The Financial Services Agency (FSA) of Japan has allowed for the cryptocurrency industry to regulate itself in a big legislative move today, October 24.
JVCEA in the Lead
Japan’s financial watchdog – the Financial Services Agency, gave the cryptocurrency industry the green light to regulate itself, granting it a self-regulatory status, Reuters reports. This allows the Japan Virtual Currency Exchange Association to oversee and sanction crypto exchanges for any violations.
Speaking on the matter, a senior official from the FSA said:
It’s a very fast moving industry. It’s better for experts to make rules in a timely manner than bureaucrats do.
It’s worth noting that according to Yuri Suzuki – a senior partner at a local law firm, JVCEA’s rules are stricter than the existing legislation, which should help the industry to gain the trust of the public. Yet, the legal expert also outlined an existing issue that “the self-regulatory body’s workload is likely to be heavy and there is an issue of whether it can secure enough staff with expertise in crypto exchange business.”
A Big Move Forward
Recognizing the importance of the FSA’s act, the cryptocurrency industry association went on saying:
We will make further efforts to build an industry that is trusted by customers.
The country has steadily been creating a fairly positive regulatory ecosystem for cryptocurrency exchanges. In that direction, the FSA introduced additional guidelines for venues which aimed to enter the local market.
Supposedly, the JVCEA will be in the lead when it comes to regulating the cryptocurrency market and, as such, we might expect certain previously outlined propositions to come into full acting force. For instance, in July Live Bitcoin News reported that the cryptocurrency association has proposed to curb margin trading in order to reduce the risk due to high volatility.
Yet, it’s worth noting that JVCEA faced two high-profile resignations as the CEOs of both Bitbank and bitFlyer left the association earlier in June.
What do you think of Japan’s move to allow JVCEA to regulate the cryptocurrency field? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!
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