virtual

The National Bank of Pakistan has officially lifted its ban on virtual assets that has been in place since 2018, allowing banks to open independent interest-free rupee accounts for virtual asset service providers (VASP) licensed by the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), and banks must conduct due diligence on the relevant institutions.

The People's Bank of China Shaoguan Branch, in conjunction with the Shaoguan Municipal Government Office, issued a virtual currency risk warning on the occasion of "4·15" National Security Education Day, and announced four typical cases: "High Salary for U Part-time" money laundering, "Guaranteed Principal High Interest Cryptocurrency Trading" illegal fundraising, "RWA Digital Cultural Tourism Fund" pyramid scheme fraud, and offline "Coin Exchange" disguised foreign exchange trading.Regulators have made it clear that virtual currency exchange, trading, and RWA tokenization activities are illegal financial behaviors. Projects claiming "high returns, low risk, guaranteed profits" are mostly scams. The public should abandon the fantasy of getting rich quickly, stay away from virtual currency-related investments, choose legal financial channels, and report any abnormalities to the police in a timely manner to reduce losses.

According to official news, the digital asset investment platform Grayscale has recently updated its list of candidate assets, covering six major cryptocurrency sectors, with new candidate assets particularly concentrated in the AI and finance categories.The AI sector has the most new candidate assets, including a total of 9 projects: Fabric Protocol, Flock, Grass, Kaito, Kite AI, Nous Research, Poseidon, Venice, and Virtuals Protocol. These are considered alongside Bittensor, Livepeer, Near, Render, and Story, reflecting institutional interest in the AI + cryptocurrency sector.In the finance sector, 7 DeFi projects have entered the candidate list: Ethena, Hyperliquid, Jupiter, Kamino Finance, Maple Finance, Morpho, and Pendle, complementing existing products such as Aave, Aerodrome, Curve, Ondo, and Uniswap.In the smart contract platform sector, 6 new projects have been added: Celo, Mantle, MegaETH, Monad, Toncoin, and Tron, with Canton Network also included. The utility tools sector has added DoubleZero, Geodnet, Helium, Jito, LayerZero, and Wormhole.Currently, Grayscale's existing product suite covers mainstream assets such as BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, AVAX, BNB, and ADA. The candidate list does not guarantee that related products will be launched, and Grayscale has stated that it will update the list within 15 days after the end of each quarter.

The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) released guidelines for the issuance of virtual assets on Thursday, providing clear regulations on the structural design, information disclosure, and distribution methods for stablecoins and real-world asset (RWA) tokens.The guidelines categorize token issuance into three pathways: Category 1 covers fiat-pegged and asset-pegged virtual assets; Category 2 must be distributed through licensed intermediaries, which are responsible for due diligence and ongoing compliance verification; the third category consists of functionally restricted exempt virtual assets.VARA's General Counsel Ruben Bombardi stated that the framework enhances transparency through white papers and independent risk disclosure statements, providing issuers with "greater regulatory certainty" and offering market participants a "single, exclusive reference." These guidelines serve as an interpretative document for the existing "Virtual Asset Issuance Rules Manual" and do not constitute new legislation.

According to News1, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of South Korea and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced that they will work together with the Digital Asset Exchange Association (DAXA) and various virtual asset exchanges to officially implement the "Enhanced Withdrawal Delay System." The authorities have strengthened the exception criteria for withdrawal delays and established unified internal regulations. In the future, factors such as the number of transactions, transaction duration, and deposit and withdrawal amounts must be considered.The system aims to prevent telecom fraud proceeds from flowing to external wallets by restricting certain groups, such as new users, from withdrawing virtual assets within a specified period. Due to the inconsistent standards and lack of clear benchmarks among exchanges in the past, this loophole was exploited by criminals. According to statistics, from June to September last year, 59% of the fraudulent accounts in virtual asset exchanges belonged to "exception accounts" subject to withdrawal delays.

