The Japanese arm of computer giant Microsoft has partnered with nascent blockchain startup LayerX to “accelerate” uptake of the technology, Cointelegraph Japan reported Nov. 30. LayerX, which formed in August as a joint venture from news curation app Gunosy and advisory service AnyPay, oversees blockchain integration for enterprise, including areas such as smart contracts and general consulting. Using Microsoft’s Azure Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) solution, the companies will seek to promote the technology further in the domestic economy. “We will support the introduction process in its entirety, even down to technical support of finished implementations,” an accompanying press release stated, adding: “Both …

A Japanese video platform service called c0ban.tv has started its expansion into English-speaking markets, the startup team has reported to Cointelegraph. The platform has its own cryptocurrency and has been developed by the LastRoots corporation, famous for its popular cryptocurrency exchange. Buying lunch with crypto The c0ban.tv platform publishes short video ads, already with over 50,000 active users and 5 million transactions per month, according to the startup team. The concept of c0ban is based on combining blockchain and video advertisement. The core idea of c0ban is that a user can get paid with c0ban coins (RYO) for watching advertisement …

Hacked Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck has begun trading a wider range of assets Nov. 26, a press release confirmed, ten months after funds worth over $530 million were stolen. Monex Group, the Internet broker which purchased the hacked exchange in March for around $33.5 million, made the announcement following months of remedial measures and security improvements. The release of Ripple (XRP) and Factom (FCT) token trading means Coincheck is now operating services for all “tradable cryptocurrencies” on the platform. “Coincheck has been steadily resuming as each service’s technical safety is confirmed through the supports of external experts,” the release stated, …

Does your mopping robot or your food processor have names? Do you ascribe a character to them? Unless you’re a robot yourself, you probably do. The entire history of engineering has been about making the most human-like machines possible. We humans are hardwired to process social interactions, so we subconsciously expect machines to be at least somewhat human. We can adapt to dashboards, handles and buttons, but what we really want is an obedient servant. Japanese startup Connectome have come up with the “world’s first” Virtual Human Agent (VHA) on the blockchain. Robotic incarnations Any user interface, however great, is …

Nobuaki Kobayashi, trustee of the now-defunct Bitcoin (BTC) exchange Mt.Gox, is making efforts to extend the deadline for filing civil rehabilitation claims, according to an official announcement Nov. 22. While the official deadline for the filings was given as October 22, for both individual and corporate users, today’s announcement indicates that: “[I]f filings are delayed for reasons not attributable to creditors, proofs of rehabilitation claims filed after the deadline [...] may be acceptable. Whether [these] will be accepted is determined by the court [...] the Rehabilitation Trustee will make efforts to request the court to accept proofs of rehabilitation claims …

SBI Ripple Asia and the Japan Payment Card Consortium have announced a joint proof of concept (PoC) to combat fraud with blockchain technology, according to an official release published Nov. 16. According to the news release, the PoC will be conducted on R3's blockchain platform, Corda, and will aim to prevent damage wrought by fraudulent transactions by enabling the real-time sharing of data between parties using blockchain. The Japan Payment Card Consortium counts nine major credit card issuers – including American Express (Amex), Credit Saison and Toyota Finance – and two payment-card technology providers as members. SBI Ripple Asia is …

Tech Bureau, the company that formerly operated hacked Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Zaif, has completed its handover to buyer Fisco Cryptocurrency Exchange (FCCE), Cointelegraph Japan reported Nov. 22. FCCE, which agreed to take over proceedings in October, will now assume responsibility for compensating users who lost money in the hack, which occurred Sept. 20 and involved funds worth around $60 million at the time. According to a press release from FCCE, compensation proceedings should begin before the end of this month. No timeframe has yet been set for deposits and withdrawals at Zaif to resume. Confirming the move, Tech Bureau said …

Japanese shipping company Nippon Yusen K.K. (NYK) is reportedly launching its own digital currency for crew members, Bloomberg reported Nov. 20. Established in 1885, Nippon Yusen is Japan’s largest shipping line in terms of sales. From April 1 to Sept. 30, 2018, NYK Group’s consolidated revenue was 915.6 billion yen ($8.1 billion). People familiar with the matter reportedly told Bloomberg that NYK is introducing its own digital currency for crew members in order to simplify the process of managing, sending, and converting money into marine workers’ local currencies. The currency will purportedly be tied to U.S. dollars, which would help …

The South Korean branch of the Tezos Foundation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Yonsei University to collaboratively work on the development of blockchain talents, says a Tezos official press release published Nov. 21. The new agreement between the Tezos Korea Foundation and Digital Society Research Center at Yonsei University in Seoul aims to provide “blockchain education cooperation, training of OCaml [Objective Calm] and smart contract experts.” The MoU is primarily focused on human resources and education in the blockchain technology industry. The press release states: “Through this agreement, both sides will strengthen the expertise of the blockchain …

The University of Tokyo will launch a blockchain course following a donation of nearly $800,000 from several companies, including Japanese banking giant Sumitomo Mitsui (SMBC) and the Ethereum Foundation, Cointelegraph Japan reports Nov. 21. In a Nov. 20 press release, SMBC lists five more contributors, apart from itself and the Ethereum Foundation, who contributed to the donation: Good Luck 3, JSS, Zipper, Hotto link, and Money Forward. The banking group does not disclose the details of 90 million yen donation, nor did it reveal the main contributor. According to the press release, the education course, dubbed “Blockсhain Innovation Donation Course,” …

The number of enquiries about cryptocurrencies from Japanese investors has declined in the third quarter of 2018, according to a report published by Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) Friday, Nov. 16. The FSA, which oversees the country’s crypto market, published data on quarter enquiries to late September 2018. The watchdog received 1,231 requests, which is a slight decrease in comparison to 1,602 in Q2. As per the regulator, 34 percent of those enquiries (418 cases) were related to general questions, and 32 percent (398 cases) were about the results of individual transactions and contracts. The other 34 percent of cases …

lt will take “weeks, if not months” to repair the “technical damage” caused by the recent collapse of Bitcoin (BTC), according to a Fundstrat Global Advisors analyst, Bloomberg reports today, Nov. 15. In a note to clients yesterday, cited by Bloomberg, Fundstrat’s Rob Sluymer predicted that Bitcoin’s collapse yesterday has pushed crypto markets into a “deeply oversold” area, while “longer-term technical indicators aren’t so favorable.” Sluymer concluded that Bitcoin will be able to support a “multi-month rally,” but only after the “significant” damage done this week has been overcome: “This week’s breakdown produced significant technical damage that will likely take …