Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida publicly backed blockchain technologies to boost the country’s economic standing, reports found this week.
At a Budget Committee meeting on 1 February, Kishida explained that the country could tap “various possibilities for using Web3.”
The government could also incorporate non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs), and other digital assets. The initiative aims to boost local economies as part of the government’s Cool Japan national innovation strategy.
Kishida said in a statement: “If you consider DAOs, people who are interested in the same social issues can form a new community. NFTs can also be used to diversify the income of creators and maintain highly loyal fans.”
Masaaki Taira, the Liberal Democratic Party MP raising questions at the meeting, also heads the government’s Web3 policy watchdog. He has also advised Japanese officials on creating a digital Yen, which it aims to pilot in Spring 2023.
Taira said in a statement: “I think that these types of blockchain technology and technology using Web3 are effective in solving the various problems we have.”
According to a 2020 white paper from the Bank of Japan, there was a potential “surge in public demand for central bank digital currency (CBDC) going forward.”
This was due to the “rapid development of technological innovation,” it added.
Explaining further, it stated,
“While the Bank of Japan currently has no plan to issue CBDC, from the viewpoint of ensuring the stability and efficiency of the overall payment and settlement systems, the Bank considers it important to prepare thoroughly to respond to changes in circumstances in an appropriate manner. With this in mind, the Bank decided that it would publish its approach to ‘general purpose’ CBDC — that is, CBDC intended for a wide range of end users, including individuals and firms.”
Kishida remains a longstanding advocate of digital assets and Web3 technologies to assist the nation’s adoption of emerging technologies. His efforts come amid tightening regulations worldwide following the collapse of now-defunct crypto platform FTX in mid-November last year.
