Today in Crypto: S. Korea Probes Embezzlement Allegations at Terraform Labs; Blockchain.com CEO Warns of Crypto Winter

Coinbase will invest in Southeast Asian crypto exchange Zipmex rather than fully buying it, The Block Crypto reported Thursday (June 9).

The purchase was discussed by both parties, though they instead went for a strategic investment. This comes as Zipmex has been courting investors and trying to raise around $40 million, at a $400 million valuation.

A spokesperson for Zipmex said the company was “speaking to a range of investors” about raising Series B and further funds.

“We have not finalized lead investors or valuation,” the spokesperson said. “We cannot comment on market speculation or rumors.”

Meanwhile, several licensed Bermuda crypto firms are coming together to form the first digital asset industry association, Bermuda’s Premier David Burt announced Thursday.

He said this would be “a significant milestone in the development of Bermuda’s FinTech industry,” CoinDesk reported.

Burt also added that crypto companies aren’t seeking regulatory changes because they have clarity, but instead just want to support development, educational initiatives and ways to improve the environment.

The area has wanted to make itself a digital asset hub, which has included the testing of a digital dollar and approving a license for a digital asset bank, Jewel, the report said.

In other news, cryptocurrencies are down collectively by 45% since the beginning of the year, putting the currencies in a bear market for the first time since 2019, Blockworks wrote Thursday.

This has come with layoffs, as it did in bear markets past, with BitMEX, Gemini and others having discussed staff cuts for months now. In an analysis, Blockchain.com CEO Peter Smith said there were numerous crypto companies that have grown too quickly — though he didn’t name any of them.

Finally, South Korean police and prosecutors are looking into Terraform Labs after the destabilization incident with the TerraUSD coin, the Financial Times reported Thursday.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, there’s now an investigation into allegations that a Terraform employee embezzled an “undisclosed amount” of the company’s bitcoin.

Additionally, there were other allegations earlier this year that “Terraform founders and the company deceived investors with their flawed algorithmic coins,” according to the documents.

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