– HashKey Hong Kong, the first licensed virtual asset provider in Hong Kong, will open for retail trading on August 28. Investors will be limited to investing up to 30% of their net worth in cryptocurrencies on the platform.
– China is cracking down on private blockchain firms operating within its borders, with reports suggesting that blockchain projects have bounties on their heads. Crypto executives are allegedly intimidated into handing over private keys and access to servers, leading to the seizure of assets by the state.
– Despite the crackdown on private crypto activities, government-led blockchain efforts in China are thriving. The first digital yuan central bank digital currency green bond was issued, raising 100 million Chinese yuan ($14 million) to finance a solar panel facility expansion project.
– The FBI has identified 1,580 BTC ($41 million) stolen by North Korean hackers from various projects. The agency warns private sector entities to be vigilant in guarding against transactions with the identified addresses.
– Yi Xiao, a former vice chairman of the Jiangxi Provincial Political Consultative Conference Party Group, has been sentenced to life in prison for corruption and abuse of power in a Bitcoin mining enterprise. Xiao operated a $329 million Bitcoin mining enterprise and used his public office to secure subsidies and conceal the operations’ true nature.