In its bid to ensure the safety and integrity of the crypto space within its borders, Japan’s top financial watchdog, —Financial Services Agency (FSA), has launched an investigation into two of the country’s top cryptocurrency exchanges Huobi Japan and Fisco.
New Management Has the FSA Worried
According to a recent report from the Reuters, these two top exchanges are currently under investigation from the FSA regarding their customer protection and anti-money laundering (AML) provision.
The report revealed that exchanges under the management of these two firms have recently “seen big changes at the management level”, as a result of this, it is important for the FSA to ensure that the new management is keen on complying with measures put in place by the watchdog to ensure the sanctity of the Japanese crypto community.
Houbi recently expanded its business into Japan last year when it acquired licensed cryptocurrency exchange—BitTrade. In the case of Fisco, the company recently acquired Zaif exchange, previously managed by Tech Bureau. Zaif was a victim of a crypto hack which led to the loss of approximately $62.5 million in bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH) and monacoin (MONA). Fisco reportedly acquired the firm for $44.7 million.
Since the hacking incident, new user registration on the platform has been suspended and trading, withdrawing or depositing MONA on the platform has been paused. Trading on the platform reportedly commenced today 23/04/2019.
Japan Has a Working System for Regulating the Crypto Industry
When it comes to regulating the crypto industry with effective and lenient laws, Japan is leading. The country is one of few countries to recognize bitcoin as a legal method of payment. In April 2017, Japan signed a bill which brought cryptocurrency exchanges under the anti-money laundering (AML)/know-your-customer (KYC) rules, into law. The bill also ensured that all crypto exchange platforms operating within the country, be licensed by the country’s top financial watchdog, the FSA.