Japanese Bitcoin Exchange Bitpoint Expands into Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan

Japanese bitcoin exchange Bitpoint has been actively expanding into the Greater China region. After launching operations in mainland China and Hong Kong, on Friday the company announced its launch in Taiwan through a partnership with a “major commercial bank”.

Also read: Bitpoint Adds Bitcoin and Ether Payments to Platform with Unionpay, Wechat Pay and Alipay

Expansion into Taiwan

Bitpoint, famed for partnering with Peach Aviation and promising to introduce bitcoin payments to 100,000+ retail stores across Japan, announced on Friday its expansion into Taiwan by partnering with a “leading commercial bank.” The announcement states, “We have received full support from Taiwan’s leading commercial bank, and we are pleased to inform you that we will establish a virtual currency exchange, Bitpoint Taiwan.” However, the name of the bank was not disclosed due to a “confidential obligation with the counterparty,” the exchange conveyed.

Citing that “Taiwan has independent monetary policies under a different business practice from mainland China,” Bitpoint said the region “is expected to be more active in digital currency trading going forward.” The company added:

With the support of the leading commercial bank in Taiwan, Bitpoint Japan will revitalize the virtual currency market in Taiwan and promote the spread of virtual currency transactions utilizing the global network of this bank.

Mainland China and Hong Kong

Taiwan is Bitpoint’s latest expansion. Last month, the company announced that it is launching a bitcoin exchange in Hong Kong called Bitpoint Global, through a joint venture with Top Wisdom Accounting and Consulting Ltd. The new exchange is expected to start service on July 28.

The company said at the time:

As Hong Kong is an important base along the settlement route to mainland China, it is expected that virtual currency transactions in Hong Kong will be revitalized in the future.

The launches in Taiwan and Hong Kong follow the company’s February expansion into mainland China, through a partnership with Galaxy Dragonfly Investments Co. Ltd, a bitcoin mining company. Under the agreement, the Beijing-based firm will provide Bitpoint with a stable supply of bitcoins. “The amount of bitcoin transactions in the Chinese market is overwhelmingly large, and we believe that stable procurement is necessary to prepare for the large scale demand of bitcoins,” Bitpoint detailed at the time.

Bitpoint’s spread into China came amid the company’s multiple ventures in its home country, which have grown significantly since the government began recognizing bitcoin in April. In addition to operating a bitcoin exchange, the company is working towards introducing bitcoin payments to over 100,000 retailers in Japan. Furthermore, the company will start offering its own bitcoin payment system by partnering with Nippon Pay.

What do you think about Bitpoint’s expansion plans? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Bitpoint

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