Following the example of some major exchanges in the US, one of the Japan’s leading financial exchanges, Tokyo Financial Exchange (TFX), is planning to offer Bitcoin futures.
Chief Executive Officer of Tokyo Financial Exchange, Shoza Ohta, told reporters that the exchange is planning to set up a working group in January to study the scope of Cryptocurrencies . The listing of digital currencies on the exchange may require some changes to national securities laws.
As quoted by Bloomberg, Shoza Ohta said: “Once the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act recognizes cryptocurrencies as financial products, we will list the futures as quickly as possible. To achieve that, we will launch this working group to study various aspects, including bitcoin’s present status, its outlook, and what form it will take root in Japan’s society.”
Tokyo Financial Exchange or TFX is one of the biggest exchanges in Japan, but it is independent of the country’s main Trading Platform , the Japan Exchange Group Inc. The latter handles Japan’s stock index Nikkei 225 and Topix futures.
TFX also handles some big trading participants like JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Barclays Bank Plc.
This decision from the Japanese exchange came after the confirmation of the launch of first Bitcoin futures by CME Group. Two other exchanges in the USA, COBE and NASDAQ, also announced their plans and preparation of launching Bitcoin derivatives in 2018.
Currently, Japan is handling the largest volume of Bitcoin trading on its exchanges. The country also welcomes the digital tokens based on the new technology and in April of this year the country also recognized Bitcoin as a means of legal exchange.
Also, the Japanese Financial Services Agency recently granted the license to four more cryptocurrency exchanges, bringing the total of legally recognized cryptocurrency exchanges in the country to fifteen.
