Samsung’s Bitcoin ETF, $700M bust, Coinbase exits Japan: Asia Express

Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments.

Samsung’s new Bitcoin ETF

On Jan. 13, Samsung Asset Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the namesake South Korean conglomerate, successfully listed the Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. According to local news outlet Edaily, the ETF debuted under the ticker 3135:HK and seeks to replicate the performance of spot Bitcoin by investing in Bitcoin futures listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).

The ETF will also simplify the procedures for investors seeking exposure to regulated Bitcoin products in the Asia-Pacific time zone. Park Seong-jin, head of Samsung Asset Management’s Hong Kong office, commented: 

“Hong Kong is the only market in Asia where Bitcoin futures ETFs are listed and traded in the institutional market. It will be a new option for investors who are interested in Bitcoin as a competitive product that reflects their experience in risk management and risk management.”

North Korean hackers launder 41K ETH

As revealed by blockchain sleuth ZachXBT on Jan. 16, hackers linked to the North Korea-backed Lazarus Group moved close to 41,000 Ether ($63.5 million) from the Harmony bridge hack to Railgun, a platform that uses zero-knowledge technology to obfuscate blockchain transactions.

Funds were allegedly deposited to three different cryptocurrency exchanges after leaving Railgun. The same day, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the exchange, along with Huobi Global, had frozen a portion of the stolen funds and recovered 124 Bitcoin ($2.59 million).

Last June, the Nomad cross-chain bridge was drained of over $100 million after suspected North Korean hackers targeted the login credentials of Nomad employees in the Asia-Pacific region. After gaining control of the protocol, the hackers deployed automated laundering programs that moved the stolen assets late at night.

Lazarus Group has been linked to a series of high-profile decentralized finance incidents last year, including the $600 million Axie Infinity Ronin hack, as the sanctions-ridden country turned to hacking and ransomware to make up for its shortfall of foreign currency reserves. 

We detected Harmony One hacker fund movement. They previously tried to launder through Binance and we froze his accounts. This time he used Huobi. We assisted Huobi team to freeze his accounts. Together, 124 BTC have been recovered. CeFi helping to keep DeFi #SAFU!