The Japanese cabinet has given the green light to include cryptocurrencies in the list of assets that local investment limited partnerships can acquire, as announced by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) on February 16.
According to the ministry’s announcement on Friday, this approved revision, which involves modifications to the Act on Strengthening Industrial Competitiveness, aims to broaden strategic investments to offer support to local startups and medium-sized enterprises.
The additional amendments within the Industrial Property Information and Training Center Act, the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization Act, and the Industrial Competitiveness Enhancement Act reinforce Japan’s commitment to fostering innovation and stimulating domestic investment.
Before the bill was approved, Japanese venture capitalists were prohibited from investing in cryptocurrency assets. Consequently, Web3 startups in Japan frequently sought backing from international investors.
“Under Japanese rules up until now, VCs were not able to invest in crypto assets,” Hiro Kunimitsu, founder and CEO of Gumi Inc., wrote in an X post.
Kunimitsu explained in his X post that Japanese crypto projects had to source capital from foreign venture capitals, which has been a huge obstacle for funding. “I think that the fact that Japanese VCs can now invest will be a big opportunity for many Web3 startups from Japan,” Kunimitsu said.
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