AI Agent Protocol Virtuals Protocol launched the Embodied Intelligent Robot project Eastworlds, aiming to help prototype robots in laboratories quickly transition to real-world applications.The core functions of Eastworlds include building a community of robotic engineers to collaboratively solve complex problems; providing ready-to-deploy robotic hardware; and creating an Embodied AI Data Lake to capture real-world chaotic data for training autonomy.

The National Internet Information Office has issued a notice soliciting public opinions on the "Management Measures for Digital Virtual Human Information Services (Draft for Comments)," aiming to strengthen the management of digital virtual human information services.It points out that from the start of digital virtual human services, digital virtual human service providers, service users, and service providers offering network information content dissemination services should continuously display a prominent indication containing the words "digital human" in the digital virtual human display area, in accordance with national regulations on labeling AI-generated synthetic content.

The People's Court of Qinzhou District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province recently tried a criminal case involving virtual currency, where the defendant, through a "high-paying errand" job, knowingly withdrew a total of over 390,000 yuan within 7 days in areas without surveillance, and converted the funds into virtual currency to transfer to their superior, profiting 21,500 yuan in the process.The court determined that the defendant constituted the crime of concealing and disguising criminal proceeds, sentencing them to two years and four months in prison and imposing a fine of 10,000 yuan, as well as ordering the return of illegal gains. The judge reminded that offline cash withdrawals have become a key link in "laundering" telecom fraud proceeds, and that "errand cash withdrawals" and "high-paying daily settlements" are often part of the fraud chain. The public should be vigilant against behaviors such as cash collection, transfers, and assisting in fund transfers to avoid becoming accomplices in crime.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently launched a regulatory pilot program for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP). The first batch of participating institutions includes several regional fintech and digital asset companies, among which KuCoin is the only selected global exchange.The pilot focuses on compliance with anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorism financing (CFT), and counter-proliferation financing (CPF), aiming to strengthen risk management and regulatory capabilities in the digital asset industry, and align with international standards such as those set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).According to the arrangements, participating institutions are required to conduct structured regulatory communications, submit regulatory data regularly, and advance compliance practices in key areas such as corporate governance, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, and cross-border transaction "Travel Rule."KuCoin CEO BC Wong stated that constructive regulatory dialogue is an important foundation for the long-term sustainable development of the digital asset industry, and the company will continue to strengthen communication and cooperation with global regulatory agencies to promote transparency and enhance risk management capabilities.The market generally believes that this selection reflects KuCoin's ongoing progress in advancing compliance strategies globally, while also indicating that Nigeria is moving towards a more systematic and forward-looking phase in digital asset regulation.

According to reports from The Paper, the People's Court of Xingqing District in Yinchuan City recently concluded a civil and commercial dispute arising from entrusted investment in virtual currency. In the case, the plaintiff entrusted funds to the defendant for virtual currency investment, and after failing to recover the investment amount, filed a lawsuit in court on the grounds of "unjust enrichment."After reviewing the case, the presiding judge determined that it was indeed a contractual relationship of entrustment and clarified the litigation risks and legal pros and cons to both parties, ultimately facilitating the plaintiff's withdrawal of the lawsuit against some defendants, with another defendant returning the principal investment. The case was successfully resolved through mediation.The judge also reminded that according to the judicial viewpoint of the Supreme People's Court, entrusted investment contracts signed after the central bank and seven other departments issued a risk announcement on virtual currency on September 4, 2017, will be deemed invalid due to illegal agency matters, and investors should carefully assess the relevant legal risks.

According to reports from the Ping An Tianjin Binhai public account, the police in Chenzhou, Hunan have cracked a new type of investment fraud case involving virtual currency, intercepting 7 packages of gold related to the fraud and seizing 310 grams of gold.The police traced the leads and found that these intercepted express deliveries were all part of a scheme where criminals, under the guise of investment and financial management, lured victims to purchase gold offline and then send it to a designated address. The illicit funds were then circulated multiple times through virtual currency exchanges and transfers to overseas accounts. The police remind that this new type of investment fraud has become a new trap, and the gold involved in the case is currently being gradually returned to the victims, with the investigation ongoing.

