Asia

December 30, 2025 @ 5:21 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

South Korea’s efforts to establish a proper framework for digital assets have encountered significant delays as of late, with the proposed Digital Asset Basic Act now postponed until 2026. The recent holdup reportedly stems primarily from ongoing disagreements among the country’s various regulatory authorities regarding… Read More

December 30, 2025 @ 5:11 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) has announced its acquisition of Manus AI, a Singapore-headquartered startup specializing in autonomous artificial intelligence agents. The move aims to enhance Meta’s capabilities in deploying versatile AI tools across its ecosystem of consumer apps and enterprise solutions. Manus AI, known for its… Read More

December 29, 2025 @ 10:20 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Malaysia drew 54.13 billion ringgit ($13.3 billion) in approved Malaysia Digital (MD) investments in the third quarter of 2025, projects expected to generate 21,815 high-value jobs across 402 digital companies, according to the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). MDEC said the investment pipeline underscored sustained… Read More

December 29, 2025 @ 6:54 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

SoftBank Group has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire DigitalBridge (NYSE: DBRG), a global alternative asset manager dedicated to investing in digital infrastructure, including data centers, cell towers, fiber networks, and edge infrastructure, for a total enterprise value of approximately $4 billion. SoftBank Group… Read More

December 29, 2025 @ 2:18 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Samar Sen, SVP, Head of APAC at digital assets firm Talos, has provided an APAC year-end note. Sen has shared his reflections on what he considers to be  an impactful 2025 in the Asia-Pacific region for Talos. Sen pointed out that it has been just… Read More

December 29, 2025 @ 11:27 am By Michael Wong  |  

Mirae Asset Group is in talks to acquire Korbit, South Korea’s fourth-largest cryptocurrency exchange, in a move that would mark a rare push by a mainstream financial group into the country’s tightly regulated digital-asset market, according to people familiar with the matter. The discussions are… Read More

December 29, 2025 @ 8:26 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), has unveiled a comprehensive action plan to elevate its central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan (e-CNY). Effective January 1, 2026, this initiative will introduce an upgraded governance framework, operational mechanisms, and supporting infrastructure, marking… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 10:43 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong regulators launched an intellectual property (IP) financing sandbox aimed at helping banks and companies test how patents, trademarks and copyrights can be used as collateral, as the city looks to widen funding options for innovation-led businesses. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, working with… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 9:42 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Thailand’s aggregate card payments market is now being projected to grow by 2.7% in 2025 to reach THB2.3 trillion (appr. $65.4 billion), supported by the ongoing expansion of digital payment acceptance infrastructure, government-led financial inclusion initiatives, and the growing adoption of contactless payments, according to… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 11:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In a significant new development in the fight against growing incidents of cybercrime, Indian authorities have now apprehended a former customer support representative linked to Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN). The arrest reportedly took place in Hyderabad and stems from a major security incident at the exchange that was… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 11:46 am By Michael Wong  |  

CIMB Group is laying the groundwork to issue tokenised bonds and Islamic sukuk in Malaysia, positioning itself early as regulators move to modernise capital markets through the use of distributed-ledger technology. The bank said it will develop tokenised financial services covering assets, settlement and payment… Read More

December 27, 2025 @ 5:22 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Hong Kong’s card payment market is expected to expand further in 2025, even as it remains one of Asia’s more mature payments landscapes, with total card spending forecast to rise 4.5% to HK$1.32 trillion ($168.4 billion), according to data and analytics firm GlobalData. The forecast… Read More

December 27, 2025 @ 10:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

India’s venture capital market strengthened its global standing in 2025, recording year-on-year double-digit growth in both deal volumes and values during January-November despite persistent volatility across major economies. The divergence from declining trends in other key markets signals rising investor conviction in India’s startup fundamentals,… Read More

December 25, 2025 @ 9:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Hong Kong (China SAR) payment card market is now considered to be fairly mature, however, despite this, the total card payment value is forecast to grow considerably by “4.5% in 2025 to reach HKD1.32 trillion ($168.4 billion),” supported by the ongoing efforts to promote… Read More

December 24, 2025 @ 2:01 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

GlobalData noted that as 2025 progressed, the world’s economy had largely moved beyond post-COVID distortions, however, growth still remained somewhat uneven and the path into 2026 looks a bit fragile. A comparatively strong first half of 2025, helped by firms advancing imports, quick supply-chain reconfiguration,… Read More

December 24, 2025 @ 1:01 am By Omar Faridi  |  

21X – Europe’s DLT trading and settlement system under the EU DLT Regime – and SOOHO.IO – the Korean blockchain fintech powering Project Namsan, an institutional consortium building a stablecoin ecosystem for FX and programmable payments – announced they are exploring a collaboration. This tie-up… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 9:43 pm By Michael Wong  |  

  North Korea-linked hackers stole more than half of the over $2.7 billion taken in cryptocurrency hacks in 2025, as the country’s cyber operators increasingly targeted the operational infrastructure of major exchanges and outsourced the “cash-out” stage to a web of Chinese underground brokers, blockchain… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:45 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s venture capital funding ecosystem has experienced a significant decline in deal value, despite showcasing “resilience in terms of volume.” The total number of VC deals announced in China increased by 8% during January-November 2025 compared to the same period in the previous year whereas… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 4:36 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Hana Securities announced it gained exposure to a Digitally Native Note (DNN) through a Total Return Swap (TRS) structure, marking their entry into the digital bond market. The investment aligns with their strategy to participate in tech-driven capital-market innovation. Standard Chartered acted as the TRS… Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 3:00 am By Michael Wong  |  

Vietnamese digital insurance broker Saladin has raised an undisclosed amount in a Series A funding round led by SBI Ven Capital, as the startup looks to broaden its product mix beyond non-life policies and push deeper into segments that have traditionally relied on offline sales…. Read More