Chinese tech firm pours $15 million into Bitcoin fund

Haechi Labs Joins Hands with Oasys for Entry into Japanese MarketHaechi Labs, a South Korean blockchain service and digital wallet provider, announced Thursday that it has signed a business deal with Japanese blockchain gaming platform Oasys to establish a footing in the Japanese market.Photo by Erika Fletcher on UnsplashFostering collaborationThrough the new partnership, the companies plan to share their technical expertise and promote mutual growth. In particular, Haechi Labs’ digital wallet, Face Wallet, will be onboarded on the Oasys mainnet. This integration will allow Oasys users to easily access Web3 services using their existing social media accounts. Face Wallet supports login through various social media platforms such as Google, Discord, Twitter, Facebook, Apple, and Kakao, thereby reducing entry barriers for users who are new to Web3.Haechi Labs will also provide a software development kit (SDK) for Face Wallet, enabling game developers operating their games on the Oasys platform to integrate the wallet into their services.“We expect that Face Wallet’s integration into the Oasys mainnet will streamline the onboarding process for Web3 games,” said Moon Geon-gi, CEO of Haechi Labs. “We will continue to pursue close cooperation with various companies in the future.”Gaming focusOasys’ multi-layered blockchain network is centered around gaming, consisting of a built-in L2 scalability solution. It has worked with various major gaming companies such as SEGA, Ubisoft, Bandai Namco, Nexon, and Netmarble, who participate in the network as validator nodes.

LINE NEXT, the NFT business arm of Tokyo-based Internet giant LINE Corporation, has officially launched DOSI, a digital commerce platform that allows the trading of digital products like collectible NFTs, according to an official announcement on Wednesday (KST). During its beta period that started in September last year, DOSI was able to attract some 5.5 million users worldwide in more than 180 countries who conducted over 560,000 cumulative transactions.Photo by Jonas Leupe on UnsplashDigital products for everyoneThe company revealed plans to add more than 20 million digital products from over 150 brands including special app memberships, in-game items that are directly verified by game developers, and digital tickets to entertainment performances. There will also be limited-edition products like LINE stamps, digital art and special video playback rights.  Products from popular Japanese brands such as Japan Airlines and CryptoNinja Partners – a 22,222-piece NFT collection – will be available on the service during this month as part of a merging with Line NFT, a comprehensive marketplace for NFTs that has been operating in Japan for a while.  By March, the company will also sell app membership products from more than 20 promising startups, including content community-based social media platform SuperPlat, stock investment platform Quantrack, AI-based music platform inDJ and K-pop fandom community service FL DA. Exclusive membershipIn particular, DOSI also has a special membership called “DOSI Citizen,” which offers points called DON that can be earned by checking app attendance, purchasing products and playing mini-games. DON can be traded for Citizen Items or used to participate in events for a chance to win crypto rewards. Users can easily sign up and log in using their social media accounts and purchase digital products with simple payment methods such as Line Pay, Naver Pay, Apple Pay and Google Pay. Payments can also be made with the digital assets Finsia (FNSA) and Ethereum (ETH). Investment boostLast year, LINE NEXT made headlines for securing the largest investment made in the Asian Web3 industry worth $140 million from a consortium led by Seoul-based private equity firm Crescendo Equity Partners. At the time, the company had divulged that it would use part of the funds to launch DOSI.

In Malaysia local regulator the Securities Commission has ordered global crypto exchange platform Bybit to shut down its operations within Malaysia as part of enforcement actions being taken by the regulator against the company.Photo by Esmonde Yong on UnsplashOperating without registration The Securities Commission published a statement to its website late last week outlining that both Bybit and its CEO Ben Zhou had been reprimanded for carrying out digital asset trading activities in Malaysia without having completed the necessary registration. The regulator also pointed out that both Zhou and his company have been listed on its Investor Alert List since July 2021. The Securities Commission took the opportunity to remind investors that they should only deal with what it termed “Recognized Market Operators” (RMOs), a designation it applies to entities that have completed registration with the regulator. Investors who utilize unregistered platforms are not extended any form of protection under Malaysian securities law, the Securities Commission warned, adding that such platforms could put them at risk of fraud and implicate them in money laundering activity potentially. Enforcement actions Bybit has been directed by the regulator to disable its website and mobile applications that are currently targeting Malaysian investors within 14 business days from Dec. 11.  The regulator also wants the company to curb other forms of promotion aimed at Malaysian investors. With that, it has requested that the company take down its Telegram-based support channel for Malaysian customers. Advertising activity, including social media posts, must also cease in cases where such activity is aimed at Malaysian investors. The Securities Commission acknowledged that thus far, Bybit has been compliant with its latest enforcement requests. Intentions to secure licensing Bybit has responded to these developments on its Bybit Malaysia Telegram channel, stating that the company understands that these actions “may cause some inconvenience” to Malaysian customers. “Once we have secured the appropriate licenses, we look forward to reconnecting with you again in the future,” it added. The enforcement action is likely to be a setback for Bybit given that the firm appeared to be focusing on the Malaysian market of late. In June it emerged that the company was moving to relocate Chinese employees to both Malaysia and Dubai.  This is not the first occasion in which Malaysia’s Securities Commission has taken action against a crypto platform. In 2023 the commission ordered the closure of the Malaysian operations of global exchange Huobi (subsequently rebranded as HTX). The circumstances in that instance were similar in that it acted against the exchange and its CEO for operating illegally within the Malaysian market. Within the Malaysian market, only six trading platforms have been registered. These include Hata Digital, Luno, MX Global, Sinegy, Tokenize Technology and Torum International. Earlier the Securities Commission acted similarly in prohibiting Atomic Wallet from operating within Malaysia given its failure to register its digital asset exchange activities.