Cryptocurrency payment company Alchemy Pay announced that its strategic investment target in Hong Kong, HTF Securities Limited, has received approval from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to upgrade its Type 1 (Securities Trading) license to virtual asset trading services, covering both professional and retail investors.Previously, both parties had jointly completed the upgrade of the Type 4 license to VA and are advancing the application for the upgrade of the Type 9 license. In addition, the stablecoin payment public chain Alchemy Chain launched by Alchemy Pay has gone live on the testnet this year, with over 150,000 test addresses since its launch.

Futu Holdings announced that its wholly-owned self-built virtual asset trading platform, Panthertrade (Hong Kong) Limited, has fully obtained a license to operate and will soon be fully connected with its Hong Kong retail brokerage, Futu Securities, to provide trading matching, asset custody, and technical solution support for virtual assets. PantherTrade is Hong Kong's first licensed and compliant virtual asset trading platform incubated by a brokerage, and its deep integration with Futu Securities will establish Hong Kong's first comprehensive financial service platform that operates both securities brokerage and virtual asset trading under a license. In addition, Futu plans to study the inclusion of virtual asset holdings into a unified purchasing power calculation system under regulatory guidance, launching cross-asset margin trading to achieve the flow and leverage of funds between traditional finance and the crypto market. Futu Group's Managing Director, Zeng Yuchao, stated that with the deep integration of the self-built compliant virtual asset exchange, Futu is accelerating its role as a bridge connecting traditional finance and virtual assets, adhering to compliance and safety standards, and continuously promoting the coordinated development of traditional finance and virtual assets.

According to the People's Daily, the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the General Office of the State Council recently issued the "Regulations on the Integrity of Leaders of State-owned Enterprises."Article 7 explicitly prohibits leaders of state-owned enterprises from using their power or position to seek personal gain, specifically including: accepting gifts, cash, and virtual currencies from related enterprises; buying and selling real estate and vehicles at unfair prices as a disguised form of receiving property; entrusting others to invest in securities and futures without contributing capital but still benefiting; engaging in power-for-money transactions through anonymous shareholding or holding shares on behalf of others; obtaining large returns through financial activities such as private lending; using insider information or trade secrets for personal gain; embezzling or illegally occupying and misappropriating company property; and pocketing discounts, intermediary fees, and reward returns. Violators will be dealt with according to regulations, discipline, and law.

According to News1, the ruling party in South Korea, the People Power Party, will hold a closed-door meeting at the Coinone headquarters with representatives from the five major cryptocurrency exchanges: Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, Gopax, and DAXA.The purpose of this meeting is to discuss proposals for the abolition of the virtual asset tax system originally scheduled to be implemented in January 2027, and to hear relevant suggestions regarding the issuance of stablecoins and the preparation of the second phase of legislation.Previously, the party whip Song Yeon-sik proposed on March 19 the "Partial Amendment to the Income Tax Act" to abolish the virtual asset income tax, arguing that in the context of the abolition of the financial investment income tax, continuing to tax virtual assets raises issues of fairness and double taxation, and that consistency in the tax system should be maintained.

According to the Hong Kong Wen Wei Po, the Hong Kong police's Cyber Crime Unit "Guardians of the Net" disclosed a virtual currency fraud case, where a 66-year-old retiree fell victim to a "virtual currency investment expert" scam three times since September 2025.After being defrauded of 1.4 million Hong Kong dollars for the first time, the victim paid another "expert" a deposit of 600,000 Hong Kong dollars to recover the losses, and was then induced to purchase virtual currency worth 4.6 million Hong Kong dollars to be transferred to a designated account. The scammers went offline after receiving the payments, and the victim's total losses reached 6.6 million Hong Kong dollars within six months, leading to a report to the police for help.The police remind the public not to easily trust "guaranteed profit" investments and so-called "loss recovery" services to prevent being victims of successive scams.

