China News Daily TheBitTimes.com

A significant portion of the population in South Korea is reportedly investing in crypto. Citing new central bank data provided by the office of Democratic Party Rep. Lim Kwang-hyun, Yonhap News Agency reports the number of people who hold crypto in South Korean exchanges exceeded 15.59 million in November, up by 610,000 from 14.98 million in October. The figures, based on the number of investors who have accounts in the five leading domestic exchanges, including Upbit, Bithumb, Coin One, Cobit, and Gopax, represent more than 30% of the estimated 51.23 million people who live in the East Asian nation. The report says the number of crypto investors has been on the rise likely as a result of market optimism following the victory of US President-elect Donald Trump, who has promised to support the virtual asset industry. The number of domestic crypto investors rose by 14.74 million in July, 14.82 million in August, 4.88 million in September and 14.98 million in Oct...

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has recently requested personal data and transaction information from crypto currency exchanges , potentially involving up to 1.2 million accounts. This move aims to tighten enforcement against individuals who might be neglecting their tax obligations amidst the growing allure of digital tokens. According to a notice issued by the ATO last month, the data is intended to assist in identifying traders who have not reported their crypto exchanges or the use of digital currency for purchases of goods and services. The ATO acknowledges the intricate nature of the crypto industry, which can contribute to a genuine lack of awareness regarding tax responsibilities. The ATO highlighted concerns about the potential for individuals to exploit the anonymity of crypto currency transactions to evade tax obligations. It emphasized that the ease of purchasing crypto assets with false information could make them appealing to those seeking to circumvent tax laws....

Russian traffic increased up to 20% on several tier-1 crypto exchanges in November, as Binance recorded significantly slower trading volume growth than its major competitors.  According to the latest CEX data from WuBlockchain, most of November’s traffic inflow on top crypto exchanges such as Huobi, Deribit, Bitget, and Bybit came from Russian users. These exchange benefits significantly from Binance’s exit from the Russian market. Nearly 20% of Bybit’s traffic last month came from Russian users – most from a single geographical location. This was also reflected in the exchange ’s spot trading volume, as Bybit saw a 62.5% increase in November.  Bitget also saw 10% of its traffic generated from Russia, which became its leading traffic source in Europe, and the platform also recorded a nearly 60% increase in its trading volume. Binance’s exit seemingly didn’t impact Russia’s crypto activities, as cryptocurrency transactions increased by 53.9% in the country this year....

The freeze resulted from a collaboration between Atomic Wallet, forensic companies and centralized exchanges following reports from users claiming unauthorized transactions from their wallets. Hacked cryptocurrency wallet Atomic Wallet has frozen $2 million in “suspicious deposits” in a joint effort with major crypto exchanges . Announcing the news to Cointelegraph on Oct. 19, Atomic Wallet said that blockchain intelligence firms Chainalysis and Crystal have assisted the wallet firm in identifying and containing the threat. Citing reports from Chainalysis and Crystal, Atomic Wallet reported that the “threat actor” used sophisticated methods to bridge the funds to the Bitcoin blockchain, including bridges and mixers. “Most funds have ultimately ended up on the Tron blockchain and Bitcoin network,” the report reads. The report specifically mentioned that the funds were bridged through the Avalanche bridge and then to the Tron blockchain. “Atomic Wallet extends heartfelt gratitude to the...