Earlier this fall, the Bank of Japan announced its plans to begin testing a central bank digital currency proof-of-concept in 2021. Further details of the institution’s approach to development and collaborations have since emerged, with indications that the private sector is poised to play a prime role, at least in the testing phase. Earlier today, Reuters reported that the CEO of the Japanese financial services giant Monex Inc. is welcoming the central bank’s more proactive stance toward central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs. CEO Oki Matsumoto argued that any move to introduce a CBDC would be positive for the digitalization …

Japanese financial giant SBI Group is introducing a cryptocurrency lending service through its crypto-related subsidiary, SBI VC Trade. According to an official announcement on Nov. 24, the new crypto lending platform will allow users to lend their crypto to SBI and earn interest at a rate of 1% with taxes included. The new service, dubbed VC Trade Lending, will initially support the major cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC), with SBI further planning to add support for Ether (ETH) and XRP. The minimum lending amount is 0.1 BTC, or $1,840 at publishing time, while the maximum amount is capped at 5 BTC, or …

While the ongoing cryptocurrency bull run is boosting crypto adoption, some billionaire investors still find Bitcoin (BTC) to be something of a distraction. Masayoshi Son, a billionaire technology entrepreneur and CEO of Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, claimed that he “doesn't understand” Bitcoin amid the cryptocurrency breaking its three-year highs. Speaking at the New York Times DealBook conference, Son said that he found Bitcoin investment to be “distracting his own focus on his own business,” Business Insider reported on Nov. 19. Son said that he would spend about five minutes each day watching Bitcoin prices fluctuate. Son noted that he was told …

Japan’s three largest banks, as part of a group of 30 private sector actors, are set to collaborate on an experiment with a digital yen. The group consists of banks, various Japanese brokerages, utility and telecom firms and retailers, according to a Reuters report published on Nov. 19. For the purposes of the experiment, the private banks will be responsible for issuing the currency, although the prospect of other actors becoming involved in issuance has not been ruled out, according to the chair of the new group, Hiromi Yamaoka. Yamaoka is a former executive at Japan’s central bank, which itself …

Hiromi Yamaoka, former head of the payment and settlement systems department at the Bank of Japan, said that the country will likely need several years before it can issue a central bank digital currency. In a Nov. 17 Reuters interview, Yamaoka explained that the BoJ is concerned about a CBDC potentially triggering massive outflows from private bank deposits. Yamaoka, who now chairs a group of banks looking at building a common settlement infrastructure for digital payments, argued that there is “no point issuing a CBDC if it isn’t used widely,” stating: “The fundamental question, and a very tricky one, is …

Following two years of pilot testing, a blockchain trade and financing platform for global agricultural trading has seen its commercial rollout from Swiss developer Cerealia SA. The launch follows extensive prelaunch trial implementation with firms from Algeria, Brazil, Dubai, Japan and Ukraine. In November 2018, Cointelegraph reported on the platform’s early use to conduct a pilot transaction of Black Sea wheat from the Russian port city of Novorossiysk. Cerealia told reporters that it has sought to address the need for a fast trading platform in the global Russian wheat market and to combine this with a more reliable, transparent and …

Japanese firm Layer X has announced the development of an electronic voting system based on a blockchain protocol as part of a wider “smart city” initiative being pursued by Tsukuba City. The Tokyo-based company said that the new system will meet the technical needs of electronic voting, including the prevention of double voting, accurate storage of voting content, voter confidentiality, and management of operation records. In addition, it will enable voters to check their own voting results, providing the cryptographic ability to verify that the recording and aggregation processes for the votes on the blockchain network was performed correctly. Layer …

It’s been another strong week for Bitcoin. The dollar price is up about 2.5 percent over the week, although that’s still something of a decline from its recent high above $13,400. At one point, Bitcoin fell 4 percent in 24 hours. But bulls remain optimistic and see the price advancing towards $20,000, possibly as early as March. That future price movement will depend on a number of factors, including whether banks follow Paypal into cryptocurrency acceptance; the size of the stimulus expected to counter the new coronavirus outbreak; and the pattern of the hash rate, among other factors. One point …

Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao said that Japan is the most likely country Ripple will relocate to, should it leave the United States. At an Oct. 28 press briefing, Kitao stated that the blockchain-based payments firm “has made Japan the most promising candidate” for its new headquarters if Ripple makes good on its threats to move its San Francisco offices. SBI Holdings is a Ripple investor, while Kitao sits on the firm’s board of directors. Both Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen and CEO Brad Garlinghouse have expressed frustration at the lack of regulatory clarity in the United States. …

The IOTA Foundation, a non-profit organization behind the IOTA blockchain, is collaborating with Japan’s government on a project targeting industrial infrastructure. The foundation has partnered on a project initiated by major Japanese maintenance companies, Best Materia and IMC, IOTA representatives announced on Oct. 27. The project is funded by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, a national research and development agency operating under Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. According to an announcement, the initiative intends to implement artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology to risk-based maintenance systems in power, industrial, petrochemicals and oil refining plants. Dominik …

DBS, Singapore’s largest retail and commercial bank, seems to be entering the cryptocurrency space with three new offerings. According to information seen by Cointelegraph, DBS is launching cryptocurrency trading and custody as well as a platform for conducting security token offerings. A description of the offering and its components appeared briefly on DBS' website before being removed minutes later. DBS’ upcoming crypto service — the DBS Digital Exchange — will support five major cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), XRP, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Ethereum Classic (ETC). Supported fiat currencies include the United States dollar, the Singapore dollar, the Hong …

According to an Oct. 26 report by Japanese news agency The Nikkei, seven Japanese companies are preparing to invest in a new trade data management system. Reportedly developed by NTT Data, the platform uses blockchain technology to prevent malicious third-parties from tampering with recorded data. The platform is designed to manage receipts for exporting and importing companies and will also manage letters of credit issued by banks. The new service will also help to process other related documents handled by insurance and logistics companies. As reported, the participating companies include a major Japanese bank, MUFG Bank, Toyota Tsusho, Kanematsu, Sompo …