Yahoo Japan recently confirmed they are buying a 40 percent stake in BitArg(ARG) Exchange Tokyo, as ARG announced it would accept minority stake capital participation from Z Corporation, an owned subsidiary of Yahoo Japan Corporation.
The exchange operator explained (translated):
“As a result of this capital participation, the Company will be able to utilize the service operation and security expertise of the Yahoo Japan Group, which will make it easier for customers to prepare for the start of the exchange service managed by the Company and to improve the operation after the commencement we will promote the provision of secure exchange services.”
This comes after another recent move by a major Japanese company, Monex Group Inc., announcing last week it would buy 100% of Coincheck Inc for $34 million. Yahoo Japan maintains a major tech presence in the country, ranking at #4 by user traffic and #40 globally. The launch of the newly developed exchange is planned for April 2019, with plans to make further investments through subsidiaries over the year prior to launch.
According to Yahoo Finance, “unofficial figures of the capital” are between $18.5 million and $27.8 million.
This recent move by Yahoo Japan does not come as a surprise, as in late March Nikkeireported on the company’s intentions to open a cryptocurrency exchange and plans to acquire a stake in BitARG Exchange.
These major corporate investments into cryptocurrencies also come after recent news of Japanese crypto exchanges closing because of the government’s regulations. Last April, the Japanese Financial Services Agency(JFSA) passed regulatory action requiring crypto exchanges to register with the agency, which is the same ruling that allowed for Bitcoin as payment.
Japanese citizens remain one of the leading locations for cryptocurrency involvement by the population. Coindesk reported that Japan’s Financial Services Agency(FSA) found that Japan has 3.5 million individuals that are trading with cryptocurrencies.