Japan's Financial Services Giant SBI Launches Crypto Exchange
Japan`s financial services giant SBI Holdings has declared that its in-house crypto exchange has now gone live, Cointelegraph Japan reports Monday, June 4.
Called 'VCTRADE,' the exchange is presently open for the ~20,000 users who pre-enlisted with the platform in October 2017, with plans to open normal account applications in July 2018. Ripple (XRP) is at present the only supported cryptocurrrency, however SBI states it will soon add Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) too.
As Cointelegraph Japan wrote, the new exchange platform will embrace NASDAQ's exchange system (matching system). Transaction fees will allegedly be zero, in spite of the fact that withdrawals will be liable to fees. SBI has additionally said it will partner with SECOM Group on setting up a crypto wallet management security system.
As SBI's public statement emphasized, the launch of its exchange has been in process for "some time." The company initially uncovered its plans to launch a virtual currency unit in October 2016. In December, 2017, SBI declared it would partner on the project with major crypto exchange Huobi, and foreseen launching the platform in mid 2018.
Be that as it may, January's phenomenal $532 mln Coincheck crypto exchange hack caused an escalated regulatory crackdown from Japan's financial authorities, driving SBI to put off the launch of its exchange for security enhancement purposes. Despite the deferrals, SBI's leader has certainly declared that he expects the exchange "will be number one in a matter of moments."
In addition to VCTRADE, SBI has this year been seeking after a mass trial of Ripple's blockchain-real time gross settlement network in a noteworthy venture that includes around 38 banks, alongside no less than 23 more engaged with more extensive testing of blockchain settlements. The lion's share of banks involved are supposedly situated in Japan, apparently due to the "well laid out" of Ripple's system in the nation.
SBI has additionally as of late purchased a 40% stake in Taiwanese cryptocurrrency hardware wallet company CoolBitX.