ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Taiwanese legislator Huang Shan-shan held a public hearing on the special cryptocurrency law draft on April 1. The legislator stated that she plans to formally propose and submit the bill for a first reading soon, and hopes that the law will be enacted by the end of this year. Meanwhile, Taiwan's financial regulatory authority officially announced the draft of the "Virtual Asset Service Act" last week. The Financial Supervisory Commission is currently seeking public feedback on the draft, with a deadline of May 24, and plans to submit the draft to the Executive Yuan for review by the end of June.Both versions of the bill attempt to require all crypto platforms operating in Taiwan to apply for licenses, and overseas crypto service providers will also be required to establish a presence in Taiwan and obtain the relevant licenses. Several industry insiders stated during the public hearing on the special cryptocurrency law draft on Tuesday that the proposed crypto legislation would significantly increase compliance costs for crypto companies.

ChainCatcher news, Taiwan is becoming a benchmark for cryptocurrency regulation in the Asia-Pacific region. The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) of Taiwan has released a draft of new regulations requiring all Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) to complete registration by the end of September. This policy marks Taiwan's transition from "self-regulatory supervision" to "rule-based supervision," aligning with frameworks in the EU, Japan, and other regions.In this context, JuCoin, as a service-oriented cryptocurrency exchange, is the first to initiate the compliance process in the Taiwanese market: officially applying for a regulatory license, building a KYC system, and committing to invest 200 million TWD to empower the Taiwanese community.JuCoin announced that if the number of Taiwanese users exceeds 100,000, it will invest 200 million TWD to launch the "Taiwan Web3 Accelerator" program, which includes four main components: developer support fund, inclusive education program, node co-construction incentives, and cultural IP incubation.Since its inception in 2013, JuCoin has always adhered to its original intention of "Driven. Focused. Successful." "The Taiwanese community is not only users but also ecosystem builders," emphasized JuCoin's global strategic partner. "The 200 million TWD is just the starting point; in the future, we will bring in group resources to create a Taiwanese version of 'Web3 Silicon Valley.'"

ChainCatcher news, the Taiwan Financial Supervisory Commission yesterday released the draft "Virtual Asset Service Act," which will undergo a 60-day public consultation.The main contents of the draft include clarifying the licensing system for virtual asset service providers, regulating the operational management requirements for service providers, establishing a framework for stablecoin issuance management, setting up anti-fraud and market manipulation regulations, and formulating illegal penalty regulations.The public consultation period is 60 days after the announcement, and it is expected to be submitted to the Executive Yuan for review by the end of June 2025.

ChainCatcher news, according to the United Daily News, a father-son duo with the surname Zhou from Taichung, Taiwan, collaborated with an overseas fraud group to establish ten virtual currency chain stores in the country, using legal currency stores as a cover to secretly engage in illegal money laundering activities, with the amount involved reaching up to 3.1 billion New Taiwan Dollars. On March 21, the Yunlin District Prosecutor's Office prosecuted 17 individuals for aggravated fraud and money laundering, seeking a 20-year heavy sentence for the masterminds Zhou Hongwei, Liu Jinggu, and You Junfu.The prosecutors pointed out that the fraud gang attracted victims who lacked knowledge of virtual currency to invest by disguising the appearance of legitimate currency stores. Victims exchanged cash for Tether (USDT) in the stores, and were then guided to transfer funds to overseas fraud operations. The entire process was meticulously designed, including the "fake currency store, real water room" and "fake logistics, real drivers" model, comparable to a crime movie plot.

ChainCatcher news, reported by Invest360, China Pacific Insurance Investment Management (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. has launched a tokenized US dollar money market fund "CPIC Estable MMF". This fund is a tokenized US dollar money market private fund under the open-ended fund company framework regulated by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, achieving product tokenization on the public chain, with a subscription scale of 100 million US dollars on the first day.The fund is initiated and managed by China Pacific Insurance Investment Management (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., with thePAC as the token issuance platform, and Standard Chartered Bank providing custody, registration, and fund administration services. The fund will invest in short-term deposits and high-quality money market instruments denominated in US dollars, and is open only to professional investors.The CEO of China Pacific Asset Management Hong Kong stated that the issuance of the tokenized US dollar money market fund is a milestone for the company in the direction of combining traditional finance with blockchain technology, and in the future, more traditional assets will be tokenized using real-world asset technology.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Economic Daily, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) of Taiwan plans to propose a draft law for virtual asset service providers (VASP) in June 2025, allowing banks to issue stablecoins for the first time.FSC Chairman Peng Chin-long stated that stablecoins will serve as a bridge between fiat currency and virtual currency, providing investors with a trading entry point. All stablecoins issued in Taiwan must be approved by the FSC, including requirements for issuance qualifications and reserves. This policy will be coordinated with the central bank to clarify the distinction from CBDC and assess the application of stablecoins in the real economy.

