Indonesia Sees Further Crypto Investor Growth

Animoca Brands Holding $3.4B in Cash and ReservesDigital entertainment, blockchain and gamification firm Animoca Brands provided an update on its financial position on Thursday, disclosing $3.4 billion in cash and assets as held on its balance sheet and in tokenized reserves as of April 30.Photo by regularguy.eth on UnsplashA financial breakdownThe Hong Kong-based Web3 firm published the interim financial report to its website. Breaking that down further, the company is holding $194 million in cash and stablecoin reserves. Additionally, $566 million is being held in liquid digital assets. This includes reserves of $SAND, the native token of the Ethereum-based Sandbox virtual metaverse.Beyond this, Animoca holds $2.7 billion in a varied portfolio of digital asset reserves, linked to its majority owned Web3 subsidiaries and portfolio companies. The firm outlined that it intends to release additional financial updates in the near future. That will include an audited financial statement for 2020. Furthermore, a summary statement of business activity for 2022 will be released, together with similar business highlights pertaining to Q1, 2023.Adjusting to changing market conditionsIt’s likely that Animoca took the decision to release this data at this point to bolster confidence in the company, off the back of a number of announcements that may have led some in the industry to question the overall financial health of the company.According to a report published in March by Reuters, Animoca Brands cut its target for its metaverse fund by 20% to $800 million. The scaling back was understood by many crypto sector commentators to be a reaction by the company due to changing market conditions within the crypto space. It was the second such adjustment the company made. In November 2022, the firm was working on the new fund, initially proposing a target of $2 billion. Once January came around, Animoca took the decision to scale that target back by half to $1 billion.Subsequent to reports of the fund scale-back being published, Animoca Brands CEO Yat Siu reacted, telling one crypto media outlet that “the claim that the Animoca Capital fund target was ‘cut’ from $2 billion to $1 billion is not correct, because $1 billion has always been within the range declared.”Playing down the news further, the company added: “There’s no doubt that the FTX and banking crises have had a serious impact on available venture capital, but fundraising for the Animoca Capital fund is in progress. When the raise is concluded, we will inform the market with the appropriate details, including the final size of this fund.”Siu stated that as the source of that report was an unnamed source, it was difficult to figure out the agenda of that person in broadcasting that claim.Animoca is perceived in the industry as a key player, particularly so when it comes to NFTs, blockchain-based gaming and the metaverse. The firm is classed as a Crypto Top 40 company by Forbes, while being a winner of Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 award. Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 program ranks fast growing companies based upon their percentage revenue growth over the course of three years.

The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) of Taiwan has disclosed its intention to introduce a fresh draft of digital asset regulations for the nation come September 2024. The forthcoming draft bill seeks to establish more robust regulations for digital asset markets, prioritizing investor safety, as announced by Huang Tien-mu, the chairman of FSC. That’s according to a March 4 report by local media outlet, United Daily News (UDN).Photo by Kelly Sikkema on UnsplashAddressing customer protectionIn October, Taiwanese legislators introduced the Virtual Asset Management Bill to parliament, a move aimed at fortifying customer protection and ensuring effective industry supervision. The bill encompasses provisions that could impose fines ranging from two million Taiwanese dollars ($63,000) to 20 million Taiwanese dollars on unlicensed virtual asset service providers (VASPs). Around that time, the authorities had a particular concern with regard to the operation of foreign and offshore VASPs within the Taiwanese market. Like Hong Kong, Taiwan also had seen some negative impact due to the fraudulent activity of the Dubai-based JPEX crypto platform.The FSC has already barred foreign VASPs from operating in Taiwan without requisite approvals from the regulator. These measures were instituted following the establishment of a self-regulatory association by major cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, aiming to foster collaboration with regulators. Stricter regulationsPer the latest report, Chairman Huang Tien-mu outlined the FSC's plan to propose a draft bill targeting virtual currencies in September of the current year. This initiative seeks to bolster investor safeguarding and enhance regulatory oversight over the virtual currency sector. Concern has also been raised relative to native exchanges, in addition to offshore VASPs. In November, an investigation was opened into the Bitgin exchange, amid alleged money laundering activity. Shortly afterwards, another probe was launched into the ACE Exchange, amid allegations of money laundering and fraud. Highlighting the imperative for stricter regulations, Huang underscored the potential fraud risks tied to digital currencies. He issued a stern warning, signaling severe administrative penalties for merchants engaged in fraudulent activities aimed at investors. Moreover, the regulator expressed concerns about the growing interconnection between digital assets and the conventional financial system. He emphasized the need for laws to shield the stability of traditional financial systems from the inherent risks posed by digital assets. Addressing apprehensions regarding the misuse of virtual currencies for fraudulent endeavors, Huang cautioned of stringent administrative penalties awaiting both domestic and foreign currency traders found guilty. ETF considerationsTaiwan's Chamber of Commerce is poised to unveil a study on Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in April. Gao Jingping, Deputy Director of the Securities and Futures Bureau at the Financial Supervisory Commission, indicated Taiwan's contemplation of endorsing spot Bitcoin ETFs under regulatory oversight. However, he advised against investing in foreign crypto-based exchange-traded products. Reports from local media in December suggested that the FSC will closely monitor Bitcoin ETFs to assess their potential and gauge public demand. The FSC intends to release research findings in April, which will influence the fate of Bitcoin ETFs in Taiwan. Positive findings may pave the way for Taiwanese investors to resume acquiring overseas Bitcoin ETFs. This initiative unfolds amid heightened global demand for Bitcoin ETFs, which recently contributed to Bitcoin's surge to almost $69,000.

