China has intensified its warnings about cryptocurrency, Singapore’s digital-asset activity has grown sharply, and regulators across Asia are weighing measures to improve market liquidity, payments and oversight.
The developments, reported by Cointelegraph, show the region taking very different approaches to digital assets. Beijing is emphasizing surveillance and national-security risks, while Singapore is seeing stronger institutional trading activity. South Korea is considering rules that could permit crypto market makers, and businesses in Japan and Hong Kong are expanding the infrastructure around digital assets.
Beijing links crypto with espionage risks
China’s Ministry of State Security has described cryptocurrencies as potential tools for money laundering, cyberattacks and espionage. In a social-media article reported by the South China Morning Post, the ministry said digital assets could act as “accomplices” in espionage and alleged that overseas anti-China forces use them to disrupt financial order and threaten national security.
The ministry also challenged the idea that cryptocurrency transactions are anonymous. Its warning suggested that foreign intelligence services might reassure people they are attempting to recruit as spies by claiming virtual-currency transfers are difficult for authorities to trace.
The message is particularly relevant for transparent blockchains used by cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether, where transaction records can generally be examined on the public ledger. The source material notes that privacy-focused coins including Monero and Zcash are designed to offer stronger privacy when used correctly.
The warning is part of China’s broader restrictive position on crypto. The country imposed a comprehensive ban on cryptocurrency exchanges in 2017, later prohibited mining in 2021, and has declared all crypto businesses illegal.
Singapore leads a contracting regional market
Singapore’s crypto economy expanded 55.4% to $284 billion in the year through June 2026, according to Chainalysis. That increase restored Singapore’s position as the largest crypto economy in Central and Southeast Asia and Oceania, even as the wider regional market contracted 6.8% during the same period.
Institutional activity was the main driver of Singapore’s growth. Activity on institutional platforms rose 94% to $60 billion. Chainalysis said that volume was concentrated among a relatively small group of market makers, over-the-counter trading firms and institutional brokerages.
The data does not point to a broad-based influx of new services. Chainalysis told Cointelegraph that Singapore’s institutional-platform expansion was highly concentrated and largely reflected high-volume activity from existing platforms rather than the arrival of many new providers.
That distinction matters because a rise in total transaction value can reflect heavier use by established participants rather than a wider increase in retail adoption or competition.
South Korea considers market-making rules
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission is reviewing whether to introduce a market-making system for digital assets. Market makers generally provide buy and sell orders, helping markets function more smoothly and reducing the effect of limited liquidity on prices.
The review followed an unusually sharp move in JPYC, a stablecoin linked to the Japanese yen. Upbit began trading the token on Sept. 17. It opened at 12 Korean won per JPYC, then climbed to 37.6 won within about an hour—more than four times its market value. The spike was attributed to limited liquidity on the exchange.
Yoo Young-joon, director of digital finance policy at the FSC, said the agency would examine whether market-making arrangements were needed to improve the efficiency and stability of digital-asset markets.
South Korea’s Virtual Asset User Protection Act currently does not exempt market-making activities from provisions concerning market manipulation. As a result, market makers cannot provide liquidity in the country’s crypto markets under the existing framework.
Separately, United States payments and infrastructure company MoonPay has launched a South Korean subsidiary. The unit plans to work with local financial institutions on remittances, payments, settlements and digital-asset distribution, although it still needs the required approvals.
Payments and oversight expand across the region
In Japan, Binance Pay will allow eligible visitors from overseas to spend more than 100 cryptocurrencies at most merchants that accept PayPay, beginning Wednesday. The service will operate through HIVEX, a framework linking overseas QR-payment services with PayPay-supported merchants.
Binance Pay will use Tether USDt as its settlement layer, while HIVEX will settle with PayPay and PayPay will pay merchants in yen. Binance said it was the first crypto-payment service to reach PayPay-supported merchants through HIVEX, and said merchants would not need to opt in separately.
In Hong Kong, the Securities and Futures Commission and the Accounting and Financial Reporting Council have agreed to cooperate on audits and assurance work involving licensed crypto firms. Their framework covers information sharing, case referrals, mutual assistance and coordinated inspections and investigations.
HSBC is also preparing a phased rollout of RedCoin, a Hong Kong-dollar-based stablecoin. The initial focus will be person-to-person and merchant payments, followed by corporate and institutional uses. The bank also plans an education campaign addressing scams involving digital tokens.
Moneyiar market picture
Moneyiar data at 2026-10-03 09:18 +03:30 showed XPR Network at $0.0023901514, up 2.96% over 24 hours but down 4.14% over seven days. AKEDO was $0.0325805728, rising 4.28% in 24 hours and falling 0.71% over seven days.
ECOMI stood at $0.0003016143, up 1.27% over 24 hours and 31.09% over seven days. WOULD was priced at $0.0351412837, with a 24-hour gain of 0.33% and a seven-day increase of 10.6%; its quoted data time was 2026-09-22 21:04 +03:30.
