asia

According to the South China Morning Post, the Nasdaq-listed Solana Company plans to expand its business presence in Hong Kong, increasing its local team from currently fewer than 10 people to up to 30, and establishing Hong Kong as its new headquarters for the Asia-Pacific region.The company's Chairman and CEO Joseph Chee stated that the tokenization business of large financial institutions in Hong Kong is still in its early stages, whereas the U.S. market is developing more rapidly. The company expects to evaluate the progress of the Hong Kong market in about six months, and if there are still no large tokenization service providers at that time, it will consider forming its own team to provide relevant services to local banks.Last month, Solana Company was listed by the Hong Kong SAR government as a key enterprise for introduction, with its business positioning covering digital asset infrastructure and services.

As the global tech stock sell-off spreads to Asia, the wealth of SoftBank Group founder Masayoshi Son and several Asian business tycoons has significantly shrunk. According to calculations, as of 10 AM Beijing time, the combined wealth of 22 billionaires from countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea, who are among the world's 500 richest people, had decreased by more than $21 billion at one point, and later fell to over $18 billion.Masayoshi Son is the one who suffered the largest loss, with his personal wealth decreasing by $3.9 billion, bringing it down to about $29 billion. The companies at the core of the AI boom were hit the hardest. Billionaires whose personal wealth shrank by at least $1 billion include Takizaki Takemitsu, founder of electronic sensor manufacturer Keyence, and Zhang Qiansheng, the richest person in Singapore and head of semiconductor packaging and testing company ASE Technology Holding. Lee Jae-Yong, a shareholder of Samsung Electronics, along with his mother and sister, saw their family's wealth decrease by about $2.5 billion; this family is one of the richest in Asia.

As the artificial intelligence stock sell-off further intensifies and spreads to the credit market, SoftBank Group led the decline in Asian dollar bonds on Friday. Data shows that SoftBank's dollar bonds maturing in 2032 fell by 0.9 cents on Friday, marking the largest single-day drop in 10 weeks, making SoftBank bonds one of the worst-performing bonds in Asia, with its stock price once dropping by 16%. Previously, the credit default swap prices related to some U.S. companies impacted by the AI sell-off surged significantly, with traders indicating that the yield premium on Asian dollar bonds widened by at least 3 basis points.The decline on Friday continued the repricing that has already begun in the global credit market. The AI boom has driven companies to heavily borrow, thereby pushing up financing yields, and this sell-off has also added new pressure to the global economy. On Thursday, the average spread of Asian investment-grade dollar bonds rose to 73 basis points, the highest level since July 2025, although the extent of the sell-off in the credit market remains lower than that in the stock market.

After the U.S. midterm elections, the tech stock sell-off spread to Asia, with South Korea's KOSPI dropping 9% during trading, triggering a circuit breaker, and the Nikkei entering a technical bear market. The Asia-Pacific stock market evaporated over $1 trillion in a single day. Bitcoin fell about 6% to $75,600, with a smaller decline than tech stocks.

According to Gate market data, the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index's decline narrowed to 3.3%, after previously dropping over 5%.

According to Wall Street News, the Democratic Party achieved a significant victory in the U.S. midterm elections, with several candidates who clearly opposed the expansion of data centers elected as governors, raising concerns in the market about a slowdown in AI infrastructure investment in the U.S. Asian chip stocks were under pressure on Wednesday, with companies like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix facing risks that demand for server DRAM and high bandwidth memory (HBM) could be affected.The opposition to data centers mainly focuses on issues such as noise, water consumption, energy consumption, and increased electricity bills for residents. The market is concerned that local governments may tighten project approvals under the pretext of power supply, environmental protection, and AI safety, leading to delays in the construction of new data centers. However, analysts believe that regulation may not directly lead to a shrinkage in investment scale, and tech companies may also turn to building their own power and supporting infrastructure.For South Korean companies, the election results have varying impacts. The Democratic Party's control of Congress may counterbalance the Trump administration's efforts to cut subsidies from the CHIPS and Science Act, benefiting companies like Samsung that invest in the U.S.; the clean energy tax credit policy is also expected to be restored, potentially benefiting solar companies like Hanwha Solutions. Meanwhile, significant easing of automotive tariffs is unlikely, while the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation framework is expected to continue.

According to official news from Chainlink, its Asia-Pacific stock data stream has expanded its coverage, involving over $40 trillion in stock markets in China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.Chainlink stated that the covered companies include TSMC, Tencent, Samsung, SK Hynix, and BYD, and the related data streams have been launched on Lighter, Jupiter, and Predict.

Ethereum Institutional announced the appointment of former UBS Executive Director Laurens Schepens as the Head of Asia-Pacific, based in Singapore, responsible for promoting the adoption of Ethereum among financial institutions in the Asia-Pacific region.Schepens has over 15 years of experience in banking and financial services, previously overseeing UBS's digital asset business in the Asia-Pacific region and participating in the development and expansion of UBS Tokenize's tokenization services, covering structured products, funds, bonds, and equities.

Lin Chen, the Head of Asia-Pacific Business at Deribit, stated that Coinbase and Deribit have confirmed the safety of assets and have completed a self-inspection, with no related risk points found at this time. He also expressed hope that the market can emerge from the shadows and enter the next bull market.

