Gox cryptocurrency exchange was stung by a half-billion dollar theft in 2014, Japanese regulators swung into action. Japan's national system to oversee cryptocurrency trading was the world's first, rolled out even as policymakers elsewhere grappled with how to deal with the sector. Interviews with a dozen government officials, lawmakers and cryptocurrency industry leaders depict a regulator that opted for relatively loose rules to help nurture an industry largely populated by start-ups. In Asia, South Korea is embracing strong oversight of cryptocurrency trading, at one point saying it might shut down local exchanges. It was politically difficult to close down Coincheck," said Masakazu Masujima, a lawyer and adviser to the Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association, an industry body.

Source: The Star February 12, 2018 02:26 UTC