Japan’s financial regulator has warned an unregistered Macau-based cryptocurrency exchange operator in response to its willingness to do business with investors in Japan.
Japan Financial Services Agency (FSA), pursuant to the country’s revised payment services law – Recognizing Bitcoin as a legitimate payment method – it gave its first warning to Blockchain Laboratory, an unregistered Macau-based firm that tracks investors in the country.
Registered under the new payment services law revised in April 2017. Non-cryptocurrency trading transactions are prohibited in the country. Exceptions may be made for transactions made before the revised legislation.. Coincheck, a Tokyo-based exchange that recently suffered a major theft, is a notable example of this.
Despite the suggestions from the Japanese financial regulator, Blockchain Laboratory continued its operations
To Nikkei Blockchain Laboratory offers services as an “ICO agency” to raise funds using cryptocurrencies.. It was seen that the company continued its activities despite repeated suggestions by the FSA to give seminars to potential investors in Japan and to cease its activities in Japan.. Concerned about possible investor losses, Japan’s financial regulator issued a direct warning to this ICO operator.
If the Macau-based firm does not respond to the warning, the FSA will officially act with the police and the Japan Consumer Affairs Agency to file criminal charges.
Furthermore, the FSA also states that it may continue its investigation of cryptocurrency trading following the recent Coincheck theft, with warnings as needed.. While cryptocurrency trading continues in this way, there are 16 registered exchanges operating in Japan.. There are also 16 other applications currently under review by the regulator.. According to an FSA official, the total number of unregistered exchange operators looks set to be much higher.. The statement of an official official on the subject is as follows:
“We can’t see the whole picture regarding informal activities yet.. But as our research gets deeper, we see that there are more informal activities than we expected.”
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