Sebastian Sinclair

<div id="highlights-block_62994a78320ac" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>FTX can now service the Japanese crypto market which possesses a potential $1 trillion, CEO Sam Bankman-Fried said</li>
 <li>The exchange will offer both spot and derivatives products, courtesy of its Type 1 Financial Instruments Business license</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Cryptocurrency exchange FTX has expanded its presence to Japan following its acquisition of a regulated domestic marketplace earlier this year.



In February, FTX <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ftx-acquires-liquid-group-expanding-presence-in-japan/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">acquired Japan-based fintech firm Liquid Group</a> and its subsidiaries, granting the exchange access to the firm&#8217;s Type 1 Financial Instruments Business license.



Formerly known as Quoine Corporation, FTX Japan K.K is expected to offer Japanese customers a platform for spot and derivatives trading.



FTX – ever hungry for more business – continues to gobble up crypto and blockchain companies as it hopes to position itself as the pre-eminent marketplace for crypto trading.



Last year, the exchange&#8217;s US arm bought crypto derivatives platform LedgerX to get its hands on Ledger&#8217;s license to offer bitcoin&nbsp;fractional derivatives contracts. The exchange acquired the mobile news and portfolio tracking app Blockfolio in 2020 before renaming it FTX a year later.



Its most recent acquisition has allowed FTX to piggyback off of Liquid&#8217;s status as an existing licensed cryptoasset exchange services provider in a move that was critical to FTX&#8217;s expansion in the country, FTX&#8217;s CEO Sam Bankman-Fried said.



&#8220;The acquisition not only gives us a technological advantage but also allows us to work directly with Japanese regulators in a transparent, constructive and positive manner,&#8221; Bankman-Fried said in the statement.



In January, FTX garnered an additional <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ftx-valued-at-32-billion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$400 million</a> in funding via a Series C raise meant to broaden its services and acquisitions into international markets, allowing it to pick up licenses from domestic companies.



Japan&#8217;s &#8220;highly regulated market&#8221; for crypto trading possesses a potential $1 trillion, Bankman-Fried said, adding that his company would now be able to service the domestic market in both perpetual and spot trading.



&#8220;We look forward to further revolutionizing the Japanese digital asset ecosystem through FTX Japan,&#8221; he said.



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