Asia and Australia
Welcome to our weekly roundup of all important blockchain and cryptocurrency news from around the world. Follow the latest developments in the cryptocurrency space continent by continent, country by country.
South Korea
Exchanges could lose SME tax relief: South Korean exchanges could lose tax relief for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
A new draft bill in the South Korean National Assembly may set the course for the abolition of the tax waiver that gave tax exemptions to small businesses from 50% to 100% on income or corporate tax in the first five years of operations.
Under the new revised laws, cryptocurrency exchanges could become financial institutions, causing them to fall under the jurisdiction of Financial Services Commission (FSC).
Philippines
Securities and exchange commission releases draft of ICO regulations: The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has released a draft of regulatory guidelines that would be consulted by the government before passing any laws.
The proposed regulation requires startups and companies file applications with the SEC entailing future function of tokens and business operation of the company. The applications will need to be made within 90 days of the commencement of the token pre-sale.
The new move is seen as a way to stop illicit ICOs operating in the country.
China
Xiong’an City set to pilot Dream City Initiative between government and ConsenSys: In a first, the Chinese city of Xiong’an will pilot a new program that will transform the city into a “dream city”. The project is a collaboration between crypto platform ConsenSys and the Chinese government and backed by President Xi Jinping himself.
Urban development in China in the last three decades has been massive and new cities have been developed just to address the increasing need for mega cities in the country. The dream city move will see the city become a leading tech hub for the country.
According to Joseph Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum and Founder of ConsenSys:
“As one of our first major projects in the People’s Republic of China, we are excited to help define the many “use cases” that could benefit from the trust infrastructure enabled by Ethereum technology.”
The move will see the first time that a foreign crypto platform has been tasked with developing infrastructure in the country.
Hong Kong
23% of Hong Kong residents willing to invest in crypto: A survey conducted by the Hong Kong Blockchain Association (HKBA) has shown that around 23% of Hong Kong residents are considering to invest in cryptocurrencies.
The survey also revealed that a majority of the population had concerns regarding the cryptocurrencies including its mechanism but was willing to give them a chance because they were new.
Vietnam
Crypto mining farm found abandoned, investors missing $35M: A Vietnamese crypto mining farm owner has reportedly absconded with over USD 35 million of investor funds.
The Sky Mining Business offered investors a chance to buy shares of the coin mining company hardware and earn profit in Bitcoin. The packages included a one-time payment between USD 100 to USD 500 as well as personal use of mining device for up to ten months.
The CEO, however, had other plans as he is AWOL right now and none of the hardware and investment can be tracked down as of now. The Vietnamese authorities are in hot pursuit.
Thailand
Movie theater to accept crypto as government opens doors: The largest Thai movie theater chain, Major Cineplex, is now accepting cryptocurrency payments.
There are 143 theaters under the Thai chain right now, the largest one being the Paragon Cineplex in Bangkok. The company also has a presence in neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia.
The move was allowed by the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that is proactive in allowing cryptocurrency use in the country.
Pakistan
Economic woes could increase crypto usage: Economic woes in the country could increase cryptocurrency adoption in the country as Localbitcoins.com traffic also experienced an uptick during the recent devaluing of the national currency.
Pakistan endured a grueling political campaign this year and the shortage of foreign currency such as US dollars could spell an increase in adoption of cryptocurrencies in the near future.
Australia
17 tons of almond exported to Germany using blockchain: The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has said that the country has successfully exported 17 tons of almonds from Sunraysia to Hamburg, Germany using a newly implemented Blockchain platform for trading.
A live trial of the blockchain technology-based system was conducted by the CBA in a first. The managing director of Industrial and Logistics at CBA said:
“Our blockchain-enabled global trade platform experiment brought to life the idea of a modern global supply chain that is agile, efficient and transparent. We believe that blockchain can help our partners reduce the burden of administration on their businesses and enable them to deliver best-in-class services to their customers.”
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The post Asia and Australia: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup, 27th July to 2nd August 2018 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.