Sovereign Blockchain for Japan: Contributing to the promotion of Web 3.0 for large corporations and governments - Japan Smart Chain - Interview with Russell Comer

What are your thoughts on the outlook for the Web3.0 space in 2025?

Russell Comer (Comer): I think it was very interesting news that USDC was recently announced as the first licensed stablecoin in Japan through SBI VC Trade. In addition, we are also paying attention to the innovation regarding domestic yen-denominated stablecoins. In addition to the spread of stablecoins, we believe that blockchain adoption will further accelerate in 2025 as RWA (real-world assets) are made online.

Japan Smart Chain was launched under the label "Japan-led blockchain." Please tell us the background and characteristics of focusing on its use in Japan.

Comer: As an entrepreneur in the Japanese payments space and as someone who has been involved with crypto assets for a long time, I began exploring the potential of stablecoins for payments in Japan as early as 2021.

It was around this time that I connected with Japan Smart Chain co-founder Joichi Ito and chief architect Jeff Wentworth. As we discussed and researched the possibilities of stablecoins with them, we came to believe that in order to promote Web3.0 in Japan, we needed to urgently develop a sovereign Layer 1 blockchain infrastructure that would meet Japan's demand for advanced digital security, privacy, and safety and would not be affected by foreign governments or regulatory authorities or single points of failure. This led us to come up with the idea of ​​Japan Smart Chain.

Our goal is to build a sovereign Layer 1 blockchain infrastructure in Japan.