A packed 24-hour cycle in crypto brought a mix of regulatory developments, exchange stress, security breaches and fresh ETF flow data. Coinbase said it has settled its Freedom of Information Act lawsuit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, with the SEC agreeing to pay $150,000 and revise its record-retention policies after missing communications tied to former Chair Gary Gensler. In South Korea, combined daily trading volume across the country’s five largest won-based crypto exchanges fell 88% from a year earlier, while Korbit sold BTC and ETH holdings to raise cash. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce also warned that moving vaults and lending strategies on-chain does not automatically place them outside federal securities laws. On the security front, algorithmic stablecoin Balance Coin crashed more than 99% after an oracle attack, and several other incidents highlighted operational and key-management risks across the sector. Meanwhile, spot Bitcoin ETFs logged a sixth straight day of net inflows and spot Ether ETFs extended their inflow streak to three days, according to SoSoValue data.

Binance's APAC head reveals plans for five more regulatory licenses in Asia this year, expanding licensed operations to over 20 jurisdictions. APAC crypto transaction volume rose 69% YoY, with seven Asian nations in the global top 10.

FSC includes 15-20% ownership cap for crypto exchange major shareholders in Digital Asset Basic Act Phase 2, triggering strong industry backlash. Upbit, Coinone founders may be forced to sell. Lee's pro-crypto campaign promise questioned.

Binance APAC head SB Seker confirmed the exchange will finish GoFi user restitution by end of 2026, resolving a withdrawal freeze triggered by Genesis bankruptcy. Funds include crypto at current quantities, reflecting price gains.

WuBlockchain’s daily crypto news roundup highlighted several developments across the market, led by a sharp collapse in algorithmic stablecoin Balance Coin after an oracle pricing flaw was exploited. The token fell from nearly $1 to about $0.0014, wiping out almost all of its roughly $3.5 million nominal market value. SlowMist said the attacker manipulated the protocol oracle by feeding in an abnormally low Bitcoin price, which caused the lending contract to liquidate vaults that should not have been liquidated and generated about $912,000 in profit in a single transaction, with the funds sourced from Balance Protocol governance entity 42DAO. Elsewhere, trading activity at South Korea’s five largest crypto exchanges fell about 89% year over year, while Kraken parent Payward is working with GTN to expand xStocks to include Hong Kong-listed shares, followed by UK, European and South Korean stocks pending regulatory approval. Movement has filed for bankruptcy, and Zilliqa has suspended native transactions after disclosing a critical Ledger app nonce-generation bug that could allow private keys to be recovered from public signatures. Upbit later placed ZIL under a trading warning designation and suspended deposits and withdrawals.

Trading activity across South Korea’s five largest KRW-denominated crypto exchanges has contracted sharply over the past year, according to figures cited by Odaily and sourced from Cointelegraph. Based on comparable seven-day periods in July, combined average daily trading volume at Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax dropped from $2.82 billion to $305 million, a year-on-year decline of about 89%. Using a simple unweighted average of each platform’s decline, the average drop in trading volume came to roughly 77%. Separate statistics also showed that daily trading volume across the five exchanges on July 20 was down 88% from a year earlier. Korbit, meanwhile, raised about $1 million by selling 15 BTC and 60 ETH. The decline in crypto activity came as South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI stock index rose 114.44% over the 12 months through July 22, even after pulling back from its June high. Tiger Research said the slowdown in local crypto trading was not only a reflection of weaker prices, but also tied to repetitive narratives, insufficient delivery by some projects, and a shift by retail investors toward equities.

Daily trading volume across South Korea’s five won-denominated virtual asset exchanges has dropped to about 412.7 billion won, down 88% from a year earlier, according to a report by JoongAng Ilbo cited by ChainCatcher. The downturn has come alongside a 41% contraction in total global crypto market capitalization to $2.322 trillion. The slump has hit exchange operators across the board. Dunamu, the country’s leading crypto industry player, reported first-quarter revenue and operating profit declines of 55% and 78% year over year. Smaller exchanges are under sharper pressure: Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax, which already posted operating losses last year, are expected to remain in the red this year. Korbit has sold parts of its holdings three times this year. Within 10 days this month, it sold 15 BTC and 60 ETH, bringing in about 1.6 billion won in cash. A director at Tiger Research described current conditions as a “second crypto winter,” citing the sharp drop in total crypto market value and the near absence of new projects. Even so, institutional adoption of blockchain in South Korea is moving ahead, with tokenized assets and stablecoins at the center. Large securities firms including Mirae Asset have recently acquired stakes in exchanges, while the government has repeatedly signaled its intent to push forward legislation for the Digital Asset Basic Act.

Daily trading volume across South Korea’s five largest won-based virtual asset exchanges has dropped to about 412.7 billion won, down 88% from a year earlier, according to JoongAng Ilbo. The decline has come alongside a 41% contraction in the global crypto market, which now stands at $2.322 trillion. The downturn is also hitting company earnings: Dunamu, the country’s leading crypto firm, reported first-quarter revenue down 55% year over year and operating profit down 78%. Smaller exchanges are under even more pressure. Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, all of which posted operating losses last year, are expected to remain in the red this year. Korbit has already sold assets three times this year. Within a 10-day span this month, it sold 15 BTC and 60 ETH, raising about 1.6 billion won in cash. Tiger Research described the current market as a “second crypto winter,” citing the sharp drop in total market capitalization and the lack of new projects. Even so, institutional adoption of blockchain is accelerating in South Korea, with tokenized assets and stablecoins emerging as the main focus. Large securities firms including Mirae Asset have recently acquired stakes in exchanges, while the government has repeatedly signaled its intention to advance the Digital Asset Basic Act.