Recently the Japanese House of Representatives introduced new crypto asset regulation – the Payment Services Act and the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act – which is supposed to affect all exchanges, custodians, as well as online casinos within the country.
Joseph D. Hugh, CFO of international cryptocurrency betting platform Jukebucks, commented:
Japan has very strict rules regarding gambling and the same applies to crypto gambling. Although it is very difficult to restrict players who play, the government keeps a close tab on crypto transactions originating from Japan using taxation as an excuse.
Federal Law of Japan
Notably, back in July 2018, Japan passed a federal law that allows the operation of physical casinos.
Hugh highlighted:
Japan is opening up its offline casino license to major players after next year’s Olympics. It is uncertain who will receive licenses for Tokyo, Osaka, Okinawa and Hokkaido. We believe online casinos will follow only after offline casinos start operation.
Now Japan’s authorities switched towards the regulation of the cryptocurrency industry as it is becoming an indispensable part of casinos, shopping malls, theaters, hotels, and theme parks. Even though Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been showing a positive attitude towards the industry, Japanese society is still skeptical about it.
Many are convinced that cryptocurrency gambling in Japan isn’t developed much as the country’s record of implementing cryptocurrency regulations is still quite low. Which, in turn, is most likely connected to the collapse of Mt. Gox, a Japanese crypto exchange that went bankrupt in early 2014.
Pressures on Tron
Because of the pressure coming from Japanese regulators, Blockchain network Tron was forced to block gambling apps on its decentralized app store in early 2019.
After Tron has been pushed towards continuously blocking many dapps, its Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and co-founder, Lucien Chen, decided to leave the company. He proclaimed that “the inconsistency between Tron’s dedication to being decentralized and its actions, which Chen said were more inherent to those of a centralized entity.”
Joseph Hugh opposes:
It is the role of all governments to try to regulate any and all financial activities of its citizens and nobody can blame them except for people who are in the grey and fishy businesses. I strongly believe that dapps are here to stay as country boundaries cannot stop people from getting around to them eventually.
