Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology continues to be a global phenomenon, with adoption and utilization cases emerging in almost every corner of the globe. Digital technology has become so popular that it is now a major talking point not only in the financial sector but also in politics and governance. The seven “-stan” countries of Central and South Asia — Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan — haven’t shied away from the sweeping digital technology phenomenon. Whether it be revitalizing Afghanistan’s healthcare sector with blockchain adoption or introducing a waiver for crypto mining in Kazakhstan, digital technology utilization appears …

On Dec. 2, Italian soccer giant Juventus revealed that the long wait for its much-hyped fan token had finally come to an end. In regard to the matter, news of the deal first came to light back in 2018, when it was revealed that the token would allow holders to take part in a host of voting and polling-related decisions. It has been reported that the $JUV coin took nearly a year and a half of full-time development and was created by the club in conjunction with Socios, a tokenized fan-voting platform for sports. Fans who possess the token will …

Digital asset manager IDEG is launching what it claims are Asia’s first Bitcoin (BTC) trusts. The two new funds — Asia Bitcoin Trust I and Atlas Mining Trust I — were officially announced in a press release on Dec. 8, confirming an earlier disclosure from the firm in Hong Kong in late November. Coinbase Custody will act as custodian for both trusts, with Asia-based Profound Trust Company acting as trustee. The combined size of the two trusts is $200 million. Bringing old money to a new sector The first of the two funds, Asia Bitcoin Trust I, is an actively …

The South Korean government plans to tax capital gains on cryptocurrency transactions. A Dec. 9 report from The Korea Times reveals that a revised bill to introduce the measure will be drawn up by the country’s Ministry of Economy and Finance by the first half of 2020. In parallel, the Korean National Assembly is in the process of advancing a related bill aimed at increasing transparency in cryptocurrency trading. If passed, the new regulations would come into effect one year after the Assembly’s plenary session. While the government’s capital gains bill will reportedly go ahead regardless of related legislation, The …

To support our international expansion and global reach, Cointelegraph is delighted to announce the launch of the Chinese-language version of the publication. Today, Dec. 4, we celebrated the opening of the office of Cointelegraph China (Cointelegraph 中文). The news — which marks another milestone moment in Cointelegraph’s growth — was announced at the Nova Global Blockchain Investment Institutions Summit hosted by the investment ecosystem alliance, Nova Club. Nova Club was formed by top blockchain organizations and aims to facilitate blockchain project development by consolidating resources and expertise. The new expansion will be led from the heart of Guangzhou, with other …

Security researchers have discovered a new cryptocurrency-related macOS malware believed to be the product of North Korean hackers at the Lazarus Group. As tech-focused publication Bleeping Computer reported on Dec. 4, malware researcher Dinesh Devadoss encountered a malicious software on a website called “unioncrypto.vip,” that advertised a “smart cryptocurrency arbitrage trading platform.” The website did not cite any download links, but hosted a malware package under the name “UnionCryptoTrader.” Linkage to North Korean hackers According to the researchers, the malware can retrieve a payload from a remote location and run it in memory, which is not common for macOS, but …

Yeo Min-soo, the CEO of South Korean internet giant Kakao, said that his firm’s Klaytn blockchain is similar to Facebook’s Libra except it is way ahead in its development. According to the Korea Herald on Nov. 28, Min-soo lauded Klatyn’s development during the first Klaytn Governance Council Summit held in Seoul: “Facebook’s Libra launched last month with aims to recruit 100 partners. Libra is taking a similar approach to ours, but it has yet to experience the milestones we have crossed. [...] Next year, Klaytn will become Asia’s biggest blockchain consortium.” The Klaytn platform, which is developed by Kakao’s blockchain …

Matrixport, a Singapore-based crypto startup launched by former Bitmain CEO Jihan Wu, will expand its services from Asia to Europe through its new Zurich office. Registered under the name of Chaintech in Switzerland, Matrixport will begin offering its trading, lending and custody services in the country, Swiss-centred publication swissinfo.ch reports on Nov. 26. The European expansion news comes less than five months after Wu launched Matrixport in July to offer over-the-counter trading, lending and custody services for crypto. The firm hired dozens of former Bitmain staff that were laid off from Bitmain as a result of the bear market of …

Cointelegraph en Español spoke with Henry Sraigman, South-East Asia Regional Director of RSK, during the Asia 2019 Blockshow in Singapore. We covered the expansion of IOV Labs and RSK, the company’s present and future in Asia, and the prospects for Taringa! after its purchase. "RSK is a project that was born around 2015 trying to create the first smart contracts platform secured by the Bitcoin network," recalled Sraigman. "That implies that the miners of Bitcoin can mine on another network with all the same infrastructure — in this case the RSK network," he said. So about four years ago they …

Tezos has partnered with Singapore government-backed blockchain platform Tribe to jointly launch a training program for developers on the Tezos blockchain. According to a Nov. 21 blog post, Tezos’s non-profit arm Tezos Southeast Asia (TSA), which is dedicated to promoting Tezos in the region, collaborated with Tribe in order to attract more developers to create Tezos blockchain-based solutions for real-world applications. The training program is set to roll out in the first quarter of 2020. Commenting on the collaboration, Caleb Kow, president of TSA, said, “by enabling trainers with a good knowledge of Tezos blockchain technology, they will be able …

In this week’s selected cryptocurrency and blockchain-related news from Japan, a new association promoting crypto assets in antiquing was born, a well-known cryptocurrency trader was arrested and the Kyoto University started participating in the XRP ledger. Here is the past week of cryptocurrency and blockchain news in review, as originally reported by Cointelegraph Japan. Crypto Antiquing Association Launches On Nov. 11, Cointelegraph Japan reported that the Crypto Assets Antique Association (CAAA) was established with the purpose of promoting the use of crypto assets in the antique trade. CAAA’s representative director Ji Komiya said, “I want to connect to new activities …

Couldn’t make it to this year’s BlockShow Asia? Don’t worry. Cointelegraph has you covered with some key highlights of BlockShow Asia 2019 held Nov. 14-15 in Singapore. Cointelegraph moderated the first crypto media gathering as BlockShow hosted well-known personalities from the cryptocurrency industry, such as Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, and Hyperledger Vice President APAC Julian Gordon. Cointelegraph also took the occasion to announce the launch of a new consulting division. Industry experts will lead the new initiative, which will focus on expanding enterprise adoption of blockchain technology. CZ: China’s digital currency will use blockchain Zhao shared …