U.S’s uncertain crypto future: Good news for Japan?
Many crypto enthusiasts are pointing towards Japan emerging as the next center due to the tumult in the U.S. industry. But is Japan really lucrative for crypto players? We dig in.
- “Crypto tumult in the US might be boon for Japan,” read a news headline shared by Giancarlo.
- However, the picture doesn’t seem to be very pretty when we look through recent developments in Japan.
Former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo is stirred the pot by speculating that Japan could gain from the crypto tussle in the U.S. The U.S. appears to be attacking the crypto industry with enforcement by regulation.
Giancarlo tweeted a picture of a Japanese newspaper headline from Tokyo that read,
“Crypto tumult in the US might be boon for Japan.”
Early this month, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed lawsuits against crypto exchanges Binance [BNB] and Coinbase for allegedly offering crypto assets classified as unregistered securities.
Giancarlo is known as a crypto-friendly voice in the U.S. His support for crypto assets includes the claim that Ripple [XRP] is not a security. The issue is now the subject of heated debate in the United States.
Japan’s crypto regulations not most relaxed
Given the existing legal structure, industry leaders in Japan believe the ongoing crypto tussle in the U.S. will not affect the nation. However, the picture doesn’t seem pretty when we look through recent developments in the country.
Prominent crypto reporter Colin Wu shared on Twitter on 27 June that OKX, the second largest offshore crypto exchange, is going to suspend services to Japanese residents due to local laws.
OKX confirmed the report on Twitter itself by responding to Wu on the platform.
Wu believes that it was due to the pressure put on exchange by the Japanese financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), that OKX took the decision. Under the newly amended local crypto rules, OKX cannot provide crypto services in Japan.
Binance has already declared its exit from the Japanese crypto industry. The company said that it will create a new and local cryptocurrency platform for Japanese clients. Japan had previously warned the exchange in 2021 that it was not registered to operate in the country.
It emerged last week that the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (MUFG), Japan’s largest bank, was negotiating with popular stablecoins, offering to issue them on its own blockchain platform, Progmat.
This month, the Japanese government passed a law that legalized the issuance of stablecoins by banking and financial institutions licensed by the national regulators.
