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Visa is seeking to acquire crypto custody infrastructure firm Fireblocks.
Axios reported on October 22, citing sources, that Visa is in acquisition talks with Fireblocks. One source told Axios the negotiations are in their final stages.
Fireblocks is being discussed at a valuation of about $2.5 billion.
If the deal is completed, Visa would accelerate its expansion in crypto. The company has been actively broadening its crypto-related services, including through a recent partnership with crypto financial infrastructure firm Mesh to expand stablecoin payment capabilities.

Andreessen Horowitz, the global venture capital firm known as a16z, is moving to drop “Crypto” from the name of its flagship digital-asset fund.
The Information, a U.S. technology news outlet, reported on October 22 that a16z recently decided to rename “a16z Crypto” as “a16z Frontier.” The move is intended to expand the fund’s investment focus beyond cryptocurrencies into a broader range of advanced technologies.
Ali Yahya, a general partner and founding member of a16z Crypto, is also leaving the firm. He is planning to launch his own startup.
a16z Crypto has raised $10 billion across five funds to date.

Kim Byoung-hwan, chairman of South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, said on October 22 that he agrees with the idea of allowing virtual asset exchanges to enter the tokenized securities, or STO, market.
Kim made the remarks during a comprehensive parliamentary audit by the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee on October 22, after Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Kang-il said authorities should review a plan to allow virtual asset exchanges to trade tokenized securities. Kim said he agrees with the intent.
He added that regulators would review options including integrating licensing categories or allowing concurrent operations, while taking into account market conditions and trends in investor protection.
Lee has argued that policymakers should consider using the technology and infrastructure already built by existing virtual asset exchanges as South Korea institutionalizes tokenized securities. The U.S. is moving toward allowing a range of trading platforms to enter the market under existing securities rules, Lee said.
There is no valid reason to restrict access to the tokenized securities market based on the type of exchange, he added.

Unanimous decision to hold at 3.0%
"Monetary tightening stance will continue"
Shin says pause is the fruit of earlier moves
Will respond after checking October inflation
Growth seen topping 3% for a second straight year
The Bank of Korea held its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.0% on Oct. 22 in a unanimous decision. Even so, markets are increasingly betting the BOK will resume rate hikes in November, with growth and inflation proving stronger than expected.
Assessing the impact of preemptive hikes
At a press briefing, BOK Governor Hyun Song Shin described the decision to hold rates as “the fruit of hoeing.” The remark meant the central bank had secured room to manage policy in line with domestic economic conditions after its unusual back-to-back rate increases in July and August. At the time of the August hike, Shin had cited a Korean proverb to stress the need for preemptive action.
Shin said the BOK needed to monitor external uncertainties, including the conflict in the Middle East, monetary and fiscal policy in major economies, and possible policy changes after the U.S. midterm elections. He added that it would not be too late to respond after reviewing third- and fourth-quarter growth and October inflation data. The bank also needs to examine how earlier rate increases are affecting growth and prices.
Still, Shin reiterated that the central bank would maintain its tightening bias in light of solid growth and rising prices. In its monetary policy statement, the BOK said this year’s and next year’s growth rates would come in well above its August forecasts of 3.3% and 2.9%, respectively. When the BOK has used the phrase “well above” in the past, the actual revision has typically been about 0.3 to 0.4 percentage point. That suggests the economy is increasingly likely to post growth above 3% for a second straight year for the first time since 2017-2018.
The BOK also said next year’s inflation is likely to exceed its August forecast. In August, the central bank projected next year’s consumer inflation and core inflation at 2.3% and 2.5%, respectively. Shin said growth and inflation were in some respects stronger now than in August, when the BOK delivered consecutive rate hikes, underscoring the need to maintain the current tightening stance.
Private consumption recovery seen broadening
Markets expect the BOK to resume rate hikes in November. In its economic assessment released on Oct. 22, the central bank said third-quarter growth would remain strong following the first half. On private consumption, it said the recovery would gradually broaden, citing bonuses and dividend payouts at major companies, fiscal spending and a decline in the won-dollar exchange rate.
Choi Ji-wook, a managing director at State Street Markets, said the BOK would likely raise rates in November while lifting its forecasts for next year’s consumer inflation and core inflation by about 0.1 percentage point. He added that third-quarter growth would probably come in in the upper 0% range from the previous quarter.
The yield on South Korea’s three-year government bond rose 0.018 percentage point to 3.840% on Oct. 22 from 3.822% in the previous session. As of 3:30 p.m., the won was trading at 1,324.2 per dollar, up 1 won from the prior session.
Shim Seong-mi, Hankyung.com reporter smshim@hankyung.com

Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon reiterated that South Korea should delay its planned taxation of virtual assets, which is set to take effect next year.
In a Facebook post on October 22, Han said a decision to postpone the tax should be made without delay. He wrote that Vice Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il said at a parliamentary audit earlier that day that the government would “make a decision after as much deliberation as possible” on virtual-asset taxation. Han added that if the issue is fully deliberated, he believes the conclusion will be a postponement.
Han said circumstances have changed significantly since the virtual-asset tax framework was first designed in 2020. The current plan taxes gains from the “transfer or lending” of virtual assets as “other income,” but he argued that framework cannot handle a complex ecosystem that continues to evolve, including transfers between exchanges, cold-wallet storage, staking rewards and airdrops.
That is why income related to virtual assets should not be taxed as “other income,” Han wrote. Instead, he said, South Korea should first determine coin types and the nature of each type of income through what he called “second-stage virtual asset legislation,” while putting in place an environment in which investors are properly protected.
He also said taxing only virtual assets would create a serious fairness problem now that the financial investment income tax, which had been intended to tax income from stocks and bonds, has been abolished. Such a system, he said, would unfairly burden investors by taxing annual gains while offering no way to offset losses and remaining vulnerable to tax avoidance through gifts.
Han said pushing ahead with the tax would make it impossible to prevent a “stock-market exodus” in the coin market. He added that a small number of taxpayers does not make an unfair tax acceptable. Investors would move overseas or into cold wallets, he wrote, and the estimated number of taxpayers based on pre-taxation data could fall to zero once the tax is actually imposed.

Kim Byoung-hwan, chairman of South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, said SK Hynix’s push to list its US subsidiary Solidigm would fall under the country’s dual-listing rules.
Testifying at the National Assembly Political Affairs Committee’s comprehensive audit on Oct. 22, Kim said Solidigm’s proposed listing is subject to the dual-listing guidelines. He added that SK Square and SK Hynix, as parent companies, must fulfill five obligations based on their duty to protect shareholder interests.
Under current rules, a parent company pursuing a dual listing must complete five steps: assess the impact on shareholders, prepare measures to protect them, communicate with shareholders, obtain a board resolution for or against the plan, and make disclosures. Under dual-listing rules set by the Financial Services Commission and the Korea Exchange, those procedures are required when a company seeks an exception to a dual listing that is, in principle, prohibited.
Kim also addressed whether the rules apply to overseas listings. In a question-and-answer exchange with Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Kang-il, he said the dual-listing guidelines apply to both overseas and domestic listings.
He did not give a definitive answer on whether a securities registration statement would need to be filed in South Korea. There has been no official announcement or specific details on a listing plan yet, he said.
Solidigm originated from SK Hynix’s 2021 acquisition of Intel’s NAND flash and solid-state drive businesses. In the ownership structure, AI Company sits above Solidigm, followed by SK Hynix, SK Square and SK Inc.

