Crypto Industry News & Market Trends

Mirae Asset lays out crypto, stablecoin, tokenization plans for Digital X

South Korean financial group Mirae Asset plans to build a 150 trillion won ($109 billion) digital asset business around Digital X, the crypto exchange formerly known as Korbit, according to The Korea Times.　　The report said Digital X will focus on crypto, stablecoins, real-world assets and security token offerings, with plans to tokenize physical assets including gold, silver and electricity.　　The expansion plans follow Mirae Asset Consultings acquisition of a 97.15% stake in Korbit in July for a cumulative 141.4 billion won. The exchange was subsequently rebranded as Digital X, marking the first time an affiliate of a South Korean financial group acquired control of a domestic crypto exchange.　　Founded in 2013, Korbit was South Korea‘s first cryptocurrency exchange. Despite its long history, the exchange accounted for just 0.5% of South Korea’s cryptocurrency trading market in 2025, according to the countrys Fair Trade Commission.　　Mirae Asset founder and chairman Park Hyeon-joo outlined the plans at a Digital X employee event in Seoul on Wednesday. “Our initial goal is to make Digital X a core pillar of ‘Mirae Asset 3.0,’” he said, according to The Korea Times.　　On Monday, Digital X began waiving trading fees across all won-denominated assets, with the zero-fee policy set to run

08-28Industry

The Sandbox pledges 1:1 repayment after $700K bridge exploit

Blockchain gaming platform The Sandbox has pledged to repay eligible SAND holders 1:1 after an Aug. 21 bridge exploit drained 14.744 SAND, worth about $700,000, from an Ethereum vault.　　On Thursday, the company published a post-mortem, saying users who legitimately held bridged SAND on Base or BNB Smart Chain before the attack will receive an equal amount of Ethereum-based SAND. Compensation will come from The Sandbox treasury, with no new tokens minted.　　The claims process is expected to open within two weeks and remain open for another two weeks. Two centralized exchanges hold more than 72% of eligible balances and will distribute compensation directly to their affected customers, according to The Sandbox.　　The project said the attacker exploited a configuration flaw in SAND‘s Base and BNB Chain contracts, allowing them to become the sole verifier of incoming bridge messages and mint unbacked tokens. The Sandbox confirmed that about 14.7 million SAND tokens were drained, equivalent to about 0.5% of the token’s 3 billion maximum supply.　　Although more than 339 trillion unbacked SAND was minted on the two networks, those tokens have been isolated and cannot be bridged or redeemed. SAND on Ethereum and Polygon was unaffected.　　The compromised bridge contracts will be permanently retired. The

08-28Industry

Visa works with Upbit parent on stablecoin payments, AI commerce

Visa and Dunamu, the parent company of South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, have formed a strategic partnership to explore stablecoin payments, cross-border remittances and artificial intelligence-powered commerce.　　The companies will combine Dunamu‘s digital asset technology with Visa’s global payments network to explore payment, remittance and settlement services in major markets, according to a Friday announcement from Dunamu.　　“The spread of AI, stablecoins and tokenization is a key trend that will change how finance and commerce operate,” Dunamu CEO Oh Kyung-seok said, adding that the partnership aims to connect digital assets with traditional finance.　　Dunamu and Visa are considering business models involving Open Standards proposed Open USD (OUSD), a dollar-backed stablecoin unveiled in June. Open Standard said more than 140 companies had signed up to use OUSD, including Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Coinbase and BlackRock. Dunamu said OUSD is one of several stablecoin projects under review and that it has not prioritized a specific stablecoin for the partnership.　　In July, Upbit said it was not participating in the issuance of OUSD after its operator, Dunamu, was named among the businesses involved in the initiative.　　The companies will also explore agentic commerce, in which AI agents can search for products and services and make purchases and payments on

08-28Industry

Crypto startups have 54 days left to shape the SECs proposed $75 million fundraising cap

