Several scholars expressed caution at a seminar on "Institutionalization of Stablecoin Issuance and Trading Infrastructure" held on January 16, regarding the South Korean financial authorities' proposal to limit the shareholding ratio of major shareholders in virtual asset exchanges to between 15% and 20%. Moon Cheol-woo, a professor at the Graduate School of Business Administration at Sungkyunkwan University, pointed out that forcibly reducing the shareholding ratio of major shareholders could raise issues of property rights protection and pose a constitutional risk. He also mentioned that comparing the equity structures of Binance and Coinbase, it is not uncommon for founders to maintain a high shareholding ratio globally, and such restrictions might contradict the international trend of emphasizing responsible management. Furthermore, Kim Yoon-kyung, a professor at Incheon University, believes that directly intervening in the equity structure through percentage restrictions is too aggressive and could weaken the industry's innovation and development momentum. Several experts at the seminar suggested that regulators could guide equity dispersion and compliant development by strengthening the qualification review of major shareholders and improving IPO-related systems, rather than adopting mandatory divestiture arrangements. (News1)

According to BlockBeats, on January 16, the 228th Ethereum Execution Layer Core Developers Meeting (ACDE) focused on several important topics. The meeting addressed the delay in the BALs Devnet-2 scope decision due to EIP-7843 (slot opcode), which involves both the consensus and execution layers. Additionally, seven proposed EIPs were rejected from inclusion in the Glamsterdam upgrade, while EIP-7954, which proposes increasing contract size from 24KB to 32KB, was considered. The developers also decided to continue finalizing the details of the Glamsterdam upgrade. The discussions were technical and pragmatic, aiming to quickly define the scope to avoid further delays.

BitMEX announced on its X platform the launch of a COIN/CRCL trading pair based on Equity Perps. This strategy hedges by going long on COIN and short on CRCL, offering a 0% base interest rate and 20x leverage. Data shows that this strategy outperformed BTC by over 25% in the second half of 2025, aiming to mitigate market risk and capture relative value.

Perpetual Protocol, DEX, Crypto Market, Delphi Digital's Top 10 Predictions for 2026 (Golden Finance): On-chain settlement accelerates, traditional banks face a reshuffle.

According to BlockBeats, on January 16, Kaito founder Yu Hu provided a timeline of recent events on the X platform. He received an email from a client manager on January 13 regarding a potential reassessment and a legal notice from X on January 14, to which he responded the same day. On January 15, he learned of Nikita's content release simultaneously with the public. Yu Hu noted that he had previously received legal notices from X and resolved them appropriately, suggesting that waiting for further clarification and discussion before making unilateral announcements was reasonable during this brief window. Yu Hu also announced that Yaps has been shut down, and Kaito plans to expand beyond the cryptocurrency sector through Kaito Studio by 2026, targeting platforms like TikTok and YouTube. He mentioned that Kaito Studio has been in preparation for several months and will complement Yaps with a new model. This change will not affect Kaito Launchpad, Kaito Pro, Kaito API, or the upcoming Kaito Markets, with more roadmap details to be released in the future.

Shiba Inu price is back at an important support level that should act as a reset point for the asset. source: https://u.today/shiba-inu-shib-key-price-reset-big-chance-for-recovery

Hong Kong advances stablecoin regulation and gold storage, amid financial system security goals. source: https://coincu.com/news/hong-kong-stablecoin-gold-expansion/

Google Play Korea will ban the listing or updates of unregistered overseas cryptocurrency exchanges and wallet apps. According to Google's official policy, cryptocurrency trading platforms and wallet service providers must register as virtual asset service providers with the Korean Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to continue operating in the app store. As a result of this policy, starting January 28th, South Korean Android users will be unable to download or update unregistered overseas exchange apps, including Binance, Bybit, and OKX, through Google Play. Currently, only 27 local platforms, including Upbit and Bithumb, have completed registration. The report points out that although web access will still be possible, this measure may impact South Korean retail investors who rely on overseas platforms for high-leverage trading, arbitrage, and access to more tokens. Bypass methods such as using VPNs or APK installations have begun circulating in the local community, but these practices are considered to pose high security risks. (The Block)

null source: https://x.com/BSCNews/status/2012080183973663037

Play Store will soon require all crypto platforms to register as a VASP with the Korean authorities to offer apps in the region. source: https://www.theblock.co/post/385892/google-play-ban-south-korea?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss

Interactive Brokers has rolled out a major update that allows eligible clients to fund accounts around the clock using stablecoins, removing one of the longest-standing bottlenecks in global trading. The feature enables near-instant deposits, allowing users to access more than 170 markets within minutes, even on weekends and holidays. source: https://www.ethnews.com/interactive-brokers-rolls-out-24-7-stablecoin-funding-for-global-trading/

The West relies on "storytelling" to guide its narrative, while the East relies on "profitable business" to dominate revenue.

WhatsApp will allow AI chatbots to keep working for users with Brazilian phone numbers after the country’s regulator blocked its new restrictions. Brazil’s competition authority is investigating whether the policy unfairly favours Meta’s own AI over other providers.

The recent price pullback is part of a healthy market rebalancing process, and the medium- to long-term bullish trend for Bitcoin remains unchanged.

Two Bitcoin blocks briefly mistaken for “free” solo-mined rewards were actually mined by NiceHash during internal testing.

The CLARITY Act is more like a watershed moment: on one side is the past that relied on gray areas and narrative advantages, and on the other side is the future that needs to redefine competitiveness under institutional constraints.

This article will first examine the current progress of the CLARITY Act, and then focus on its main points of contention and the viewpoints of both supporters and opponents.

West Virginia, a US state in the Appalachian region, may allow its treasury to invest up to 10% of its funds in Bitcoin, stablecoins, and gold. The bill sets rules for investment, including a $750 billion market cap for Bitcoin, and is now under review by the state’s banking committee.

This Chinese meme frenzy is an experiment in the "financialization of attention" jointly constructed by exchange infrastructure, elite narrative guidance, and grassroots cultural resonance.

Massive pre-announcement wagers on Nicolás Maduro’s arrest fuel debate over transparency and regulation in decentralized prediction markets.