U.S. spot-Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded more than $500 million in net inflows in a single day.
Trader T data for October 21 showed combined net inflows into U.S. spot-Bitcoin ETFs totaled $528.41 million. BlackRock's IBIT brought in $235 million and Fidelity's FBTC attracted $212.71 million, accounting for about 85% of the total.
Grayscale's GBTC and Bitcoin Mini Trust posted net inflows of $32.59 million and $8.21 million, respectively. Bitwise's BITB recorded $19.23 million of net inflows, Ark Invest's ARKB took in $9.79 million, Franklin Templeton's EZBC added $7.31 million and Valkyrie's BRRR saw $3.57 million of net inflows. The remaining products recorded no net inflows or outflows.
Month-to-date net inflows came to $463.3 million, while year-to-date net inflows totaled $1.39 billion.

Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Byoung-hwan said consultations on the government’s draft Digital Asset Framework Act are in their final stages. He also said the Ministry of Economy and Finance is gathering opinions on virtual-asset, or cryptocurrency, taxation scheduled to take effect next year.
Kim made the remarks on Oct. 22 during a National Assembly audit by the Political Affairs Committee. “Legislation related to digital assets is in the final stage of consultations, and we will do our best to have it introduced as quickly as possible,” he said.
During the hearing, lawmakers raised concerns that taxation could be implemented before an industry regulatory framework is in place. Song Eon-seok, a lawmaker from the ruling People Power Party, said the government told the president in a July policy briefing that it would prepare the bill within the year, but has yet to present its draft.
Song said the government would be imposing taxes before legally clarifying what kind of product digital assets are. He argued that the tax should either be abolished or its implementation postponed until the bill is prepared.
Kim did not present a separate position on the timing of the tax. He said there were a variety of views on the issue and that the Ministry of Economy and Finance was collecting opinions.

The South Korean government is continuing to gather opinions as it decides whether to proceed with taxation of virtual assets, or cryptocurrencies, now scheduled for January next year. The National Tax Service plans to finalize a related administrative notice by the end of October, but the government has not yet determined whether to grant an additional delay.
Lee Hyoung-il, deputy prime minister and finance minister, told the National Assembly’s Strategy and Finance Committee during a comprehensive parliamentary audit on Oct. 22 that the government would make its decision after carefully considering views from the industry, experts and lawmakers.
Questions about the government’s readiness for the tax continued during the audit. Yoon Hu-deok, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, said the government had repeated the same promise to prepare each time the measure was postponed. Virtual-asset taxation was approved in 2020 and has since been delayed three times. It is now scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
The government recently reviewed market changes and tax conditions at a meeting with industry participants. Kwon Dae-young, first vice finance minister, met industry officials and experts on Oct. 20 and said the system had originally been built around spot trading when the framework was introduced in 2020, but related technology has advanced significantly since then. Lee added that he had already said the government would hear more from experts and the industry before making a decision, and that the meeting was part of that process.
The draft notice needed for tax administration has not yet been finalized. Cho Seung-rae, chair of the committee, said he had received materials from the government on its preparations and the notice, and that the government reported it planned to finalize the measure by the end of October.
The ruling party leadership wants a conclusion this year. Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party, said on the party’s YouTube program “Minti 07” on Oct. 22 that the issue should be settled this year. He said he had also proposed to Lee on Oct. 21 that the government conduct a final review and reach a conclusion, adding that it was time to begin discussions on whether to proceed with the tax as scheduled or revise the system.

Shin Hyun-song, governor of the Bank of Korea, said the central bank’s previous two rate increases gave policymakers room to assess additional economic indicators. He also said a decline in the exchange rate can boost the purchasing power of low-income households.
Speaking after the Monetary Policy Board left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.00% on Oct. 22, Shin said back-to-back rate hikes in July and August had given the central bank greater flexibility to run policy in line with domestic economic conditions.
He described the hold decision as “the fruit after hoeing.” The comment followed his explanation in August that the central bank had acted with a hoe to stop what might otherwise have required a shovel, underscoring that the preemptive move had bought time to watch additional data.
Still, he said upside risks to growth and inflation had risen from the previous forecast.
“Compared with the August outlook, upside risks to growth and inflation appear to have grown,” Shin said. “But I did not think it would be too late to make a judgment after checking additional data, including third-quarter real gross domestic product and October inflation trends.”
Shin also commented on the impact of exchange-rate moves on households, saying a 10% decline in the exchange rate raises the purchasing power of households in the first income quintile by more than 0.4%. The first income quintile refers to the bottom 20% of households ranked by income.

