There are plenty of executives and corporations that are open about the potential of blockchain and cryptocurrencies to disrupt their respective sectors. However, it is rare for a company to turn to the cryptocurrency sector as a profit strategy. That appears to be what Japanese online brokerage, Monex Group Inc, is planning to do. The company believes that its Coincheck acquisition might be the key to gaining some more ground.
The president of Monex Securities, Inc, Yuko Seimei, is not shy about the fact that there is some strong competition from Japanese companies, such as online retailer Rakuten, and the financial services company SBI Holdings. Seimei admits, “We’ve fallen behind – we can’t deny that,” adding, “We might not be able to close the gap.”
Monex is looking to Coincheck to change that. For those who are familiar with the cryptocurrency markets, the name “Coincheck” should be familiar. The Japanese cryptocurrency exchange was the victim of arguably the largest crypto hack of all time in January 2018, when the exchange lost over a half-billion dollars. Monex ended up acquiring the exchange as a result. Monex focused on obtaining a regulatory license from the Financial Services Agency after the hack.
Monex is now looking to add digital assets to its retail trading platform, which would give the company a unique advantage over the competition. This would be in collaboration with Coincheck, which has the necessary license.
One of the reasons that the strategy might work is because Japan is still one of the largest cryptocurrency trading markets. Unlike other Asian countries, such as China, which has cracked down on the sector – Japan has recognized Bitcoin Core (BTC) as a legal form of tender, suggesting that it is much more open to the possibility of mass adoption. The Japanese yen is still one of the most used currencies when it comes to BTC trading, and accounts for a significant amount of BTC volume, according to Coinhills.
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