Asia's weekly TOP10 crypto news (June 9 to June 15)

Jun 15, 2025

1. Japanese PM Ishibashi Plans to Raise North Korea’s Crypto Theft at G7 Summit link

Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru plans to mention North Korea’s malicious cyber — activities, including the theft of cryptocurrency, at the G7 Summit to be held in Canada from June 15th to 17th, and emphasize the necessity of countries working together to address them. North Korea is accused of using the virtual currencies illegally obtained through cyber — attacks to fund the development of weapons of mass destruction. Ishiba’s move aims to cut off North Korea’s funding sources by strengthening monitoring among multiple countries. This may be the first time that the issue of North Korea’s cryptocurrency theft has been mentioned at a G7 Summit.

2. Hong Kong Government to Issue 2nd Virtual Asset Policy Declaration in 2025 link

Chen Haolian, Acting Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, said at the Caixin Summer Summit that the government will release the second Policy Declaration on the Development of Virtual Assets within 2025. It plans to combine the traditional financial advantages of Hong Kong with virtual — asset technologies to enhance the security and flexibility of the real economy, and encourage local and international enterprises to explore innovative applications. He pointed out that the Stablecoin Ordinance will come into effect on August 1, which, under a transparent and predictable regulatory framework, will help strengthen financial security and boost the long — term investment confidence of the industry.

3. South Korea’s CB Governor Lee Chang-yong to Discuss KRW Stablecoin This Month link

The Governor of the Bank of Korea, Lee Chang-yong, will attend a governors’ dinner at the Seoul Bankers’ Association Building on June 23 and is expected to discuss issues related to Korean won stablecoins with attendees. The Bank of Korea has previously taken a cautious stance toward won stablecoins issued by non-bank institutions due to concerns about monetary policy effectiveness and financial stability.

4. Bloomberg: Singapore Law Pushes Unlicensed Crypto Exchanges to Exit Market link

Due to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issuing an ultimatum on May 30 requiring unlicensed cryptocurrency companies with operations in Singapore but serving overseas clients to cease operations by June 30, unlicensed exchanges like Bitget and Bybit are considering withdrawing from Singapore and relocating employees to Dubai, Hong Kong and other places. MAS stated that no transition period will be provided, and new license issuances will be extremely limited. This measure applies to Singaporean companies with front-office functions or overseas clients. Patrick Tan, General Counsel of ChainArgos, said this move is “almost equivalent to an evacuation”, and the industry is still intensively assessing compliance risks.

5. Philippines Enforces New Crypto Rules: Licensing, Local Registration, ₱100M Capital Requirement link

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the Philippines officially implemented the country’s most comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies on June 12. The new regulations require all cryptocurrency — asset service providers (CASPs) to register as legal entities locally, with a paid — in capital of not less than 100 million Philippine pesos (approximately $1.8 million), establish a physical office, and separate customer assets from corporate funds. Service providers are also required to submit regular reports, fulfill obligations such as KYC (Know Your Customer) and transaction monitoring, and store customer data within the territory of the Philippines.

6. Binance Helps US & Taiwan Authorities Bust Major Darknet Drug Market link

Binance announced that it assisted the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the law — enforcement authorities in Taiwan to successfully bust the dark — web drug market Incognito Market. The cumulative transaction volume of this market exceeded $100 million. The joint law — enforcement operation arrested 270 people, and seized more than $200 million in cash and cryptocurrency assets, 144 kilograms of drugs laced with fentanyl, and 180 firearms. The financial intelligence unit of Binance identified the key operators, helped expose the money — laundering routes, and provided support for the subsequent pursuit.

7. Russia Allegedly Uses Bitcoin to Fund Youth Spying and Sabotage link

According to a joint investigation by Reuters, blockchain — analytics firms Global Ledger and Recoveris, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) and the Military Intelligence Directorate (GRU) have been continuously using Bitcoin to pay teenagers and untrained spies. Recoveris said that the FSB and GRU have repeatedly used cryptocurrency to fund young people in Poland to carry out tasks such as surveillance, graffiti — writing, and arson. Some of the funds were used to hire mercenaries in the Donbas region and bribe European politicians. Given the continued sanctions, such cryptocurrency — based payments are expected to continue, and the transparency of cryptocurrency allows the Russian side to monitor the use of funds.

8. HSBC Designated as Tokenisation Agent for Hong Kong’s Project Ensemble Pilot Program link

Zhu Kuang Lee, Chief Digital, Data and Innovation Officer of HSBC, said that HSBC is focusing on three major areas of blockchain technology: digital asset custody, the private blockchain platform HSBC Orion, and tokenization. Over the past one — and — a — half years, the HSBC Orion platform has completed more than 10 bond issuances in Hong Kong and other places, with a total scale of over $1.5 billion. In addition, HSBC has recently been designated by Huaxia Fund Management Co., Ltd. as the tokenization agent for the Hong Kong Project Ensemble pilot program, assisting in the minting and redemption of money market fund shares.

9. Tencent Reportedly Weighing $15B Acquisition of Game Developer Nexon link

China’s internet giant Tencent is said to be studying a deal to acquire game — developer Nexon for $15 billion. Tencent has a long — standing cooperation with Nexon. For example, Tencent is the agent of the Chinese — server version of the game “Dungeon & Fighter”. Nexon has invested in Web3 projects including MapleStory Universe, Oasys and CCP Games.

10. User Loses ¥50M Assets from Cold Wallet Bought on Douyin link

SlowMist’s CISO @im23pds warned via a tweet that a user had approximately 50 million yuan worth of cryptocurrency assets stolen due to purchasing a suspected to be tampere with “cold wallet” on Douyin. The private key was suspectedly stolen during the wallet’s initialization, and the funds were quickly transferred to the overseas money — laundering platform “Huiwang”. @im23pds emphasized that when purchasing cold wallets, one must do so through official and regular channels, and should not seek cheap deals, so as to avoid causing serious asset losses.

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