Уязвимость в системе безопасности PHP — языке программирования, используемом для создания веб-сайтов, — повысила риск того, что внешние злоумышленники смогут удалённо получить контроль над серверами. Правительства нескольких стран временно приостановили работу некоторых веб-сервисов, чтобы установить исправления и провести проверки, а криптовалютные компании выясняли, затронула ли их эта уязвимость.
Как сообщило издание Cointelegraph 22 октября, Фонд PHP объяснил, почему его реакция запоздала, несмотря на выпуск экстренного исправления. По словам фонда, работа над исправлениями неоднократно приостанавливалась на несколько месяцев из-за процесса принятия решений командой безопасности и нехватки ресурсов. Фонд назвал эту задержку системным сбоем.

The Bank of Korea kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.00%, pausing after back-to-back increases in July and August. Market attention is now turning to whether the central bank will deliver another hike next month.
The BOK’s Monetary Policy Board left the rate unchanged at its monetary policy meeting on Oct. 22. The central bank resumed rate increases in July and raised rates again in August, but opted to hold at the current level this time.
Inflation remains above target. Consumer prices rose 2.9% in September, higher than the BOK’s 2% inflation target. With oil prices staying elevated because of the war in the Middle East, inflation is forecast to remain near 3% this month as well.
Exports and the growth trend will also factor into future rate decisions. South Korea’s current-account surplus for January through August totaled $27.92 billion, about four times the level a year earlier. In August, the BOK raised its 2026 growth forecast to 3.3% from 2.6%. Rising home prices in parts of the Seoul metropolitan area and a renewed increase in household lending at major banks this month are also being watched from a financial-stability standpoint.
At the same time, a stronger won and heavier interest burdens are seen as reasons for caution on further tightening. The won traded as strong as 1,322.8 per dollar during the previous session. The BOK estimates that a 0.25 percentage-point increase in the benchmark rate would raise interest costs by about $2.39 billion for households and $2.61 billion for companies.
The Monetary Policy Board’s final meeting of the year will be held on Nov. 26. Before then, an advance reading of third-quarter real gross domestic product will be released on Oct. 27, followed by October consumer-price data on Nov. 2. BOK Governor Shin Hyun-song is scheduled to explain the background to the rate decision and the policy outlook at a press briefing at 11:10 a.m. on Oct. 22.

Сильные результаты SpaceX вызвали отскок акций, связанных с ИИ. Однако на фоне крупных инвестиций в центре внимания осталось давление на финансирование: Meta сообщила о первом отрицательном свободном денежном потоке с момента выхода на биржу.
21 октября индекс Nasdaq Composite вырос на 1,05%, S&P 500 прибавил 0,58%, а промышленный индекс Доу-Джонса — 0,69%. Акции Nvidia подорожали на 2,54%, AMD — на 3,36%, а Филадельфийский индекс полупроводниковых компаний отскочил на 1,97%.
На следующий день после публикации отчёта за третий квартал акции SpaceX подскочили на 7,79%. Выручка компании составила 14,6 млрд долларов, а чистая прибыль — 4,4 млрд долларов. Выручка от ИИ выросла на 830% в годовом выражении, до 7,6 млрд долларов. Акции Super Micro Computer также взлетели на 9,55% после того, как компания повысила прогноз выручки за июль—сентябрь с 14,5–15,5 млрд до 18,5–19,5 млрд долларов.

