Alibaba will bring a version of its smartphone-based payment platform to Japan as early as 2018 spring; the Japanese unit of Ant Financial will offer a version of the Alipay digital payment system tailored for the Japanese market under a new brand. Source
The FIBC was founded in 2012 and holds a conference in Japan; Applications for their FinPitch competition are now open; event will include pitches from 30 organizations to a global audience; the event takes place on March 2, 2018 in Tokyo. Source
The Japan Exchange Group has been approved to use blockchain in trading and will begin testing blockchain on the Tokyo Stock Exchange; its approval follows a previous restriction on blockchain's use in exchange trading; with the approval the Japan Exchange Group may also explore artificial intelligence; other market exchanges working on blockchain developments include Myanmar's Yangon Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq; the Bank of Japan has also reported increased research in the use of fintech. Source
Ticket Camp, one of Japan's most popular ticket marketplaces, has announced it will accept bitcoin payments starting on August 17; the website's bitcoin payments are processed by one of Japan's largest bitcoin exchanges Coincheck; Japan started to recognize bitcoin as a legal method of payment in April 2017. Source
Tokyo-based fintech company MoneyForward could go public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Mothers market by September; its market cap is expected to be JPY10 to 20 billion ($90 to $180 million); founded in 2012, MoneyForward is a personal financial management app which includes accounting functions, payroll service, statement collection, expense reporting, financial projections and the ability to send an invoice; MoneyForward has over four million individual users in Japan. Source
Japanese insurer Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co. has announced plans to replace 30% of its payment assessment department with an artificial intelligence system; the insurance company has partnered with IBM for use of IBM's Watson; the system will analyze and interpret medical documents for insurance payments; the company estimates it will save approximately 140 million yen ($1.19 million) per year by utilizing the new system; other insurance companies also exploring artificial intelligence for similar types of work include Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co., Japan Post Insurance Co. and Nippon Life Insurance Co. Source
Mizuho along with 60 other banks are launching a new digital wallet called J-Coin Pay; the name implies that J-Coin...
NTT Data, Japan's largest IT services firm, has announced a new blockchain consortium; 13 participating members including three of Japan's megabanks: the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Mizuho and the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation; other notable participants represent industries such as insurance, logistics, and import and export trade; the consortium's objectives include exploring the lead up to and validation of the feasibility of blockchain applications; the consortium will be officially launched on August 30 and expected to last until March 2018. Source
SBI Ripple Asia this summer announced plans for a Japanese blockchain development consortia; now, it says interest from banks has been so high that they are launching in November 2016 with 47 member banks, as opposed to an originally planned launch in March 2017 with 30 banks; the participants will be working first on a proof of concept for real-time remittance and cross-border payments; participants include Mizuho, Bank of Yokohama and SBI Sumishin Net Bank. Source
Japanese banks are looking at digital payments due to a recent regulatory change which may bring in more competition; the law will be introduced in phases which makes it easier for depositors to give third parties access to both their accounts and data; it is part of a government push to reduce high cash use in the country; Projects around QR codes, blockchain and digital currencies are currently in the works. Source