[NEWS] Joichi Ito and Paidy founder announce Japan Smart Chain, a Layer 1 blockchain developed in Japan

On the 28th, AltX Research Inc. announced that it will launch "Japan Smart Chain (JSC)" as a layer 1 blockchain focused on the development of blockchain services in Japan. It aims to make it a social infrastructure as a low-cost blockchain that complies with Japanese regulations.

Japan Smart Chain is positioned as a fully compatible layer 1 blockchain with Ethereum, and is billed as a "Japan-led blockchain" that is validated by Japanese companies. According to the announcement, the vision is to eliminate foreign laws and regulations and external interference as much as possible, and to design it so that it is not influenced by overseas politics and economics.

Members promoting Japan Smart Chain include Joichi Ito, co-founder of AltX Research and president of Chiba Institute of Technology, and Russell Cummer, co-founder and founder of the postpaid payment service Paidy. In addition, SBI Investment, X&KSK Fund, co-founded by former Japanese national soccer team player Honda Keisuke, and Decima Fund, a Web3-specialized fund, will participate in the seed round of Japan Smart Chain as investors. In addition, partner companies include Animoca Brands Japan, FamilyMart Digital One, and Loyalty Marketing.

Regarding the background to the launch of Japan Smart Chain, Ito pointed out that while interest and expectations for Web 3.0 have increased due to recent efforts by the Japanese government and private companies, adoption of blockchain is limited and there are issues with security, such as consumer protection. Based on this, he believes that infrastructure needs to be built as soon as possible so that Japan does not get left behind by the rest of the world, and came up with the idea of ​​Japan Smart Chain, which is not affected by various influences such as external factors from overseas and single points of failure.

Japan Smart Chain has four principles: sovereignty, information security, safety, and scalability. With regard to sovereignty in particular, they emphasize that it is a "Layer 1 blockchain for Japan" that is validated domestically and complies with Japanese laws and regulations. Comer also said at the press conference, "Critical infrastructure such as electricity, communications, and transportation should be sovereign."

In terms of information security and safety, they aim to minimize the compliance burden on businesses and users by utilizing their proprietary "MIZUHIKI protocol." MIZUHIKI is an authentication method that users themselves can control, and is combined with eKYC tools and services optimized for Japanese regulations.

In relation to scalability, they also explained that they will release "L2 as a service" along with the launch of Japan Smart Chain, creating an environment in which existing Layer 2 blockchain projects can adopt infrastructure that is significantly lower cost and compliant with regulations.

According to the white paper, Japan Smart Chain has the following roadmap.

• 2024 Q4: White paper v1.0 released
• 2025 Q1: Developer portal released
• 2025 Q2: MIZUHIKI protocol v1.0 tools released
• 2025 Q3: Initial launch
• 2025 Q4: DID/VC by MIZUHIKI attestor

In addition, Japan Smart Chain plans to issue JSC tokens as native tokens issued on the blockchain. The number of tokens issued is 50 billion, and they will be distributed to validators and the Japan Smart Chain Foundation (JSCF).

Image: Iolite

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