Standard Chartered-backed Libeara rolls out MG 999 tokenized gold fund in Singapore

Marketnode and Lion Global have introduced a gold fund that is vaulted in Singapore and operates on the Solana blockchain, marking a significant advancement in the integration of traditional assets with blockchain technology.

Cathie Wood, CEO of Ark Invest, has indicated that Bitcoin may be entering a new phase as institutional players increasingly buy and hold the cryptocurrency, potentially reducing its historical price volatility. This shift follows the recent halving event on April 20, 2024, which decreased the daily supply of Bitcoin by approximately 450 coins, a factor that could influence market dynamics.

A16z Crypto, the cryptocurrency venture capital arm of Andreessen Horowitz, is set to open a new office in Seoul, appointing Sungmo Park to spearhead its efforts in Asia. This move comes in response to the high levels of cryptocurrency ownership in South Korea and Singapore, alongside increasing on-chain activity in Japan.

The Aleo Network Foundation has announced the launch of USDCx, a privacy-preserving stablecoin backed by USDC, on the Aleo testnet through Circle's xReserve. This initiative aims to facilitate compliant private payments, enhancing the privacy features of blockchain transactions.

Singapore has emerged as the leading country in cryptocurrency adoption, surpassing the United States according to Bybit’s World Crypto Rankings. This shift highlights the growing prominence of Asia-Pacific markets, particularly with the rise of real-world assets (RWA), local stablecoins, and crypto payroll systems.

Standard Chartered has significantly reduced its Bitcoin price prediction for 2026 by 50%, now forecasting a target of $100,000. The bank acknowledges that its previous projections were overly optimistic, particularly in light of changing market dynamics influenced by ETF-driven flows rather than traditional halving cycles.

On Tuesday, the price of Ethereum surged by 6.5%, reaching the significant $3,300 mark for the first time in nearly a month, marking a nearly 12% recovery over the past week. This increase has positioned Ethereum ahead of its competitors among the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Analysts attribute this rise to heightened institutional interest, particularly from major players like BitMine, which holds a substantial collection of ETH.

Ethereum's institutional market momentum has significantly declined, with ETF flows experiencing their worst month since launch, totaling approximately $1.4 billion in net outflows. This downturn reflects a broader cooling in investor demand amid market volatility and changing risk appetites.