Все шесть экономистов, опрошенных Yonhap News, ожидают, что Банк Кореи оставит ключевую процентную ставку без изменений на уровне 3,00%. По их мнению, регулятор оценит влияние предыдущих повышений, а не станет повышать ставку третий раз подряд после шагов в июле и августе.
При выборе дальнейшего курса после паузы необходимо будет учитывать как динамику экономического роста, так и инфляционное давление. Вице-премьер и министр финансов Ли Хён Иль заявил 16 октября, что реальный рост валового внутреннего продукта в этом году может составить до 3,6%. Это выше августовского прогноза Банка Кореи в 3,3%. Профицит текущего счёта за период с января по август также достиг 279,2 млрд долларов — примерно в четыре раза больше, чем за аналогичный период годом ранее.

Акции США выросли по всему рынку после того, как SpaceX стала прибыльной, а производитель серверов для ИИ повысил прогноз продаж. Покупки акций полупроводниковых компаний и производителей серверов помогли индексу Nasdaq Composite подняться более чем на 1%.
21 октября индекс Nasdaq Composite закрылся в Нью-Йорке на отметке 26 702,86 пункта, прибавив 278,04 пункта, или 1,05%. Индекс Dow Jones Industrial Average вырос на 360,21 пункта, или 0,69%, до 52 856,09 пункта, а S&P 500 поднялся на 44,60 пункта, или 0,58%, до 7 757,17 пункта.
Акции SpaceX подскочили на 7,79% на следующий день после сообщения о первой прибыли с момента выхода компании на биржу. Инвесторы также обратили внимание на слова генерального директора Илона Маска о том, что слияние с Tesla было бы «хорошей идеей». Акции Tesla выросли на 3,41%.

Won-denominated stablecoins and preparations for virtual-asset taxation are emerging as major legislative priorities for South Korea’s National Assembly next month. Lawmakers must set the rules for companies to operate and establish the framework for investors to pay taxes, making debate over a Digital Asset Basic Act and tax policy a turning point for the domestic digital-asset market.
The National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee plans to begin reviewing the Digital Asset Basic Act at a bill-review subcommittee next month, with the goal of passing it within the year. A tax subcommittee under the committee handling fiscal and economic planning will also discuss the timing of virtual-asset taxation, which is scheduled to take effect in January. One track centers on market regulation and the other on taxes, but both address the broader task of bringing the market into the formal system.
The government is also emphasizing the link between the two issues. Kwon Dae-young, first vice minister of economy and finance, told a meeting of industry officials and experts on Oct. 20 that tax principles can take root in the market only if tax infrastructure and a market-regulation framework are put in place together. The comment suggests authorities see tools to track transactions and secure market trust as essential before taxes are imposed.
For won stablecoins, the central issue is an issuance structure that combines financial stability with private-sector business capacity. One option under discussion would require banks to hold at least 50% plus one share in a consortium, while fintech companies argue that non-bank firms also need room to participate. A key question is how to make use of technological capabilities and distribution networks as authorities define issuance eligibility and governance rules.
Shin Hyun-song, governor of the Bank of Korea, said at a parliamentary audit on Oct. 12 that he is “basically in favor” of private issuance. Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won said on Oct. 8 that authorities would move quickly in consultations to prepare how to guide the industry and the broader market. Abroad, KRWQ, a won-pegged token launched in October 2025, is already in circulation, underscoring the need to create an institutional path for domestic projects.
On taxation, the key issue is how fairly and accurately authorities can track domestic and overseas transactions. Limits on securing records of offshore trading and the absence of loss carryforward deductions are among the issues cited for improvement. Under the current timetable, starting next year, authorities would impose a 22% tax, including local taxes, on annual virtual-asset income above 2.5 million won ($1,800).
Lawmakers in both the ruling and opposition parties are continuing to push for an adjustment to the implementation schedule based on the state of preparations. Park Min-gyu of the Democratic Party proposed an amendment to delay taxation until 2029, citing the US timetable for joining the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework, or CARF, for automatic information exchange. Park Soo-young of the People Power Party said on Oct. 21 that authorities should not “kick away the ladder” for young people trying to build wealth, adding that he would pursue bipartisan talks on a delay. The government has yet to set out a final position.
The Political Affairs Committee is expected to discuss issuers and business requirements for won stablecoins as part of its review of the basic law next month. The tax subcommittee under the fiscal and economic planning committee will examine proposals to adjust the start date for taxation. The detailed timetable for institutionalization will hinge on when the government submits its proposal and the outcome of talks between the two parties.

