Asia's weekly TOP10 crypto news (Jan 1 to Jan 7)

Author：0xMingyue

Editor：Colin Wu

1. The Mainland of China’s Weekly Summary

1.1 Shanghai Taxation Bureau Proposes Taxation on Buying and Selling Virtual Currency link

The Shanghai Taxation Bureau published an article on its public account this week, stating that individuals who acquire virtual currencies from players through the internet, mark up the price, and sell the acquired income to others, should be subject to personal income tax. The tax should be calculated and paid based on the “income from property transfer” category. However, there is still uncertainty regarding whether this ruling, issued in 2008 (Guoshuihan [2008] №818), which specifically mentioned virtual game currency, applies to the currently popular Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Authorities have not provided a clear interpretation on this matter.

1.2 Shanghai Municipal People’s Government: Accelerate the Construction of Urban Blockchain Infrastructure and Web3.0 Ecosystem link

The General Office of the People’s Government of Shanghai Municipality has issued the “Several Policy Measures to Promote the Healthy Development of the Online New Economy in Shanghai.” Among them, there is an emphasis on accelerating the construction of urban blockchain infrastructure. The document outlines plans to promote the construction of the “Pujiang Blockchain” urban blockchain digital infrastructure system. This involves establishing dedicated computing power clusters and a distributed open network to create a public infrastructure service platform that supports convenient on-chain, off-chain, and cross-chain operations. The policy encourages high-quality enterprises, research institutions, and others to collaborate on technical research and ecological construction, aiming to build a comprehensive blockchain technology innovation system. Additionally, the policy supports online new economy enterprises in conducting research and development on technologies such as Web3.0 smart contracts, network operating systems, and digital identity authentication.

1.3 Legal Daily: Legislation and Technology Both Essential in Combating New Forms of Corruption such as Virtual Currency link

The article in the Legal Daily titled “Virtual Currency Electronic Gift Cards Provide New Concealed Channels and Benefit Delivery Methods for Bribery Crimes; Governing New Types of Corruption Requires Legislation and Technology” points out that in the transaction methods of digital currencies, some corrupt individuals use encrypted digital currencies’ “cold storage” methods to evade online investigations. They utilize offline storage addresses and private keys, carrying encrypted digital currencies out of the country for transfer, transactions, and cashing through methods such as hard drives and online storage. Liao Tianhu, Vice Dean of the Law School of Southwest University of Science and Technology, suggests that China’s anti-corruption legislation and practices need to respond to the emerging issues related to digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. It is essential to strengthen supervision and management of virtual properties and their transactions, establish and improve relevant laws, regulations, and system norms, clarify the legal status and nature of virtual properties, and determine standards for the amount of criminal bribery involving virtual properties such as Bitcoin. Additionally, there should be clear guidelines on how to dispose of such types of assets.

2. South Korea’s Weekly Summary

2.1 Financial Services Commission of South Korea Proposes Ban on Citizens Using Credit Cards to Purchase Cryptocurrency link

The Financial Services Commission of South Korea has proposed amendments to its credit finance law aimed at effectively prohibiting local citizens from using credit cards to purchase cryptocurrencies. The commission highlighted concerns about illegal outflows of domestic funds, money laundering, and the encouragement of speculative activities in the legislative notice. The regulatory body plans to collect public feedback on the proposed amendments by February 13. A review and vote are expected, with the goal of implementation in the first half of 2024.

2.2 National Tax Service of South Korea Imposes 53.69 Billion Korean Won Fine on Blockchain Game Giant Wemade link

According to reports from Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean National Tax Service has decided to conduct a tax investigation into the leading South Korean blockchain gaming company Wemade and its subsidiary, Wemade Tree. The investigation is related to the virtual currency WEMIX (WEMIX) issued and used by the companies in the past. The National Tax Service has imposed a retrieval amount of 53.69 billion Korean won (approximately $41.05 million). The deadline for payment is set for next month, the 29th. The retrieval amount accounts for 10.05% of their own capital ratio. Wemade officials stated that they will honestly pay the relevant taxes, and as the tax treatment of virtual assets becomes clearer from uncertainty, business stability is expected to improve.

3. Blockchain Expected to Reshape Industries, Introducing a Series of Activities to Provide Young Technicians for Web3 link

The Chairman of the Hong Kong Computer Society and the Convener of the WebX Industry Alliance, Sam Hui, unveiled the top 10 technology trends for 2024, which include blockchain technology. Sam emphasized that blockchain technology is considered to have the potential to reshape industries. Venture capitalists are investing in pioneering companies in this field, exploring applications beyond finance, such as supply chain management and data authentication. Currently, several local universities in Hong Kong are collaborating to promote education in Web3 and blockchain. The goal is to provide an ample supply of young technical talent for Web3 through a series of application workshops, competitions, and related events.

