WebX 2024: Japanese Officials Discuss Web3 and Emerging Tech Policy

KEYTAKEAWAYS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• KEY TAKEAWAYS
• DISCLAIMER
• WRITER’S INTRO

CONTENT

Economic Ministry’s Waka Itagaki, FSA’s Akiho Shimizu, and METI’s Yoko Ikeda discuss challenges and opportunities in promoting emerging technologies like Web3 at the WebX international conference.

Challenges and Possibilities in Promoting Emerging Technologies

At the international Web3 conference “WebX” organized by CoinPost Inc. and hosted by the WebX Executive Committee, three female officials active in the Web3 field from various ministries held a talk session on the theme “Public-Private Co-creation: Policies for Promoting Emerging Technologies such as Web3.” The panel featured Waka Itagaki from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Akiho Shimizu from the Financial Services Agency, and Yoko Ikeda from the Competition Environment Improvement Office at METI.

Waka Itagaki, Deputy Director at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), mentioned at the outset, “As a startup representative at the Cabinet Secretariat, I have been interacting with all ministries except the Imperial Household Agency.” She added, “The Kishida administration has positioned startup policy support as a top priority to be addressed first. This includes Web3-specific initiatives.”

Akiho Shimizu, Deputy Director of the Innovation Promotion Office at the Financial Services Agency (FSA), explained, “I’ve been in the Innovation Promotion Office from around September 2022 until now. Rather than supervisory duties, I gather information through participation and speaking at FinTech events.”

The FSA’s FinTech Support Desk receives the most inquiries about startup establishment. She encouraged Web3-related businesses, such as those providing systems to financial institutions, to consult with the support desk.

Yoko Ikeda, Director of the Competition Environment Improvement Office at METI (former Cabinet Office Counsellor), who has been in charge of startup support at the New Capitalism Secretariat of the Cabinet Office, stated, “The Kishida administration has invested resources in startup companies as potential catalysts for domestic economic growth.” She added, “However, when making major institutional reforms, we need to consider whether they align with current trends. As Japanese society moves away from old systems like lifetime employment and seniority-based promotion, we need to proceed at the practical level while carefully confirming evidence.”

FSA’s Shimizu said, “For example, there are people who are not in the Web3 industry but are greatly affected by legal changes. To form a social consensus, we need easy-to-understand use cases that resonate with society.” She added, “The FSA should not just wait but should study daily.”

METI’s Ikeda appealed for cooperation, saying, “The bigger the issue, the more it needs to be explained briefly in the Diet, but it’s often difficult to explain unclear cases. We want to borrow private sector strength, not just rely on administration.”

She continued, “New technologies are constantly emerging in the private sector. The regulatory sandbox system allows free trials within a limited space. Depending on the results, this can become a driving force for progress.”

FSA’s Shimizu emphasized, “The FSA has a FinTech Proof-of-Concept Hub in addition to the Innovation Promotion Office. This is something the private sector and the FSA do together.”

Itagaki expressed her aspirations, saying, “While we consider it important to incorporate private sector opinions, we often seek opinions from specific committee members in councils. Inevitably, the voices of industry associations that are compiling opinions are loud. We want to absorb more individual company opinions.” She also shared challenges in human resource development within the government, stating, “As emerging technologies progress and change rapidly, learning and human resource development can’t keep up.”

Related:

WebX 2024:Japan’s Economic Minister Ken Saitō Outlines Web3 Vision

WebX 2024: Navigating the 10 Million Yen Bitcoin Era – Investment Strategies and Future Outlook

Summary

In the final summary, Shimizu encouraged, “Please make full use of the FSA’s FinTech Support Desk,” while Itagaki called out, “The Japanese government considers this essential, not just for Web3 but also in the face of population decline. In terms of aspirations, we’re aiming for the same place as all of you,” concluding the session.

(Content Original Source: CoinPost)