Suehyeon Lee

Analysis: Altcoin Season Signal Turns as Rally Broadens Beyond Bitcoin

Buying is spreading across the broader digital-asset market as gains that had recently been concentrated in Bitcoin spill over into altcoins, Glassnode said in an analysis. On September 22, the on-chain analytics firm said the altcoin cycle signal ha

South Korea to Pilot Blockchain Digital-Currency, QR Payments for Civil Servants’ Official Expenses at Six Banks

South Korea will launch a pilot program allowing government officials to pay office operating expenses, including business promotion costs, using blockchain-based digital currency and smartphone QR codes instead of physical cards. The Ministry of Sci

Animoca Brands Ends Reverse-Merger Talks With Nasdaq-Listed Currenc, Seeks Other Listing Route

Animoca Brands, a major investor in Web3 and artificial intelligence, has ended talks on a reverse merger with Nasdaq-listed Currenc Group and is seeking another path to a public-market listing. Animoca said on September 22 that it and Currenc had mu

Tokenized Stock Market Nears Launch as SEC Says Exchange Could Emerge as Early as Next Quarter

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said a tokenized stock trading platform operating under its newly introduced Innovation Exemption could begin to take shape as early as next quarter. Taylor Lindeman, senior adviser to the SEC’s crypto task

Bitcoin Hits Eight-Month High of $87,381, Then Retreats to Around $85,500

Bitcoin edged down from an eight-month high after surging more than 13% over four days, as investors locked in profits. Bloomberg reported that Bitcoin climbed as high as $87,381 during U.S. trading on September 21 before slipping back to around $85,

Saudi Exits China-Led CBDC Cross-Border Payments Project mBridge

Saudi Arabia has exited mBridge, a China-led cross-border payments project built around central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs. Cointelegraph reported on September 21, citing the Financial Times, that the Saudi Central Bank, known as SAMA, ended i

Global AI Stocks Rebound as Meta’s Muse Gains Traction, Reviving Chip Demand Hopes

Meta’s personal artificial intelligence agent Muse got off to a strong start after its launch, reviving expectations for stronger semiconductor demand and lifting global AI and chip stocks. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each rose about 3.5% in ear

AWS Korea Hires Specialists to Support RWA Tokenization, Digital-Asset Projects at Financial Firms

Amazon Web Services is hiring specialists to support South Korean banks, securities firms and other financial companies pursuing real-world asset, or RWA, tokenization and digital-asset businesses. Digital Asset reported on September 22 that AWS Kore

US Justice Department Probes Whether Binance Violated Iran Sanctions

U.S. federal prosecutors are investigating whether Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, violated U.S. sanctions rules by failing to block certain transactions tied to Iran, Bloomberg reported. Bloomberg reported on September 21 that

Min Byung-deok Calls for Five-Year Crypto Loss Carryforward Before Taxation

Rep. Min Byung-deok of the Democratic Party of Korea said South Korea should allow investors to carry forward virtual-asset losses for at least five years before imposing taxes on the sector. In a Facebook post on September 22, Min wrote that the gov

Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix Gain as U.S. AI, Chip Stocks Surge

Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc. were among the early gainers on Sept. 22 as South Korean chip-related stocks tracked an overnight surge in U.S. artificial intelligence and semiconductor shares. As of 9:09 a.m., Samsung Electronics was up 2.

Bitcoin Hits $86,000, an Eight-Month High, as $750 Million in Shorts Are Liquidated

Bitcoin climbed to $86,000, its highest level in eight months, helped by a wave of short liquidations and renewed inflows into spot exchange-traded funds. CoinDesk reported on Sept. 21 that Bitcoin broke above $82,000 and extended its gains to $86,00

[Today’s Key Economic and Crypto Events] New York Fed President John Williams to Speak

<Today’s Key Economic Events> ▶ Sept. 22 (Tue.): John Williams, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is scheduled to speak at 11:05 p.m. Korea time. <Today’s Key Cryptocurrency Events> ▶ Sept. 22 (Tue.): Avalanche (AVAX) will activate t

Seven Senate Republicans Back Bank-Favored Stablecoin Reward Curbs, Complicating CLARITY Act

Seven Republican US senators have signed on as co-sponsors of an amendment that would tighten limits on stablecoin rewards, a restriction long sought by the banking industry. Punchbowl News reporter Brendan Pedersen reported on September 21 that Repu

Nasdaq Closes at Record High on AI, Chip Rally; AMD Tops $1 Trillion in Market Value

The Nasdaq closed at a record high, powered by gains in artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks. Reuters reported that the Nasdaq rose 2.26% from the previous session to 27,122.09 on Sept. 21, marking its first record close since June 2. The

