Asia Express

Will the real “MicroStrategy of Asia” please step forward? Almost half of top 20 countries for crypto adoption are in Asia: Asia Express 2024

With the end of the year in sight, Asia Express looks back at some of the most significant developments for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in the region in 2024.

MicroStrategy has become the poster child for Bitcoin, snapping up 439,000 BTC, according to BitcoinTreasuries.NET around 2% of the entire supply.

Across Asia, Saylors Bitcoin blueprint has inspired several firms to bet their future on Bitcoin, with more expected to follow suit.

As Asia Express reported last week, Chinese selfie app developer Meitu invested in 31,000 ETH and 940 BTC in the spring of 2021 and sold it all from November on, earning it a tidy profit.

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Indian public firm and MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin blueprint, Japanese exchange’s SPAC merger for Nasdaq listing: Asia Express

Jetking Infotrain unveiled that it has become the first publicly listed Indian firm to adopt Bitcoin as a reserve asset. 

Talking to Bitcoin proponent Max Keiser in a Dec. 9 X post, the companys chairman Avinash Barwani said his firm now holds 12 BTC.

The whole idea is to get Bitcoin on the balance sheet for enterprises and make sure that we have equity and Bitcoin in place so that over a period of time, the value of the company increases and the shareholders get their value, Barwani said.

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Asia’s MicroStrategy Meitu has sold all of its 940 Bitcoin and 31K ETH while Sth. Korea looks to legalize corporate crypto buys. Asia Express

Chinese selfie app developer Meitu has cashed out all of its cryptocurrency holdings, earning roughly an 80% profit. The company began selling its crypto assets in November. 

In a Dec. 4 statement, Meitu confirmed that it no longer holds any cryptocurrencies.

Meitu invested in 31,000 Ether and 940 Bitcoin in the spring of 2021, earning the nickname Asias MicroStrategy.

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Dragon Ball and One Piece producer’s new blockchain game, Justin Sun is the largest investor in Donald Trump’s WLFI: Asia Express

Japanese anime production giant Toei Animation, known for generational series like Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Sailor Moon, has partnered with South Korean blockchain firm Wemade to develop a blockchain game with the working title DenDenGarden.

The game is based on Toeis DenDekaDen intellectual property, launched in partnership with Japanese Web3 company Strata in 2022.

DenDekaDen tells the story of seven Kyoto spirits striving to ascend to godhood.

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Bitcoin’s surge attracts tax vultures, BTC ruled a commodity in China but legal risks abound, Vitalik Buterin meets Moo Deng: Asia Express.

Cryptocurrencies are considered commodities in China and are not explicitly prohibited by law, according to commercial judge Sun Jie at Songjiang District Peoples Court in Shanghai.

However, crypto activities like trading, issuance, or payments are considered illegal financial activities.

Suns statement posted on Songjiang Courts official WeChat channel provides legal guidance on cryptocurrencies during a booming market cycle, which she calls the new gold rush.

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Chinese public servant jailed for for selling state secrets for crypto, and Korean YouTuber accused of fleecing $230M from 15,304 followers.

A former Chinese government employee, identified as Wang Moumou (a placeholder name that translates to “so-and-so” used in China to anonymize individuals) has been sentenced to life imprisonment for selling state secrets to foreign intelligence agencies in exchange for 1 million yuan (about $138,000) in cryptocurrency payments.

Chinas Ministry of State Security said in a WeChat post that Wang racked up big losses and debts from his crypto trading.

Desperate for additional income, he sought part-time work on an online forum, revealing he was a government employment in the process. This post attracted the attention of a foreign intelligence agent, who offered crypto payments for classified information.

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Asian investors trade overnight to catch the Trump-fueled Bitcoin surge, China accelerates digital yuan push: Asia Express

The cryptocurrency industry celebrated Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 United States presidential election, as Bitcoin surged to new all-time highs. Asian markets joined in the rally, local sources tell Magazine.

A lot of Asian traders were working overnight to catch this surge and are taking profit in a buy the rumor sell the news dynamic, especially with the Polymarket bets that were settled already, Hong Kong-based market analyst Justin dAnethan tells Magazine.

Trump’s victory sparked optimism in Singapore’s crypto sector as well, a city-state in the race with Hong Kong to attract digital asset firms.

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Victims of ‘Hong Kong’s FTX’ take aim at $29M seized by police, central bankers bash stablecoins, crypto scammers busted over luxury condo.

A Hong Kong court has ruled in favor of two investors who filed a civil suit against defunct Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange JPEX and its affiliate Web 3.0 Technical Support.

With the judges ruling, 1.85 million Hong Kong dollars (around $238,000) will be recovered on behalf of the plaintiffs.

What this newest judgment [shows] is that victims of virtual currency-related cases do have judicial recourse and set a precedent for all those victims who are in similar positions longing to recover their cryptos, but might be at a loss as to what options they have other than waiting for results from criminal investigation,” Joshua Chu, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association and the lawyer representing the plaintiffs, tells Magazine.

‘They can take their own steps and police will need victims to have a court order to vest frozen assets in any event,

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India considers new ban on crypto to support the digital rupee, and North Korean hackers are suspected to be behind two recent attacks.

Indian regulators are reportedly considering a ban on cryptocurrencies again.

According to local outlet Hindustan Times, the government has been consulting experts who support banning cryptocurrencies in favor of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

The news outlet cited two anonymous sources familiar with the matter, reporting that the consensus opinion is that the risks of cryptocurrencies outweigh their benefits. 

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New analysis suggests $1.3B of ETH from Plus Token Ponzi could be headed to exchanges; Upbit monopoly sparks bank run fears. Asia Express.

Around $16 million in Ether from the Plus Token scam started moving to exchanges this week, suggesting intent to sell, according to on-chain analyst ErgoBTC. 

The Plus Token Ponzi scheme, which defrauded investors between 2018 and 2019, led to the reported seizure of $4.2 billion in crypto by Chinese authorities, including 833,083 ETH.

ErgoBTCs latest analyst states that around a third of the seized Ether was sold at now-defunct crypto exchange Bidesk in 2021. The remainder, approximately 542,000 Ether in thousands of wallets, started moving in August and was consolidated into 294 addresses.

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