TechubNews

The United States has launched an online tax refund system in response to a Supreme Court ruling, refunding approximately $166 billion in tariffs. Trump said he will remember companies that do not apply for refunds, adding that he will restore tariff levels through alternative measures such as Section 301. Meanwhile, he has taken a hard line on monetary policy, urging that after Warsh takes office, he will cut interest rates. He also said he is in talks with Anthropic to explore currency swaps with the UAE, indicating that he will incorporate tariffs, interest rates, technology, and support for the Middle East into a single economic security framework.

U.S. retail sales grew by 1.7% to $752.1 billion in March, exceeding market expectations of 1.5%. Driven by an energy shock, categories such as gasoline, furniture, and electronics generally rebounded, showing the resilience of household consumption. The revised value for February was a 0.7% increase, indicating that consumption continued to rebound, and tax refunds helped improve purchasing power for low-income groups. If the war continues to push up energy prices, inflation, and interest rates, the sustainability of consumption may face pressure.

South Korea's personal auto insurance shows a dual trend: the proportion of high-coverage third-party liability insurance has increased to 51.0% to cope with rising import high-priced cars and component costs. Online insurance accounts for 51.4%, with online purchasing being popular, and 69.1% of the 30-year-old demographic opting for online insurance. Discount clauses based on driving distance are popular, with 88.4% of policies offering mileage refunds and an average refund of 10.2%. The widespread adoption of safety devices has driven an expansion in insurance discounts, with 89.5% of policies insuring for good driving grades, showing significant improvement. In the future, insurance will expand through risk-based pricing and personalized coverage.

Despite plans to issue large-scale government bonds, China's 10-year yield continues to rise supported by ample liquidity, falling below 1.75% intraday. The central bank's easing measures and ultra-long repurchase tools release funds, making government bonds a safe asset for overseas investors. If easing continues, the 10-year yield could drop to around 1.6%, but it still depends on economic stimulus, geopolitical factors, and central bank actions.

The new governor of the Bank of Korea, Shin Seung-soo, met with Deputy Prime Minister Choo Kyung-ho just three days after taking office, mainly to exchange greetings and communicate, without discussing specific issues such as interest rates. This move has symbolic significance and may become the starting point for the central bank and the government to coordinate monetary and fiscal policies. Considering domestic factors such as domestic demand, prices, and household debt, as well as external environment, strengthening communication between the two sides will help stabilize the market and unify policy momentum. Whether closer consultations on issues like interest rates will be achieved in the future remains to be seen.

KOSPI in South Korea closes at a new high again, rising by 2.72%, mainly due to improved semiconductor performance and expanded expectations for artificial intelligence investments. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix lead the gains, with foreign capital increasing holdings; with a valuation of only about 8 times PE, there is room for further growth. Policy revisions now allow tracking 2x leveraged ETFs on single stocks, potentially attracting more funds to large-cap stocks. In the short term, semiconductors lead the rally, and future rotation may spread to industries with supporting earnings such as secondary batteries, energy storage, nuclear power, and shipbuilding.

The Financial Committee has established a public proposal window to directly hear concerns about unreasonable practices and requirements for institutional improvement in the financial field, and has decided to reflect the received opinions into future financial policies and system reform.
On April 21, the Financial Committee announced the above policy and explained that the "Financial Sector Normalization Proposal Center" has been operational since the 20th. This window is a space for financial consumers and industry-related personnel to freely propose the inconveniences or systems that need improvement they encounter in actual business. Anyone can participate through the "Participation Square" on the Financial Committee's official website.
This move can be interpreted as the policy authorities' intention to more directly grasp issues with high on-the-ground awareness. The financial system involves consumer protection, everyday finance such as loans and deposits, and business regulations for financial companies; cases where inconveniences felt by actual users and the industry are disconnected from the system design are not uncommon. The Financial Committee stated it will review the opinions collected by the proposal center.

South Korea will loosen restrictions on single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) targeting Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, with qualifying high-quality stocks eligible to be included as underlying assets. Several asset management companies are preparing 5–6 related products, totaling about a dozen. Investors are optimistic about amplified gains from rising markets, while the growth of inverse products may be limited. Future competition will focus on brand, premium and discount management, liquidity, and trading execution with differentiated strategies, while also strengthening investor protection and market oversight.