ChainCatcher news, according to media reports from Taiwan, a 30-year-old man in Kaohsiung was seized by the police for illegally engaging in Tether (USDT) trading, marking the first case since the implementation of the new Anti-Money Laundering Act's virtual asset service provider (VASP) registration system. The police found that the man sought buyers through social media platforms, completing over a hundred transactions in just one month, selling 400,000 Tether coins and earning approximately 800,000 NTD.At the same time, the police also seized an illegal currency exchange studio in Taipei City, with the amount involved exceeding 200 million NTD and illegal profits reaching 20 million NTD. The police remind that individuals and studios that have not registered as currency exchange operators are illegal and may face imprisonment of up to 2 years and a fine of 5 million NTD.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, the chairman of the financial regulatory authority in Taiwan, Peng Jinlong, stated that he adopts a cautious and friendly attitude towards the virtual asset market. The draft of the special law on virtual assets has been completed and will soon enter the public hearing process. The draft of the special law on virtual assets will be submitted to the administrative management agency of Taiwan before June 30 this year.

ChainCatcher news, the HashKey Gala Day co-hosted by HashKey Global and Blocktempo was held today during Taiwan Blockchain Week, featuring the Taiwan premiere of the documentary "Vitalik: The Story of Ethereum."Tim Xing, Board of Director of HashKey Global, and Francis Li, Head of Architect of HashKey Chain, along with well-known local professors, prosecutors, and lawyers attended the event and shared important stories about HashKey and the early development of Ethereum.HashKey executives stated that the team became aware of the Ethereum project in 2014 and funded the Ethereum Foundation with $500,000 in 2015 to help address cash flow issues at the time. This crucial funding played an important role in the timely launch of the Ethereum mainnet, becoming a legendary chapter in blockchain history.The event also featured the first screening of the documentary "Vitalik: The Story of Ethereum" for the Taiwanese community. This film chronicles the journey of Vitalik Buterin and the Ethereum community in their fight for an open internet. Notably, this documentary completed the largest crowdfunding in blockchain history in 2021, raising 1,036 Ether, providing ample budget support for the film's production.

ChainCatcher message, Binance announced that in order to comply with the new amendment to Taiwan's anti-money laundering law effective on November 30, 2024, all merchants in the New Taiwan Dollar (TWD) market, including cash merchants, who have not obtained P2Pro certification (approved by the Financial Supervisory Commission of Taiwan for anti-money laundering compliance) will have their advertisements removed from Binance P2P's TWD market on November 29, 2024. Affected merchants are prohibited from posting any advertisements related to the New Taiwan Dollar or providing services for buying and selling New Taiwan Dollars and virtual assets on the platform.Binance urges all affected merchants to raise awareness and plan ahead, applying for anti-money laundering registration with the FSC starting from November 30, 2024, and applying for P2Pro merchant status after obtaining approval.

ChainCatcher news, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) of Taiwan will implement new anti-money laundering (AML) rules on November 30, a month earlier than initially planned, as the regulator accelerates its anti-fraud efforts.The new rules require crypto service providers, such as cryptocurrency exchanges, to complete AML compliance registration. Non-compliance may result in penalties, including up to two years of imprisonment and fines of up to 5 million New Taiwan Dollars (approximately 153,700 USD).In a statement on Wednesday, the FSC indicated that overseas "virtual asset service providers" (VASP) must establish a company or branch in accordance with Taiwanese company law and complete the necessary AML registration before conducting business in Taiwan. These new regulations were introduced following amendments to the law in July.

