiosity within the cryptocurrency community. Justin Sun, an advisor to the project, stated at a media briefing at Token 2049 in Singapore that the HTX brand will be marketed towards Huobi’s international English-speaking users.Sun said: “It’s very hard for foreigners, Westerners, to pronounce ‘Huobi’… It doesn’t make any sense to them,” Sun said, explaining that the word Huobi means fire and coin in Chinese. “That’s why we rebranded as HTX for international branding.”As the crypto industry continues to evolve, it remains to be seen how this new identity will impact Huobi’s reputation and standing in the market. Regardless, the crypto world is known for its surprises, and Huobi’s marketing move serves as a reminder that the industry is in constant flux, filled with unexpected developments.