Japan is the largest bitcoin market in the world, and the National Tax Agency declared in December 2017 that cryptocurrency gains should be classified as “other income” and investors taxed accordingly.
Coinbase Has Been Approved To Enter The Japanese Cryptocurrency Market!!
Coinbase Global INC. has been approved to operate as a cryptocurrency exchange in Japan. According to the sources, under the new guidelines, exchanges would be able to list popular, widely traded coins without going through a lengthy approval procedure.
They said coins that have been in circulation in Japan for at least six months and are exchanged on at least three local exchanges will qualify. There are around 15 of these currencies now accessible in Japan, including Bitcoin and Ether.
Coinbase has been granted permission to trade five cryptocurrencies by the Japanese financial regulator, compared to more than 100 coins in the United States
In 2018 Coinbase announced its intention to put a hand in the Japanese crypto industry. “We will work hand-in-hand with the Japanese FSA to ensure compliance with local laws at every stage,” the company said at the time.
Coinbase has partnered with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. to launch a cryptocurrency exchange in Japan, allowing customers of the country’s largest bank to buy and sell virtual currencies.
The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States received regulatory authorization in Japan earlier this year, where 31 companies are registered to trade the assets. The company competes locally with Coincheck Inc. and GMO Coin Inc. which are part of Monex Group Inc.
In a press conference on Thursday, Nao Kitazawa, the head of Coinbase Japan, said, “We hope to reach out to a broad range of consumers by providing low-hurdle services.” Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Stellar were the first five digital currencies that the corporation allowed for trade.
MUFG Bank is a payment partner in Japan, according to Coinbase, and bank account holders can simply acquire cryptocurrency on the exchange. Coinbase Global is backed by MUFG. Other banks’ account users are unable to use Coinbase, according to Kitazawa.
Coinbase is also a self-regulating member of the Japan Virtual and Crypto Assets Exchange Association (JVCEA). Coinbase became a “first-class member” of the JVCEA in 2018, after successfully registering with the Financial Services Authority.
According to individuals associated with the topic, the organization that regulates Japan’s almost $1 trillion cryptocurrency market is considering making it easier to sell digital tokens, which might help newcomers like Coinbase Global Inc.
According to insiders, crypto exchanges will be permitted to offer more than a dozen coins in one go under new rules being considered by the industry’s self-regulatory organization. Until recently, they added, any token listing had to go through a six-month or longer screening process.
According to JVCEA data, cryptocurrency transactions on exchanges in Japan increased by 51% in the first 11 months of last year to 103 trillion yen ($900 billion), putting it on track to surpass $1 trillion.
More Jobs Created:
Kitazawa, a former banker at Morgan Stanley, said in an interview that Coinbase Japan currently employs about 30 people and plans to hire more for product development.
While Coinbase began by focusing on retail consumers in Japan, Kitazawa is optimistic about the potential for institutional business, given the global trend of asset management firms, pension funds, and endowments investing money in cryptocurrency.
He explained that more and more institutional investors want to talk to us. “Their questions have become more explicit recently,” he says, adding that if there is a demand, the company may engage staff to cater to institutional investors in Japan.
