Reports out this morning point towards leading cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase moving to Japan to begin enhanced operations in the country. Of course, Japan is considered to be the home of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies, mainly through the sheer volume of traders living on its shores, therefore, whilst this news is hardly surprising, a move of this nature by Coinbase has big implications for the rest of the crypto-community.

How will this work?

As you know, or may not know of course, cryptocurrency exchanges within Japan now have to be licensed and meet a whole host of regulations. These regulations are designed to ensure the security and integrity of assets and customers and are not designed to hinder the work of cryptocurrency exchanges. Therefore, before the move, Coinbase will need to apply for a license and meet the strict criteria. Of course, I imagine they will complete this task with ease, since Coinbase is already considered to be one of the most integral cryptocurrency exchanges within Europe and the United States.

This news has sparked speculation that we could now see another bull run on the horizon and that, once Coinbase moves to Japan, we will see huge volumes of trading occur within Coinbase, in Japan. Interestingly, we should look at Ripple XRP, a currency that is frankly dying to get a listing on Coinbase.

Bear with me here as this is speculative, but, as Ripple is considered to be the most highly traded coin in Japan, it would only make sense for Coinbase to facilitate Ripple XRP trades when they move, otherwise, they are going to hold off a whole bunch of customers who would otherwise be keen to switch to them.

A Coinbase listing for Ripple XRP would in turn see the value of XRP skyrocket, as, this would indicate a great step towards adoption. We know however that Coinbase won’t list Ripple XRP until XRP as a currency is no longer associated with securities, this is an ongoing case within the United States. That aside though, if Ripple XRP manages to shake off the security burden, at around the same time Coinbase complete their move to Japan, we could see some incredible things unravel. Stay tuned into this one, it could be massive.