Japanese Residents Have Cash to Spare, But is it Going into Crypto?
Investors in Japan increased their crypto holdings during the early stages of the pandemic before the government issued economic relief payments. The amount of liquid assets available to residents of Japan has increased following the government issuing 100,000 yen — roughly $936 — stimulus payments to individuals, 300,000 yen to some households, and other payments to companies in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
In March, investors in Japan increased their holdings of major cryptocurrencies, by 11% for Bitcoin (BTC), 5.7% for Ethereum (ETH), and 6.4% for Ripple (XRP), as well as moderate gains for other altcoins. This means Japanese residents were investing more heavily in crypto following “Black Thursday” and during early measures in the country to prevent the spread of the coronavirus — many schools in Japan closed in March.
