Japan has seen the launch of world’s first bank-owned cryptocurrency exchange. The country’s SBI Holdings has formally announced the launch of VCTRADE, which is a cryptocurrency platform. The company had announced a limited launch of the exchange for some 20,000 pre-registered users – enrolled during an early alpha in 2017 – while holding off on a wider public launch. Japan is one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading markets where exchanges are required to be licensed under regulatory laws. VCTRADE will be managed by SBI Holdings’ wholly-owned subsidiary SBI Virtual Currencies. It has started accepting applications from Japanese users for new accounts. All Japanese residents between 20-70 years are eligible to be participants. VCTRADE initially offered trading of XRP, Ripple’s native token that powers the Ripple Consensus Ledger (RCL). It has now added Bitcoin Cash (BCH/JPY) and Bitcoin (BTC/JYP).
