The virtual asset market from Sep. 29 to Oct. 2 showed a successful rebound. On the 2nd, Bitcoin rose 4.7% from a week earlier to $118,564, and Ethereum climbed 5.5% to $4,347. The altcoin market also advanced in tandem, with Zcash (ZFC, +101.76%), MYX Finance (MYX, +83.84%), and Pump.fun (PUMP, +24.23%) posting gains.
The main issues of the week were the U.S. federal government shutdown and private employment data. On the 1st (local time), the U.S. federal government entered a shutdown due to bipartisan conflict over the budget bill, but the market leaned toward resilience, viewing a high likelihood of an early calming as in past cases.
At the same time, as September private employment statistics released by U.S. employment information firm Automatic Data Processing (ADP) fell by about 32,000 from the previous month, far below expectations, concerns over a cooling labor market spread and strong expectations formed for two rate cuts within the year. As a result, risk asset investment sentiment revived for the Nasdaq, S&P, Bitcoin, and others.
Kim Jun-seong, a Xangle researcher, said, "Despite the political uncertainty of a shutdown, weak employment data supported expectations for rate cuts, and virtual assets strengthened," and added, "However, with additional employment data releases remaining before the FOMC, it is necessary to watch carefully for policy signals that may change depending on the results."
◇ Sui to unveil "Korea-tailored stablecoin"
Recently, next-generation blockchain Sui has stepped up its push into the Korean market. Adeniyi Abiodun, co-founder of operator Mysten Labs, and Christian Thompson, a director at the Sui Foundation, said in an interview, "Korea is one of Sui's top-priority markets," adding that they will announce plans for a stablecoin business targeting Korea at Eastpoint Seoul 2025 on the 22nd.
Sui is focusing on solving scalability and speed issues with a structure designed to integrate transaction processing, consensus, data storage, and networking through a full-stack strategy. Mysten Labs recently introduced the blockchain infrastructure Mysticeti V2, the data storage solution Walrus, and the networking infrastructure SCION. It is broadening into the real-world asset tokenization (RWA) field through partnerships with global tech corporations Alkimi and China's Ant Digital.
In particular, Sui is eyeing Korea's active virtual asset user base and the game, payments, and DeFi markets. It has partnered with Korean Web3 game project Xociety and, during a visit to Korea last year, unveiled the SuiPlay 0X1 console device.
Director Thompson emphasized, "Sui already has the infrastructure to handle over $1 billion in stablecoin transactions," adding, "Through this event, we will build practical cooperation models with Korean institutions and help make Korea a blockchain hub."
◇ China's Central Bank establishes digital yuan international operations center
The People's Bank of China (PBOC), China's Central Bank, has established and officially launched an international operations center in Shanghai to encourage cross-border use of the digital yuan. The move is seen as a strategic step by China to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar system and expand the yuan's international use.
Planned and managed by the PBOC's Digital Currency Research Institute, the center will focus on promoting to related institutions the functions of cross-border payment platforms, blockchain service platforms, and digital asset platforms for the internationalization of the digital yuan. PBOC Vice Governor Lu Lei said, "The cross-border financial infrastructure system for the digital yuan is already in its initial buildout stage."
The establishment of the center comes three months after PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng announced related plans at a forum in Jun. SCMP assessed that China is stepping up efforts to reshape the global financial structure by encouraging cross-border settlement and overseas use of the digital yuan. Alongside the digital yuan, China is also exploring the development of a yuan-pegged stablecoin.
☞About CrossAngle
It provides on-chain data-based essential operational solutions and trust-based community-building services for corporations and foundations adopting Web3. It operates the crypto data intelligence platform Xangle, and the Xangle research team creates content to show trends in the virtual asset investment industry based on global virtual asset information and data.