The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) announced a strategic investment in the Asia-Pacific digital market infrastructure operator Marketnode to expand the channels for institutional investors to access tokenized real-world financial assets through the Stellar network.Marketnode is supported by Euroclear, HSBC, Singapore Exchange Group, and Temasek, with operations covering the issuance, distribution, and servicing of funds, credit, and structured products, connecting asset management institutions, issuers, distributors, and qualified investors.

According to data from the U.S. Treasury Department and the State Department, in the first eight months of 2026, countries and regions closely related to the United States net purchased $174.3 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds, a decline of over 60% year-on-year. Japan's net purchase was only $389 million, while South Korea net sold $23.8 billion. Multiple factors contributed to this change, including the weakening of local currencies, rising domestic yields, and uncertainty in U.S. policy.

According to CoinDesk, Peter Hughes, founder and CEO of global financial services company Apex Group, stated that if the United States continues to delay cryptocurrency legislation or fails to establish a clear and definitive regulatory framework for digital assets, it may lead to related businesses shifting to Asia, the Middle East, and Bermuda.He believes that these jurisdictions are advancing more quickly and have the opportunity to fill the regulatory void left by the United States.Hughes also mentioned that Europe will not benefit from this, arguing that its Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) is evolving slowly and has many restrictions. The U.S. CLARITY Act did not receive the 60 votes needed to advance in the Senate in September due to controversies over ethical clauses and stablecoin rewards. The bill aims to clarify federal regulatory rules for digital assets and delineate the regulatory responsibilities of the SEC and CFTC.

Cailian Press reported on October 22 that a joint report released by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company shows that the number of generative AI users in Southeast Asia reached approximately 243 million in less than three years, accounting for 58% of the local labor force, with a penetration rate about four times that of mobile internet. Only 1% to 2% of the local population pays for personal AI services.Florian Hoppe, a partner at Bain & Company, stated in an interview that businesses can achieve AI commercialization through e-commerce, digital advertising, and other operations without having to rely entirely on consumers paying directly. They can also use AI to improve e-commerce conversion rates and handle routine customer inquiries. The report noted that about 80% of customer inquiries on the e-commerce platform Shopee are handled by AI chatbots, with the cost per customer contact decreasing by 30% year-on-year. In early cases, companies that applied AI saw a year-on-year increase in conversion rates of 10%, with the average spending per order increasing by as much as 75%.The report also stated that the total value of goods traded in Southeast Asia's digital economy is expected to grow by 17% year-on-year to $368 billion by 2026, and is projected to exceed $1 trillion by 2035. Among these, the online travel market is expected to grow by 10% to $59 billion, online media revenue is expected to grow by 22% to $44 billion, and the ride-hailing and food delivery market is expected to grow by 15% to $40 billion. The total value of goods traded in Southeast Asia's e-commerce market is projected to be $226 billion in 2026, an 18% year-on-year increase.

According to EU-Startups, the Barcelona venture capital platform Masia has announced the completion of a €18 million first-phase fundraise, which will invest in early-stage AI and cutting-edge technology companies associated with Barcelona. The fund has the support of over 70 limited partners, including tech founders, corporate executives, and seasoned investors, with two institutional investors also participating.Masia has also opened Masia House in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, covering an area of 1,000 square meters, consisting of four floors, providing office space, meeting rooms, accommodation for visiting investors, and a terrace event space.

Ethereum Institutional official X platform has released a recruitment notice, currently hiring a head for the Asia-Pacific region in Tokyo. This role involves establishing partnerships with Japanese banks, financial market infrastructure institutions, asset management companies, and enterprises, as well as planning and organizing communication meetings and presentations aimed at financial institutions and institutional investors, promoting Ethereum as the infrastructure for next-generation financial services.Job requirements include 5 to 7 years of practical experience in banking, asset management, capital markets, payments, or financial infrastructure, proficiency in both Japanese and English at a business level, experience in the digital asset field, particularly in products or collaborative business with financial institutions and institutional investors, and a broad network with Japanese financial institutions and institutional investors.

Galaxy Research Research Director Alex Thorn stated that since the second half of October, Bitcoin returns have been primarily driven by the Asian trading session, while the European trading session has dragged down overall performance.The chart he shared shows that as of October 20, calculated from October 1, the cumulative return of Bitcoin during the Asian trading session was 3.9%, 1.1% during the U.S. trading session, and -5.5% during the European trading session; the return for buying and holding all day during the same period was -0.7%.

According to official news from Bitget, the platform announced the acquisition of the digital asset exchange and brokerage GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics (Thailand) Co., Ltd., headquartered in Bangkok. This acquisition involves the complete shares of the target company held by GMO Internet and its related subsidiaries.GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics (Thailand) holds licenses for digital asset exchange and brokerage business in Thailand. This acquisition will leverage its existing compliance foundation and local market experience to strengthen Bitget's localized operational capabilities in Thailand and further improve the strategic layout in the Southeast Asian market.Bitget CEO Gracy Chen stated that Thailand is an important digital asset market in Southeast Asia, and this acquisition will help Bitget establish a localized operational system, gradually expanding its global trading service capabilities in the Thai market while complying with local regulatory requirements.