Oil Steadies After 9% Four-Day Slide as Middle East Supply Fears Ease

International oil prices were little changed after four straight sessions of losses as concerns over Middle East crude supplies eased and attention turned to the possibility of a diplomatic solution between the US and Iran. Bloomberg reported on Sept

FIU Seeks Chainalysis Tool to Strengthen On-Chain Tracking of Crypto Crime Proceeds

South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit is moving to build a system capable of tracing criminal proceeds, including from voice-phishing scams, after they are converted into virtual assets and transferred to overseas exchanges or personal wallets. T

OpenAI Urges US-Led Global Standards for Frontier AI Development, Safety

OpenAI has urged the US to lead the creation of international standards for frontier AI development and safety to address the technology’s potential risks. Bloomberg reported on September 21 that OpenAI, in a blog post that day, called for internatio

ECB to Invest Part of Reserves in Tokenized Securities, Testing Blockchain-Based Market Operations

The European Central Bank plans to invest a small portion of its reserves in tokenized securities and directly test blockchain-based financial market operations using its own settlement platform, from purchases and settlement to asset management. Coi

Hyperliquid Hits Record $96 as US Tokenization Easing Sparks Rally in UNI, AVAX and ENA

Crypto tokens tied to digital-asset trading and tokenization infrastructure are rallying as US regulators accelerate efforts to expand the crypto and tokenized-asset market. Bloomberg reported on Sept. 21 that Hyperliquid rose to a record $96, liftin

Coinbase Opens IPO Share Access to US Retail Investors, Expanding Beyond Crypto Into Traditional Finance

Coinbase is expanding beyond digital assets into traditional financial markets by launching an IPO share offering service for US retail investors. The Block reported on September 21 that Coinbase will start with Oura’s IPO, which is scheduled for thi

JPMorgan Sees BOK Rate Rising to 3.75%, Says Semiconductor Boom Could Push It Higher

JPMorgan said the Bank of Korea’s benchmark interest rate could rise above its current forecast of 3.75% if South Korea’s semiconductor-led growth adds to inflation pressure. Bloomberg reported on September 21 that JPMorgan expects the BOK to raise i

X Sues Bitcoin Influencers, Alleges Engagement Manipulation Yielded £207,384 in Improper Gains

X has sued Bitcoin influencers, alleging they manipulated engagement metrics to improperly obtain creator payouts. Wu Blockchain reported on September 21 that X Internet Unlimited Company and X Corp. filed a lawsuit in the U.K. High Court on Septembe

Bitcoin Closes Above 50-Week Moving Average for First Time in 45 Weeks, Signaling Bear Market May Be Over

Bitcoin closed above its 50-week moving average on a weekly basis for the first time in 45 weeks, a move that suggests the bear market may be ending and a new uptrend could be starting. CoinDesk reported on September 21 that Bitcoin rose about 6% in

Standard Chartered Sees Arbitrum Rising 70-Fold to $10 by 2030

Standard Chartered has set a 2030 price target of $10 for layer-2 blockchain Arbitrum's ARB token, implying about 70-fold upside from current levels. Cointelegraph reported on September 21 that Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartered's global head of digi

Hana Bank Issues $100 Million Digital Bond, Debuts First T+0 Settlement in Korea's Foreign-Currency Bond Market

Hana Bank said on Sept. 21 that it had issued a $100 million foreign-currency digital bond through Euroclear's blockchain platform, marking the first same-day, or T+0, settlement in South Korea's foreign-currency bond market. The bank issued the five

Kalshi Crypto Volume Faces Wash-Trading Questions After $539 Million Turnover, $3.1 Million Open Interest

Wash-trading allegations have emerged over crypto trading volume on prediction-market platform Kalshi, though the company said the claims stem from a misunderstanding of its market structure. Wu Blockchain reported on Sept. 21 that Beni, co-founder o

Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft and OpenAI Chiefs to Attend White House State Dinner for Xi

Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft and OpenAI are among the leading US technology companies whose top executives will attend the White House state dinner being held during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit. Bloomberg reported on September 21 that Micr

Mystery Whale Sells 1,107 Bitcoin, Buys 34,422 Ether and Stakes It All

A large cryptocurrency investor sold about $86.76 million worth of Bitcoin over the past five days, then bought a similar amount of Ether and staked the entire holding. On Sept. 21, on-chain analytics firm Lookonchain said the whale sold 1,107 Bitcoi

North Korea-Linked WaterPlum Posed as Crypto, AI Recruiters, Stole at Least $10.7 Million

A North Korea-linked hacking group known as WaterPlum posed as recruiters for cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence companies, spread malware to job seekers and stole at least $10.7 million, Cointelegraph reported. On September 21, Cointelegraph