Japan May Change Crypto Rules to Securities Law
Japan’s government is thinking about moving cryptocurrency regulations from the Payment Services Act to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA). This would treat crypto more like stocks or bonds.
The goal is to give investors stronger protection and make rules clearer. If this change happens, crypto exchanges and issuers will face stricter requirements, such as giving more information about risks, price volatility, and token reliability. At the same time, some old rules would be removed to avoid double regulations.
Even if crypto falls under securities law, people could still use it for payments. The Financial Services Agency (FSA) plans to propose a law change in the parliament session next year.
Experts Still Have Doubts
Not everyone agrees with this plan. Some experts worry it may not be suitable to treat all cryptocurrencies as securities.
Naoyuki Iwashita, a professor at Kyoto University and former Bank of Japan official, said it might not matter much whether big tokens like Bitcoin and Ethereum are under the Payment Services Act or FIEA. But he raised concerns about other tokens, especially those launched through Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOs).
According to data, most Japanese IEO tokens have lost a lot of value—many by over 90%. Iwashita argued it would be wrong to classify such tokens as safe investments for the public.