Recently, a first-instance verdict was announced in a case of concealing and hiding criminal proceeds, which was prosecuted by the People's Procuratorate of Yuetang District, Xiangtan City, Hunan Province, China. A new type of money laundering chain, disguised as a Maotai liquor transaction and using virtual currency as a channel, was completely dismantled, involving an amount of over 6.84 million yuan, with all 8 defendants sentenced. The gang had clear divisions of labor and strong concealment.Chen connected with upstream sources through overseas encrypted communication software, received telecom fraud proceeds, and contacted "U merchants" to complete the exchange and circulation of virtual currency; Xie was responsible for providing tools for the crime and keeping track of financial details; Huang used Maotai liquor trading as a cover to disguise the trajectory of the transfer of criminal proceeds with real transaction shells; the remaining members assisted with fund settlement and information transmission. The gang used fake Maotai liquor transactions as the "cleaning" stage, disguising overseas fraud proceeds as legitimate business income, converting them into virtual currency to return to upstream, and taking an illegal commission of 8% for each "cleaning."In December 2023, with a report from a victim, this black and gray industrial chain hidden under the guise of liquor trading surfaced. After the incident, the People's Procuratorate of Yuetang District intervened in the investigation early, guiding the public security organs to sort through nearly 20 million yuan in fund flows and massive electronic data, achieving a full-chain crackdown and comprehensive evidence collection. The court ultimately sentenced Xie and 7 other principal and accomplice offenders to fixed-term imprisonment ranging from 2 to 6 years for the crime of concealing and hiding criminal proceeds; the relatively minor offender Liang was sentenced to 1 year in prison with 1 year of probation.

According to ZDNET, the Korean National Tax Service plans to select a private custody company in the first half of the year to manage seized virtual assets.Previously, the National Tax Service leaked mnemonic phrases when announcing the results of on-site searches of delinquents, leading to the theft of seized virtual assets twice. As a result, it was decided to shift from self-custody to entrusting professional custody companies. The National Tax Service will select custody companies based on criteria such as security requirements, company size, and whether they are insured according to the "Virtual Asset User Protection Act."The relevant work will be handled by the "Virtual Asset Management System Upgrade Task Force," which was established on the 11th of this month. This task force also plans to improve the comprehensive workflow manual for the entire process of seizure, custody, and sale, and to expand professional training. The National Tax Service is also preparing to establish a new "Digital Asset Management Division," which will be responsible for the seizure, custody, sale, and taxation of virtual assets. The head of the task force stated that this is a method mainly adopted by developed countries and will be implemented in the first half of the year after consulting with experts.

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission released the Q4 2025 report, which pointed out that the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission has officially become a member of the Hong Kong Police Force's Virtual Assets Intelligence Working Group, with strategic innovation promoting the continuous growth of Hong Kong's listed and digital asset markets.In terms of digital assets, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission recognized that the asset management scale of tokenized retail money funds has grown to HKD 8.66 billion (USD 1.11 billion) since its launch in 2025, with a quarterly increase of 14% as of last December; additionally, since the launch of Asian virtual asset spot exchange-traded funds in the market in 2024, a total of 11 such ETFs have been listed in Hong Kong, with a total market value increasing by 142% to over HKD 5.4 billion (USD 702 million) since their listing. As of last December, the total market value of ETFs and leveraged and inverse products recognized by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission surged by 33.7% year-on-year to HKD 618.7 billion.Furthermore, the net inflow of funds for funds registered in Hong Kong surged by 118.5% year-on-year to HKD 356.7 billion in 2025. As of last December, the assets under management of these funds grew by 38.3% year-on-year to HKD 22.8 trillion, while the total number of funds increased by 9.1% year-on-year to 1,041.