Blockchain

On October 5, Japan’s NEC Corp. announced that it will purchase Swiss financial solutions provider Avaloq Group AG for CHF 2.05 billion (USD 2.25 billion), making it the biggest acquisition ever for NEC.

Students and professors at the University of Aizu in Aizu-Wakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture, are getting a start on cashless payments of the future, using the new regional digital currency Byacco.

Japan's three megabanks look to link their digital currencies to East Japan Railway's popular Suica smart transit card, hoping to expand their customer bases by improving convenience.

EY Japan, a branch of the global accountancy firm, plans to launch a blockchain traceability system for Japanese sake and fruit, sharing information including origin and delivery records with foreign consumers, in a move that will help brewers and producers differentiate their authentic products from counterfeits.

Blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, could soon be used in Japan as a way to verify educational records.

Five major automakers including Honda Motor begin field tests next month in the U.S. for a blockchain-based vehicle identification system that would let drivers automatically pay parking fees or highway tolls without using cash or cards.

Japan's big, established brokerage houses are opening up to blockchain -- the technology behind bitcoin -- in a growing recognition of its game-changing potential despite a year and a half of setbacks for cryptocurrencies.

Leading Japanese brokerages will form an organization Tuesday to set rules for issuing blockchain-based digital securities that represent a new way of raising capital from assets like real estate.

Mitsubishi Electric and Yaskawa Electric are among 100 major Japanese manufacturers set to share production data with each other to improve efficiency, using blockchain technology to ensure their information remains secure, Nikkei has learned.

Mike Kayamori, the co-founder and CEO of Liquid Group Inc., spoke about how blockchain technology is changing society and associated global trends at The Japan Times Advanced Technology Forum held in Tokyo on May 31. The forum was supported by the Ogasawara Foundation for the Promotion of Science and Engineering as one of its subsidized projects.