GCR

? Top News from Friday to Today

In an out-of-character move, China’s top state-owned TV broadcaster published an article about how Bitcoin’s price could rise after the Bitcoin halving. https://bit.ly/35VQiX1

The chairman of one of the largest telecom providers in China, China Telecom, said that blockchain has high-potential use cases to enhance 5G network services. https://bit.ly/2Wk9kTL

A speech in China last week made clear that the country is struggling with mounting concerns about how it will compete against Facebook’s Libra.https://bit.ly/3bktFwn

Examing the super app strategy adopted by the ride-hailing companies in Southeast Asia. https://bit.ly/35PVb3O

The Financial Supervisory Commission of Taiwan published new STO regulations. https://bit.ly/35RFIjD

?Exchange and Markets News

Crypto Derivatives in 2020: youtube interview FTX/Amber/F2Pool/Skew: https://bit.ly/3bi7tDe

FTX Founder on building in crypto: if we want to rely entirely on a system, we must understand all aspects of it and build it ourselves. https://bit.ly/2xSHhkV

Data from traffic tracking platform SimilarWeb indicates that the number of visits to crypto exchanges fell in April compared to March. https://bit.ly/2xT6lIH

Deribit moved to block users in Japan after the country tightened its crypto rules. Other derivatives exchanges are weighing their options. https://bit.ly/3ctGDJW International fiat digital asset exchange, OKCoin, bringing top brass from Blockchain.com and Coinbase to its front office. https://bit.ly/2xR4JPt

At the 8btc Global Partner Online Summit, Xu Kun (CSO of OKEx), Zhi Ge (co-founder of BiBull), Zhong Lifei (Technical Operation Director of Bytom) along with Wang Tianqi, (Leader of QKL123), discussed predecessors and successors of crypto exchanges. https://bit.ly/3cop1Pw

??Mining

Bitcoin miners generated $412.5 million in revenue in April, which is 8% more revenue in April as compared to March, thanks to a gradual recovery in bitcoin’s price. https://bit.ly/2LjKLA1

Binance’s entrance to the Bitcoin mining industry could create a great disparity for the Bitcoin community. https://bit.ly/3cnG97Z

Miners in Europe gear up for Bitcoin halving, but energy costs still a barrier. https://bit.ly/3cn0c6D; relatedly, a study surveying reps from top EU mining firms found many believe regulations and protections offset higher electricity costs. https://bit.ly/35MWe4H

?Coins

While the fear and uncertainty surrounding BTC has decreased before the halving, experts note greed aspect of the F&G Index is rising. https://bit.ly/2Ll35IY

Representatives from the Loom Network have clarified that, though they have pivoted to an enterprise solution, the project remains active. https://bit.ly/3bjxwdn

Vitalik Buterin took on the Bitcoin community on Twitter by tweeting that it’s the Bitcoin community that has a lot of centraklized middlemen like Tether, Bitfinex, and Blockstream’s sidechain called Liquid while Ethereum community is leading the decentralization by using smart contracts. https://bit.ly/2LiRsT1

Varying perspectives trail post-halving expectation. https://bit.ly/2Won7c1

Klaytn, the public blockchain platform developed by Ground X, an affiliate of the major South Korean internet company, Kakao, joined Celo’s Alliance for Prosperity. https://bit.ly/3bmvrgH

China pioneers a national digital currency. Can the U.S. catch up? https://bit.ly/2LlDq33

? Business

Singapore-based DBS bank joins blockchain trade-finance network Contour to disrupt its letters of credit settlement process. https://bit.ly/2LiyPOX

The South Korean blockchain space sees many new platforms trading for unlisted stocks, following an offering from state-backed Koscom last year. https://bit.ly/2WnEVDW

South Korea’s smart city Sejong will be establishing a blockchain-based identity verification platform for self-driving vehicles. https://bit.ly/3comB3m

Blockchain-powered rewards startup MiL.k strikes a partnership with a retail cluster in Seoul downtown, brings the technology to “millions.” https://bit.ly/2xRmDla

Japan’s SBI Holdings is proposing Ripple to partner with multinational corporations to increase transparency and traceability across supply chains. https://bit.ly/2Wk6Gxj

A pilot program is underway in Hainan, China that aims to strengthen cross-border payments via blockchain technology. https://bit.ly/2LkYmY0

??Regulation

Members of the new Asia Pacific Provenance Council are putting their hopes on blockchain technology – as well as the support of Mastercard and Alibaba Australia – to improve the efficiency of supply chains which export $76 bln worth of Australian agricultural surplus to China every year. https://bit.ly/3bhTpJW

China’s central bank tightens regulations on cryptocurrency as well as money laundering. https://bit.ly/2LgUKGb