Major American cryptocurrency exchange and wallet provider Coinbase has expanded its crypto-to-crypto trading to more countries, according to a blog post published on April 17. Coinbase and its professional trading platform Coinbase Pro have introduced crypto-to-crypto conversions and trading to 11 more countries in Latin America and Southeast Asia. The product is now also available to Argentina, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Chile, India, Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and New Zealand. Coinbase customers in the aforementioned countries can now store, trade, send, and receive cryptocurrencies. The exchange suggests in the post that cryptocurrencies’ are moving from the current “investment …

KT Corporation, South Korea’s largest telecom firm, has launched its blockchain-powered fifth-generation (5G) network brand, local news agency The Korea Times reports on April 16. Called “GiGA Chain,” the brand intends to boost the security of Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices and to protect them from cyberattacks, the report says. As a part of the new brand, KT developed GiGA Stealth technology that prevents hacking attacks by hiding the IP addresses of the connected devices. According to the report, the blockchain-enabled tech makes IP addresses virtually invisible to hackers. Lee Dong-myeon, president of the future platform business group at KT, said that …

The parent company of major South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb has received $200 million in funding from Japan’s ST Blockchain Fund, the latter confirmed in a press release shared with Cointelegraph Japan on April 15. The cash, which forms part of a Series A funding round, will allow Blockchain Exchange Alliance (BXA) to expand the international side of Bithumb, which is already one of South Korea’s largest exchanges. New trading pairs will also appear, the press release notes. ST Blockchain Fund is based in Japan, but features participation from investors throughout the world, including Europe and the United States. “The …

Samsung SDS has reportedly agreed to cooperate with Indian IT giant Tech Mahindra in an attempt to enter the overseas blockchain market, The Korea Times writes Sunday, April 14. SDS, the systems integration arm of Korean tech behemoth Samsung, allegedly plans to expand the use of its Nexledger blockchain platform in India, the United States and Europe. As per the agreement, the two companies will reportedly seek more business opportunities in the region. Moreover, Samsung SDS will cooperate with Tech Mahindra on further Nexledger updates. Nexledger, a blockchain security platform launched in 2017, has since been used in finance, manufacturing, …

Two South Korean universities will develop an entire Blockchain Campus with its own cryptocurrency, local English-language daily news outlet Business Korea reported on April 3. Yonsei University, which already has an active blockchain community, will partner with Pohang University of Science and Technology (Postech) for the initiative, which should launch in the second half of 2019. A dedicated research center, entrepreneurial program outreach and other plans are already in the pipeline, while a student-centered project aims to increase day-to-day cryptocurrency usage. Postech is developing a blockchain-based knowledge sharing system called Engram, which will feature a rewards system using a bespoke …

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb has conducted a professional external audit of its funds after a major hack last month, the company confirmed in a statement on April 11. Bithumb, South Korea’s largest exchange, lost around 14 billion won ($13 million) two weeks ago in an event executives believe was masterminded by an insider. Now, Bithumb has used a third party to assess its reserves, repeating its previous assurances that customer funds remained safe in cold storage wallets. The 14 billion of hacked EOS (EOS) tokens, a previous statement said, represented company-only funds. All remaining funds in its hot wallet …

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb had a net loss of 205 billion won ($180 million) in 2018 due to the Bitcoin (BTC) bear market, local English-language daily news outlet Korea Times reported on April 11. Citing data from the exchange’s operator, BTCKorea.com, the publication revealed Bithumb, South Korea’s largest exchange, endured the extensive losses despite sales growing 17.5% compared to 2017. “In terms of sales, we saw a 17% increase, and we continue to increase overseas investments,” a spokesman added in private comments. Bithumb’s performance falls in line with other similar losses in the cryptocurrency industry, which accepted the growing …

South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) plans to improve the reliability of data in the arms industry by using blockchain, the agency announced in a press release on April 10. The state arms procurement agency says it is seeking to use a blockchain platform to enable the secure sharing of data about military acquisition projects between relevant governmental organizations and to eliminate data forgery. According to the press release, the new initiative will involve such organizations as the Agency for Defense Development and the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality. Apart from improving the credibility of defense projects with …

A cross-party group of South Korean lawmakers have reportedly called on the government to ease regulation of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. The news was reported by local English-language newspaper the Korea Herald on April 7. Notwithstanding the ruling Democratic Party’s broad agenda of deregulation, the lawmakers claim the Moon Jae-in administration is pursuing measures that stifle and hamper growth of the nascent industry. They reportedly claim the country’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission, has taken an unduly conservative stance toward easing regulation of the sector. In a speech on Friday during the 2019 Deconomy Conference at the National Assembly, …

South Korean police have arrested suspects behind a cryptocurrency ponzi scheme using artificial intelligence (AI), local English-language news outlet Korea Joongang Daily reported on April 8. The scheme, which reportedly stole a total of 21.2 billion won ($18.3 million) over a six-month period in 2018, came to an end after the Seoul Special Judicial Police Bureau for Public Safety trained robots to catch those involved using keywords and other clues. “Through keywords such as Ponzi, loan and recruiting members, we were able to teach the AI patterns of Ponzi schemes,” Hong Nam-ki, section chief of the bureau’s second investigation team, …

South Korean officials are considering a revision of existing regulatory frameworks regarding digital currencies, local media outlet ZDNet Korea reported on April 4. Speaking at the Deconomy conference in Seoul, top government officials reportedly stated that the country has to re-evaluate cryptocurrency policies in order to facilitate the growth and maturity of the cryptocurrency market. One official outlined the importance of creating a place where the industry, financial institutions, and government-related organizations could communicate and jointly develop relevant guidelines. Song Hee-kyong, co-president of the 4th Industry Forum of the National Assembly, said: "The government has misunderstood the virtual currency and …

Changpeng Zhao (CZ), CEO of second-largest crypto exchange Binance, has announced that its branch in Singapore will open in April. A Cointelegraph correspondent reported on the development on April 4 from the Deconomy conference in Seoul. CZ took part in Deconomy, which is being held in South Korea from April 4-5, at the panel dubbed “Centralized vs Decentralized.” During the panel, he revealed that Binance’s fiat-to-crypto exchange service in Singapore will be opened later this month, but has not provided any other details regarding the launch. Another major announcement made at Deconomy is related to the launch of Binance DEX …