On April 21, SK Hynix's stock price rose nearly 5% and closed above 1.2 million Korean won for the first time, with a closing price of 1.22M won setting a new record high. Samsung Electronics also increased by 2.1% on the same day. Analysts say that the improvement in the semiconductor cycle and the rising demand for high-bandwidth memory in AI chips are the main reasons, and earnings will be announced on April 23. The revision of capital market laws may introduce single-stock leveraged ETFs, which could benefit large-cap stocks. In terms of capital flow, foreign and institutional investors continued to net buy, while individual investors took profits. The short-term trend led by semiconductor giants is expected to continue.

Written by: Techub News Editors
Date: April 21, 2026
Location: Hong Kong Web3 Carnival · ETH Hong Kong Community Hub
Guest Speakers:
• Vitalik Buterin (Founder of Ethereum)
• Duncan Chiu (Hong Kong Legislative Council Member, Tech Innovation Sector)


Returning to Hong Kong, Goodbye Chinese-speaking Community
Duncan: Today, the venue is packed. Welcome Vitalik back to Hong Kong. The organizers gave me a task, saying this event should be conducted in Mandarin. It’s quite a pressure for me because I worry that many people in the audience speak better Mandarin than I do.
You’ve already shared many technical details about Ethereum at various events these days. Today, I want to keep it relaxed and talk more about your personal journey.

Modern GF Holdings and Modern Family Shopping complete a full stock swap, becoming 100% parent and subsidiary companies. The exchange ratio is 1:6.3571040, implemented on June 30. The stock price responded positively, with Modern GF Holdings +7.38% to 15.28k KRW, and Modern Family Shopping +8.57% to 87.4k KRW. The market is optimistic about the simplified structure, improved governance and synergy, and reduced discount from dual listing, but attention should be paid to the fairness of the ratio and the subsequent impact on minority shareholders' interests.

iM Bank announces its recruitment plan for the first half of 2026, aiming to attract experienced talent in AI transformation, digital innovation, and credit review, strengthening core functions. Positions include system/Android development, trust, accounting, risk verification, and personal information protection, with expansion into credit review and supervision. Applications must be submitted through the official website before May 3, emphasizing immediate readiness for practical work. This move aims to balance digital platform development with risk management, addressing challenges in AI and information protection, and promoting the optimization of industry talent structure.

On April 20, 2026, the “AI Agent × RWA Exchange and Sharing Conference and Yacht Social Party,” with OPC ONE as the overall naming sponsor, was successfully held in Hong Kong. It was jointly hosted by the RWA Ecosystem International Federation, Sunshine TV, Cointime, GMAIC, Golden Coin Finance, Techub News, Dàshù Finance, RWA Lobster Club, and Bixiaoxiao, and received special sponsor support from COPX DAO, SFI, AurumX, DaoJian Future, DeBox, WebX, GSMC, COCO, and Choose Me.


This event brought together a diverse group of guests from the fields of AI, Web3, finance, and industry, and held systematic exchanges and in-depth discussions on the development of the AI Agent, one-person enterprises (OPC), and the RWA (Real World Assets) ecosystem.

This article reveals the contradiction in China's legal stance on virtual currencies exposed by the Bitcoin theft case: either sentencing them as theft or other property crimes, or convicting under the crime of illegally obtaining computer information system data, leading to vastly different outcomes for the same case. The core issue is whether virtual currency is considered property or data; regulatory authorities do not recognize its legal status, making civil and criminal judgments difficult to unify. The fundamental reason is that existing laws were established before the emergence of virtual currencies and urgently need legislative unification.

According to on-chain detective ZachXBT's monitoring, Kelp DAO attack funds have shown anomalies: approximately $1.5 million was transferred across chains to the Bitcoin network via Thorchain, and about $78k was transferred through Umbra. The initial funds originated from Tornado Cash, exhibiting cross-chain/decentralized mixing characteristics. Currently, the attacker still holds about 75,700 ETH (approximately $175 million), and is actively laundering and transferring the funds.