Say hi to Token Issue, Tech in Asia’s crypto newsletter

In Token Issue this week, we’ll talk about Three Arrows Capital, the mushrooming of new Ethereum killers, and more. [Read from your browser]( Token Issue Welcome to Token Issue! Delivered every Friday, this free newsletter breaks down the biggest stories in Asia’s crypto scene and beyond. View past issues [here]( or [sign up here]( to receive future newsletters. Written by Terence Lee Editor in Chief Hi {NAME} Lately, crypto has become something of a hobby for me. There’s nothing quite like its intoxicating mix of tech, finance, and economics. It’s already leaving an imprint on the masses, inspiring hate and love in equal measure and serving as fertile soil for both cynical scammers and sincere technologists. Blockchain, crypto, Web3, DLT … whatever you choose to call it, this industry has become something we can’t ignore. Whether it eventually flames out or becomes the best thing since sliced bread, I want to be a part of it. I’m no engineer, so unpacking and analyzing this movement will do. This is why we’ve ramped up our [crypto coverage]( and formed a dedicated team for it. It’s also why - after much procrastination - we’re launching this newsletter, which serves as your guide to our coverage as well as the hottest topics in crypto. Our approach is simple: We’re not here to shove Web3 down your throats. We want to cover the good, bad, and ugly of the space in language that’s accessible to non-crypto folks. For our debut issue, we’ll talk about Three Arrows Capital, the mushrooming of new Ethereum killers, and more. We’ll also discuss whether Helium, a highly touted Web3 project, is just a load of hot air. Let’s dive in. -- Terence (Note: Token Issue will be on hiatus next week, but will resume the following week.)  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THE BIG STORY [Mission impossible: Recovering 3AC’s missing assets]( The collapse of 3AC has left piles of digital assets for the bankruptcy court to comb through. Lawyers tell Tech in Asia that this is the first major liquidation involving massive volumes of cryptocurrencies. This means that recovering the funds will require using techniques that are still nascent. In this story, Scott Shuey unpacks the challenges involved in this monumental task and why it might turn out to be mission impossible.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  ⭐ TO THE STARS A look at what’s pushing Web3 forward. How many Ethereum killers does the world need? It’s funny how Ethereum remains entrenched as the world’s no. 2 blockchain despite many attempts to unseat it. Solana, Avalanche, and BNB Chain have emerged as viable and functional alternatives that are improving all the time. And yet more [Layer 1]( blockchains are coming up. Aptos, a team consisting of the programmers behind Meta’s defunct Diem blockchain, has [raised US$150 million]( to bring the project back to life. According to CoinDesk, this brings Aptos’ total haul to US$350 million. That’s a crazy amount, considering it probably hasn’t made a single cent in income. (Just another day in the crypto world, I suppose.) Why have investors like PayPal Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and yes, even the defunct Three Arrows Capital, gone gaga over this? It’s because Aptos introduces a smart contract programming language called Move, according to a [blockchain coder](. Move promises to improve productivity for coders by 3x to 5x compared to Solidity, Ethereum’s smart contract scripting language. Aptos isn’t the only new kid in town. Months ago, we covered the [launch of Oasys]( a gaming-focused blockchain backed by Japanese gaming bigwigs. Nor is Aptos the only Diem-based project around. With its Sui blockchain, Mysten Labs has recently raised an eye-popping [US$200 million in funding](. But Ethereum probably isn’t going away, which means its lesser rivals may become ghost towns. A bevy of scaling solutions are letting people transact cheaply on top of Ethereum. A new one to watch out for is [AltLayer]( which has raised funds from an enviable list of investors to build a service that lets decentralized apps boost transaction capacity on-demand. We may be entering [another phase]( of infrastructure-building in Web3 that could in turn lead to a new wave of crypto apps.  --------------------------------------------------------------- 🌙 TO THE MOON Tokens, NFTs, and yield generators we’re noticing. 1️⃣ [Orion Protocol]( Having too many blockchains around can be a headache for users. Orion solves this by providing a simple interface to use decentralized finance (DeFi) services on various chains. Holders of its token, Orn, can earn a cut of the platform’s revenue. It can also be used to pay for trades at a discounted rate. 2️⃣ [Solace]( Solace is a DeFi insurer that automates the quotation and claims processes. By bonding it with your funds, you’ll get Solace tokens that entitle you to a share of the platform’s income. Bonding is how it raises underwriting capital. Do check out our [deep dive]( into crypto insurance and our [list of key players]( in the space.  --------------------------------------------------------------- 🌏 BACK TO EARTH The week’s biggest roadblocks. The “prize” of regulating crypto It’s been a rough week for Coinbase, with its shares tumbling more than 10% after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) put the largest crypto exchange in the US [in its crosshairs](. A greater tug of war is at play, though. It seems that the SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are tussling over the right to regulate crypto. Fortune is [couching this]( as a matter of pride - whoever prevails gets the “prestigious task” and “prize” of regulating crypto. But it's a philosophical fight as well. A [statement]( released by CFTC appears to criticize the SEC for trying to claim jurisdiction over crypto via enforcement actions. “Major questions are best addressed through a transparent process that engages the public to develop appropriate policy with expert input,” it reads. It appears that regulators across the world are far from agreeing on how to treat crypto. China has prohibited it, India [wants to ban it for the umpteenth time]( and the Philippines appears to be keeping its doors [open](. Singapore, meanwhile, is mulling adding [more rules]( to restrict retail crypto trading, and it plans to do so “in line with international regulators.” But given the lack of consensus, all I can say is: Good luck figuring that out.  --------------------------------------------------------------- STILL A PONZI SCHEME The latest Web3 and crypto takedowns. “Helium, often cited as one of the best examples of a web3 use case, has received US$365 million of investment led by A16z. Regular folks have also been convinced to spend US$250 million buying hotspot nodes, in the hopes of earning passive income. The result? Helium's total revenue is US$6,500 per month.”                  - [Liron Shapira, entrepreneur]( Helium has basically built a decentralized network for 5G and IoT devices. The network professes to generate [close to US$2 million]( in data credits revenue a month. Here’s the problem: People are buying its tokens thinking that Helium is seeing a lot of usage from actual network users. But it turns out the vast majority of the credits have been spent on setting up new hotspots and transferring tokens between wallets. So instead of being a proper Web3 use case, it has turned into a Web3 product searching for a use case. That’s a huge difference. Helium’s founder has since [responded]( to the criticism.  --------------------------------------------------------------- MORE TO CHEW ON Essential news and views. 1️⃣ [Unstoppable Domains raises US$65m to reach unicorn status]( Imagine owning your own web domain name as an NFT, with no renewal fees. That’s what the company promises, and you can bet NFT domain-name squatting will be a thing. The round was led by Pantera Capital, with other investors includingSpartan Group, CoinGecko, and Ethereum-scaling platform Polygon joining in. 2️⃣ [Singapore-based game developer raises $10m for Web3 projects]( Mighty Bear Games consists of veterans from Ubisoft, Disney, LucasArts, and King. Polygon is an investor in the round. 3️⃣ [South Korean prosecutors raid home of Terra co-founder Daniel Shin]( Offices of crypto exchanges, as well as that of Shin’s Terra-linked fintech firm Chai, were also raided. Tech in Asia found out earlier that Terra’s highly touted partnership with Chai [wasn’t all roses](. 4️⃣ [What the “dollar milkshake theory” means for crypto]( The US dollar is sucking liquidity from the world, and that includes crypto, too.  --------------------------------------------------------------- That’s all for this issue - we hope you liked it. WAGMI! P.S. 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