Taiwan OKs crypto law; ARK buys $43.5M; Strategy debated

Taiwan’s legislature on Tuesday approved the country’s first comprehensive laws governing crypto trading platforms and stablecoins, establishing a licensing regime, reserve requirements and regular audits.

Under the new law, all crypto trading platforms must obtain approval from the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) to operate in Taiwan. Stablecoins issued in the country require approval from both the central bank and the FSC. Issuers must keep sufficient reserves with a trustee and undergo periodic audits. Lawmakers also passed a resolution asking the FSC to submit a plan within one year for how the sector could offer derivative crypto commodity services to expand investment options.

Criminal penalties under the law include up to 10 years in prison and fines up to 200 million New Taiwan dollars (about $6.3 million) for crypto fraud and market manipulation. Operating a virtual asset service provider or issuing a stablecoin without the required license can result in up to seven years in prison and fines up to 100 million New Taiwan dollars (about $3.1 million). The FSC said the rules aim to align Taiwan with international markets and improve consumer protections and transparency.

In the United States, Strategy, the company led by Michael Saylor and traded under the MSTR ticker, unveiled a new capital framework focused on Bitcoin. Benchmark Equity Research reiterated a Buy rating on Strategy’s Class A shares and kept a 12-month price target of $570. On Monday, Strategy’s Class A shares rose about 12.6% to roughly $92.70 and its preferred STRC shares climbed about 12.2% to near $83.70; both tickers were slightly lower in premarket trading on Tuesday. Some analysts and investors raised questions about how future Bitcoin purchases under the plan will be financed and whether demand for the company’s ongoing purchases can be maintained.

Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest added roughly $43.5 million in crypto-related equities over three trading days amid recent market weakness. ARK bought about 122,544 shares of Coinbase worth approximately $18.6 million and about 169,777 shares of Circle worth roughly $12.9 million. The firm also purchased nearly $5.2 million of Bullish shares, about $5.12 million of Robinhood stock and $1.69 million of SoFi shares. Most of the newly acquired positions were added to the ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), followed by the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW).

Those purchases came while several crypto-related stocks had recently fallen: Circle down about 27.6%, Coinbase down about 16.9% and Bullish down about 26.3% over the prior month. Bitcoin traded near a two-year low around $58,190, and expectations that the CLARITY Act would pass before the U.S. midterm elections had weakened.

The new Taiwanese rules set clear licensing, reserve and audit requirements and impose criminal penalties for fraud and unlicensed activity. Strategy’s capital framework prompted both analyst support and investor questions about long-term financing for Bitcoin purchases, while ARK’s buying increased its exposure to crypto-related firms during the market downturn.