Asia and Australia
Welcome to our weekly roundup of all important blockchain and cryptocurrency news from around the world. Follow the latest developments in the cryptocurrency space continent by continent, country by country.
Japan
Central bank not interested in state crypto: The Bank of Japan has said in a blanket statement that it has no plans right now to issue a central bank-issued cryptocurrency. The policy came forward during a recent conference between the International Monetary fund (IMF) and Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) in which the bank’s deputy governor Masayoshi Amamiya said that such a currency could undermine the bank’s two-tier system and destabilize it.
Amamiya said: “…the issuance of central bank digital currencies for general use would be analogous to directly allowing households and firms to have accounts in the central bank.”
Yahoo Japan set to be 40% stakeholder in crypto exchange: Yahoo Japan plans to purchase almost 40% minority stakes in the cryptocurrency exchange named BitARG which is based in Tokyo. BitARG will only be launched later this year. The whole deal, according to a report from Reuters, cost between USD 18.5 million and USD 27.8 million. BitARG has recently been granted a license to operate a domestic cryptocurrency trading platform.
Crypto traders cross 3 million mark: Japanese cryptocurrency traders are growing in number with the latest figure reportedly around 3 million people, according to the data from Japan’s FSA. The figures show that as of 31 March 2018, around 3.5 million people traded cryptocurrencies and around 90% of the population are in the age bracket of 20-40 years.
The release of this data is the agency’s latest move to bring greater transparency in Japan’s ever-developing cryptocurrency environment.
South Korea
Financial watchdog to investigate banks based on new crypto rules: The South Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) will investigate three of its banks to see if they are complying with the latest rules against anonymity. The new regulation enforced by the agency means that traders have to use bank accounts on their own names to buy cryptocurrencies through exchanges. The rules were enforced to stop money laundering in the country.
India
Over 17,000 sign petition against crypto ban: Over 17,000 crypto traders and industry workers have launched a combined petition against the Indian Central Bank’s move to close crypto-related accounts on 5 April, 2018. The petition was started by a few younger traders but was soon co-signed by thousands across the country. It states that cryptocurrencies are here to stay and prohibition of business activities affects the country’s growing market.
Vietnam
Vietnam tightens crypto regulation after ICOs scam over 32,00 investors: Vietnam has recently announced that it is tightening regulations on cryptocurrencies after two initial coin offering scams affected more than 32,000 investors resulting in losses of up to USD 660 million. The two ICOs, Ifan and PinCoin, bore the hallmarks of a Ponzi scheme and have attracted official investigation into them in the Asian country.
The ICOs were launched through conferences in Hanoi and remote parts of the country in order to lure unsuspecting customers. Both of them promised hefty profits and activity but were soon exposed as scams.
Philippines
Philippine boxing great Manny Pacquiao said last Wednesday that he would soon launch a cryptocurrency to connect with fans. He is the third famous athlete to have talked about launching a cryptocurrency with the previous moves of Michael Owen and Floyd Mayweather also making headlines.
However, Pacquiao is cautious as compared to the other two as he is vocally in favor of regulating cryptocurrencies and taking it slow and moving forward organically.
Australia
New power plant announced for “Blockchain Silicon Valley”: An Australian tech firm called IOT group has partnered with an energy provider Hunter Energy to reset up a power plant in the country to offer pre-grid cost effective prices to blockchain businesses nearby.
The Redbank power station near Singleton, which is rated at 150 megawatts, was closed back in 2014 when it incurred a debt of over USD 192 million. Hunter Energy has reportedly acquired the station and it is in “care and maintenance mode”.
The company is aiming to provide the basis for a blockchain Silicon Valley in Australia. The plan is to offer space to host data centers and even miners with direct access to electricity from the power plant.
The post Asia and Australia: Crypto and Blockchain News Roundup, 13th to 19th April 2018 appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.