4. Sanctioned Russian Banker Mikhail Klyukin Sells £15 Million Worth of Shares in Cryptocurrency Custody Company Copper link

Days before Christmas, sanctioned Russian banker Mikhail Klyukin sold £15 million worth of shares in the UK-based crypto custody company, Copper. Klyukin’s 2% stake in the company attracted negative attention, especially after former Chancellor of the Exchequer Phillip Hammond joined the company’s board. A special arrangement was carefully orchestrated by Copper’s US subsidiary to sell the shares and remove him from the shareholder register. In order to comply with US sanctions, the transaction involved selling the shares in pounds and then converting them into cryptocurrency for transfer to Klyukin. Currently, Europe has banned all transfers of cryptocurrencies to Russian entities and individuals.

5. HashKey Exchange to Limitedly Release Genesis VIP on January 8th link

HashKey Exchange is set to offer its Genesis VIP sale on January 8, 2024, providing discounts of up to 50% on trading fees and additional perks such as HSK benefits. The Genesis VIP plan consists of two levels: Genesis Gold Card and Genesis Silver Card, priced at 12,000 USD per card and 800 USD per card, respectively. HashKey has disclosed that its current registered user count stands at 155,000.

Gracy Chen Elaborates on Bitget: Aggressive Strategies in Bear Markets link

Gracy Chen elaborates on Bitget: Why choose an aggressive expansion strategy in a bear market? The core focus for 2024 is “Compliance, Emerging Markets, and Web3 Business,” where Web3 business encompasses DEX and L2, among other aspects. The goal is not to hastily surpass a specific competitor but to steadily enhance various aspects of the business, including product technology and fund protection plans. The rumored wolf-like culture includes a results-driven team, each individual having their own OKRs, emphasizing a data-driven and results-oriented work approach.

(Sponsored by Bitget)

6. One of Taiwan’s Top 3 Notorious Cryptocurrency Exchanges, “ACE King Exchange,” Involved in Fraud link

According to ChainNews, “ACE Exchange,” one of the top three well-known cryptocurrency trading platforms in Taiwan, was investigated by the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Brigade for fraud on the evening of the 3rd. Cash exceeding “100 million TWD” was seized from the home of Lin, a partner of Pan, the former head of ACE. In addition, virtual currency converted into TWD also exceeded 100 million TWD, totaling over 200 million TWD in illegal gains. The New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Brigade pointed out that the individuals involved misled investors into believing that these cryptocurrencies were the latest technological products with the appreciation potential similar to Bitcoin. However, in reality, these so-called investments turned out to be the purchase of “junk coins” and “air coins,” with their value rapidly disappearing, causing significant losses to investors. ACE Exchange told ChainNews that today’s media reports about ACE are due to individual listed coins being involved in illegal activities in 2019. ACE primarily cooperates with the investigation as a witness. Some media reports about the company’s employees being involved in the case are not true, and the company has sent a letter to the media for correction.

7. Huobi Korea Plans to Terminate Virtual Asset Trading Services on January 29th link

Huobi Korea has announced the termination of its virtual asset trading services, scheduled to cease on January 29, 2024. The platform plans to continue supporting customers in withdrawing their assets (KRW and virtual assets) until all customer assets are completely withdrawn. Earlier reports from South Korean media outlet News1 indicated that Huobi Korea’s branch had started preparing for the acquisition of shares held by Huobi Global and a subsequent renaming. Zhao Guofeng, Chairman of Huobi Korea, took over Li Lin’s shares, holding approximately 72% of Huobi Korea’s shares.

8. LINE NFT: Suspends Services Effective Immediately, Global NFT Platform DOSI to Continue Operations link

Japan’s communication giant LINE has announced the temporary suspension of its NFT marketplace LINE NFT, effective immediately. LINE NEXT Inc., the provider of DOSI, is set to undergo updates and will resume services on January 10. LINE NFT was launched in April 2022. In December 2023, LINE NEXT completed a $140 million funding round, led by Crescendo.

9. Zhu Su: Inscriptions Gain Significant Attention in the East, Personally Focused on the Cosmos Ecosystem link

Zhu Su, the founder of Three Arrows Capital, expressed in a Twitter Space session that projects like Memeland are mainly popular in the East (everyone has been talking to me about Memeland since getting out of prison), while similar Solana ecosystems are more popular in the West, and Ethereum is widely embraced in both the East and the West. Personally, he mentioned a keen interest in the Cosmos ecosystem within the realm of altcoins. Regarding Bitcoin’s current price, he believes it already reflects expectations for the ETF, and if approved, it will attract significant traditional capital, making 2024 a bull market. However, he advised caution, suggesting to “control risks” and “not to get liquidated like me; you can make money more steadily.”

10. DiscusFish Shares Some Key Year-End Operational Highlights link

DiscusFish shares some key year-end routine tasks to ensure safety and efficiency in 2024, including: identifying and addressing potential risks based on the “Blockchain Dark Forest Survival Manual,” ensuring data and system security; updating strong passwords, backing up 2FA, checking SIM card PIN codes, resetting the operating system to avoid security vulnerabilities; thoroughly checking previously used addresses to ensure asset security, cleaning authorizations, updating the whitelist address list; setting clear goals for the bull market in 2024.