Web3 stories

FinTech Australia opens entries for the 2026 Finnie Awards, marking the programme’s tenth year with revamped categories and a new Sydney venue.

Binance restores AUD bank transfers and PayID deposits for all Australian users, easing fiat access after months of card-only funding.

YAP Global appoints Otto Jacobsson as CEO, signalling expansion and a broader service mix as the crypto and digital assets sector matures.

Ben Goertzel and Jaron Lanier clash over whether increasingly autonomous AI deserves moral standing or must always remain under human control.

Singapore’s Atlantis Lab has launched Atlantis, a web hub unifying crypto wallets and exchanges while keeping users in full self-custody control.

INVNT appoints James Nicholas Kinney as its first Global Chief AI Officer, tasked with scaling client-facing AI innovation, led from APAC.

Madhya Pradesh will digitise up to 50 million university records on Open Campus’s EDU Chain in an 18-month blockchain credential push.

Bitget deepens its UNICEF partnership to boost Cambodian girls’ digital skills through game design, coding and youth-led Game Jam events.

Animoca backs GROW’s Hong Kong wealth arm in a strategic deal to build a regulated Asia platform spanning crypto and traditional assets.

NeoSapien will tie Solana-based LPM tokens to discounted, priority pre-orders for its new LapTouch MacBook touchscreen accessory.

India has surged into the global top tier for everyday crypto use, ranking ninth as stablecoin-driven payments and remittances gain ground.

Tiny Away now lets guests book eco tiny houses with Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT, offering 20% off crypto stays via Coinbase Commerce.

Moca Network launches MocaProof beta on Moca Chain testnet, gamifying privacy-preserving Web3 identity with rewards and NFT campaigns.

After crypto’s quietly mature 2025, 2026 rewards investors who tune out noise, stick to a plan and favour discipline over prediction.

ShapeShift makes Zcash its default payment rail in V4 upgrade, boosting DeFi privacy with NEAR Intents and new hardware wallet support.

North Korean hackers stole USD $300M via fake Zoom calls; robust identity checks could have broken the scam’s chain of trust.

AppWorks Demo Day in Kuala Lumpur links eight Malaysian and Singapore startups chasing cross-border growth across ASEAN’s tech economy.

Crypto exchange KuCoin is opening a Sydney HQ, ramping up local hiring and regulation-first products as it chases Australian growth.

Io.net unveils a dynamic token model to tie IDE rewards to real AI GPU usage after processing over $20m in decentralised compute leases.

Netflix’s USD $72 billion bid for Warner Bros raises a stark question: is Hollywood’s future in the hands of Silicon Valley’s algorithms?.