Positive market sentiment ahead of Bitcoin halving

Korea’s financial regulator establishes dedicated units for crypto oversightThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) of South Korea revealed in a Wednesday (local time) press release that it is introducing new units specifically focused on virtual asset matters. This move is in anticipation of the upcoming implementation of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act scheduled for next July. The establishment of these dedicated organizations is a strategic step towards bolstering the integrity of the crypto market, with the goal of enhancing consumer protection.Photo by Ethan Brooke on UnsplashSupervision and investigation bureausThe newly established units will be known as the Virtual Asset Supervision Bureau and the Virtual Asset Investigation Bureau. These units are being created in response to the burgeoning crypto market.The Supervision Bureau will be responsible for extensive oversight of cryptocurrencies. Its roles will include supervising and inspecting virtual asset service providers (VASPs), monitoring market activities and enhancing policy and regulations in the sector. Additionally, the bureau is tasked with ensuring the effective implementation of these regulations and contributing to the promotion of market stability.The Investigation Bureau, the other key component of the new structure, will concentrate on identifying and addressing market abuse activities in the cryptocurrency sector, specifically targeting unfair trading practices.Until now, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) has played a leading role in overseeing the crypto sector, primarily due to its responsibility in evaluating applications from VASPs.FSS’s greater role in crypto oversightThe FSS, on the other hand, has maintained a digital asset research team, which has been responsible for supporting virtual asset legislation, along with conducting market analysis and monitoring. However, the latest move is set to the FSS’s role in regulation and oversight within the crypto market.The Supervision Bureau will be under the leadership of Lee Hyun-duk, who currently serves as Head of Financial Investment Examination Department 2. Meanwhile, Moon Jung-ho, the present leader of Audit Oversight Department 1, will take charge of the Inspection Bureau. The process of appointing team members to these bureaus is scheduled to take place in early January.

BPMG joins XPLA as validatorSouth Korean blockchain platform developer BPMG has joined South Korean gaming corporation Com2uS Group’s layer 1 blockchain mainnet XPLA as a new node validator, following a partnership deal signed in July agreeing to collaborate on developing Web3 content and technology, according to CoinDesk Korea. As a validator, BPMG will play a crucial role in strengthening transparency, stability and scalability within the XPLA ecosystem.Photo by Shubham’s Web3 on Unsplash“We anticipate that this partnership will not only enhance the XPLA ecosystem’s credibility but also achieve qualitative growth through our collaboration in content and technology,” said Paul Kim, leader of the XPLA team.Competitive gaming and rewardsBPMG operates a Play-to-Earn (P2E) blockchain gaming platform called GemHUB, under which the company recently launched GemPION, a sub-platform dedicated to competitive gaming. GemHUB offers various games, including Number Shoot, Jelly Snake, Find Bird, Push Push Cat and Mayan Cryptex. GemPION allows users to engage in various forms of gaming tournaments and participate in missions to receive rewards.Ecosystem expansionThe two companies also said that they would onboard each other’s games onto their respective platforms. GemPION users will thus be able to participate in gaming leagues using XPLA tokens. “We are delighted to become a validator on XPLA after the previous signing of our content and technology partnership deal. We will work on strengthening our collaboration further by onboarding a variety of XPLA games on GemPION as well,” said Cha Ji-hoon, CEO of BPMG.This comes after Japanese gaming company Gumi recently joined XPLA as a validator as well. XPLA is steadily increasing its number of validators from 50 to 80 this year to build a more robust and trustworthy ecosystem.

Digital identity and financial network Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, has revealed its expansion into Singapore.Photo by Meriç Dağlı on UnsplashFive Orb-scanning locationsFollowing the successful launch of World ID 2.0 and the open-sourcing of the Worldcoin iris recognition pipeline in mid-December, the project now offers World ID verifications in Singapore through the Orb, its custom hardware device. The product launch in the Southeast Asian city-state comes hot on the heels of Worldcoin pausing its activities in India. According to a blog post published by the project on Wednesday, Singaporeans can now avail themselves of World ID verifications at five locations through the Orb, the iris-scanning device that forms a crucial part of the project's identity verification process. Adding to its presence in Singapore, Tools for Humanity (TFH), a Berlin-headquartered project contributor and the lead developer behind Worldcoin, has become a member of two prestigious startup and tech associations in Singapore: ACCESS and the Singapore Fintech Association (SFA). Through these associations the project’s developers are seeking to further embed Worldcoin within the region's technology ecosystem. Expanding global footprintExpanding its global footprint, World ID verifications are not limited to Singapore alone. The project has also extended its services to Seville and Bilbao in Spain. Moreover, in South America, World ID verifications in Chile have expanded to Concepcion, Curico and Viña del Mar, joining Santiago. Meanwhile, Argentina achieved a notable milestone, setting a national record with over 10,000 verifications in a single day. In Japan, Fukuoka on Kyushu Island now joins new locations in Tokyo for proof of personhood verification via World ID. Earlier in December, Worldcoin introduced World ID 2.0, an upgrade that builds upon its existing "proof of personhood" protocol. This upgrade introduces "Apps, Levels, and a series of core improvements" to the protocol launched earlier in the year. The accompanying apps enable World ID integration with various services, including Reddit, Discord and Shopify. Market challengesIt's worth noting that despite these positive steps being taken to expand the Worldcoin global footprint, the company has faced challenges in certain markets also. It emerged in recent days that it has temporarily halted its services in India, France and Brazil. Despite the temporary pause, World App continues to gain popularity in India, where thousands download the app each week. The Worldcoin Foundation explained that Orb-verified proof of personhood services has been scaled back temporarily as they work on developing a safe and orderly process to meet the increasing demand for World ID in India. Sources close to Worldcoin suggest a relaunch in India is anticipated in 2024. Despite its expansion, Worldcoin has faced criticism since its launch. Reports from August indicated that German regulators had been scrutinizing the project since 2022, while French officials raised concerns about the legality of collecting biometric data. The authorities in Kenya suspended the activities of Worldcoin within the country a few months ago, pending a review by public agencies in respect of security and data protection. Earlier this month, Tiago Sada, head of product for Tools for Humanity, tried to allay privacy concerns on the basis of the product’s anonymity. Sada stated:“You can use it completely anonymously; the only thing you’re doing is proving you’re unique.”