A US Securities and Exchange Commission proposal to create two crypto fundraising exemptions had drawn 31 posted public comments as of Aug. 27, plus one separately labeled meeting memorandum.　　With comments due Oct. 20, remaining commenters had 54 days to seek changes to the framework.　　The proposed exemptions would let eligible crypto ventures raise up to $5 million in any four-year period under one path and up to $75 million in each 12-month period under another.　　The SEC comment window shows 31 public comments, one meeting memo, two proposed exemptions, and an Oct. 20, 2026 deadline.　　The posted comment file did not identify a major crypto exchange, large asset manager, large token issuer, or established investor advocacy group in its visible row labels.　　Crypto commenters target the exemptions mechanics　　The early letters test where the SEC sets boundaries around disclosure, investor protections, non-cash compensation, and the $75 million ceiling.　　Ohanae Securities, an SEC- and FINRA-registered broker-dealer, asked the agency to clarify the $75 million exemptions availability and proposed Rule 500 preemption. Its comment letter also proposed an EDGAR status hub, stronger Form TR disclosures, and good-faith protection for unaffiliated regulated intermediaries that rely on issuer representations.　　ARKONIX focused on whether independent offerings should share the $75 million ceiling

08-28Industry

CCC exploit drains $117K after attacker targets BSC liquidity pool

CCC token on BSC has suffered an exploit that caused an estimated $117,000 loss after an attacker manipulated the token contracts sell() function and burned tokens held in its liquidity pool.　　According to blockchain security firm TenArmorAlert, its monitoring system detected suspicious activity involving CCC on BSC on Aug. 28 and traced the incident to the token contract‘s sell() function. The firm said the function was used to burn CCC tokens directly from the liquidity provider pair, which was followed by abnormal movement in the token’s price.　　TenArmorAlert estimated losses from the attack at roughly $117,000. The firm identified an attack transaction beginning with “0x89d805064” in its security alert but did not provide a full breakdown of the assets removed or the attackers final proceeds.　　The available information does not identify how the attacker obtained the ability to trigger the affected function, whether access controls were bypassed, or whether another contract interaction was required before the tokens could be burned.　　CCC exploit targeted tokens inside the liquidity pool　　The reported attack centered on CCC tokens held by the LP pair instead of a direct withdrawal of assets from the pool.　　TenArmorAlert said the contracts sell() function burned CCC from the LP pair. Removing tokens from a

08-28Industry

Ripple seeks withdrawal of XRPL bridge amendment

Ripple has recommended withdrawing the XRP Ledgers pending XChainBridge amendment after concluding that its primary use case is already served by Axelar and broader developer demand has not emerged.　　Mayukha Vadari, a senior software engineer at RippleX, announced the recommendation on Aug. 27. XChainBridge, also known as XLS-38, remains in the XRPL validator voting process and has not activated on the mainnet.　　Ripple estimated that withdrawing the proposal would allow developers to remove more than 10,000 lines of code from xrpld, the server software that powers the network. No code has been removed yet, and Ripple cannot complete the process independently.　　Ripple is officially recommending the withdrawal of the XChainBridge amendment (XLS-38). With Axelar successfully handling the EVM Sidechain and a lack of broader developer demand, dropping XLS-38 will remove over 10,000 lines of inactive code. Read the full reasoning here ???? https://t.co/9g8J2d5Ggi　　— Mayukha Vadari (@msvadari) August 27, 2026　　XRP Ledger no longer needs XLS-38 for its EVM sidechain　　XLS-38 was designed to provide a protocol-level framework for moving XRP and issued assets between the XRP Ledger and connected networks. Its intended users included public sidechains, private ledgers, permissioned networks and experimental chains.　　The system relies on independent witness servers to monitor events on each connected

08-28Industry

Bitcoin price tests $82K resistance as Brandt stays long

Veteran trader Peter Brandt said he remained long Bitcoin on Aug. 28 as the cryptocurrency traded near $80,000 after another unsuccessful attempt to establish a decisive breakout above $82,000.　　The crypto traded at approximately $79,771 at the time of writing, up about 1.2% during the session. It reached an intraday high near $81,280 before retreating, keeping the closely watched $80,000–$82,000 area unresolved.　　Brandt disclosed his position in an X post listing several active trades. Alongside Bitcoin, he reported long positions in wheat, soybeans, corn, soybean meal, sugar and the Mexican peso. He was short lean hogs.　　The trader did not disclose his BTC entry price, position size, leverage or intended exit level. He also warned that his positions could change within one day, limiting the statements value as a longer-term price forecast.　　Peter Brandt remains long after buying the breakout　　Brandts current position follows a major change in his technical outlook. On Aug. 20, he said he bought Bitcoin after an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern completed and the price broke above its neckline.　　The pattern normally consists of three troughs, with the middle decline extending below those on either side. Technical traders often interpret a move above the neckline as a possible bullish reversal, although the formation

