Nathanael Lim

SBI Holdings Inc. a Japanese financial group has partnered with Circle Internet Financial, the company behind USDC to enable it to circulate stablecoins in Japan. This move marks a significant milestone across the Asia Pacific. With this USDC makes its debut in Japan which has already pioneered its web3 framework by making changes in their legislation and allowing banks and other similar companies to issue and manage stablecoins. In my view, a slow but steady groundwork enabling banking institutions to issue and handle crypto/stablecoins is the way forward in India. While banks can act as the primary banking service providers, NBFC's and other financial institutions can be tasked to handle the circulation of crypto/stablecoins. There can also be a creation of a SPV for the same. Gradually progressing towards a web3 economy is not a dream but a reality which is already here. #web3law #stablecoins #web3 #blockchain #litigation #web3community

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What Drives Stablecoin Growth? Source: https://lnkd.in/g4JeExHJ #driver #stablecoin #growth #cryptoassets #digitalassets #payments Credits: Lambis Dionysopoulos Dr Miriam Marra Andrew Urquhart Highlights: Stablecoins have emerged as a pivotal development within the blockchain domain, attracting regulatory scrutiny and a huge amount of interest from investors who aim to navigate the digital asset ecoysystem. Despite their critical role, our understanding of one of their fundamental attributes – their growth – remains limited. Our analysis, first and foremost, illuminates this area while challenging prevailing assumptions, demonstrating for the first time that profits from reserves are a key driver of stablecoin growth. We also showcase some substitutability effects between stablecoins. Our findings carry substantial implications. 1. If stablecoin growth is indeed fuelled by higher issuer profits, this calls into question the exact mechanism through which this occurs. We provide a possible explanation through the indirect substitution of providers. Specifically, all custodian stablecoins in our sample have ties with their respective cryptocurrency exchanges. These exchanges often offer products and services that pay interest on their stablecoins. The paid interest may come from the profit stablecoin providers generate through interest earned on reserves. 2. Our work has implications for the emergent CBDCs. Given their utility proximity with stablecoins, it is important to understand how they might affect the stablecoins ecosystem. We argue that in the absence of convenience yields for holding stablecoins, CBDCs may replace stablecoins as safer and more stable versions of the same. However, the level of replacement depends also on other issues: level of privacy, utility in DeFi and other aspects of blockchain, and interest-bearing nature of CBDCs. Further research should therefore investigate the implications of CBDCs for stablecoin providers (depending on the CBDC design and functionality) and how stablecoin providers may transition to become CBDC providers. 3. We highlight the substitution dynamics between stablecoins, potentially stemming from barriers to entry/exit. Specifically, we articulate how higher fees for USDT redemption may incentivise USDT holders to redeem their holdings through other stablecoins. If so, this could lead to USDC/BUSD and other custodial stablecoin holders demanding a premium when exchanging their stablecoins for USDT, due to the easier redemption. We also underscore concerns about Tether’s capability to redeem USDT without relying on other providers and question the sustainability of other stablecoin providers in redeeming USDT holders’ coins, given the substantial differences in reserve sizes. Standardisation and regulation can mitigate these issues, in addition to the market forces and practice.

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Over the past few years, Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has been transforming the financial sector, offering innovative solutions that operate outside traditional banking systems. While DeFi continues to push boundaries, it also brings a range of regulatory challenges that differ across regions, especially in Asia. Venture capitalists (VCs) are approaching DeFi with caution due to some of the inherent risks, highlighting the importance of building strong compliance frameworks. Please click the Link(https://lnkd.in/gF8JnNCp) for the aspect that Henry Lin and I explored, such as the reasons behind VCs' conservative approach to DeFi, examined the key risks in the sector, and shared strategies for effective risk mitigation.

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Gemini Earn users will receive $2.18B of their digital assets back in kind--a 232% recovery. This means, for example, that if a customer lent one bitcoin in the Earn program, they will receive one bitcoin back. This ensures that customers will benefit from any and all appreciation of their digital assets since they lent them into the Earn program. This represents an unprecedented recovery among crypto bankruptcies, as well as bankruptcies in general. It has been humbling to have been part of this incredible team over the last few months, which has been tireless in its efforts and laser focused on doing the right thing to achieve this incredible outcome.  https://lnkd.in/gtHA7yeQ

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Crypto spring is coming! Khairani Afifi Noordin and I profile two companies listed on the SGX Group's mainboard and Catalist board, who pivoted at the tail end of the last crypto bull run into crypto. SMI Vantage Limited and OIO Holdings Limited (Stock Code - SGX : KUX) were once retail businesses and M&E firms that suffered from the Covid-19 economic downturn. Hoping to ride the crypto high in 2021, the two diversified into crypto mining and staking as new business lines, only to find themselves in a deep crypto winter. The result? A continuous reporting of negative revenues. With business lines so tightly linked to the volatility of crypto prices, how are SMI Vantage and OIO Holdings minimising their risks? Can the upcoming bull run help them recoup their losses and hedge against the next downturn? “Fortunately or unfortunately, the gap between the bull and bear market is extremely large,” says OIO's Yusaku Mishima. “Fortunately, because there’s no other asset [in the world] that goes up over 200% in three or four months.”

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Hong Kong is moving a lot faster than Singapore in the last few months as Singapore's focus seems purely on AI. Once these experiments take off in China HK, main land China will lead in PvP and PvD using stablecoins and eRMB! But one may not want to underestimate Singapore's strength in setting standards for Web4!

