News linked to both this project and an event.
According to Bitcoin.com, Binance's investigation team, jointly with India's Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the Data Security Council of India (DSCI), successfully dismantled the darknet drug trafficking organization "Team Kalki". Reportedly, the gang used cryptocurrencies, the encrypted communication platform Session, the darknet forum Dread, and "dead drop" methods to distribute drugs within India, with supply originating from overseas suppliers; authorities have seized a large quantity of drugs from domestic and international packages. Binance and DSCI assisted law enforcement officers in identifying and freezing crypto assets related to the gang through blockchain analysis and wallet tracking technology. Binance Asia-Pacific Head S.B. Seker stated that the public transparency of blockchain makes illegal transactions easier to track and investigate.
: Hassan Ahmed, Head of Coinbase Singapore, stated that the company plans to increase its Singapore workforce from the current approximately 150 employees to around 200 by the end of 2026. Future hiring priorities will focus on positions in engineering, customer service, client relationship management, and institutional sales. On the same day, Coinbase officially inaugurated its Singapore office located at One Raffles Quay. Hassan Ahmed said that Singapore is "one of the world's most trusted financial hubs and one of Coinbase's fastest-growing international markets." He noted that the new office reflects the company's long-term confidence in Singapore as a strategic hub for innovation, talent, and responsible growth in the Asia-Pacific region. It will also help the company collaborate more closely with local regulators, continue investing in talent, and further expand its partnerships.
Sui posted on X platform, stating that this week's highlights include ensuring data privacy, expanding decentralized capital markets, and welcoming new teams into the network development pipeline. LoquaApp has launched a privacy-first AI agent messaging app on Sui, supporting users in sending messages, interacting with AI agents, and conducting peer-to-peer token transfers within chats; RipStationxyz has deployed a graded Pokémon card platform on Sui for on-chain trading and physical redemption; suidevelopers held a technical meeting, where kostascrypto and abhinavg6 analyzed the cryptography behind protocol-level confidential transfers; 0xfluid has chosen Hashi to build an institutional-grade Bitcoin credit market, enabling native BTC to be used as collateral through formally verified contracts on Sui; realtbook has partnered with paga to create a compliant financial bridge, offering tokenized real-world assets to African consumers and businesses; six early-stage development teams, including AssetoFinance, audricai, gendotpro, kash_bot, predikt_gg, and transact_sh, have completed the third cohort of the Sui Hydropower Fellowship; tradeonhudi announced the upcoming launch of 7×24 hour leveraged perpetual contracts on Asia-Pacific stocks, targeting markets in Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong; Turbos_finance released its Q2 2026 report, having launched its CLMM and once became the highest-volume AMM DEX with a single-day SUI-USDC trading volume exceeding $17 million. The upcoming Sui Tunnels experiment will be opened for system testing of the network's TPS limit under load.
stablecoin payment infrastructure company Trace Finance has completed a $32 million Series A funding round, led by CoinFund with participation from Coinbase Ventures and others. Trace Finance plans to use this round of financing to expand its business in Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region and to advance more license applications. The company stated that it has processed over $10 billion in institutional cross-border transaction volume. (The Block)
Peter Schiff, Chief Economist and Global Strategist at Euro Pacific, stated that Jamie Dimon’s claim—that crypto firms offering interest-bearing products should be subject to the same capital and compliance requirements as banks—is unreasonable. He noted that banks have FDIC deposit insurance and extend high-risk loans under a fractional-reserve banking system, whereas stablecoin issuers lack these characteristics.
: According to official sources, the Jito Foundation is partnering with Solana Company (NASDAQ: HSDT) to provide institutional-grade Solana infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region. The two parties will operate BAM validators using Pacific Backbone in Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea. This low-latency infrastructure network supports staking, validation, and trading services in the Asia-Pacific region. Additionally, they will jointly develop an institutional-grade JitoSOL staking product, delivered through Solana Company's consulting service model, to meet the compliance requirements of large capital allocators. The head of the Jito Foundation for the Asia-Pacific region stated that this collaboration aims to combine Jito's market layer technology with Solana Company's regional experience and institutional network, laying the foundation for scalable and compliant participation within the Solana ecosystem.
