Rakuten Might Soon Accept Bitcoin PaymentsFounder of Japan based e-commerce giant Rakuten has announced recently that the company is thinking about bitcoin adoption.Over the past few years, many leading companies have realized the many benefits of using bitcoin and embraced the digital currency.
Only a few weeks ago tech giant Microsoft informed that it will start accepting bitcoin. Similar news was reported today about Rakuten.Hiroshi Mikitani, the founder and chief executive discussed at an event that even though it’s not confirmed yet, the company might start accepting bitcoin payments soon.Rakuten is among the largest Japanese firms which show an interest in digital currency bitcoin and other crypto currencies. It has even created a separate department to study digital currencies.
The company has invested in various bitcoin-related ventures in the United States. One of the most significant investments is in the Francisco-based company called Bitnet Technologies.Rakuten claims that their mission is to empower people and society through the Internet and become the No. 1 Internet Services company in the world. Accepting bitcoin would a step in the right direction.Mr.
Mikitani talked about bitcoin acceptance at the Rakuten Financial Conference held in Tokyo. He said at the conference, “We are thinking about it".We would like to be open.” At the event, panelists discussed different crypto currencies.
They also talked about other alternatives to credit cards and cash.When Mr. Mikitani was asked when a decision can be expected, he refused to specify.The total number of bitcoin companies is not only increasing overall globally but also rising in Japan. Even after the drastic failure of Tokyo-based Mt.
Gox last year, Japanese continue to use bitcoin.Mt. Gox was the largest bitcoin exchange in the world at the time but the collapse did not impact use of bitcoin as much as experts expected.Development of bitcoin in Japan is supported by the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party.
Bitcoin related Japanese companies include BitBank Inc and Resu Press Inc. Both of these companies offer user platforms for both individuals and retailers.The Liberal Democratic Party helped to launch the bitcoin industry’s self-governing body called the “Japan Authority of Digital Assets” last year.Yukio Noguchi, an economist who served as the Ministry of Finance bureaucrat previously, thinks use of bitcoin by the giant companies like Rakuten is still essential for consumer confidence as bitcoin is moving closer to mainstream adoption.
While bitcoin is exceling at own pace, many technology firms like Apple Inc. and Line Corp. are announcing and setting their own payment systems
