China's historical dominance in the crypto industry persists despite periodic crackdowns, with many crypto companies still earning a significant portion of their revenue from the country and maintaining unofficial channels of liquidity; China's economic uncertainty, including concerns about future crackdowns and a collapsing real estate market, can impact global crypto markets.
North Korean hackers, including the Lazarus Group and APT38, are believed to be planning to cash out stolen bitcoin worth over $40 million, according to the FBI.
Hong Kong has officially launched its first cryptocurrency trading platform, called HashKey, as part of its efforts to embrace fintech innovation and bridge the gap between virtual assets and traditional financial markets.
Hong Kong's Hashkey Exchange has started accepting retail users, allowing them to trade bitcoin and ether with fiat currencies, as the city aims to boost its virtual asset industry.
Digital assets financial services firm HashKey Capital's Hong Kong-regulated fund will allocate a significant portion of its assets to altcoins, diversifying from bitcoin and ether, in order to attract investment from high-net-worth individuals and investment firms serving wealthy Asian families.
Bitcoin and crypto could experience significant growth in the next few months, with September expected to be a particularly eventful period, including the potential impact of U.S. bitcoin ETF filings and China declaring crypto as "legal property and protected by law."
Notorious North Korean hacking group Lazarus, which has been increasingly active, is responsible for five major crypto hacks in the past three months, including the recent $54 million hack of global cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx, bringing their total theft to almost $240 million in just 104 days, according to a report by blockchain surveillance firm Elliptic.
According to a report, the value of illicit foreign exchange transactions conducted with digital currency in South Korea was estimated to be $4 billion last year, prompting regulators to focus on the unregulated over-the-counter (OTC) crypto market.
Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx has confirmed that compromised private keys allowed hackers to steal over $70 million worth of tokens, and is working on rebuilding its wallet system to restore functionality and compensate affected users.
Hong Kong police are investigating allegations of fraud against cryptocurrency trading platform JPEX after investors complained of HK$1.3bn ($166m; £134m) in losses, with eleven people, including popular influencers, being arrested in what could be one of Hong Kong's biggest fraud cases as the city positions itself as a global hub for virtual assets.
Bitcoin could experience significant inflows from China in the coming months due to a weakening Chinese yuan and increasing capital flight, with Chinese investors turning to Bitcoin as a familiar investment in times of economic uncertainty, according to experts. The recent data shows that China's capital outflow reached its highest level since 2015 in August, potentially putting further pressure on the yuan. While Chinese capital controls may limit investment options, cryptocurrency, particularly Bitcoin, is seen as a viable alternative. However, analysts caution that the impact of Chinese capital flight on Bitcoin may not be as significant as it was in 2017 due to changes in regulations and crackdowns on certain practices.
