Japan’s FSA requests crypto transaction measures with implications for P2P trading

NEOPIN Strengthens Japanese Market Strategy for Its Global ExpansionNEOPIN, the global CeDeFi platform of South Korean investment holding company Neowiz Holdings, announced the strengthening of its strategy to enter the Japanese market as part of its global expansion plan.Photo by Aditya Anjagi on UnsplashThree key initiativesTo achieve this goal, NEOPIN has devised three key initiatives. Firstly, it will make investments in Japanese partners and provide support for their entry into other markets such as Korea, the Middle East, and Africa. Secondly, NEOPIN aims to facilitate the entry of its existing partners into Japan. Lastly, the Korean platform plans to collaborate closely with the Finschia Foundation and its members to effectively drive its expansion efforts in Japan.Web3 landscape in JapanSince the Mt. Gox incident in 2014, wherein the major Tokyo-based cryptocurrency exchange went bankrupt due to hacking attacks, Japan has responded by implementing stricter regulations. However, in recent times, the Japanese government has displayed a more positive stance towards Web3 technology, aiming to attain dominance in this sector. Illustrating this commitment, the Web3 project team, operating under the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) Working Group for Digital Society Promotion, released the Web3 White Paper in April. The document underscores Japan’s determination to lead the global market by fostering a business-friendly environment for Web3 innovation.Moreover, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently delivered a keynote speech at Japan’s annual Web3 conference, WebX, reaffirming the government’s dedication to establishing a Web3-friendly ecosystem. These initiatives signal Japan’s potential to contribute to the growth of the cryptocurrency and decentralized finance (DeFi) industry.Adaptation to regulationsNEOPIN’s operator Neowiz Partners, formerly known as NEOPLY, became part of the Innovation Programme of the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with an aim to become the world’s first regulated DeFi platform. It is also working with the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) to develop a DeFi regulatory framework for the Gulf nation. In a similar vein, NEOPIN strives to respond quickly to the changing regulatory landscape in Japan to ensure the Korean CeDeFi protocol firmly establishes its presence in the Japanese market.In addition to providing direct and indirect service offerings in Japan, NEOPIN will also invest in and partner with local Web3 projects. One significant step taken by NEOPIN was its participation in IVS Crypto 2023, a high-profile Web3 startup event held in Kyoto in June. At this event, NEOPIN engaged with various Japanese businesses, initiating important connections. Since then, the Korean platform has been making progress in advancing communication and collaborations with Japanese enterprises.NEOPIN as blockchain validatorCollaboration with the Finschia Foundation will also be strengthened to achieve success in the Japanese market. In July, the blockchain mainnet Finschia launched its governance consortium and revealed its members. Within just four hours of the consortium’s launch, NEOPIN, as a governance member, received more than 1 million delegated votes, maintaining its position at the top spot in terms of voting power ever since. The Finschia mainnet was established by Line Tech Plus, a blockchain subsidiary of Tokyo-based messaging app giant Line Corporation.Serving as validators on various blockchains, including Ethereum, Tron, Cardano, and Cosmos, since 2017, NEOPIN has acquired blockchain and technical expertise. Last month, NEOPIN launched liquid staking products for ETH and KLAY, making it Korea’s first blockchain project to introduce an ETH liquid staking product. Liquid staking is a mechanism that allows users to deposit their cryptocurrencies into a staking pool, where they receive liquidity provider tokens in exchange. By holding these tokens, users can further redeposit them to earn additional yield.In light of this development, NEOPIN CEO Kim Yong-ki emphasized the CeDeFi protocol’s global expansion strategy, establishing its bases in the UAE, Japan, and Indonesia. These locations will serve as hubs for NEOPIN’s expansion efforts in the Middle East and Africa, Northeast Asia, and Southeast Asia. Kim added that NEOPIN will leverage its physical and human resources to achieve notable outcomes in the Japanese market.

Korean Government Explores Methods for Reporting Statistics on CryptoLee Hyoung-il, the head of South Korea’s national statistics agency, Statistics Korea (KOSTAT), said that the organization is currently exploring methods for reporting national statistics related to virtual assets. His comments came during an audit hearing held Thursday (local time) by the Strategy and Finance Committee of the National Assembly.Photo by Алекс Арцибашев on UnsplashCryptocurrency surveysKOSTAT initiated its study into cryptocurrencies in 2022 and subsequently conducted a second survey in April this year to better understand the distribution of cryptocurrency holdings among the Korean population.Commissioner Lee emphasized the importance of enhancing the linkage and utilization of statistical data. He mentioned that the agency would combine statistical registration records with private credit information to conduct in-depth analysis of the characteristics of household debt for all households.Supporting national and municipal policiesLee also stated that KOSTAT is dedicated to creating statistical data to support policies at both the national and municipal levels. Specifically, the agency intends to formulate statistics to assess social mobility and to conduct a survey on the costs of educating young children next year.

Ripple Pursues International Growth Via Dubai ExpansionThe Dubai Fintech Summit was held in the Venice of the Gulf earlier this week, bringing with it an announcement from Ripple outlining its plans to expand in the Middle Eastern location.Photo by Christoph Schulz on UnsplashResponding to the regulatory environmentRipple CEO Brad Garlinghouse was a keynote speaker at the Summit on Monday, and he took that opportunity to outline the company’s plans within the region. Immediately following his speech, Garlinghouse took to social media to confirm those plans. He tweeted out:“As I just shared on stage at #DubaiFintechSummit, @Ripple is expanding in Dubai. With 20% of our customers based in MENA and clear regulatory regimes being developed, it’s no surprise that Dubai is emerging as a key global financial hub for crypto innovation to thrive.”It’s no coincidence that at the very same event, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong was present alongside the company’s executive team. Armstrong also spoke at the event and the outcome of that involvement saw Coinbase too, signaling that it sees potential in setting up a regional base in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).In Coinbase’s case, it’s understood that it is considering the Emirate of Abu Dhabi as opposed to Dubai. Nonetheless, the rationale for pursuing such a move by both leading digital assets companies is the same. Both have been outspoken about the issues they have with the regulatory situation as it exists in the United States right now, relative to digital assets.Office presenceAs an initial step in that Middle East expansion, Ripple is opening an office in Dubai. The office will be located within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DFIC). In what appears like an effort to underscore the company’s official arrival in the United Arab Emirates, Ripple is holding its seventh annual customer conference in the country’s capital later this year.This week, Garlinghouse confirmed that the company’s prolonged legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States is projected to cost the company a whopping $200 million. The Biden administration is using all the major financial agencies in the US to clamp down on the sector. It’s little wonder, therefore, that companies like Ripple and Coinbase are seeking refuge overseas.That regulatory and administrative landscape in the United States relative to crypto stands in total contrast to the experience of Navin Gupta, Ripple’s Managing Director of South Asia & MENA in respect of the UAE. In an interview with CoinDesk TV Gupta said that the “UAE as a market is very attractive to us, the Middle East as a market is doing very well.”Gupta drew on his experience in working in Silicon Valley previously and recalling how back then it had three ingredients that made it function that he believes is now the case for the UAE: talent, venture capital investment and a workable regulatory approach.