Президент Дональд Трамп заявил, что планирует потратить более 400 миллионов долларов до промежуточных выборов 3 ноября в следующем месяце, активизировав митинги и рекламную кампанию в штатах, где борьба особенно напряжённая, поскольку республиканцы пытаются сохранить большинство в Сенате.
20 октября Трамп написал в Truth Social, что до дня выборов будет потрачено более 400 миллионов долларов. По данным статьи, поддерживающие Трампа суперкомитеты политических действий, включая MAGA Inc., уже вложили более 200 миллионов долларов с сентября, и ещё около 200 миллионов остаётся.
Оборонительная стратегия республиканцев сосредоточена на штатах, где борьба за места в Сенате особенно напряжённая. По прогнозам, демократы будут иметь преимущество в Палате представителей, а в Сенате места могут распределиться поровну — по 50 у каждой партии. В таком случае республиканцы сохранят контроль благодаря решающему голосу вице-президента. Если демократы получат 51 место, они возьмут Сенат под свой контроль.

Акции SpaceX, космической компании под руководством генерального директора Tesla Илона Маска, резко выросли в начале торгов.
По данным TradingView, 21 октября акции SpaceX торговались около $165, прибавив примерно 12% по сравнению с предыдущей торговой сессией. Это был первый рост акций более чем на 10% примерно за два месяца — с августа.
Рост последовал за публикацией результатов за третий квартал и новостями о том, что компания рассматривает возможность слияния с Tesla. 20 октября SpaceX сообщила, что чистая прибыль за третий квартал составила $4,4 млрд — более чем вдвое превысив прогноз рынка в $1,88 млрд.

Управление контролера денежного обращения будет оценивать законность программ вознаграждений в стейблкоинах в каждом отдельном случае.
По сообщению CoinDesk от 21 октября, в тот день OCC опубликовало окончательное правило, вводящее в действие закон GENIUS — американский закон о стейблкоинах. Правило вступит в силу 18 января 2027 года.
Главный вопрос — вознаграждения в стейблкоинах. Закон GENIUS запрещает эмитентам выплачивать клиентам проценты или иное вознаграждение исключительно за хранение, использование или поддержание платежных стейблкоинов.
OCC заявило, что будет применять закон с учетом фактов и конкретных обстоятельств каждой программы вознаграждений. Некоторые вознаграждения могут быть разрешены, если часть выплаты производится по причинам, не подпадающим под прямые запреты закона GENIUS. Ведомство не привело конкретных примеров структур вознаграждений, которые были бы разрешены или запрещены.

SK Hynix завершила выкуп акций на сумму 28,9 млрд долларов.
21 октября компания сообщила, что за последние два месяца завершила выкуп собственных акций на сумму 28,9 млрд долларов на южнокорейском рынке Kospi.
Ранее SK Hynix заявляла, что потратит около 28,9 млрд долларов на выкуп 24,07 млн акций и аннулирует их все. Эти 24,07 млн акций составляют около 3,3% от общего количества акций компании, что делает этот случай одним из крупнейших аннулирований казначейских акций среди публичных компаний Южной Кореи.
Изначально SK Hynix объявила, что выкуп акций будет проходить с 20 августа по 19 ноября. Компания завершила выкуп примерно на месяц раньше срока.