Japanese Lawmakers Approve New Digital Currency Regulations

Japanese lawmakers in the House of Councilors of The Diet, Japan’s legislature, have voted to approve a bill that requires all virtual currency exchanges in the country to register with the Financial Services Agency (FSA).

In April, the bill passed a vote in The Diet’s House of Representatives. According to a report by JapanTimes, the bill also has provisions that give the FSA authority to carry out inspections on the premises of registered exchanges, as well as the issuance of various administrative penalties.

Japanese regulators were forced to enact proper rules for the industry in the aftermath of the Mt.Gox collapse in 2014, which reportedly wiped out several hundred thousand bitcoin of customer deposits.

The new bill is expected to go into effect within a year. Industry leaders are enthusiastic about the new legislation and the Japan Blockchain Association (JBA) has released a statement on today’s events:

“JBA (Japan Blockchain Association) welcomes this new law and would like the thank the efforts of the lawmakers, FSA and related government agencies, and all other involved parties who helped see this bill through.”

Yuzo Kano, CEO of Japanese bitcoin exchange bitFlyer, along with many other digital currency entrepreneurs in the country, have been enthusiastically awaiting today’s decision, as this bill will lay the groundwork for the big financial players to enter the space. Kano has previously said that proper regulations will increase trust in digital currencies among the general public and the banking industry.

Additionally, in today’s plenary meeting, the House of Councilors also approved an amendment to the banking business laws, which will allow financial institution in Japan to invest more freely in the fintech sector.

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