By The Japanese Minister of Finance and deputy prime minister Taro Aso has requested that reporters cease using the term “virtual currencies” and adopt the newly-proposed legal term “crypto assets”.
Aso who is also the nations Minister of State for Financial Services argued his case during a crypto-focused Q&A session at a press conference after a government cabinet meeting. The full Q&A transcript was published by Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) on April 26 and included an English translation.
As of the time of press today, the minister’s persistence in urging the use of the new term follows the Japanese cabinet’s recent approval of new draft amendments to the nation’s financial instruments and payments services laws, which back in March established a legal name change for cryptocurrencies to “crypto assets” which was in the past known as “virtual currencies” in the country.
However, the FSA has emphasised that this new definition is merely a legal name change and that there is no obligation for mandatory use thereof by members of the industry.
Furthermore, Aso’s Q&A also included the latest advancements in the FSA’s review process as well as official registration of new crypto asset broker-dealers and exchanges, which have been revised as a result of the financial watchdog’s on-site inspections of various firms within the industry.
Aso also stressed during his Q&A that the FSA has taken a strong stance following a number of high-profile hacks upon exchanges in Japan, and thus the regulatory body has bolstered its monitoring of the industry.
Aso stated:
“While I think blockchain is a promising technology, it will take quite some time before it is firmly established. A variety of people will become involved with it, not all of them well-intentioned, so some could misuse this technology. To protect investors, it is essential for us to conduct a proper and strict review.”
Also included in Aso’s speeach was the fact that two new crypto asset broker-dealers had been registered earlier this week by the FSA, Rakuten Wallet and Decurret.
Notably, the FSA’s proposal for the redefinition of the term virtual currencies as crypto assets was proposed as a move which could ultimately guarantee that “traders will no longer purchase them believing that they are legal tender recognized by the government.”
In addition to the redefinition, the recent amendments to the nation’s financial instruments and payment services laws also included a new limit to leveraging crypto margin trading at two to four times the initial deposit as well as a myriad of new laws. These new changes are expected to come into effect by April 2020.
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