Tag: bitFlyer

Adoption takes reigns in Japan, replaces US in terms of monthly volumes

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Bitcoin markets change significantly over time, which creates an intriguing paradigm shift. China remains the largest market for Bitcoin trading in terms of volume with a whopping 96% domination. It is followed by the USD market which held this place firmly for a good period of time. Over the past few days, there has been a significant growth in the Japanese market, catapulting it to the second place in terms of volume. After the Mt. Gox debacle, the Bitcoin scenario in Japan has recovered cautiously from that point. Let dive deep into the dynamics to know how exactly Japan took volumes away from USA:

Drop of sales tax and efforts of exchanges:

 

 

The Japanese Government has dropped the sales tax on the purchase of Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies in October. Initially a sales tax of 8% was levied on purchase of any cryptocurrency. While this move is attracting traders, it is also influencing the merchants across Japan for better adoption. Major exchanges in Japan like BitFlyer, Coincheck and Zaif have all launched campaigns that would attract the masses. BitFlyer launched a sophisticated trading platform for professional traders and an illustrated Blockchain explorer that have gone famous. Zaif bitcoin exchange launched an investment service that has been gaining lot of attention. The investment service is dollar cost averaging investment service, shielding users from bad investments.

Increasing merchant adoption:

 

Right from their launch, BitFlyer and Coincheck have pushed for merchant adoption by promoting Bitcoin transactions across merchants. So as to make Bitcoin a part of daily life, Coincheck has enabled payment of utility bills through Bitcoin. They have a dedicated ‘Coincheck Electricity’ platform that makes this possible.  Having bitcoin payment available for something like a utility bill, that has a reliable image, has definitely put bitcoin in positive light. These efforts have surely paid off as Japan now has around 5,270 merchants and websites accepting Bitcoin. BitFlyer has even initiated talks with the Japanese Government for transacting in Bitcoin for Government operated websites and payments.

How does the future look like?

 

 

The given rise in volumes should not be treated as a momentary surge but rather as fruits of steady adoption. With Chinese exchanges looking to impose transaction costs on BTC-Yuan trading pair, BTC-Yen looks to be the better alternative. With no service tax, traders would find it lucrative to trade across Japanese exchanges. Especially automated traders that provide volumes to the market would look to cut down on cost through Japan. If not a complete Chinese volumes, at least a part of it would be redirected to Japan restoring its previous glory prior to Mt. Gox debacle.

Is Japan all set to reclaim its status in the world of crypto?

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Mt.Gox is singularly regarded as the worst event to happen to Bitcoin development throughout the digital currency’s course.  This has resulted in the onset of a bearish trend in the bitcoin markets for over a year. Ever since Bitcoin has taken good time to recover solely on the basis of widespread adoption and Venture capital backing.  The Bitcoin eco-system in Japan has recovered cautiously from that point and now has improved tremendously. Let’s look into how Japan slowly recovered from the debacle:

Launch of new and diverse Exchanges:

Initially, bitFlyer, the exchange which succeeded Mt Gox in Japan, managed to raise $4 million in first round of funding. After that many exchanges were launched to recapture the vacuum created by Mt. Gox. BitOcean, Kraken and ANX are few initial examples of exchanges that have been thriving on Japanese Bitcoin markets. These exchanges were implementing strategies that would lead to better adoption of the currency in Japan. This way they envisaged to capitalize on the open market left by Mt. Gox that at one time accounted to 70 % of Bitcoin transactions in the world.

Currently Coincheck and Zaif are gaining major traction due to their various initiatives that are reaching to the Bitcoin demographic.

Lucrative platforms that attract customers:

As a means of increase adoption and attract customers, exchanges have been providing convenient platforms for trading. bitFlyer launched ‘chainFlyer’ a block explorer that provides illustrated environment to explore the ledger. It also launched ‘bitFlyer Lightning’ a professional trading platform targeting professional traders and a good chunk of market share.

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On similar lines Zaif bitcoin exchange launched an investment service that has been gaining lot of attention. The investment service is dollar cost averaging investment service. This is particularly lucrative because you can protect yourself from the risk of investing money at the wrong time. By following a consistent pattern of adding new money to your investment at right time, risk will be averted.

 Increasing merchant adoption and Regulation backing:

Owing to great publicity, over 48,000 merchants accept Bitcoin in Japan. So as to make Bitcoin a part of daily life, Coincheck has enabled payment of utility bills through Bitcoin. They have a dedicated ‘Coincheck Electricity’ platform that makes this possible.  Having bitcoin payment available for something like a utility bill, that has a reliable image, will definitely put bitcoin in positive light.

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Even the Regulation has been positive for the cryptocurrency. Recently the 8 % sales tax on Bitcoin has been abolished, showing how willing the authorities are in aiding the currency’s growth.

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