Evening News | Hong Kong Zhong An Bank will provide cryptocurrency exchange services; Ethereum Shanghai upgrade will start at 6:30 tomorrow morning
In Q1 2023, the financing scale of the cryptocurrency industry reached 2.3 billion USD; the Hong Kong SFC requires DeFi projects to be regulated and apply for licenses.整理：西昻翔，ChainCatcher
"What Important Events Happened in the Last 24 Hours"
1. ZA Bank in Hong Kong to Offer Cryptocurrency to Fiat Currency Exchange Services via Licensed Exchanges
According to Bloomberg, Ronald Iu, CEO of ZA Bank, stated in an interview on Tuesday that the bank will provide cryptocurrency to fiat currency exchange services through licensed exchanges. Ronald Iu mentioned that ZA Bank will act as the settlement bank for customers, allowing them to withdraw Hong Kong, Chinese, and US currencies after depositing cryptocurrencies at the exchange.
Ronald Iu also noted that this business model has been operating with HashKey and OSL, the only two licensed cryptocurrency exchanges in Hong Kong. ZA Bank will also offer the same services to other licensed exchanges. (Source link)
2. Ethereum Shanghai Upgrade to Launch Tomorrow at 6:30 AM
According to OKLink data, Ethereum is less than 22 hours away from the Shanghai upgrade, which is expected to start around 6:30 AM Beijing time on April 13, with Epoch 194048.
Currently, the amount of staked Ethereum is approximately 18.13 million, with a staking rate of 15.06% and an annualized staking yield (APY) of 3.75%. (Source link)
3. Data: Q1 2023 Crypto Industry Financing Reaches $2.3 Billion, Lowest Level Since Q4 2020
According to RootData, from January to March 2023, the crypto industry disclosed a total of 309 financing events, with a total amount reaching $2.317 billion, significantly lower than the $12.48 billion in Q1 2022, a year-on-year decrease of about 81%. Compared to the $3.463 billion in Q4 2022, there is also a noticeable decline, with a quarter-on-quarter decrease of 33%.
Among them, the infrastructure sector had the highest number and amount of financing among the nine sectors, with an average single financing amount exceeding $10 million; the DeFi sector ranked second in the number of financing events and fourth in financing amount; the gaming and social entertainment sectors ranked third and fourth in terms of financing events. (Source link)
4. Hong Kong SFC Requires DeFi Projects to Be Regulated and Apply for Licenses
At the "2023 Hong Kong Web3 Carnival" today, the interim head of the Intermediary Supervision Department of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, Choi Chung-fai, stated that DeFi projects need to be regulated by the SFC, and automated trading services also fall under SFC regulation. Decentralized exchanges that involve virtual assets also need to apply for licenses. Some DeFi protocols are nominally decentralized, but in reality, a small number of developers hold a large amount of governance tokens, and their substance rather than their superficial claims needs to be analyzed. (Source link)
5. Zhao Changpeng Responds to QLC Delisting: Binance Does Not Notify Projects in Advance, QLC Delisted Due to Slow Development
Web3 social media platform Kepple (formerly QLC Chain) tweeted: "The team has been waiting for Binance's decision for weeks, hoping to gain support for the swap from QLC to KPL tokens, but unexpectedly got delisted by Binance without prior notice."
Binance founder Zhao Changpeng responded that projects will not be notified in advance of delisting, and project teams have no reason to act/trade before users. Binance will notify all users uniformly. Additionally, projects below specific standards will be regularly delisted, such as those without active developers or progress.
Furthermore, Zhao Changpeng explained in response to a user's tweet about the QLC delisting: "I was informed that the project has not made significant progress for years and was recently sold to another project, which currently does not meet our listing standards." (Source link)
6. Solana Web3 Phone Saga to Hold Product Launch Event on April 14 at 1 AM
Solana officially announced via Twitter that its Web3 phone Saga will hold a product launch event at 1 AM Beijing time on April 14. The project team will livestream the event on its official website, Twitter, and YouTube. (Source link)
7. Twitter to Merge with Musk's New Company "X Corp."
According to Bloomberg, Twitter is merging with a new company called X Corp., no longer operating as an independent company, as per a document submitted to a California court on April 4.
According to state filings, X Corp. was established in Nevada on March 9, and its merger with Twitter was submitted on March 15. Musk is the president of the company and its parent company, X Holdings Corp., with an authorized capital of $2 million.
Since Musk's acquisition of the company for $44 billion last year, Twitter has undergone comprehensive reforms. Musk has stated that acquiring Twitter would be a "catalyst" for creating X. (Bloomberg)
8. Hong Kong Web3.0 Association Established Today, with Web3Hub Fund Chaired by the Financial Secretary
The Hong Kong Web3.0 Association was established on the 11th. In addition to the relevant association, Hong Kong will also set up the Web3Hub Fund to support more overseas Web3.0 enterprises to settle in Hong Kong. The fund will be chaired by Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan, with a management committee composed of several experts from fintech, blockchain, and cryptocurrency fields.
The fund will collaborate with organizations such as the Hong Kong Science Park and the Innovation and Technology Commission to provide one-stop services for overseas Web3.0 enterprises. It is reported that the fund has already received applications from multiple Web3.0 projects from the US, Europe, Singapore, etc., covering areas such as DeFi, NFTs, the metaverse, and decentralized social media (Dsocial). The fund plans to start investing in and supporting these projects in the second half of this year. (Source link)
9. HashKey Launches Eco Token HSK, Total Supply of 1 Billion
According to official news, digital asset financial service provider HashKey has launched the eco token HSK on Ethereum, aimed at incentivizing contributors to the HashKey ecosystem, including its users and partners. The total supply of HSK is 1 billion, with 65% allocated for ecosystem growth, 30% for the team, and 5% for reserves. HSK will be distributed as rewards for using HashKey exchange services and will expand to more business line reward programs in the future. HSK will be regularly repurchased and burned from the circulating supply to offset the dilution effect of reward distribution. (Source link)
"What Exciting Articles Are Worth Reading in the Last 24 Hours"
1. "Sun Yuchen's 'Employment' for Half a Year, Huobi Drifting Further from 'Three Major' Goals"
Sun Yuchen appeared in Hong Kong yesterday, seemingly dispelling rumors of selling Huobi and the SEC charges against him. However, in the weeks leading up to his arrival in Hong Kong, he was mired in a series of negative news, including rumors of selling Huobi, SEC charges, and complaints from large holders. It cannot be ignored that Sun Yuchen and Huobi are indeed facing multiple challenges recently. So, how is Huobi performing? This article will provide an in-depth analysis based on recent events and data.
Ethereum staking may give rise to a trillion-dollar LST, a new asset that is reconstructing and changing the revenue structure of traditional DeFi applications. DeFi products built around this new asset class may become new investment opportunities in the market. Currently, many DeFi applications have already benefited from these businesses. In the future, how will established DeFi applications enter the LSD sector?
3. "a16z Releases 2023 Crypto Market Status Report: Seven Key Points"
Emerging technologies are in a cycle of development. In the cryptocurrency field, this cycle includes periods of boom and so-called crypto winters. A16z believes that careless observers may overlook the rapid progress being made in the crypto industry. This report aims to address the imbalance between price fluctuation noise and tracking important signals, revealing the progress of Web3 technology's durability. Overall, the report reflects that the crypto industry may be healthier than market prices suggest and highlights the development and continuous innovation cycles that a stable product must undergo.
