[News Brief] Jul 23, morning | South Korea pushes stablecoin legislation alongside institutional investor entry into the virtual asset market

South Korea pushes stablecoin legislation alongside institutional investor entry into the virtual asset market

The South Korean government is simultaneously pursuing stablecoin legislation and the entry of institutional investors into the virtual asset market. There is also growing speculation that restrictions, in place since 2017, on financial companies holding equity stakes in virtual asset businesses could be lifted this year.

According to Odaily, Kim Sung-jin, head of the Virtual Asset Division at the Financial Services Commission, said at a National Assembly meeting that the government is working in parallel on the second phase of the Digital Asset Basic Act, which covers stablecoin-related legislation, and on measures to enable institutional investor participation.

The Financial Services Commission aims to complete digital asset legislation within the year. If institutional entry becomes a reality, the administrative guidance introduced in 2017 that barred financial firms from holding stakes in virtual asset companies could be withdrawn this year.

As a result, banks, securities firms, and other financial institutions may gain a path to participate in virtual asset investment. Kim added that authorities are also reviewing the introduction of institutional broker and over-the-counter intermediation systems for the virtual asset market, similar to those in the stock market.

Financial authorities are also examining, with reference to European Union cases, ways to simplify market-entry requirements for financial sectors seeking to enter the virtual asset industry when their functions are similar.

Coinbase CEO says U.S. Clarity Act is ready for Senate floor vote

The CEO of Coinbase said that the Clarity Act, a U.S. crypto market structure bill, is ready for a full Senate vote.

According to Bitcoin Magazine, he said, “This bill is a practical compromise shaped through thousands of hours of bipartisan discussion, and there is no better time than now.”

The Clarity Act is designed to clarify regulatory authority and market structure for digital assets in the United States, and the industry is closely watching whether it will reduce regulatory uncertainty.

Arbitrum ecosystem protocol AFX hacked, about 24.15 million USDC stolen

According to Odaily, AFX, a protocol in the Arbitrum ecosystem, was attacked at 5:30 a.m. Beijing time on July 23, resulting in the theft of about 24.15 million USDC.

Blockaid said it is responding to the incident together with the Arbitrum team and is communicating with the affected protocol to support the freezing of the stolen funds.

Offchain Labs co-founder Steven Goldfeder said the Arbitrum team has confirmed the report and is investigating. He explained that the transaction occurred within a third-party protocol and that Arbitrum’s native bridge was neither attacked nor exploited.

U.S. stocks drop sharply after opening; Nasdaq down 1.75%, VIX up 16.05%

According to Odaily, based on MSX.COM data, shortly after the U.S. stock market opened, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.24%, the S&P 500 dropped 1.11%, and the Nasdaq declined 1.75%. The VIX volatility index rose 16.05%.

AI-related stocks also weakened. Alphabet fell 5.59%, Amazon 3.39%, ON Semiconductor 3.22%, Meta 2.87%, and NXP 2.84%.

MSX is a trading platform that offers U.S. stocks and ETF-based RWA tokens tied to Nvidia, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, TSMC, AMD, and others.

BTC falls below $65,000

According to Odaily, based on OKX market data, BTC fell below $65,000.

BTC is currently trading at $64,991.1, down 1.26% over the past 24 hours.

ETH falls below $1,900

Ethereum (ETH) dropped below $1,900.

PANews reported on the 23rd, citing OKX market data, that ETH was trading at $1,898, down 2.30% on the day.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs record net inflows for seven consecutive trading days

Spot Bitcoin ETFs posted total net inflows of $68.987 million on July 22 U.S. Eastern Time, extending their inflow streak to seven consecutive trading days.

According to Odaily, citing SoSoValue data, BlackRock’s IBIT saw the largest daily inflow at $38.7795 million. IBIT’s cumulative net inflows now stand at $60.809 billion.

Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF BTC recorded net inflows of $37.8773 million, bringing its cumulative net inflows to $2.649 billion.

Meanwhile, Grayscale’s GBTC posted net outflows of $38.2963 million. GBTC’s cumulative net outflows total $27.415 billion.

Total net assets of spot Bitcoin ETFs stand at $80.361 billion, representing 6.08% of Bitcoin’s total market capitalization. Cumulative net inflows have reached $51.851 billion.

U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs record $72.642 million in net inflows on July 22

U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded total net inflows of $72.642 million on July 22 (local time), PANews reported, citing SoSoValue data.

By product, BlackRock’s ETHA led with inflows of $53.467 million. ETHA’s cumulative net inflows have reached $11.454 billion.

Fidelity’s FETH recorded net inflows of $19.176 million, bringing its cumulative net inflows to $2.134 billion.

As of the time of reporting, spot Ethereum ETFs held total net assets of $10.566 billion, equal to 4.54% of Ethereum’s total market capitalization. Total cumulative net inflows stand at $11.227 billion.

Japan’s Financial Services Agency seeks to allow crypto asset ETFs by 2028

According to PANews, citing Nikkei, Japan’s Financial Services Agency plans to revise laws related to the Investment Trust Act by 2028 to allow crypto assets to become primary investment targets for investment trusts and ETFs.

Several asset managers are reportedly reviewing plans to launch related products. In a Nomura Holdings survey, about 79% of institutional investors and family offices said they plan to invest in crypto assets within the next three years.

Data analytics firm XWIN projected that if crypto asset ETFs are launched in Japan, as much as JPY 3 trillion, or about $20 billion, could flow in, mainly from retail capital.

BNY Mellon targets launch of tokenized U.S. Treasuries by end-2026

BNY Mellon is pushing to build a 24-hour settlement framework for U.S. Treasuries as the digital asset market expands.

According to PANews, citing Bloomberg, BNY Mellon said in a client letter that it plans to launch tokenized U.S. Treasuries by the end of 2026 and conduct pilot transactions on its own private blockchain. Its goal for 2027 is to support 24-hour settlement for both traditional Treasuries and tokenized Treasuries.

Earlier this year, BNY Mellon completed an after-hours U.S. Treasury transaction involving stablecoin issuers. Participants included Ripple, issuer of RLUSD, and OpenEden, issuer of USDO. Both stablecoins are backed by short-term U.S. Treasuries.