Japan Financial News

Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.

The IPO-bound national insurer Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) is not only the world's largest when it comes to home-market share with over 64.1 per cent of the total gross written premium as of 2020 but also the one that offers the highest return on equity at 82 per cent, apart from being the third largest in terms of life insurance premium, says a Crisil report. While for LIC the market share has been steadily declining–down from 100 per cent in the pre-2000 era to 71.8 per cent in 2016 and further down to 64.1 per cent in 2020, for SBI Life, which is the second largest in the country, the same was only 5 per cent in 2016 and 8 per cent in 2020, Crisil said in a report prepared in November 2021 which is not yet made publicly available.

The long-running Monero (XMR) mining saga that pitted Japanese web developers against the police over the matter of crypto mining software may have come to a close last month, but the police force appears to have added an intriguing coda – by removing its public warning about the dangers of crypto mining widgets.

In a recent wide-ranging chat on Reddit, the former CEO of Mt. Gox, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange until its crash in 2014, revealed that he did not think bitcoin would evolve from its current problems in the near future. “The technology is definitely here to stay, but Bitcoin may have trouble evolving and keeping up,” said Mark Karpeles. Even as bitcoin has come under sharp criticism from governments and industry leaders, blockchain — the technology underpinning bitcoin - has been embraced by them.

Since bottoming out in early 2020, the U.S. economy has handily outperformed other major advanced countries, except in one crucial dimension: its labor force.

Japanese trading house Mitsui is reportedly planning to issue a cryptocurrency pegged to gold, local news agency Nikkei Asia reported Friday.

The Japanese government is considering a proposal to make it easier for registered crypto exchanges to list digital assets in the local retail trading market.

After releasing its latest financial results report, Nintendo held a live Q&A where they reportedly expressed "interest" and "potential" in the Metaverse when it comes to introducing blockchain and NFT technology into their video games. 

FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange owned by billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, is buying Japanese rival Liquid for an undisclosed sum.

Major crypto exchanges originating from Asia as well as from the West have shown an increasing interest in the Asia-Pacific region. 

Ignoring the furious backlash and accusations of greenwashing, the European Commission has decided to move forward with its highly controversial plans to label gas and nuclear activities as sustainable, hoping the two sectors can help the bloc meet its ambitious roadmap to climate neutrality.

UK prime minister Boris Johnson will face his first PMQs on Wednesday since the publication of a report that found “failures of leadership” over COVID lockdown parties in Downing Street.

Europeans bought as many hybrid cars as they did diesel in Europe in 2021 for the first time as the European Commission presses forward with its intention to ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035.

Major crypto exchange FTX is readying to set up shop in the land of the rising sun via the acquisition of the Liquid group, the owner of a licensed Japanese crypto exchange, Quoine.

American billionaire and CEO of crypto exchange FTX Sam Bankman-Fried announced that his company acquired Japanese crypto firm Liquid Group and its subsidiaries. 

Spain has moved a step closer to investigating allegations of child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.

Montenegro was braced for more political chaos ahead of a critical vote in parliament on Friday that will either oust the country's prime minister or pave the way for new elections.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the US had ignored Russia's demands that NATO not expand eastward in his first remarks on rising tensions over Ukraine in more than a month.

India's central bank plans to launch a virtual version of the rupee in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, which begins on April 1.The announcement of the country's central bank digital currency (CBDC) came at the same time that India said it will impose a 30% tax on income gained from digital assets.In launching a CBDC, India joins a growing list of countries to issue national digital currencies.

crypto exchanges and trading platforms have launched promotional campaigns to lure investors. These campaigns are aimed at attracting investors to support declining trading volumes amid steep fall and rising regulatory concerns. ETMarkets.com reached out to various exchanges seeking out information about their giveaways for the crypto users. Here is the complete information about offerings of all the exchanges:OKXThe second-largest crypto exchange in the world, OKX, is set to give away $3 million as a part of the Asia Lunar New Year promotion for participants from Asian countries.

As China races ahead with not just CBDCs, but also blockchain project pilots, all eyes are on its neighbours. In particular, experts worldwide are closely watching Japan.