It is evident for everyone to see Japan is going crazy about cryptocurrency right now. This is made possible thanks to the new regulations going into effect, which removed the 8% sales tax when buying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. It is also interesting to note several cryptocurrencies are incredibly popular in Japan, whereas others are not that hot. All of the coins listed below are ranked based on their JPY trading volume.
5. MonaCoin
Although this particular cryptocurrency has eluded the vast majority of enthusiasts, MonaCoin is quite popular among JPY traders. It is listed on the Zaif exchange, where it can be traded against Bitcoin as well. MonaCoin was also one of the altcoins successfully activating SegWit before Litecoin did.
4. XEM
The native token of the New Economy Movement has seen its fair share of success in Japan as well. It is a currency maintained by a team of Japanese developers. Moreover, XEM – and its NEM blockchain – have made quite a name for itself in Japanese circles as well. Definitely a currency to keep an eye on moving forward.
3. Ethereum
A lot of people will be shocked to learn Ethereum is not all that popular when it comes to buying or selling it in exchange for the Japanese Yen. Then again, these are still the early days for cryptocurrency in the country, and things may continue to shift around for quite some time to come. Ethereum is very popular when traded against bitcoin, though, as is to be expected.
2. Ripple
It comes as quite a surprise to a lot of people to learn Ripple – or to be more precise, XRP – is quite popular among Japanese cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Various exchanges list XRP as one of their trading pairs, and it seems to do quite well overall. In most cases, XRP can be traded against the JPY only
There is one big exception to this trend, though. The Mr. Ripple exchange – which is mostly known for buying and selling XRP – trades the currency against the JPY, USD, Bitcoin, and Ethereum. Its JPY market is by far the largest on the platform, although the XRP/BTC market is quite popular as well. It is quite interesting to see Japanese exchanges dedicated themselves to one particular currency and even naming the platform after it.
1. Bitcoin
Regardless of where one looks in the world, Bitcoin will always be the most popular traded currency against fiat. Japan is no different in this regard, as all exchanges allow for BTC/JPY trades by the look of things. It is due to this trading pair these platforms are so successful during the initial stages of Japanese cryptocurrency adoption.
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