Stay up-to-date on the most interesting cryptocurrency news from Japan. Hero’s Studio’s monthly newsletter will produce an English summary of trending Japanese crypto news and events.
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About Hero’s Studio
Hero’s Studio is a marketing agency for Crypto/Blockchain businesses. We provide a wide range of marketing solutions, especially for overseas businesses looking to conduct marketing campaigns targeted to Japanese users.
We are based in Japan & Hong Kong. Our team includes an experienced marketing specialist, a financial analyst, a crypto-business expert, professional writers, and crypto influencers. We have worked with blockchain and crypto start-ups operating in various fields, such as the Smart Contract Platform, Mimblewimble Protocol, DeFi, Security Tokens, Exchanges, Healthcare, AR/VR, Tourism, Automobile, Investment, etc.
It’s hard to believe that we’re already halfway through 2019!
For those of you who set new year resolutions back in January, now is the ideal time to look back and reflect on your accomplishments. For those who hadn’t, there is still plenty of time for you to plan in 2019.
At the year’s halfway point, Japan’s most exciting season is approaching.
Yes, we mean the summer festivals in Japan!
祭り (Matsuri)
If you are a Japan enthusiast, you may have heard the name Gion Matsuri (祇園祭り), a festival of Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto. Originally held to pray for deliverance from the plague, the festival has evolved into a huge celebration of Kyoto culture.
Gion Matsuri is not just Kyoto’s biggest festival - it is one of Japan’s three major traditional festivals. Taking place during the entire month of July, it is considered the long lasting festival. While there are various festivities during the period, the grand procession of traditional parade floats (Yamaboko Junko) makes for a spectacular experience.
If you plan to visit Japan in July, be sure to checkout the Gion Festival!
Payment and Bank Solutions
Japan is gaining momentum in the transition to a cashless society. Banks are aware that all assets, including cash, can be tokenized. Leading Japanese multinational banks are taking stakes in a global blockchain project that is tokenizing five major fiat currencies. Equally important, Japan’s e-commerce and telecommunication companies have announced a partnership to promote cashless solutions.
Rakuten and East Japan Railway to Promote Cashless Payment Solutions
Founded in April 2019, the leading provider of an app-based smartphone payment system, Rakuten Payment Co., Ltd is a major subsidiary of Rakuten.
GO CASHLESS, To empower people and society
Adopting the slogan to promote cashless solutions in Japan, Rakuten Payment entered into a partnership with East Japan Railway Company (hereafter, ‘East JR’) to enable users of public transport to top-up their Suica smart card through a mobile app. Considering the fact that East JR unveiled plans to collaborate with DeCurret Inc. to integrate cryptocurrency as a viable option to recharge the smart card, Japan is increasing its momentum towards becoming a cashless society.
Interesting Fact: Suica is a rechargeable contactless smart card and one of the most widely used brands in Japan. It's equivalent to Toronto’s PRESTO, Hong Kong’s Octopus, and New York’s Navigator. In Japan, approximately 5,000 railway stations, 50,000 public transportations, and over 600,000 merchants accept payments in Suica.
World’s Leading Banks Are Tokenizing Fiat Currencies
Japan’s leading multinational banks MUFG and Sumitomo Mitsui are collaborating with 12 other world’s major banks from Europe and the United States to develop interbank, blockchain-based digital tokens, according to a report from Nikkei.
The project is led by Fnality International, an enterprise recently founded by groups of banking corporations, that specializes in building a network of decentralized Financial Market Infrastructures (dFMIs). Facilitating a new model for settling financial transactions, Fnality is developing the Utility Settlement Coin (USC) to address scalability problems with the traditional financial system. USC will substantially reduce transaction fees for cross-border remittances and enable instantaneous transfers of funds by eliminating bank intermediaries.
USC Concept Video
As of this year, the project has raised $64 million. By the second quarter of 2020, Fnality International plans to tokenize five digital tokens that are 1-1 backed by fiat currencies (i.e. USD, Euros, GBP, JPY, and CAD) held at the central bank.
Contrary to Bitcoin’s algorithm, USC will employ the Proof-of-Authority algorithm to tokenize fiat currencies.
Japan’s LINE Collaborates with Visa For a New Fintech Solution
On 27th June, the COO of LINE Pay Corporation, Hisashiro Chofuku took the stage at LINE CONFERENCE 2019 with Frederique Covington Corbett, the senior VP and the Head of Marketing for the Asia-Pacific region of Visa, to announce the LINE Pay Visa Credit Card.
The development of LINE Pay Visa Credit Card is focused on addressing the limitations with the current LINE Pay app. While the current app allows users to register their credit card, users can only make payments at authorized merchants of the LINE Pay network, similar to Google Pay and Apple Pay. The new solution will enable users to apply for a digital version of Visa Credit Card and make payments at merchants worldwide.
Regional Blockchain Projects
Japanese companies are accelerating the commercialization of blockchain technology - from proof of concept to implementation. Natuya, the provider of second-layer technology of public blockchain, is collaborating with a regional pub in Fukuoka to process payments using crypto. Furthermore, major power companies in Japan are collaborating with blockchain startups to manage and utilize electricity efficiently.
Order Your Sparkling Wine and Champagne With Crypto
Natuya Inc. kicked off a field experiment to explore the feasibility and usability of real-time payment with the Lightning Network in collaboration with awabar Fukuoka.
As the world’s first and mainstream cryptocurrency, Bitcoin lacks the scalability to replace the modern payment solutions like credit cards and bank transfers. In fact, if you choose to pay for a coffee at Starbucks using Bitcoin, for instance, you may end up paying more in transaction fees than for the coffee. More importantly, you could wait over 10 minutes at the cashier for your transaction to go through.