Hong Kong Broadens Pilot Program for China’s Digital YuanA senior Hong Kong official announced last week that the Chinese autonomous territory plans to expand its pilot program of the e-CNY, China’s digital yuan, to include additional banks and payment platforms.Photo by Chi Lok TSANG on UnsplashDriving cross-border payment efficiencyThe e-CNY project is China’s ambitious endeavor to bring a digital counterpart to its national currency, the yuan, into mass market, everyday use. The primary objectives of this latest initiative are to enhance the efficiency and convenience of cross-border payments and to bolster greater use of the digital yuan on an international basis.Given Hong Kong’s status as a special administrative region of China and bearing in mind that it is a global financial hub, its role in the e-CNY project is likely to be of paramount importance to the Chinese administration.Hong Kong has been actively involved in the e-CNY project for some time. Previously, the local regulator, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), and the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) jointly explored and tested e-CNY’s feasibility and interoperability in cross-border scenarios.Ongoing collaborationOver the years, these two authorities have conducted numerous technical trials to assess the practicality of implementing the e-CNY. The PBOC initiated e-CNY testing in mainland cities in 2019, followed by cross-border trials involving Hong Kong and Macau. Collaboration between Hong Kong and the mainland relative to the digital yuan was initiated in December 2020 when a pilot program was launched.That program enabled Hong Kong residents to utilize e-CNY wallets for purchases at specified merchants in Shenzhen, aligning at the same time with a separate initiative, the objective of which is to achieve closer economic and social integration between Hong Kong, Macau, and nine cities in Guangdong province.Hong Kong and Mainland China had also partnered on technical testing in 2021 aimed at evaluating the technical feasibility, operational efficiency, regulatory implications, and legal considerations of employing the e-CNY for cross-border trade settlement between the two areas. That testing program is likely to be providing valuable insights, which Chinese authorities can use to expand the e-CNY’s scope and use cases relative to cross-border transactions.Completion of initial testing phaseHong Kong recently successfully concluded the first phase of its e-CNY trial, featuring local banks and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). This phase primarily focused on assessing the technical feasibility of employing the e-CNY for cross-border payments between Hong Kong residents and mainland merchants.What Christopher Hui, Secretary for Hong Kong’s Financial Services and the Treasury, was referring to last week at a fintech event, is effectively the second phase of that overall trial program. This upcoming phase will involve a broader array of banks, payment service providers, and use cases, expanding the scope of e-CNY testing.Taking this latest development into account from the point of view of e-CNY development by the Chinese government, it’s patently obvious from the myriad of initiatives that keep coming week after week that the Chinese authorities are determined to drive the e-CNY towards ever greater real-world use.