Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments.
China blockchain SIM card
Conflux Network says it is working with the second-largest telecommunications provider in China to develop a blockchain SIM card that will serve as a secure place to store digital private keys and nonfungible tokens.
Conflux announced its partnership with China Telecom on Feb. 15, saying the BSIM has moved past the research and development phase. The card will have up to “10-20 times storage space” compared to regular SIM cards, thereby ensuring optimized access to decentralized applications and digital communities.
The first pilot program for the BSIM card is expected to launch in Hong Kong later this year. Conflux is a layer-1 blockchain operating on a hybrid proof-of-work and proof-of-stake consensus and claims it’s the “only regulatory-compliant public blockchain in China.” Its parent entity, the Shanghai Tree-Graph Blockchain Research Institute, has received approval from the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government to operate as a blockchain entity.
Korean crypto scandals
Korean crypto exchanges and blockchain entities endured a tough week after a series of misconduct allegations shook the industry. On Feb. 13, investigations carried out by local news outlet IT Chosun alleged that Gopax, a top five crypto exchange in South Korea, charged anywhere between tens of thousands to hundreds of millions in Korean Won (KRW) for token listing fees.
Crypto exchanges in South Korea typically advertise no-fee listings, but according to the report, some firms charge “operating expenses and technical costs” and pass them to the token’s project developers as part of the listing process.
While the country’s Financial Services Commission states that exchanges will be “severely punished” for demanding listing fees, other legal experts say that charging “operating expenses” for listing tokens would not violate such guidelines.
Meanwhile, news outlet Seoul Broadcasting System on Feb. 14 confirmed that South Korean actress Park Min Young is under investigation for her role in the troubled cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb.
Prosecutors say that Park’s name was used in the transaction of convertible bonds issued by Bithumb affiliates and that large profits occurred. Previously, Kang Jong-Hyun,…
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