Hong Kong allows retail investors to trade cryptocurrencies with major corporations and more

Hong Kong’s securities watchdog, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), has proposed a policy that would allow retail investors to trade major-company cryptocurrency tokens, such as bitcoin and Ether, through licensed virtual asset platforms. The move aims to provide regulatory oversight and investor protection to cryptocurrency investment activities that were once vibrant but unregulated, the South China Morning Post reported. The virtual asset platforms that will be licensed through the new cryptocurrency regulatory regime, which comes into effect on June 1 this year, can only offer “eligible large-cap virtual assets” to retail investors. These assets should be included in at least two acceptable indices issued by at least two independent index providers, the SFC said. The consultation period for the policy ends on 31 March. More here.

Galois Capital, an investment firm known for shorting the Terra ecosystem’s Luna token, has announced the closure of its flagship fund due to significant losses caused by the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The fund reportedly lost nearly 50% of its assets as a result of the FTX disaster and subsequently sold its claims for a fraction of their original value. In a series of tweets, Galois co-founder Kevin Zhou expressed his disappointment at the closure of the fund, but remained optimistic about the firm’s future prospects, stating: “While this is the end of an era for Galois, the work we have done together over the past few years has not been in vain. I can’t say more than this for now. Details here.

According to an anonymous source familiar with the matter, distressed asset funds can buy FTX bankruptcy claims for up to 20 cents on the dollar in private over-the-counter (OTC) markets. This is similar to the public bankruptcy markets, which have valued FTX assets at around 16 cents on the dollar with individual claims being sold on the XClaim bankruptcy market for up to $27 million. FTX filed for bankruptcy last year after sister company Alameda Research was hit by the market downturn and now owes $3.1 billion to its 50 largest creditors. The anonymous creditor disclosed that distressed asset funds buy in the range of 15 to 20 cents on the dollar in private OTC markets. More here.

Saudi Aramco, the nearly $2 trillion state-owned energy company, has announced a partnership with dropGroup to explore co-developing Web3 technologies to help its employees. The third generation of the internet powered by blockchain technology, Web3 applications will include potential onboarding, training ecosystems, as well as a tokenized network and rewards program. dropGroup’s Web3 technology stack includes artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), augmented reality (XR), tokenized networks and metaverse environments. This collaboration is not Saudi Aramco’s first foray into blockchain technology, as the company invested $5 million in Vakt, a blockchain-based platform for post-trade processing of commodities, in early 2020. More here.

FTX Japan has announced that it will resume its withdrawal services for both fiat and crypto assets at noon local time on February 21. The move fulfills a promise made by the exchange in December, as the majority of assets in Japan were subject to strict legal requirements. Due to the large number of customer requests, FTX Japan has warned that it may take some time for the withdrawal process to be completed. The company has also promised to announce the resumption of its other services in the country as soon as possible. FTX Japan was forced to close on November 8, just days before its parent company, FTX, filed for bankruptcy in the US. More here.