08-28Industry

Bank of Russia blacklists 2,600 crypto wallets linked to suspected scams

The Bank of Russia has added 2,600 crypto wallets linked to suspected illegal financial activity to a system used by banks and law enforcement after more than 1 billion rubles flowed into the addresses during the first half of 2026.　　The Bank of Russia said the wallets belonged to companies, projects, individual entrepreneurs and other entities showing signs of illegal activity in the financial market. Banks and law enforcement agencies use the information system for digital compliance, client risk assessments and financial investigations.　　During the same six-month period, the regulator identified 2,891 entities with signs of illegal financial activity, down nearly 31% from the first half of 2025. The figure remained close to the level recorded during the second half of last year.　　Bank of Russia adds 2,600 crypto wallets to monitoring system　　The 2,600 crypto wallets were added to a database that can help financial institutions assess transactions connected to entities flagged by the regulator. More than 1 billion rubles in crypto, based on its ruble equivalent, had been attracted through the identified addresses, according to the central bank.　　The regulator sends information on suspected illegal financial activity to law enforcement agencies, Russias Federal Antimonopoly Service and other authorized bodies. Banks took restrictive measures

08-28Industry

SEC opens door to public token sales, but ICO demand has moved on: Bloomberg

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed allowing crypto projects to raise up to $75 million annually without full registration, reopening public token fundraising at a time when investor demand for new tokens has fallen sharply from the ICO boom.　　According to Bloomberg, the proposal could restore a legal route for US investors to participate in public token sales after years of enforcement actions effectively pushed much of the business offshore, but venture investors question whether the market that fueled the 2017 and 2018 ICO frenzy still exists.　　The SEC unveiled Regulation Crypto Assets on Aug. 18 with two exemptions covering investment contracts involving crypto assets. An early stage startup exemption would permit projects to raise up to $5 million over four years, while a separate fundraising exemption would allow issuers to collect as much as $75 million during any 12 month period.　　Both routes would require issuers to provide disclosures to investors, while projects using the larger exemption would need to provide financial statements and meet ongoing reporting requirements.　　The proposal is now open for public comments for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register.　　SEC token rules could reopen public crypto fundraising　　Public token sales were one of cryptos main fundraising methods

08-28Industry

Grayscale says Zcash can challenge Bitcoins network effects as privacy demand grows

Zcash could emerge as a meaningful challenger to Bitcoins dominance among digital assets as the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence puts a premium on financial privacy and fuels concerns over AI-powered surveillance, according to Grayscale.　　In a new research report, Grayscale head of research Zach Pandl said Zcash (ZEC) has “second mover advantages” that could help it challenge Bitcoins (BTC) entrenched network effects, something previous alternatives such as Litecoin (LTC) have failed to achieve.　　Central to Pandls argument is financial privacy. Zcash can shield transaction information, which Grayscale argues could become increasingly valuable as AI systems become better at analyzing financial activity at scale.　　The report comes after ZEC‘s roughly 19-fold increase over the past year. Despite those gains, Zcash remains valued at less than 1% of Bitcoin’s market capitalization, a disparity Grayscale sees as evidence of further upside if Zcash can capture market share.　　Pandl acknowledged that Bitcoins liquidity and entrenched network remain powerful defenses of its dominant position. Grayscale also warned that Zcash remains a high-risk investment and that any further gains could be volatile and uneven.　　Zcash could be valued at more than $4,000 if its market capitalization reached 5% of Bitcoins. Source: Grayscale　　Related: Zcashs Ironwood upgrade faces possible delay over infrastructure

08-28Industry

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