THAILAND
Thailand introduces 0% capital gains tax on crypto
For the next few years crypto investors in Thailand won’t have to pay any capital gains taxes on sales made via platforms licensed by Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission. The exemption is for five years and covers the period of January 1 2025, through to December 31 2029.
The scheme aims to boost Thailand’s attractiveness as a regional crypto hub, and it’s already home to a growing community of crypto digital nomads
However trades on unlicensed or overseas exchanges will still face standard personal tax rates as high as 38%. The exemption aligns the tax treatment of crypto with capital gains from traditional securities in the country.
Thailand previously waved 7% value added tax on crypto gains in early 2024.
CHINA
Bitcoin Red Team founder turns to Chinese AI
Bitcoin Red Team founder Rob Hamilton has been forced to rely on open-source Chinese AI models after finding himself restricted from analyzing codebases by OpenAI, highlighting a growing concern that the most capable AI tools aren’t being made available to defenders.
“It absolutely guts me as a patriotic American to have to do this, but I will be going back to using Chinese open source models to conduct my research to protect Bitcoin infrastructure,” he said.
“Black hats will not hit these issues. The white hats will. We’ve hit a local minima in policy,” said Hamilton. “Intelligence is unrestricted for those who don’t follow rules, and those who engage in harm reduction are left on the sidelines.”
The Bitcoin Policy Institute and an alliance of blockchain firms subsequently issued a call to “frontier AI labs to establish a clear, trusted pathway for qualified open-source and digital asset defenders to access their strongest capabilities.”
Source: Rob Hamilton
CHINA NEWS IN BRIEF
— A man in Shenzen was convicted of attempted extortion after he stole confidential R&D data from his company and then posed as an overseas hacker to demand a ransom paid in Bitcoin.
ASIA PACIFIC
APAC region sees big jump in onchain transactions year-on-year
A new report from Hashed Open Research and SCBX found that on-chain transaction volume across the Asia-Pacific region grew by 68% year-on-year, from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion. It was the fastest growth of any region globally, driven mainly by countries in South East Asia.
The report found that consumers in the region had skipped straight from cash, over cards and bank transactions, and went directly to mobile payments. Digital payments now account for 60% of all payments in the region.
CLARITY Act delay gives Asian financial hubs an opening: First Digital CEO
The US Senate’s delay of a vote on crypto market structure legislation to mid-September could give Hong Kong and Singapore more time to strengthen their positions as digital asset hubs, according to First Digital founder and CEO Vincent Chok.
Chok, whose company issues the FDUSD stablecoin, said the delay could give jurisdictions with clearer regulatory frameworks an advantage in attracting capital and talent as US uncertainty weighs on institutional adoption.
“For Asia, this delay gives regional financial hubs like Hong Kong and Singapore additional time to demonstrate that clear regulation can coexist with innovation.”
NORTH KOREA
US court backs Bybit’s bid to trace funds from $1.5B North Korea hack
A US federal judge backed crypto exchange Bybit’s effort to trace assets stolen in the infamous $1.5 billion North Korea-linked hack in February 2025.
According to newly revealed records, Bybit filed the lawsuit under seal on June 18 against North Korea, its Reconnaissance General Bureau, the Lazarus Group and 20 unidentified defendants. The court granted Bybit’s request for expedited discovery on June 19.
The discovery authority gives Bybit a practical route to identify alleged intermediaries and pursue a small portion of stolen assets that remains traceable, rather than relying solely on a judgment against North Korea.
Unfortunately, Bybit told the court that 90.2% of the stolen assets had become untraceable after passing through mixers, cross-chain bridges and over-the-counter dealers. The remaining 9.8% had been traced to identifiable wallets, including 5.3% of the total, about $75.5 million, that had been frozen or recovered.
Bybit is seeking the return of the stolen assets and approximately $1.5 billion in damages.
SOUTH KOREA NEWS IN BRIEF
— Dunamu, which operates Upbit, has been selected by the National Police Agency to custody seized crypto assets for the next year after it obtained the highest technical evaluation score of 94.14 points.
JAPAN
Japan FSA asks crypto exchanges to impose withdrawal delays to fight scams
Japan’s financial regulator has asked crypto exchanges to introduce withdrawal delays and other safeguards as authorities respond to increasingly sophisticated scams involving digital assets.
The Financial Services Agency (FSA) said it had jointly requested the measures with the National Police Agency amid growing losses among crypto exchange users and cases where funds obtained through fraudulent schemes are being transferred to exchange accounts.
The request calls on exchanges to restrict crypto withdrawals for a specified period after customers deposit fiat currency or purchase digital assets. Platforms were also asked to require users to pre-register crypto withdrawal addresses and impose a waiting period before newly added addresses can be used.
