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- South Korea to disclose top public officials’ crypto holdings next year 🇰🇷🪙
South Korea to disclose top public officials’ crypto holdings next year 🇰🇷🪙
PLUS: Delphi Digital’s Report Anticipates a Promising Year for Web3 Gaming. Grayscale refiles Bitcoin ETF application as Barry Silbert departs.
Manan Vora
December 27, 2023
Snapshot Web3
December 27, 2023
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Regulatory and Legal News
Starting next year, South Korea will require high-ranking public officials to disclose their cryptocurrency holdings. The Ministry of Personnel Management will disclose property details, including cryptocurrencies, of approximately 5,800 public officials on the government's "Public Ethics and Transparency Initiative" system. This initiative aligns with legislation passed in May, which made crypto assets part of the annual asset disclosure required for elected and high-ranking government officials. The move aims to enhance transparency in public service, and major domestic crypto exchanges plan to develop a separate information system for property registration in June next year. Additionally, new legislation in South Korea provides enhanced protection for crypto investors, with authorities overseeing crypto operators and asset custodians.
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NFT, Gaming and Metaverse
Delphi Digital's report, "The Year Ahead for Gaming 2024," suggests promising prospects for Web3 gaming. The report notes the stability of the total combined market capitalization of 183 projects, ranging between $4 billion and $7 billion throughout the year. Despite being 86% lower than the all-time high in 2022, the report emphasizes significant growth potential. The OP Stack framework has become the preferred choice for fully on-chain crypto gaming developers, simplifying the development of Layer 2 chains. Major gaming companies are showing increased interest in entering the Web3 market, and Web3 developers are drawn to mobile gaming due to improved onboarding and relaxed regulations. The report predicts that AI-driven generation agents will create new player experiences in crypto gaming. Projects like Parallel, AI Arena, Geppetto AI, AVALON, and TODAY are highlighted at the intersection of artificial intelligence and crypto gaming.
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Scams and Hacks
The on-chain trading platform Thunder Terminal claims that user funds are safe after a $240,000 exploit compromised 114 wallets on its platform. Thunder attributed the incident to an attacker gaining access to a MongoDB connection URL, allowing them to execute withdrawals on behalf of users. Thunder asserts that no private keys or wallets were compromised, and it plans to fully refund affected users. However, the hacker disputes these claims, stating that they have all user data and demanding a 50 ETH ($110,000) ransom. Thunder Terminal said it would take additional security measures and remain open to negotiations for the return of stolen funds.
Blockchain security firms warn that in 2024, crypto investors may face more sophisticated phishing scams, vulnerabilities in smart contracts, and the exploitation of BRC-20 ecosystems. The use of generative AI is expected to make phishing scams more advanced, creating convincing fake calls, videos, and messages to deceive users. BRC-20 ecosystems may be a target due to a lack of security developments, and cross-chain bridges will remain a concern as the industry adopts more cross-chain solutions. Security experts caution that bad actors will become more sophisticated in their tactics, utilizing privacy coins, bridges, mixers, and other obfuscation tools to a greater extent. Increased collaboration between the public and private sectors and advanced fraud protection programs are recommended to counter these threats.
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Funding and Acquisitions
South Korea’s Leading Crypto Venture Made 29 Investments in 2023, Allocating $28.44 Million in Total
Hashed, South Korea's largest crypto venture, invested 36.8 billion won (about $28.44 million) in various blockchain projects throughout 2023. Despite challenges faced during the crypto winter, Hashed successfully made 29 investments across sectors, with a focus on early-stage ventures enhancing blockchain infrastructure and integrating content and intellectual property rights. Blockchain infrastructure, games, and finance each received 21% of the investments, while IP and content-related startups got 15%. Hashed invested in startups leveraging blockchain in various fields like O2O platforms, sharing economy initiatives, and AI. Geographically, 38% of investments were in Korea, 21% in North America, 7% in Europe, and 34% in other Asian regions.
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Interesting Reads
In 2024, several notable figures in the crypto industry face the prospect of imprisonment. Sam Bankman-Fried, former FTX CEO, awaits sentencing in March after being found guilty of seven felony charges. Changpeng Zhao, ex-CEO of Binance, has pleaded guilty as part of a $4.3 billion settlement and faces up to 18 months in prison. Alex Mashinsky, former Celsius Network CEO, is scheduled for trial in September, accused of misleading investors. Do Kwon, co-founder of Terraform Labs, detained for falsified travel documents, may face extradition to the U.S. and South Korea on fraud-related charges. Legal proceedings will determine the outcomes for these individuals, with the possibility of prison time looming in 2024.
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Miscellaneous
Grayscale has “finally surrendered” to cash creations in its amended filing to convert GBTC into a spot Bitcoin ETF.
The firm said it's priorities now are to keep KyberSwap’s Aggregator and Limit Order functions up and running and to reimburse impacted customers.
Tether Treasury minted another 1 billion “authorized but not issued” USDT on Christmas Day, triggering some skepticism from the community.
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The information provided in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as investment advice, endorsement, or recommendation. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk due to their volatility. You should consider your financial situation, investment goals, and risk tolerance before making any investments. We strongly recommend consulting a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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