Thailand greenlights U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF access

At the end of last month, social derivatives trading platform ZKX, a protocol that runs on the Ethereum-centric Starknet layer-2 network, shut down blindsiding the project’s stakeholders. That event has led to Singapore-headquartered digital assets firm Amber Group speaking out, calling for cryptocurrency projects to be more accountable and transparent going forward. Not economically viableNews of the project shutdown emerged when ZKX founder Eduard Jubany Tur took to X on July 30 to outline the discontinuation of the protocol. Tur claimed that the project was “unable to find an economically viable path for the protocol.” In a long-form post, the ZKX founder outlined that user engagement had been minimal, resulting in disappointing trading volumes. By extension, Tur claimed that revenues didn’t come anywhere close to covering cloud server expenses. “The market is undervaluing the work done and infrastructure built by appchains and dApps coming from ecosystems like ours,” Tur added. Pseudonymous blockchain sleuth ZachXBT had a different take on the matter, claiming that the shutdown represented a rug pull. Amber Group chimed in on the subject on X on Aug. 3. Amber suggested that it wouldn’t break any contractual non-disclosure obligations it had with regard to ZKX but that aside, the firm took the opportunity to share its perspective more broadly in an effort to promote transparency.Photo by Markus Spiske on PexelsAmber Group criticismAmber Group criticized the ZKX team on the basis of a lack of transparency. It stated: “The last update we received was on July 30, when the project announced the cessation of operations. This decision was made without prior communication, highlighting the importance of transparency in our industry.” Staying with that theme, it claimed that clear communication and transparency are essential for fostering trust and collaboration within the crypto community, and that such principles would guide future projects. Amber Group had acted as a market maker relative to the ZKX project. It borrowed and purchased ZKX tokens in support of the launch of the token and in an effort to support token liquidity post-launch. It had secured two million ZKX tokens from the open market, with its overall holding totaling three million ZKX tokens. Project investor HashKey Capital also took to the X social media platform on the subject. Like Amber Group it too criticized the ZKX project for its lack of accountability and transparency. It described the project’s reluctance to communicate as “disappointing,” while it asserted that Tur’s handling of the situation had been “regrettable.” Ye Su, founding partner at ArkStream Capital, expressed a similar complaint, stating on X that “when ZKX shut down, as investors, we got zero heads-up.” He also singled out Tur, claiming that “Edward took the money from early supporters without any communication, showing no moral standards and losing his right to future entrepreneurship in the industry.”

Korean Financial Regulator to Inspect Non-Fiat Crypto Trading PlatformThe Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) under the Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) plans to launch a comprehensive inspection on crypto trading platform Fobl (previously known as Foblgate) from March 11.©Pexels/김 대정Unlike other major Korean crypto exchanges, such as Upbit or Bithumb, which allow trading between fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies, Fobl only offers trading between cryptocurrencies.Inspection on non-fiat exchangesThe FIU’s inspection of Fobl is a follow-up to the regulator’s inspection of GDAC, another Korean non-fiat crypto exchange. This suggests that the FIU will focus on inspecting non-fiat exchanges in the first half of this year.Many in the cryptocurrency industry have been paying attention to the FIU’s move after its first inspection of GDAC, as it could signal the direction in which the regulator would take. Earlier this year, the FIU announced that it would conduct inspections not only on non-fiat crypto exchanges but also on wallet solutions, custodians, and staking service providers. It is known that the FIU has been reviewing anti-money laundering (AML) systems and asset management statuses of these crypto enterprises.Fobl’s possible addition of fiat tradingThe Korean crypto industry suspects Fobl might transform itself into a fiat crypto exchange, considering the FIU’s notice that it will prioritize examining non-fiat exchanges that are preparing to support fiat trading.Fobl CEO’s take on the marketPrior to this news, Fobl CEO Ahn Hyun-joon said in a recent interview with Etnews that the platform is in talks with multiple banks to acquire real-name bank accounts and is complying with all the regulations required by the authorities. During the interview, he also raised concerns about the uncertainty that faces non-fiat crypto trading platforms, pointing out that 97% of the crypto trading in Korea is being carried out in crypto exchanges that support trading of Korean won.In Korea, the financial regulator requires virtual asset service providers (VASPs) offering trading in Korean won to hold real-name registered accounts at domestic banks as a measure to prevent money laundering.

Binance Initiates Registration Process for AML Compliance in TaiwanGlobal crypto exchange Binance has set in motion the process of registering under Taiwan’s Money Laundering Control Act, the sole crypto-related regulatory framework currently established in Taiwan.In a confidential gathering on Tuesday, Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) conveyed to numerous domestic crypto service providers that Binance is in the process of applying for registration to ensure compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations, according to a local media report.Photo by Thomas Tucker on UnsplashImportance of AML complianceTaiwan has mandated that virtual asset service providers (VASPs) adhere to its anti-money laundering statutes since the FSC introduced AML rules in July 2021. Outside of these measures, the cryptocurrency industry in the country remains largely unregulated.Speaking to The Block on Friday, an FSC official refrained from confirming whether Binance had already submitted the necessary documentation to register with the regulatory body. However, the official did emphasize the importance of offshore crypto platforms operating in Taiwan abiding by the local AML regulations.While Binance is not yet regulated in Taiwan, it has established a local entity named “Binance International Limited Taiwan Branch (Seychelles),” as per records from the Department of Commerce’s database. The registration particulars indicate that the Taiwanese government endorsed Binance’s company registration on May 12, 2023, with a registered capital of NT$30 million ($944,000) within Taiwan.Cooperation with law enforcementBinance has taken steps to cooperate with local law enforcement agencies to combat cybercrime in Taiwan. In June, the exchange revealed its collaboration with Taiwan’s Criminal Investigation Bureau, leveraging its expertise to assist over 200 Taiwanese law enforcement officers in addressing digital asset-related criminal activities.Damien Ho, Head of Global Partnerships at Binance, remarked in a blog post at the time:“As an increasing number of individuals in Taiwan show interest in cryptocurrency, ensuring a secure and comfortable crypto ecosystem for users becomes crucial.”Growing Asian influenceBinance’s influence is growing across Asia. This month, it officially launched operations in Japan after its acquisition of the local exchange Sakura Exchange BitCoin in November 2022, paving the way for regulatory oversight by the Japan Financial Services Agency (JFSA). Earlier this month, an investigative report carried out by the Wall Street Journal revealed that Binance is thriving in China in spite of the fact that crypto trading is a banned activity there.Regulatory guidelines anticipatedTaiwan’s FSC, which assumed the role of the primary regulator overseeing the crypto industry in March, is currently formulating comprehensive guidelines for trading and payments involving cryptocurrencies for VASPs.The FSC has disclosed plans to release the VASP guidelines by the end of September. Kevin Cheng, a Director at the Taiwan Fintech Association, revealed that the FSC intends to implement a stringent regulatory approach for crypto platforms in Taiwan, similar to its oversight of traditional financial institutions.Cheng noted: “The FSC plans to require VASPs to keep their own crypto assets separate from the clients’ crypto assets and to have accounting firms audit such assets every year.” However, Cheng highlighted the potential difficulty of this requirement, as many accounting firms might hesitate to serve crypto clients due to the specialized nature of crypto-related information.