Bitget Wallet has launched a Labor Day QR code payment campaign, running from April 28 to May 7, further driving the adoption of stablecoin payments in everyday consumption and travel scenarios across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. During the campaign, users who complete offline QR code payments using USDT or USDC will receive RLUSD cashback for each transaction. From May 1 to May 7, Bitget Wallet will randomly select one paying user per day to receive an additional 1,000 RLUSD cashback. To lower the barrier to first-time usage, Bitget Wallet will also airdrop XRP to eligible participants—serving as the account reserve required to activate RLUSD withdrawals. RLUSD is a compliant U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by Ripple and regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). This campaign marks Bitget Wallet’s first real-world consumer application following its integration of the XRP Ledger (XRPL) mainnet and onboarding of the RLUSD payment ecosystem at the end of March—and represents a key milestone in advancing Bitget Wallet’s Everyday Finance strategy.
According to an official announcement, Robinhood has received in-principle approval (IPA) from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to launch brokerage services in Singapore, covering securities trading, exchange-traded derivatives, custody, product financing, and collective investment schemes. Robinhood stated that Singapore will serve as its Asia-Pacific headquarters to support its international expansion. Its subsidiary, Bitstamp Asia Pte. Ltd., already holds a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license issued by the MAS. Note that in-principle approval is not equivalent to a formal license; Robinhood Singapore Pte. Ltd. must still meet relevant conditions before receiving final approval to commence operations.
According to Decrypt, Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, stated during a hearing before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee that the U.S. government is currently operating a Bitcoin node for cybersecurity-related testing—but is not engaged in mining. Paparo said the U.S. military’s interest in Bitcoin centers primarily on its value as a computer science tool—including cryptography, blockchain, and reusable proof-of-work mechanisms—with the aim of leveraging the Bitcoin protocol to strengthen cybersecurity and enhance military capabilities. This effort remains in the “experimental phase.” He also noted that maintaining the U.S. dollar’s global dominance aligns with U.S. military interests and offered positive remarks about the stablecoin legalization bill—the GENIUS Act—signed by former President Trump last summer, stating that the legislation helps reinforce the dollar’s global standing.
Today, Asian Private Banker announced the winners of its 11th Annual Technology Awards for 2025. HashKey Exchange—the largest* licensed digital asset exchange in Hong Kong—has once again been awarded the “Best Digital Assets Solution” award. Asian Private Banker is a leading authority in Asia-Pacific wealth management. Its “Best Digital Assets Solution” award recognizes outstanding platforms that deliver optimal digital asset trading and investment solutions to private banks, wealth management institutions, and ultra-high- or high-net-worth individuals (U/HNWIs). HashKey Exchange’s repeat win underscores not only its comprehensive institutional service capabilities but also its deep resilience—its ability to maintain stable operations and navigate market cycles with enduring strength. Michelle Cheng, Director of HashKey Exchange, said: “We are honored to receive this prestigious award once again. It affirms our long-term commitment to regulatory compliance, institutional service excellence, and digital asset infrastructure development. Moving forward, we will remain firmly anchored in global regulatory frameworks, prioritize compliance-driven innovation, continuously empower institutional clients, and collaborate across the industry to build a robust and sustainable digital asset ecosystem.” HashKey Exchange has now established an integrated suite of services encompassing trading, custody, and clearing—
According to Cointelegraph, the Pacific island nation of Nauru has appointed cryptocurrency entrepreneur Dadvan Yousuf as its International Trade Commissioner to advance its digital asset strategy and attract global investment. Nauru’s President David Adeang stated that this move aims to strengthen cross-border collaboration with virtual asset service providers, financial institutions, and technology companies, positioning Nauru as a hub for virtual asset activities. Previously, Nauru enacted legislation establishing the Command Ridge Virtual Asset Authority (CRVAA), a dedicated regulatory body overseeing virtual asset activities—including cryptocurrency firms and digital banks. Officials said Yousuf will assist Nauru in promoting international cooperation and harmonizing compliance standards. Notably, Yousuf previously drew regulatory scrutiny in Switzerland for unlicensed token sales related to a cryptocurrency project he founded. This appointment marks Nauru’s strategic shift from building a regulatory framework to actively promoting its digital asset industry.
According to Chainwire, Gobi Partners, a leading Asian venture capital firm, has announced its investment in Transak. Founded in 2019, Transak empowers financial institutions with bidirectional fiat-to-digital-asset conversion capabilities via a single API—unifying KYC, AML, risk monitoring, and local payment integrations. It operates across more than 64 countries worldwide, holds over 21 regulatory licenses, has been integrated into more than 600 applications, and has served over 10 million users to date. This investment aims to support Transak’s expansion across the Asian market. Transak has already established its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong and plans to deepen integration with ASEAN-region payment networks and banking partners.