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In a compelling discussion, Joonmo Kwon, a seasoned veteran in the South Korean gaming industry, shares his perspective on the advantages and disadvantages of Web3 technology in gaming. Kwon emphasizes the transformative potential of decentralization and player ownership, while also acknowledging the significant challenges that accompany the integration of blockchain technology into gaming ecosystems. Key points include: - The potential benefits of Web3 for enhancing player engagement and ownership. - The hurdles developers face in adopting blockchain solutions. - The future implications of Web3 for the gaming industry as a whole. As the gaming landscape continues to evolve, Kwon's insights provide valuable context for stakeholders navigating the complexities of Web3. For a detailed overview of his perspectives, read the article: https://lnkd.in/dXSCuAYG

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what do you guys think about tokenising real world assets in the blockchain? anyone keen on this idea? looking to find partners / collaborators and people interested in making this happen. #crypto #blockchain #tokenisation #rwa #stablecoin #ethereum #solana #malaysia

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Was really privileged to intersect the Financial world of family offices and technology (AI / Decentralised AI). Was at Token 2049 after the ASEAN Meeting in Jakarta and was excited to explain the connection wit https://blockster.com/ regarding HyperCycle and Decentralised AI. Met an amazing young man, Ivan Zhelev with whom I had a great conversation! At the same time, I also got to review the evolving space of Tokenisation of Real World Assets (RWA). For instance, a luxury boutique residential resort on the beachfront of Zanzibar's east coast (150 hotel rooms) is being put up for tokenisation. What does that mean? Shareholders and token holders will be offered a return on investment of up to 20%. Additionally, they will have the opportunity to unlock invested funds by leveraging RWA DeFi platforms, allowing them to regain up to 90% of their invested funds at an interest rate significantly lower than the ROI offered by the project. 4.2M raised.... Am looking to understand this space. If anyone is reviewing RWA as an investor or reviewer, happy to learn more from you! https://lnkd.in/gX7CaCVa. Ziad-Alexandre Hayek Amy He Dr. Mihaela Ulieru Matt Humbert Georg Runge Robert Moir, PhD²@youngsook Jack Bagayoko Evan Rodenberg Mark Ollila, PhD Simon Russell

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Commendable collaboration between Binance & Tokocrypto, and Indonesian law enforcement. Disrupting such sophisticated scams is crucial in protecting users and maintaining trust in the crypto ecosystem. Ongoing partnerships like these are vital for ensuring a safer digital landscape. #Crypto #Binance #India #Regulations #Blockchain #Fintech #BuildWeb3 #Legal #bitcoin #news #investing

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An article from last week reiterates that the HKD is the oldest standing stablecoin in operation since the launch of LERS (the USD peg) in 1983. It's arguably the safest, backed by a reserve of US$400 billion (the 9th largest globally among central banks). Can HK make stablecoins safer? We are excited to share how our experience in operating a stablecoin can yield benefits in trade and capital markets worldwide. https://lnkd.in/gHuz4fyR

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Singapore-based blockchain firm Aelf launches $50m fund Aelf, a Singapore-based blockchain firm, has launched a US$50 million investment fund to back various blockchain projects. Called Aelf Ventures, the fund aims to discover investment opportunities within the Web3 sector, particularly focusing on “high-performance” Layer-1 blockchain projects. A Layer-1 blockchain is the base network of a platform that validates and finalizes transactions. Some common examples of Layer-1 blockchains include #Ethereum, #bitcoin, #Solana, and #BNB Chain. It will also concentrate on projects that are looking to shift from Web2 to Web3, as well as blockchain projects within both the Aelf and multichain ecosystems. What problem does Aelf solves? Founded in 2017, Aelf offers tools for developing smart contracts and decentralized apps on its blockchain platform. Its tools include a mainnet, a public testnet, and developer tools such as a blockchain explorer, wallets, and multilanguage SDKs. aelf #blockchain #cryptocurrency Currently creating smart contracts for different blockchains can be very time consuming especially if your aim is to target multi-chains. A solution across multi-chains (different blockchains) requires rigorous testing using many different tools. Aelf aims to solve this problem by providing developers unified tools and standardized programming language across different chains. Link in the comments.

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🚀 The Future of Crypto & Web3 in Southeast Asia: Insights from Sanjay Popli 🚀 In episode 142 of the Rising Giants podcast, Sanjay Popli, CEO of Cryptomind Group, shares his journey and vision for the cryptocurrency industry in Thailand and Southeast Asia. His insights shed light on the Web3 ecosystem's rapid growth, the importance of community-building, and the future of blockchain technology. Check out the highlights below! 💡 1️⃣ Visionary Leader in Web3: Sanjay Popli has been a driving force in Thailand’s cryptocurrency sector and the wider Southeast Asian Web3 ecosystem, pioneering major initiatives. 🌍💻 📈 2️⃣ Cryptomind's Key Milestones: From Thailand Blockchain Week to Merkle Capital ($70M assets), Cryptomind is making waves in the digital asset space and shaping the region’s crypto future. 💰🚀 💬 3️⃣ Building Trust in Crypto: In a volatile market, Sanjay emphasizes the importance of compliance, transparency, and community-driven platforms like Bitcoin Addict for reliable information. 🛡️🤝 💼 4️⃣ Investing in Emerging Tech: Cryptomind’s investment focus includes tokenized real estate and backing strong founders. Sanjay’s advice: "Always bet on the founder!" 🏡💡 🎯 5️⃣ Looking Ahead to 2024: Despite a slower market, Sanjay’s team is focusing on infrastructure projects and validator nodes, ready to fuel long-term growth. 🔧🌱 Thanks to Max Thornton and Dominic Kalousek for working with Cambodia Investment Review as a trusted media partner. 🔮 What do you think the future holds for Southeast Asia's crypto industry? Let me know your thoughts below! ⬇️

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