[NEWS] Blockstream begins full-scale expansion into Japan, announcing business partnerships with Diamond Hands and others

On the 5th, Blockstream, a Bitcoin infrastructure development company, announced a business partnership with Fulgur LLC, which handles the Japan-oriented business of Fulgur Ventures, the company's largest shareholder, and Diamond Hands, in order to expand its business in Japan.

This business partnership was made as part of Blockstream's efforts to accelerate its global expansion. In conjunction with the partnership, Diamond Hands' Koji Higashi has been appointed as Blockstream's brand ambassador in Japan. Higashi will lead Blockstream's efforts to improve brand awareness in Japan and expand partnerships with domestic companies.

In its announcement, Blockstream listed four points as the potential of the Japanese market.

The first is "increased interest in Bitcoin among domestic companies." With the approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs in the United States, interest in and demand for Bitcoin is increasing worldwide, and it seems that Blockstream believes that Japanese companies will accelerate their Bitcoin holdings and entry into Bitcoin-related businesses in the future.

The second is "the rise of Bitcoin L2 (Layer 2) business." Currently, the adoption of Bitcoin L2, such as the Lightning Network and Liquid, is progressing. In the midst of this, Blockstream points out that in Japan, exchanges and enterprise companies are beginning to implement L2 technology and develop applications.

The third point is "attention to the RWA area." He explains that in Japan, attention is being paid to the area of ​​RWA (real-world assets), including stable coins, and that advanced efforts are being made even from a global perspective. Among these, he says that attention is expected to be focused on token issuance using Bitcoin in the future.

The fourth point is "collaboration with Tokyo Bitcoin Base (T₿B)." Tokyo Bitcoin Base is a co-working and event space specializing in Bitcoin, scheduled to open this spring in Yotsuya, Tokyo. In addition, Blockstream will move its Japanese base there and commit to revitalizing the domestic Bitcoin community.

Blockstream plans to work with companies and regulators to expand its business in three areas.

The first of these is "support for the issuance of RWA tokens using Bitcoin." It will support the design and implementation of token issuance such as stablecoins and RWA on the Liquid network, which is a side chain of Bitcoin.

The second will be "technical supervision and implementation support for Bitcoin." Utilizing its strengths and wealth of knowledge as a Bitcoin infrastructure development company, it will build safe Bitcoin custody, as well as provide technical supervision and implementation support for Bitcoin L2 development.

The last will be "provision of self-custodial products." It will provide self-custodial products that allow safe management of assets on Bitcoin and Liquid, and will strengthen sales in Japan of the multi-function Bitcoin mobile wallet "Blockstream Green" and the hardware wallet "Jade," which is suitable for long-term asset storage. The company plans to provide these to both consumers and businesses.

Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream, commented at the announcement, "With regulatory clarity and growing interest from institutional investors, now is the perfect time for Blockstream to expand directly into Japan. Japan is one of our most important markets, and by working with our trusted partners, Fulgur Ventures and Diamond Hands, we will help Japanese businesses and individuals leverage Bitcoin to build a secure, scalable, and decentralized financial future."

Reference: Announcement
Image: Quote from the announcement

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