ChainCatcher news, according to CNA, Taiwan's "Legislators" today expressed concern over the taxation of cryptocurrency in Taiwan. The Minister of Finance, Chang Tsui-yun, stated that profits from related transactions will be subject to income tax, and further discussions will be held regarding the auditing process; the Director of the Taxation Administration, Song Hsiu-ling, mentioned that the tax department currently has auditing tools available to examine the trading situation of digital goods and promised to discuss the taxation methods related to cryptocurrency trading profits within three months.

ChainCatcher News, Taiwan's "Financial Supervisory Commission" department head Huang Xi and Zhou stated at a fintech conference in Taipei on Monday that the Financial Supervisory Commission will require "virtual asset service providers" to complete compliance registration, with new rules set to take effect in January 2025. Non-compliance may result in criminal penalties, including up to two years of imprisonment.Mr. Huang indicated that with the new rules on the horizon, regulators aim to strengthen scrutiny in key areas, including fiat currency custody, information security, customer complaint handling procedures, record-keeping, and information disclosure. Mr. Huang pointed out that there will be stricter reviews of the listing and delisting of crypto assets. Cryptocurrency exchanges must establish clear procedures for the listing and delisting of crypto assets and take measures to prevent unfair trading and detect abnormal prices and trading volumes.In addition to introducing new compliance registration rules, the Financial Supervisory Commission is also drafting a special legal proposal specifically targeting crypto assets. Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Peng Jinlong stated today at the forum that the regulatory body is making progress and plans to submit the legal proposal to Taiwan's highest administrative authority, the Executive Yuan, in June 2025.

ChainCatcher news, according to PCHOME, Taiwan's "Financial Supervisory Commission" plans to launch a pilot program for virtual asset custody services, with three banks already expressing interest in applying. It is reported that the service may start as early as the first quarter of 2025, targeting virtual asset exchanges and professional institutional investors. Hu Zehua, Director of the Comprehensive Planning Department of the Financial Supervisory Commission, stated that applying institutions need to provide detailed descriptions of the types of virtual assets to be custodied, such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.The Financial Supervisory Commission will pay special attention to the security of the business and the implementation of anti-money laundering measures. This move aims to promote financial innovation and lay the foundation for the upcoming special law on virtual assets. It is expected that by the end of this year, the Financial Supervisory Commission will introduce a draft of the relevant special law to provide a clear development framework for the virtual asset industry.

ChainCatcher News, Taiwan's "Financial Supervisory Commission" announced the opening of foreign virtual asset ETFs for professional investors through a discretionary investment method. Qualified professional investors include: professional institutional investors, high-net-worth institutional investors, high-asset clients, legal entities or funds that qualify as professional investors, and natural persons who qualify as professional investors.To ensure that investors have sufficient investment experience and knowledge, securities firms must establish a comprehensive suitability assessment system when providing virtual asset ETF services, which must be reviewed and approved by the board of directors. Before a client purchases a virtual asset ETF for the first time, the securities firm must assess whether the client has relevant investment experience and professional knowledge to ensure the suitability of the client's investment risk.In addition to professional institutional investors, other investors must sign a risk disclosure statement before their first purchase of a virtual asset ETF. Securities firms must provide relevant product information to investors before accepting their first purchase of a virtual asset ETF to assist investors in fully understanding the characteristics and related risks of the virtual asset ETF they are investing in.

ChainCatcher news, according to China News Network, the Yunlin District Prosecutor's Office in Taiwan recently cracked a fraud case, with the victims losing more than 134 million New Taiwan dollars (approximately 4.2 million US dollars). It is reported that last July, the police arrested a 30-year-old "runner" (referring to someone who specifically helps fraudsters withdraw scam funds) named Chen, who was suspected of committing fraud using virtual currency. Subsequently, another 28-year-old "runner" named Chen was arrested, and the local court approved a request for detention.The prosecution stated that it was discovered that the involved "runner" named Yu was a member of the Bamboo Union's Mingren Society, and his superior, Wu, led dozens of Taiwanese "runner" groups, having managed more than 40 virtual currency wallets. The prosecution indicated that more than 20 searches were conducted throughout the case, seizing over 90 million dollars in cash and virtual currency worth more than 50 million dollars. A total of 33 individuals involved in the case were prosecuted for crimes including fraud, leaking secrets, forgery, and money laundering.