East Asia Weekly Roundup: SGX Boss Says Singapore 'Not Ready' for Bitcoin ETFs, Philippines Charges Two in $6 Million Crypto Exchange XRP Theft

Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry's most important developments.

Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments.

SGX boss says Singapore ‘not ready’ for Bitcoin ETFs

While several nations have approved the listing of cryptocurrency-based exchange-traded funds, Singapore, a key financial hub in Asia, is apparently not ready.

Singapore Exchange (SGX) CEO Loh Boon Chye said so in a conference hosted by Reuters on July 9, stating that SGX is currently not open to crypto listings.

“The ecosystem, I feel, at this point in time, is not ready for such products in Singapore,” said Loh.

Singapore is often considered a rival to Hong Kong as both cities are global financial centers that strive to offer the most favorable business environment through regulation and tax incentives.

Hong Kong has already launched Asia's first spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, a few months after the spot Bitcoin ETFs made their debut in the United States, the world’s largest economy.

Like Hong Kong, Singapore has expressed ambitions to become a hub for crypto businesses and has handed out more permits than its rival.

As of today, Singapore has green-lighted 24 digital payment token licenses, a permit that allows businesses to provide crypto services, including trading and custody.

Philippines charges two in $6 million crypto exchange XRP theft

The Philippines’ Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against two former consultants of Coins.ph, who allegedly hacked the crypto exchange in October last year, allowing them to steal $6 million in XRP from a hot wallet. 

The pair, identified as Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, worked as consultants for Coins.ph.

The exchange is licensed by the Philippines central bank to provide crypto trading and custody services to 16 million users.

Their pair’s tenure allowed them access to Coins.ph’s network infrastructure, including secure access key protocols and server systems, according to the DOJ. When their tenure ended, they managed to retain access and used them without right, the prosecutors explained.

The alleged hack was discovered when Coins.ph found a 12.2 million XRP hole in one of its hot wallets. The stolen assets were subsequently traced to a separate external wallet which was eventually linked to Yaschuck’s account. 

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The two former consultants face charges for violating the nation's Cybercrime Prevention Act. Avdeev is facing 23 counts, and Yaschuck is charged with three.

Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck reportedly departed from the country before they were indicted.

Importer caught trying to sneak expensive rigs through Korean customs

South Korea’s airport customs has reportedly busted an importer for tax evasion after trying to bring cutting-edge cryptocurrency mining equipment disguised as obsolete and second-hand models.

The importer allegedly reported the products as outdated models worth $290 (400,000 Korean won) per unit. They were, in fact, one of the latest mining rigs available in the market worth a blistering $14,000 each.

Incheon Airport Customs said that the unnamed 44-year-old importer has been referred to prosecution on charges of violating the Customs Act by importing almost 700 units of high-end crypto mining rigs across 45 instances from November 2022. 

They alleged the imported evaded around $144,000 worth of customs duties.

During customs clearance inspection, customs officials discovered discrepancies between the declared and actual models. Upon disassembling the mining machines, they confirmed that high-performance components such as GPUs (graphics processing units) were installed.

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The accused has been referred to prosecutors for further legal proceedings but has not been detained or held in custody. 

A customs official cited by local media said that the country expects an uptick in low-cost declaration cases due to the increasing domestic demand for cryptocurrency mining rigs.

Suspicious Seven — Hong Kong’s securities watchdog says keep away

香港証券先物委員会（SFC）は先週の声明で、仮想通貨詐欺に関与した疑いのある7社をリストアップし、XTCQT、CEG、BTEPRO、Bitones,org、Yomaex、Bstor、Taurusemexの名前を挙げた。 

SFCは、取引プラットフォームの顧客が出金問題に遭遇したと報告していると述べた。いくつかの例では、プラットフォームはアカウントがマネーロンダリング活動に関連していると主張し、それが停止の理由でした

これにより、アカウントの凍結を解除するために「法外な」手数料を支払う人も出てきました

これらの申し立てを受けて、地元の法執行機関は市の要請に従い、指定された企業に関連するウェブサイトへのアクセスのブロックを開始しました。」

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