Lightning Network, on the other hand, is a second-layer technology of Bitcoin that was first proposed by Joseph Poon and Thaddeus Dryja in 2016. The technology will enable customers at the pub to make high-speed, micropayments with substantially reduced transaction fees.
Note: This service was available from May 31st to June 30th.
Homeowners To Sell Excess Electricity Generated From Solar Panels
The industry leader in the research and development of Plasma technology, Cryptoeconomics Lab, is collaborating with major Japanese electric utility provider Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. to reform the electricity market in Japan.
The two companies are jointly developing an ecosystem platform, based on Energy Web Foundation’s blockchain technology, which enables homeowners to trade excess electricity generated from solar panels. The primary objective of this project is to validate the capability of the smart contract, whether it can appropriately manage buy/sell transactions without involving a third party.
OKfinc To Launch Mining Service This Summer
According to the press release, OKfinc is establishing a business alliance with Kumamoto Energy Co., Ltd. to supply energy for its mining service, which will launch this summer. Securing a stable electricity supply and reasonable cost, Kumamoto Electric will provide an optimal mining environment for both the mining facility and miners. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Ryo Currency is planned to be mined at the facility.
Legal & Regulations
With the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) guidelines published, the Japanese government and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) are preparing for the adoption of new regulations. Additionally, Japan’s National Tax Agency is on a mission to track down crypto tax evaders.
Japan’s National Tax Agency to Hunt For Crypto Tax Evaders
The investigation department of Japan’s National Tax Agency (NTA) has identified 50 individuals and 30 companies that failed to declare their taxes from crypto trading, amounting to a total of 10 billion yen (~US$92.7 Million).
The agency plans to impose a penalty on those who failed to declare income and plans to file a criminal complaint against those found to be pernicious. The government proposed countermeasures to implement a new tax system that enables the NTA to request personal information from regulated crypto exchanges in Japan.
FATF to Lay Out Guidelines for Cryptocurrency Businesses
The international money-laundering watchdog, Financial Action Task Force (FATF) issued a new guideline for the crypto space. The new guideline urges the 37 members of FATF to tighten regulations on crypto in a measure to prevent money-laundering and terrorist financing.
Read Full Guideline Here:
https://static.coindesk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Embargo-Virtual-Asset-Guidance.pdf
Now that FATF has imposed the ‘Travel Rule’, Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) like crypto exchanges are obligated to collect and pass on certain information of their clients to the next financial institution. FATF’s crypto guideline obligates VASP to retain originators (remitter’s) name, his account number and address, as well as the beneficiary’s (receiver’s) name and account number, during transactions. FATF members are given 12 months to prepare for the adoption of this guidance, with a review set for June 2020.
Japan’s FSA to Issue Warning To Ceilo Ex Limited
The FSA has issued a warning to Cielo Ex Limited, a company headquartered in the Republic of Seychelles, operating as a crypto exchange. Cielo had failed to comply with licensing requirements in Japan.
In order for exchanges to operate in Japan and execute marketing towards the Japanese residents, companies are mandated to apply for a license with the FSA. In 2018, Binance was also warned for operating in the country without a license.
References📚
楽天とJR東日本、キャッシュレス化推進に向けて連携|楽天ペイでSuicaチャージが可能に
https://coinpost.jp/?p=87932【速報】楽天とJR東日本、キャッシュレス決済領域で提携 楽天ペイでSUICAの発行やチャージが可能に
https://jp.cointelegraph.com/news/rakuten-and-japan-made-partnership-on-chashless-payment-businesGlobal banks mint digital coin for fast cross-border transfers
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Banking-Finance/Global-banks-mint-digital-coin-for-fast-cross-border-transfers日米欧の大手銀行が共同で仮想通貨を発行か ブロックチェーン技術を利用
https://coinpost.jp/?p=87573LINE PayとVisaが「デジタル決済対応カード」の提供へ|ブロックチェーン・サービス共同開発も
https://coinpost.jp/?p=88303LINEクレジットカード「LINE Pay Visa」今年8月の予約開始を発表、初年度還元率3.0%
https://coinpost.jp/?p=92229ビットコインでビールを、福岡のバーでライトニング決済を試験導入へ
https://coinpost.jp/?p=87565Is Lightning Network the Ultimate Solution to Bitcoin’s Scalability?
https://medium.com/okex-blog/is-lightning-network-the-ultimate-solution-to-bitcoins-scalability-127e686628a6中部電力とCryptoeconomics Lab、余剰電力の個人間取引の実証実験を開始
https://crypto.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/1187639.html熊本電力、オウケイウェイヴ海外グループ会社OKfincと業務提携今夏より開始するマイニング事業へ、電力業界最安水準の安定した電気を供給
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000025.000024573.htmlG20 officially supports FATF’s crypto guidelines that require exchanges to share customer data
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/g20-officially-supports-fatf-crypto-081134054.html「全ての仮想通貨取引所は顧客データの共有が必要」FATFのガイダンス発表
https://coinpost.jp/?p=91150https://static.coindesk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Embargo-Virtual-Asset-Guidance.pdf
政府間組織FATF、仮想通貨ビジネスの送金に関するガイダンスを正式に発行
https://cointyo.jp/article/10007380Japan Warns Binance Exchange Over Licensing
https://www.coindesk.com/japan-warns-crypto-exchange-binance-licensing-issue金融庁、仮想通貨取引所の無登録営業でCielo社に警告|アソビコインやビットコイン(BTC)など売買
https://coinpost.jp/?p=91831国税、仮想通貨ビットコインなどで総額100億円の申告漏れを指摘
https://coinpost.jp/?p=87876
Hero’s Studio Links🔗
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