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Title: [2017-11-21] Blockstream, Digital Garage Team Up to Foster Blockchain in Japan Post by: aysha9872 on November 21, 2017, 10:11:42 PM Bitcoin infrastructure company Blockstream has expanded its strategic partnership with Japanese IT firm Digital Garage.
Aimed to foster blockchain development in Japan, the multi-year technology partnership comes following the pick-up in interest around bitcoin and blockchain technology (https://www.coindesk.com/information/what-is-blockchain-technology/) in the country, said Kaoru Hayashi, group CEO of Digital Garage, in a press release (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/digital-garage-and-blockstream-expand-partnership-to-accelerate-cryptocurrency-and-blockchain-deployments-in-japan-300559984.html?tc=socialpost). According to Dr. Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream: Quote "The Japanese market is ready for new business models that blockchain technologies can enable." With the news, Blockstream has announced a new investment from the DG Lab Fund – a collaboration between Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group. The funding brings Blockstream's total raised so far to over $80 million, the release states. DG Lab, along with Japanese inter-dealer broker The Tokyo Tanshi, will collaborate with Blockstream to issue local currencies using blockchain technology, as well as enter the over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency market. Enthusiasm for blockchain and cryptocurrencies is rapidly growing in Japan, and a number of companies and institutions have moved to explore the use cases of blockchain technology in various sectors. Digital services company GMO Internet announced a blockchain know-your-customer (KYC) tool (https://www.coindesk.com/japans-gmo-internet-unveils-new-blockchain-kyc-project/) last month, designed to allow banks to verify the identity of new customers. Additionally, the nation's utility giant TEPCO (https://www.coindesk.com/no-nuclear-japans-biggest-utility-turns-blockchain-power-pivot/) revealed in October that it is exploring the technology to lower risks of over-centralized energy sources, among other use cases. A number of financial institutions, including Bank of Yokohama and Mizuho Financial Group, are also trialing blockchain (https://www.coindesk.com/japanese-banks-trial-virtual-currency-funds-transfers/) as a technology to lower the costs of money transfers. Source: https://www.coindesk.com/blockstream-digital-garage-team-up-to-foster-blockchain-in-japan/ |