Bitcoin clears $80,000 after three months as digital asset alliances gather pace

Bitcoin rose above $80,000 for the first time in 3 months, supported by dollar weakness, expectations of clearer U.S. digital asset regulation and inflows into spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs). In South Korea, debate over a basic digital asset law is restarting, drawing attention to whether it will lead to institutional improvements such as corporate investment and spot ETFs.

• Bitcoin breaks above $80,000 after 3 months... Will a tailwind for institutionalisation reach South Korea? • Digital asset alliance emerges... Banks, brokerages and asset managers move into competitive tie-ups • Hanwha Investment & Securities: "Preparing for digital asset institutionalisation... Running a two-track strategy for token securities and RWA"

Financial firms are moving competitively to form digital asset alliances. As brokerages expand related businesses centred on investments in digital asset exchanges and token securities (STO), banks and asset managers are also speeding up tie-ups in digital assets. With the domestic brokerage industry entering a competition to commercialise digital asset businesses, Hanwha Investment & Securities, which declared in October last year it would become a "digital asset specialist brokerage", is also moving faster.