1. Hong Kong FSTB Secretary: Regulated Stablecoins to Trade on Licensed Platforms; Tokenised Exchange Fund Bills Pilot by Year-End link
Christopher Hui, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, stated at the press conference on financial development measures under the first five-year plan and the 2026 Policy Address that digital assets and fintech serve as Hong Kong’s new growth engine, with digital bonds issued in Hong Kong accounting for roughly 50% of the global total. Hong Kong will pilot the tokenisation of Exchange Fund Bills by the end of 2026. CMU Omniclear (CMU) will establish a digital asset platform within the year to provide one-stop services including digital bond issuance and settlement. In terms of regulation and market development, Hong Kong will refine the virtual asset licensing regime and the regulatory framework for tokenised investment products, facilitate trading of regulated stablecoins on licensed platforms, and encourage the expansion of use cases for compliant stablecoins.
2. BoJ Hikes Rates by 25 bps to 1.25%, Vote 7–2 link
The Bank of Japan announced a 25-basis-point hike in its policy rate from 1.0% to 1.25%, with a 7-to-2 vote. The Bank of Japan stated that despite some economic weakness stemming from factors such as the situation in the Middle East, Japan’s economy is recovering moderately and underlying inflation is gradually approaching the 2% price stability target. The Bank of Japan also noted that it will continue raising the policy rate and adjust monetary easing if the outlook for the economy and prices materializes.
3. Japan FSA: Accelerate On-Chain Finance and Asset Tokenisation link
Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) officially released the Financial Administration Policy for the 2026 Business Year on September 15, explicitly including for the first time the comprehensive promotion of social implementation of blockchain-based “on-chain finance”. As a core measure to implement Japan’s “Asset Management Nation Upgrade” financial strategy formulated by the government in July, the policy mandates advancing the popularization of on-chain settlement instruments such as tokenized deposits and stablecoins while safeguarding user protection and financial system stability. It aims to boost the efficiency and shorten the settlement cycle of funds and securities settlement through integrating blockchain with traditional financial infrastructure. The FSA will establish the “On-Chain Finance Forum for the AI Era” and plans to host a public-private dialogue focusing on cross-border payments and digital finance during Japan Fintech Week in 2027.
4. South Korea Deputy PM Nominee: Crypto Tax Burden Mild, Limited Market Impact link
Lee Hyung-il, South Korea’s nominee for Deputy Prime Minister, stated that the actual tax burden arising from virtual asset taxation would be quite limited, and its overall market impact would not be as severe as anticipated. Citing statistics, he noted that approximately 95% of digital asset investors nationwide hold positions worth less than 5 million won (roughly 3,700 US dollars). Under the tax regime design, even if investors cannot provide original purchase records, tax authorities may presumptively deduct up to 50% as necessary costs. If profits are calculated as 2.5 million won from half of the 5 million-worth holdings, the amount exactly offsets the annual statutory basic tax exemption of 2.5 million won, meaning most retail investors will incur no actual tax liability. In addition, historical gains on assets accrued before the official tax implementation are excluded from taxable income.
5. Jiangsu CSRC: Domestic RWA Financing Constitutes Illegal Financial Activity link
Jiangsu Securities Regulatory Bureau issued a risk warning, stating that some institutions and individuals have recently hyped the RWA (Real World Asset Tokenization) concept, attracting public investment with pitches such as “backed by physical assets, guaranteed high returns, low risk and steady appreciation”. Such activities may breed illegal crimes including illegal fund-raising, fraud and money laundering. The bureau emphasized that any form of financing activities conducted within China under the name of RWA constitutes illegal financial activities. Without approval or filing, entities are also prohibited from conducting RWA businesses overseas. Investors are reminded to stay alert to promotions promising “guaranteed high returns” and “risk-free profits”.
Sponsored by FinTax
6. MOEX to Launch BTC and ETH Perpetual Futures link
Moscow Exchange (MOEX), Russia’s largest stock exchange, announced that it will launch perpetual futures based on indices of BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP and TRX on September 22, available only to qualified investors. The contracts will be quoted in US dollars and settled in Russian rubles via cash settlement, with no delivery of actual crypto assets. MOEX stated that since it rolled out the first batch of crypto asset futures last summer, over 72,000 qualified investors have participated in trading, with a cumulative trading volume exceeding 600 billion rubles.
7. Malaysia: Open Islamic Crypto Market, Compliance Volume Tops $4B link
Fitch Ratings, an international rating agency, released a report stating that Malaysia has emerged as one of the most open Islamic markets in the cryptocurrency space thanks to its clear regulatory framework and Shariah-compliance certification. The Shariah Advisory Council of Malaysia’s Securities Commission (SC) has deemed major crypto assets including BTC, ETH, XRP and XLM Shariah-compliant between 2020 and the first half of 2026. As of the end of H1 2026, 10 digital asset institutions have obtained regulatory licences. In 2025, trading volume on Malaysia’s compliant digital asset exchanges rose 23% year-on-year to over 4 billion US dollars, yet it only accounted for 2.5% of the country’s total stock trading volume. Banks’ participation remains largely limited to providing channel services for licensed platforms.
8. Dunamu Expands to Kazakhstan for RWA and Digital Finance Infrastructure link
Dunamu signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation for digital financial infrastructure with Alatau City Development Authority (ACA) of Kazakhstan and Alatau City Bank. The parties will jointly research the application of RWA tokenization and security token offerings (STO), and explore cooperation in digital finance areas such as stablecoins and payment solutions. Dunamu will provide tokenization solutions and technical support required for the construction of digital infrastructure, while ACA will coordinate with local government and relevant authorities.
9. Kazakhstan to Establish National Crypto Analytics Centre link
Timur Suleimenov, Governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, stated that the country will set up a National Cryptoasset Analysis Center based on the central bank’s existing SupTech supervision platform to monitor digital asset-related transactions. The center will analyze both fiat and cryptoasset components in transactions as well as customer, wallet and trading data, and will be integrated with the central bank’s anti-fraud center. Banks, law enforcement agencies and licensed digital asset service providers will have access to its verification tools. Kazakhstan previously disclosed that its digital asset transaction volume has reached 10.6 billion US dollars.
10. Japan Police: North Korean Hackers Compromise 30k Devices, Steal 7k Crypto Wallets link
Japan’s National Police Agency, together with the US FBI and other agencies, released a report stating that the North Korea-linked hacking group WaterPlum compromised more than 30,000 devices across over 100 countries and regions between December 2025 and July 2026, stealing over 7,000 sets of crypto wallet information. Wallets under its control received at least approximately 10.71 million US dollars worth of crypto assets. The group launched attacks by impersonating recruiters from crypto firms and luring job seekers to run malicious code. Japanese police also seized for the first time a “laptop farm” within Japan that assisted North Korean IT personnel with remote work, and revealed that suspected North Korean IT staff applied for engineer positions at bitFlyer but were not hired.
Follow us
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WuBlockchain
Telegram: https://t.me/wublockchainenglish