Toyota Systems, the IT arm of Toyota Motor Corporation, is collaborating with Japanese cryptocurrency exchange DeCurret to develop a branded Toyota digital currency, according to an official announcement on Oct. 26. The large-scale pilot will involve 2,500 employees at Toyota Systems. The platform will feature digital currency payments for benefits. According to the announcement, participating employees will be able to exchange the digital currency for benefits points or gifts from a catalog. Toyota Systems noted that the digital currency cannot be exchanged for Japanese yen. The new pilot uses DeCurret’s proprietary blockchain-based platform for issuing and managing digital currencies. The …

A Japanese professional soccer player is launching his own cryptocurrency to boost fan engagement. Keisuke Honda, former Japan midfielder and currently a captain of the Brazilian professional league team Botafogo, has launched his own token to build new connections with his fans, Cointelegraph Japan reported on Oct. 22. The so-called “KSK Honda Coin” was launched on Thursday via Rally.io, a blockchain platform for creating video streaming and gaming applications. The new coin is intended to enable fans to interact with Honda. Holders of KSK Honda token will be able to get exclusive content from Honda as well as interact with …

Major U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has launched funding and crypto trading services in Japan, furthering its expansion into the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. On Oct. 22, the exchange announced it had launched spot trading of Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Ripple (XRP), and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) for Japanese residents. Both crypto-to-crypto and JPY-denominated pairings are available. Customers are able to make deposits in the five crypto assets, with domestic JPY deposits and withdrawals also available via SBI Sumishin Net Bank. Kraken’s announcement claims it is the sole global crypto firm to “organically” enter the Japanese market “without an acquisition.” Ironically …

Line, a Tokyo-based subsidiary of the South Korean internet search engine company Naver, is building a platform for developing central bank digital currencies, South Korean news agency the Chosun Ilbo reported on Oct. 19. Sources familiar with the matter reportedly told Chosun Ilbo that Line aims to support the development of a so-called “customized CBDC.” The messaging company is discussing the application of its blockchain-based CBDC platform with several central banks in major Asian countries, according to the report. Line executives said that they cannot disclose the exact countries that are considering the platform’s application. A Line spokesperson told Cointelegraph …

Major financial institutions in Japan are moving into blockchain to streamline digital identity systems. Japan’s third-largest bank, Mizuho Bank, and local payment giant JCB are preparing to pilot a digital identity interoperability system based on blockchain technology. The new system will utilize a blockchain solution developed by Fujitsu Laboratories, Fujitsu announced on Thursday. The new joint initiative will allow the companies to verify mechanisms to securely transfer and link member ID information by multiple business operators. This data includes names, addresses and employers stored on a cloud platform built by Fujitsu. The pilot will also involve 100 Fujitsu Group employees. …

There appears to be a disagreement within the top echelons of Japan’s government on the threat that China’s CBDC poses to the nation. Just last week, Kenji Okamura, vice-finance minister for Japan’s international affairs voiced concerns over its neighbor’s efforts in the space, stating “first-mover advantage is something we should be afraid of." Today’s statement from Kazushige Kamiyama, who leads the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) CBDC efforts, appears to contradict this previous sentiment. He said that on the contrary, the first-mover advantage may easily turn into a disadvantage, and that no single digital currency will dominate: “I don’t think a …

A high-profile gamer is joining SBI Holdings’ gaming arm, signing a contract to receive his salary in major cryptocurrency XRP. Kengo “Ken” Suzuki, a professional player of crossover action fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, or SSBU, has signed a contract with SBI e-Sports, the gaming arm of Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings. Ken is also considered to be the world’s best Sonic player. According to an official announcement posted by SBI on Oct. 15, Ken will now be part of SBI e-Sports’ newly established SSBU division. The player will receive his annual salary in XRP instead of Japanese yen …

The trustee of the now-defunct Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox has obtained another approval to extend the deadline for submitting a rehabilitation plan. Following a motion by Mt. Gox rehabilitation trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi, the Tokyo District Court issued another order to extend the deadline until Dec. 15, 2020, according to an official announcement posted on the Mt. Gox website on Oct. 15. Similarly to previous statements on deadline extensions, the new announcement specifies that the rehabilitation trustee is still formulating the plan, but “there are matters that require closer examination,” so it “has become necessary to extend the submission deadline.” …

Japan needs to adapt its laws to issue a central bank digital currency, according to a local financial official. Kozo Yamamoto, head of the Liberal Democratic Party’s council on financial affairs and a former official at the Ministry of Finance, believes that Japan must revise a law stipulating the Bank of Japan’s (BoJ) mandate and responsibilities regarding the development of a CBDC. According to an Oct. 12 Reuters report, Yamamoto said that potential amendments to the BoJ law would be a good opportunity to consider other changes like adding job creation to the central bank’s mandate. The official also stated …

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), in collaboration with a group of seven central banks, published its first joint report into central bank digital currencies on Oct. 9, focusing on the foundational principles and core features of CBDCs. Alongside the report, the Bank of Japan, one of the members of the group, released a document outlining its own specific approach to CBDCs from a Japan-centric perspective. According to the BoJ report, it will begin the first of several testing phases for its own CBDC sometime in 2021. This will include the development of a test environment for the currency and …

Japanese banking officials continue to voice concern over China’s progress in the development of its central bank digital currency. Kenji Okamura, vice-finance minister for Japan’s international affairs, warned the global community of the potential risks of China’s digital yuan, Reuters reported Oct. 9. Okamura said that China’s digital yuan initiative is “moving at a relatively fast pace” as the Chinese government presumably aims to be the first global jurisdiction to adopt a CBDC. “First-mover advantage is something we should be afraid of,” Okamura said at a digital seminar backed by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum, adding: This advantage …

Japan's largest on-line financial conglomerate, SBI Holdings, now owns two licensed cryptocurrency trading platforms with its new acquisition of TaoTao exchange. According to an official announcement on Oct. 7, SBI’s foreign exchange and derivatives arm SBI Liquidity Market has acquired all shares of TaoTao, making it a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company. Formerly 40% owned by internet giant Yahoo! Japan’s YJFX, TaoTao launched its crypto trading service in May 2019. With the new acquisition, SBI now has two crypto trading platforms as the company is already offering crypto trading services through its crypto-focused venture capital arm, SBI VC Trade. Operating …