On February 19, according to Bloomberg, Japan** has approved a bill to improve the competitiveness of Japanese industry on February 16. Japan is one step closer to allowing venture capital firms and other investments** to directly hold digital assets after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida** agreed to submit an amendment bill to implement the change.
According to a statement released on the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry**, the Cabinet approved the text of a bill on February 16 that aims to partially amend the country's Industrial Competitiveness Enhancement Law. The bill states that "steps will be taken to add cryptoassets to the list of assets that can be acquired and held by investment limited partnerships," which refers to the instruments used by venture capital firms to secure investment capital.
Kishida's agenda to revive the Japanese economy includes supporting the growth of so-called web3 companies, a term that refers to a futuristic, decentralized version of the internet based on blockchain technology. Meta Metaverse Headlines (WeChat ID: TopMetanews) Compared to other regions, Japan is considered to have strict regulations on the digital asset industry, but has begun to relax some cryptocurrency rules in areas such as token listing and taxation.
Japan** now plans to submit the bill to the current session of the Japanese parliament for debate. If the amendment is approved, the move would open up Japan's investment sector to expand its investment in digital assets. Investments in web3 startups often include terms for distributing tokens to backers, and cryptocurrencies can be used as a way to exit stakes earlier than traditional avenues such as listing on the market.
Hiro Kunimitsu, founder and chief CEO of Japanese game development company Gumi Inc, said that before that, Japanese crypto projects had to seek funding from foreign venture capital, and the process was fraught with various obstacles. After the passage of the bill, the ability of Japanese venture capital to invest in crypto assets is expected to create a lot of opportunities for the development of web3 startups in Japan.
Japan has reportedly been a global leader in developing a regulatory framework for stablecoins and has said it plans to promote Web3 while taking a tough stance on user protection. In September 2023, Nikkei reported that Japan plans to relax regulatory rules for venture capital firms to invest in crypto startups. The Cabinet has approved the initiative, and the revised bill will be introduced and debated in the current session of the National Assembly. After the revision, venture capital firms will provide funding to web3 startups in exchange for crypto assets.
According to BusinessTimes, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's agenda to revive the Japanese economy includes support for the development of so-called Web3 businesses, which refers to the decentralized Internet of the future powered by blockchain technology. Japan is considered to have strict regulations for the digital asset industry compared to other regions, but in areas such as token listing and taxation, Japan has begun to relax some cryptocurrency regulatory rules.
According to Coindesk, the legislative reform, which is currently awaiting consideration by the legislature, will have a significant impact on how Web3 ventures work in Japan and has the potential to set a precedent for other countries.