YM Lee

Kalshi, Polymarket target New York with free groceries… rivalry heats up ahead of the Super Bowl

U.S. prediction-market platforms Kalshi and Polymarket are handing out free groceries to New Yorkers as they compete to attract users. According to Bloomberg on the 4th, Kalshi on the 3rd (local time) held an event at WestSide Market in Manhattan’s L

Michael Burry: “Bitcoin is ultimately nothing more than a speculative asset”…store-of-value debate reignited

Investor Michael Burry, who predicted the 2008 global financial crisis, has issued a scathing critique of Bitcoin’s nature as an asset in the wake of its recent sharp selloff, reigniting the debate over whether it can serve as a “store of value.” Acc

NH NongHyup to discuss use cases for a won-denominated stablecoin with Fireblocks…expanding global cooperation

NH NongHyup Bank discussed the digitalization of tax refunds and use cases for a won-denominated stablecoin together with Fireblocks, a global digital-asset infrastructure company. NH NongHyup Bank said on the 4th that it held a strategic meeting on

Aave Labs to wind down the 'Avara' brand…refocuses on its core DeFi business

Aave Labs has decided to retire the 'Avara' brand—once emblematic of its Web3 expansion strategy—and refocus on its core DeFi business. According to The Block on the 3rd (local time), Aave Labs said it will wind down projects that sat under Avara and

Outline Emerges for Guidelines on Corporate Crypto Asset Investment…Possible Exclusion of Financial Firms Raised

Guidelines for corporate crypto asset trading—setting out rules on how companies can invest in virtual assets—are expected to take shape as early as next month. According to the financial industry on the 4th, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) h

Democratic Party Digital Assets TF wraps up framework-law revisions… Policy Committee to take lead on legislation

The initiative for the second phase of legislative talks on the Digital Assets Framework Act is expected to shift to the Policy Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea. According to the industry on the 4th, the party’s Digital Assets TF plans to d

Ethereum Funding Rate Turns Negative…Buy Signal Emerges but Macro Headwinds Weigh

Funding rates for Ethereum (ETH) perpetual futures have flipped negative—typically read as a buy signal—but caution is dominating the market as U.S. macro uncertainty intensifies. According to Cointelegraph on the 3rd (local time), Ethereum fell as l

Bitcoin tests $73,000 level…gives back all gains since Trump’s election win

Bitcoin slid toward the $73,000 level, erasing all of the gains built up since Donald Trump was elected U.S. president. Growing on-chain loss supply and large-scale liquidations have combined to intensify corrective pressure. According to The Block o

Vitalik: “Ethereum should reduce reliance on L2s”…signals a sweeping review of its scaling strategy

Vitalik Buterin, a co-founder of Ethereum, has formally called for a shift in Ethereum’s roadmap, saying it needs to move away from its existing scaling strategy centered on layer-2 (L2) networks. According to Decrypt on the 4th (local time), Buterin

Trump Signs Bill Partially Reopening the U.S. Federal Government After Shutdown

U.S. President Donald Trump signed legislation to restart federal government operations that had been partially suspended, bringing the shutdown to a close for now. However, political clashes over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) budget are

Nevada sues Coinbase over alleged unlicensed sports betting offerings

U.S. regulators in the state of Nevada have sued Coinbase, alleging it offered unlicensed sports betting products. According to Cointelegraph on the 3rd (local time), the Nevada Gaming Control Board said it has filed a civil enforcement action agains

US credit tightening pressure mounts… Bitcoin correction likely to be prolonged

As signs emerge that US credit conditions are tightening rapidly, analysts say it will be difficult for Bitcoin’s correction phase to conclude in the near term. The view is that the timing of a rebound could be pushed back, given that in past episode

Chinese insurance broker Tian Ruixiang moves to acquire up to 15,000 BTC

China-based insurance brokerage Tian Ruixiang Holdings said it is pursuing a plan to acquire up to 15,000 bitcoin through an equity-linked transaction. According to Cointelegraph on the 3rd (local time), Nasdaq-listed Tian Ruixiang Holdings Ltd said

Canada tightens crypto-asset custody rules across the board, moving to prevent a repeat of 'QuadrigaCX'

Canada’s investment regulators have moved to curb investor losses stemming from hacks, fraud and weak internal controls by immediately implementing a new regulatory framework governing crypto-asset custody. According to CoinDesk on the 3rd (local tim

