DeFiance Capital notches up another legal victory in 3AC dispute

Finger Labs to leverage Web3 services for Dream Ladders’ college entrance briefingFinger Labs, a subsidiary of digital marketing company FSN, announced on Tuesday (local time) that it is set to introduce its Web3 services, Xclusive and Favorlet, at an informational college admissions briefing hosted by Dream Ladders, a blockchain subsidiary of educational and career services provider Jinhak.Photo by Unseen Studio on UnsplashXclusive is Finger Labs’ Web3 content distribution hub that uses blockchain technology to connect content creators and consumers, facilitating the distribution of various content like movies and performances and the creation of profitable business models. Favorlet, on the other hand, is an NFT wallet that allows users to view, manage and store their NFTs safely in one place.Innovative ticketingThe upcoming briefing, organized by Dream Ladders’ EDUM project, is set to share insights regarding college entrance exams and applications. Attendees will be able to submit questions in advance and receive exclusive benefits. It is scheduled for Dec. 22 to 23, hosting 50 select individuals each day.Tickets for the event will be issued and sold as NFTs, which are available for purchase on Xclusive until Dec. 21. Attendees can purchase the tickets and store them in their Favorlet wallets, which will allow them to easily verify their tickets on-site at the briefing. This ticketing process will serve to show users the convenience that Web3 technology offers.“Contributing our Web3 services to this opportunity offers promising outlooks,” said Kim Dong-hoon, CEO of Finger Labs.Showcasing Web3 solutionsFinger Labs has previously tailored solutions for major corporations like SK Planet, Lotte Homeshopping and SK Networks. In particular, the company also introduced Xclusive and Favorlet at this year’s Blockchain Grand Week — a large-scale blockchain event hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and jointly organized by the National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA), the Korea Internet and Security Agency (KISA) and the Institute of Information and Communications Technology Planning and Evaluation (IITP).

Leading cryptocurrency exchange platform Bybit has joined a growing list of competing platforms by applying for a Virtual Asset Trading Platform Operator (VATP) license with the Hong Kong Securities and Exchange Commission (SFC). The application, submitted through the Bybit affiliate business entity Spark Fintech Limited on Jan. 31, is currently under review along with 13 similar VATP applications.Photo by Simon Zhu on UnsplashStrategic licensing playIn the dynamic landscape of cryptocurrency regulations, obtaining a VATP license in Hong Kong is a strategic move. Currently, only two crypto exchanges, OSL and HashKey Exchange, are licensed by the SFC in Hong Kong. OSL secured its license on Dec. 15, 2020, while HashKey Exchange was licensed on Nov. 9, 2022. Under a partnership agreement with OSL, Interactive Brokers has been enabled in its ability to commence trading in Hong Kong. Exchanges who have followed through on the license application process include OKX, Gate.io, and KuCoin, among others. It’s not something that is being taken on without these platforms weighing up the long term potential due to the cost implications. It emerged last year that companies were spending up to $25 million in their efforts to obtain licensing in Hong Kong. VATP vs. VASP licensingThe VATP license holds significance as it allows Hong Kong-based firms to cater to retail customers in contrast to the Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license, which restricts companies to serving professional investors. In Hong Kong, investors must have portfolios valued at a minimum of eight million Hong Kong dollars ($1.03 million) to qualify for professional investor status. Hong Kong has positioned itself as a leading destination for crypto companies, particularly in 2023, owing to its favorable regulatory approach compared to mainland China's stringent crackdown on digital assets. The SFC has introduced crypto-oriented regulations, opening doors for both institutional and retail investors to participate in the crypto market. This regulatory environment has contributed to the city-state's emergence as a hub for crypto activities. Dubai-headquartered Bybit's move to seek a VATP license aligns with the growing trend of crypto companies finding a home in Hong Kong. In a statement, Ben Zhou, the founder and CEO of Bybit, emphasized the city's strategic location and established financial infrastructure as ideal for their operations and serving institutional clients across the Asia Pacific region. Institutional offeringAs part of its strategy to grow its institutional customer base, the company revamped its institutional market offering last October. With that institutional business in mind, it has also formed strategic partnerships, including collaborating with Talos, an institutional digital asset trading technology provider, and joining forces with Copper to offer custodial and settlement services for institutional clients through Copper's ClearLoop service. Bybit, launched in 2018 by Zhou, boasts a substantial user base, serving over 22 million registered users in 160 countries globally. Claiming a daily trading volume of $16.53 billion, Bybit holds the fifth-highest score among spot exchanges worldwide and is the second-ranked derivatives exchange, trailing only behind Binance, according to CoinMarketCap data. The exchange has consistently ranked in the top positions for futures and perpetuals trading throughout the last calendar year.   

Korean Financial Watchdog to Penalize Bankers Involved in Illegal Foreign RemittancesThe Korean Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) recently completed an investigation into illegal foreign remittances of approximately 16 trillion KRW (~$12,137,718,400) that involved numerous bankers.©Unsplash/Paul FiedlerExploiting the kimchi premiumThe investigation, launched by the Korean financial watchdog last June, found that these lawbreakers sent funds to China, Hong Kong, and other overseas destinations through Korean crypto exchanges, trading firms, and bank branches with an aim of making money through arbitrage by taking the advantage of the kimchi premium, a term used to describe that the higher prices of crypto assets in Korean exchanges compared to their foreign counterparts.Bankers neglecting the KYC ruleSome of these bankers participated in the crime by raising the remittance cap and applying favorable exchange rates to trading companies that had no previous transaction records with banks. By law, bankers in Korea are obligated to follow the “know your customer” rule. It was found that 12 domestic banks and one futures firm were involved in this incident.The FSS has decided to impose strict penalties on these financial institutions, considering they were exploited for money laundering purposes. These entities are likely to have some of their services suspended, with the employees involved being fired.Accountability of top bankersOne key point to watch out for is whether the FSS would be able to hold executives accountable. Some say penalizing top bankers is not easy, given that it has to be proven that the employees’ criminal activities were due to a lack of executives’ internal control.The financial regulator recently announced plans to revise the law governing banks’ governance, but it is expected that such a bill would take some time to pass through the National Assembly.Through a revision of the law, the financial authority aims to hold top executives at financial institutions more responsible for serious financial accidents. It looks forward to bestowing top bankers with the obligation of comprehensive internal control management and making them accountable as an overall manager only in case of critical financial accidents. The term “top executives” in the bill will encompass not only bank presidents but also chairpersons of financial holding companies. More specific revision plans are expected to be revealed by the end of this month.