A few days ago a report suggested that Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) has been considering allowing Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs), however, the agency has come out to deny any such news.

On Monday a Bloomberg report cited an anonymous source and suggested that Japan’s FSA is considering the approval of a Bitcoin ETF. After the reports made the rounds, Cointelegraph Japan contacted the regulator, and reportedly the FSA’s representatives have denied Bloomberg’s claims, stating:

“At this moment, we are not exploring an approval of ETFs based on crypto assets.”

Cointelegraph Japan learned from an agency’s staff that they don’t know who is the person familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg is.

Crypto-assets

In December 2018, it was reported that FSA is considering placing cryptocurrencies into a new legal category dubbed “crypto-assets.” The report noted that the  government “hopes that traders will no longer purchase [cryptocurrencies] believing that they are legal tender recognized by the government.”

This discussion was initiated after an FSA advisory panel has filed a report that requested them to change the term “virtual currency” to prevent such confusion. Another set of reports suggests that FSA is considering the regulation of unregistered companies soliciting investments in crypto, reportedly in an attempt to close a loophole in the existing local legislation.

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