Progress in Trump–Schumer talks…Signs US federal government shutdown risk is easing

As political negotiations over a US federal government shutdown show progress, assessments are emerging that the likelihood of a near-term administrative gap is diminishing. According to Coincodat.com on the 28th (local time), US President Donald Tru

Bitcoin’s rebound likely capped until liquidity recovers… “Hard to shift into an uptrend”

According to Cointelegraph on the 29th (local time), Bitcoin avoided further declines after holding support in the $80,700–$83,400 range. Futures market data suggest liquidity could be absorbed in the near term up to around $93,500. On-chain analytic

U.S. senators press deputy attorney general over DOJ’s disbanding of crypto enforcement unit

U.S. senators have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest involving Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche over the disbanding of the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) dedicated virtual-asset investigative unit. They formally questioned

Binance lists BIRB and GWEI perpetual futures, offering up to 50x leverage

Binance Futures will list new perpetual futures products with Moonbirds and an Ethereum gas infrastructure project as underlying assets. Binance said via its official channels on the 29th (local time) that it will launch BIRB/USDT and GWEI/USDT perpe

U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs see $28 million in net inflows, led by BlackRock’s ETHA

U.S. spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded $28 million in inflows in a single day. Unlike spot Bitcoin ETFs, which continued to see net outflows, Ethereum ETFs posted modest net inflows. According to data compiled by TraderT on the 28th

US spot Bitcoin ETFs see $19.65 million in net outflows…near-term supply-demand overhang persists

US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded net outflows of about $19.65 million in a single day. With withdrawals continuing to be led by major asset managers, near-term supply-demand pressure has come back into focus. According to data co

Russia to Outline Crypto-Asset Regulation in July This Year…Introducing Retail Investment Caps and Exchange Rules

Russia is set to flesh out its long-drifting crypto-asset regulatory framework in July. With legislation being prepared that centers on setting retail investment caps and introducing rules for exchanges, major crypto assets such as Bitcoin are expect

Hyperliquid surges 60% in two days…trend sustainability remains uncertain

HYPE, the token of decentralized derivatives exchange Hyperliquid, has jumped 60% in just two days, drawing market attention. While institutional inflows and reduced selling pressure following staking lockups helped drive the rally, observers say key

Sony to make additional investment in blockchain 'Soneium'… reinforcing long-term mainnet strategy

Sony Group is stepping up its blockchain infrastructure strategy by making an additional investment to mark one year since the launch of the mainnet for its blockchain network, Soneium. The decision reflects an intention to continue investing with a

Deribit: Bitcoin’s range-bound trading driven by the ‘options market’…large positions are capping prices

The options market’s concentration of positions has been cited as a key factor behind Bitcoin continuing to trade sideways around $90,000. The analysis is that structural factors in the derivatives market, rather than spot supply and demand, are cons

Bitcoin gives up the $88,000 level… Kimchi premium at 1.6%

Google Play: "Blocking of unreported overseas crypto exchange apps on hold due to internal circumstances"

Google Play was set to block apps from unregistered virtual asset service providers (VASPs) in Korea, but the actual implementation now appears likely to be delayed for the time being. As of the 29th, major overseas crypto exchange apps such as Binan

Polkadot’s smart contract hub goes live, but the market response remains muted… limited buying interest

Polkadot has launched a native smart contract hub as part of an effort to upgrade network capabilities, but token prices and investor sentiment have yet to show a clear response. Despite the technical progress, the market appears to be staying on the

Robinhood targets a role in the SpaceX IPO…plan to expand allocations for retail investors

US online trading platform Robinhood has entered a competition with major investment banks to take part in SpaceX’s mega initial public offering (IPO). The idea is to secure a distribution channel that can directly allocate SpaceX shares to retail in

Hana Securities launches public offering of investment contract securities backed by Korean pork… with an eye on expanding into tokenized securities

Hana Securities said on the 29th that it will launch a public offering of investment contract securities backed by domestically produced pork (Handon) as the underlying asset and will also review the potential to expand into tokenized securities (STO

Hanwha Investment & Securities makes 10 billion won strategic investment in digital-asset data platform Xangle

Hanwha Investment & Securities said on the 29th that it has completed a strategic investment worth 10 billion won in Xangle, a blockchain-based digital-asset data platform. The investment is a follow-up step to implement a business cooperation agreem