Digital Bonds in Asia: Korean issuers are using Hong Kong’s blockchain rails to speed digital bond settlement, with HSBC arranging deals from Mirae Asset Securities, POSCO International, Korea Housing Finance Corporation and KB Kookmin Bank. Foreign Access Gap in Korea Crypto: Korea’s exchanges show 560,000 foreign accounts but only 90 active users, after 2021 rules effectively blocked foreign nationals from real-name trading. US-Iran Sanctions Escalation: Trump says new “never been seen” economic measures on Iran are coming, with OFAC already targeting Iran-linked shipping and freezing an estimated $500B in crypto. Bitcoin Volatility Watch: BTC whipsawed from ~$79.5K to sub-$76K, triggering ~$547M liquidations, while ETF inflows and Treasury buyback headlines helped fuel the broader rebound. Regulation Timing in the US: The Clarity Act is still stalled after Senate recess, but lawmakers are eyeing September for a vote. Security Incidents: MANTRA Chain restored operations after a ~30-hour Cosmos-EVM vulnerability shutdown; The Sandbox’s Base bridge exploit minted ~14.9B unbacked SAND, prompting trading pauses on major Korean platforms. AI Agents Pay in Stablecoins: Coinbase’s x402 shows AI agents racking up 165M+ USDC payments, signaling a new “autonomous billing” wave. Crypto Rumor Control: Eric Trump denied claims of a new Trump family coin as fraudulent. Pakistan Compliance Deadline: PVARA set Sept 5 for VASP no-objection certificates or providers must stop operations.