Japan’s prime minister said his government lacks enough information about the United States and other countries’ plans for a Bitcoin strategic reserve to determine whether Japan should implement one.
According to a Dec. 26 report from local media outlet CoinPost, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he does not have enough understanding of “movements” by countries like the US and others regarding adopting Bitcoin (BTC) reserves.
“It is difficult for the government to express its views,” Ishiba said.
Japanese government rep said Japan should follow the USA
The response came after a question from Satoshi Hamada, a member of the House of Councilors from the Party to Protect the People from NHK, on Japan’s “movement of introducing Bitcoin reserves that the United States and other countries are proceeding with.”
Hamada said: “I think Japan should follow the example of the United States and consider turning some of its foreign exchange reserves into crypto assets such as Bitcoin.”
Satoshi Hamada. Source: House of Councillors, The National Diet of Japan
Ishiba said that crypto assets do not fall under the foreign exchange category.
Jack Mallers, founder and CEO of Strike, said Donald Trump will likely issue an executive order on his first day as president to designate Bitcoin as a US reserve asset.
More recently, Congressman Eros Biondini proposed a bill in Brazil to establish a sovereign federal Bitcoin Reserve.
The bill was introduced on Nov. 25 and seeks the creation of a Sovereign Strategic Bitcoin Reserve known as RESBit.
Japan presents stablecoin promise
On Sept. 8, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said he anticipates strong demand for a Japanese yen stablecoin.
“People will want to hold yen stablecoins, and I think that is only a matter of time,” Garlinghouse said in an interview with Bloomberg’s The China Show on Sept. 7.
Related: Binance Bitcoin reserves hits January levels — months before BTC jumped 90%
Garlinghouse said that while he finds Japan to be a “conservative market in some ways,” he also sees it as “really healthy” in other respects.
He said that, compared to other countries, Japan has “leaned in” on offering regulatory clarity and legislation on stablecoins and cryptocurrencies.
Magazine: Bitcoin payments are being undermined by centralized stablecoins