Cryptocurrency compliance company Elliptic has raised $23 million in a Series B funding round led by Japanese financial powerhouse SBI Holdings. Elliptic continues to expand in Asia According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph on Sept. 3, the funding will be used to support continued expansion into Asia, with new offices opening in Japan and Singapore. The new investment will purportedly accelerate product development to support asset-backed cryptocurrencies such as Facebook’s Libra, Line Corporation’s LINK and central bank digital currencies. Founded in 2013, the company was established to support the mainstream adoption of crypto assets. One year later, Elliptic …

Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Liquid has revealed the digital wallet address holding the proceeds from the Gram token sale it conducted in July. In an Aug. 30 announcement, Liquid disclosed the public blockchain wallet address that now keeps all participating customer funds from Gram token sale. Liquid further stated that the funds will remain in cold storage until the release and delivery of the assets by Gram Asia. Gram is the yet-to-be-released native token for the Telegram Open Network (TON). According to statistics and analytics platform Etherscan, the wallet has $4,118,853.70 worth of USD Coins (USDC). Additional tokens allocated for the …

In the crypto space in Asia last week, new data concerning Bitcoin (BTC) use in Hong Kong shows that residents are using crypto to hedge against the possibility of capital restraints, while the Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) is undertaking new regulatory actions. Here is the past week of crypto and blockchain news in review, as originally reported by Cointelegraph Japan. Hong Kong bitcoiner explains local BTC demand On Aug. 31, Cointelegraph Japan reported that Leo Wies, chairman of the Bitcoin Association of Hong Kong, said that he is buying Bitcoin because of his fear of possible future capital restrictions. …

Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck has announced it is reducing the scope of its leveraged trading options to comply with local rules. In a blog post on Aug. 30, officials said they were reducing the size of leverage available for margin traders from five times to four times. Coincheck plans Oct. 31 changes The move has come in direct response to best practices put forward by the Japan Virtual Currency Exchange Association — or JVCEA — the dedicated self-regulatory body for the Japanese exchange industry. The changes should take effect from Oct. 31, the blog post says, Coincheck urging traders to …

Cybersecurity company McAfee Labs has released its August 2019 threat report, which notes an increase in cryptojacking campaigns and ransomware attacks in Q1 2019. Cryptojacking on the rise McAfee Labs posted their report on the company’s website on Aug. 28. According to the report, crypto jacking — installing and running a cryptocurrency miner without user permission — has been on the rise, with a 29% increase in crypto jacking campaigns in Q1 2019. Additionally, the company discovered new malware families for both Microsoft Windows and Apple users. One crypto jacking campaign they discovered was PsMiner — a crypto jacker for …

The United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) recently resolved a complaint regarding advertising of Bitcoin (BTC) from the BitMEX crypto derivatives exchange. According to the ASA, the website showed Bitcoin graphs with misleading price dynamics since January 2019. The ASA received four complaints, each accusing the platform of being misleading about Bitcoin investment profitability. The court satisfied the complaints. However, this was not the first time that a state took a tough attitude toward advertisement of cryptocurrencies. Here is an overview of how cryptocurrencies are advertised — or not — in the world right now. Ban, no freedom The first …

Japan is a friendly jurisdiction for cryptocurrency trading and development, having eliminated the consumption tax on Bitcoin (BTC) trading in 2017, after which it recognized the coin as legal tender. This week in Japan, a crypto exchange that was hacked earlier this year has closed its doors, while the central bank has come out as bullish on blockchain technology. The Bank of Japan is keen on blockchain tech Japan’s central bank, the Bank of Japan, is bullish on blockchain technology and is purportedly unconcerned with cryptocurrencies as a source of capital outflow from the country. Contrasting the BOJ’s policies and …

Blockchain startup Blockstack PBC has received strategic investment from Japanese human resources giant Recruit Holdings. U.S. startups look for Japanese partnerships The Block reported the startup’s new funding on Aug. 22. As part of the investment deal, Recruit, which is currently valued at $50 billion, is purchasing Blockstack’s STACK tokens. Blockstack CEO and co-founder Muneeb Ali reportedly said that United States-based startups typically partner with businesses in Japan. Ali further discussed the advantages of conducting crypto business in Japan. He said: “Japan is a very interesting market for crypto because it has clarity around regulations. It is legal to own …

Major Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck is considering launching an initial exchange offering (IEO) platform for raising funds through utility tokens. The platform Acquired by Japanese financial services firm Monex Group in April 2018, Coincheck hinted at its plans to establish an IEO business in a recent public announcement, Cointelegraph Japan reported on Aug. 22. According to the report, Coincheck has started investigating fundraising opportunities based on utility tokens, claiming that IEOs are gaining more global attention and ensures more reliability as a method of securing funds. In a public statement, Coincheck said that it is targeting companies and projects that …

The Taiwan-based subsidiary of hacked crypto exchange Bitpoint Japan will file a $9.4 million damages suit as it claims to have been overbilled by the parent exchange. Overbilling is ‘clearly’ erroneous Bitpoint Taiwan reportedly found that total funds it collected from local clients have been short by 500 million yen ($4.7 million) due to overbilling by parent company Bitpoint Japan, according to a report by Japanese English-language publication The Mainichi on Aug. 22. Citing a prepared lawsuit, The Mainichi reported that the Taiwanese subsidiary discovered the shortage of funds while checking past billings by Bitpoint Japan following a major hack …

Japan’s largest gift card platform Amaten will issue tokenized gift cards in partnership with blockchain network provider Aelf. United Kingdom news outlet Verdict reported on Aug. 20 that Amaten has partnered with Aelf — one of the 30 blockchain providers certified by the China Electronics Technology Standardization Institute — to issue gift cards on the blockchain. Amaten plans to build its framework on top of Aelf’s platform to tokenize its gift cards, enabling them to be exchanged and managed on the blockchain. Gift cards and blockchain: “A completely natural fit” Amaten and Aelf want to decrease fraud by enabling gift …

Cryptocurrency exchange bitFlyer and technology services company Tpoint Japan announced a new partnership that allows local customers to exchange loyalty program points for Bitcoin (BTC) and earn rewards for paying in crypto. The official press release states: “As part of our mission of ‘Making the world simpler with blockchain’, we will continue to contribute to the further development of a sound virtual currency industry. Tpoint Japan aims to turn their well-known points into ‘Points for people. Points for connecting people and society.’ Participating locations include Bic Camera, Yamada Denki, H.I.S., and more.” Spend Bitcoin, get Bitcoin As Cointelegraph Japan reported …