South Korea will meet five major cryptocurrency exchanges on Tuesday, October 20, 2026 to discuss its planned 22% tax on crypto income. The exchanges want more time to prepare, while a new bill could delay the tax until 2029. According to Yonhap News Agency, Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, DigitalX and Gopax will attend the meeting. Executives from the Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA) will also join the talks. First Vice Minister of Finance and Economy Kwon Dae-young and Financial Services Commission official Yoo Young-jun will hear the exchanges’ concerns. The meeting follows Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il’s Tuesday, October 6, 2026 promise…
Author: Austin Mwithalii
South Korea is planning stricter cybersecurity rules after attacks exposed about 100,000 customer records across 16 financial institutions. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) proposed tougher security checks after finding weaknesses at 130 of 555 financial companies. The FSC completed its inspection on October 8 using a 12-point checklist to assess cybersecurity controls. The review found that 425 companies reported compliance, while 130 identified security deficiencies requiring corrective action. However, the 130 companies with security weaknesses were not all victims of confirmed cyberattacks. The FSC separately identified 16 institutions that experienced security incidents. The attacks exposed customer names, telephone numbers, email…
Standard Chartered has launched direct Bitcoin and Ether trading for eligible wealthy clients in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The service lets Professional Investor clients buy and sell both cryptocurrencies through their existing bank accounts. Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) approved the service. Standard Chartered will manage transactions, custody and settlement within its banking system, removing the need for separate exchange accounts or personal wallets. Samir Subberwal, Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Wealth Solutions, Retail Products, Data & Analytics, stated, “With digital assets moving into mainstream wealth conversations, clients are increasingly looking not only for access, but also for…
South Korea has ordered access restrictions on 27 overseas cryptocurrency exchange websites, including KuCoin, MEXC and BingX. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced the decision on Tuesday, October 13 after regulatory reviews on October 6 and 7. The restrictions target overseas exchanges that serve South Korean customers without registering with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). Other affected platforms include Phemex, XT.com, Bitrue, CoinW, Poloniex, BTCC and BitMart. South Korea began restricting unregistered exchange apps through domestic app stores in 2025. Google Play restricted 17 crypto exchange apps in March, while Apple introduced similar restrictions in April. Regulators are now targeting…
Pando Finance Limited plans to list its spot Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. The listing will provide investors with a second Hong Kong-listed ETF that tracks Solana’s market price. Pando opened subscriptions on Tuesday, October 6 and will close them on October 12. The fund carries an indicative issue price of HK$7.80 to HK$8 per share. Investors must subscribe in lots of 100 shares, putting the minimum cost at HK$780 to HK$800 before additional charges. The fund uses the US dollar as its base currency, while investors will trade shares…
Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has finalized 11 regulations for Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The rules take effect on Friday, October 16, 2026, allowing local funds to list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET). The SEC announced the framework on Thursday, October 8 after months of consultations. The new rules will let Thai investors buy fund shares linked to Bitcoin or Ethereum without holding the cryptocurrencies themselves. Each ETF must follow the price of one cryptocurrency. The SEC requires each fund to maintain average net exposure of at least 80% of its net asset value to…
Kyrgyzstan will shut down its USDKG stablecoin after ordering the liquidation of its issuing company. The project announced the decision on Wednesday, October 7 and said holders can exchange their tokens for fiat currency or USDT. The Cabinet approved Order No. 639-t on August 20, 2026, to improve state asset management. The order also cancelled several government decisions linked to Kyrgyzstan’s crypto plans. One decision approved a November 2024 roadmap for a cryptocurrency pilot project. The pilot aimed to introduce new financial instruments and attract additional investment. The Finance Ministry must liquidate JSC Virtual Asset Issuer, which issued USDKG. The…
Ledger launched Crypto Loan on Wednesday, October 7, 2026 allowing eligible users to borrow Circle’s USDC or Tether’s USDT against cbBTC or wBTC. Ledger unveiled the service at TOKEN2049 Singapore and will gradually expand access. Meanwhile, availability will depend on the user’s country as Ledger broadens the rollout. The service lets users access stablecoin liquidity without selling their Bitcoin-linked assets. Morpho will provide the decentralised lending infrastructure, while Yield.xyz will manage the loan flow and monitor positions. Before borrowing, users can also simulate loan options through Ledger Wallet. After opening a loan, users can check their loan-to-value ratio through Ledger…
Ethereum processed its first Ethereum Economic Zone transaction between mainnet and an EEZ-connected layer-2 network on Monday, October 5. The test transferred 0.001 ETH and coordinated a state update across both execution layers. EEZ contributor Eduardo Antuña Díez announced the transaction and called it the framework’s first atomic L1-to-L2 execution on Ethereum mainnet. Transaction logs showed a cross-chain call that transferred 0.001 ETH and triggered a state update on the connected rollup. The transaction demonstrated how EEZ can coordinate actions across Ethereum and an L2 within one execution. The system allows linked operations to complete together when the required conditions…
Payward, the company behind Kraken, partnered with Singapore Gulf Bank to provide 24/7 settlement for institutional digital asset transactions. The service will initially support United States (US) dollar settlements for selected institutional clients in eligible Asian and Gulf jurisdictions. Payward integrated SGB Net, Singapore Gulf Bank’s real-time clearing network, into its platform. Eligible clients can now settle qualifying digital asset transactions at any time through SGB Net. The partnership addresses delays that occur when continuous crypto trading meets banking systems with fixed operating hours. Crypto markets operate continuously, while banks often process fiat transfers within fixed business hours. Institutions can therefore…