Japanese Finance Giant Monex Applies to the Libra Association by Masayuki Tashiro

The Libra Association is the independent consortium that will govern the Libra, the stablecoin crypto asset proposed by Facebook. Facebook is negotiating with other potential members — including Visa, Mastercard, Uber, Lyft and eBay. Members of the Libra Association will need to pay 10 million dollars to join.

At the FYE March 2020 Q1 results briefing held on July 26, Oki Matsumoto, the CEO of Monex Group, said that Monex is the first Japanese company to apply to join Libra. Matsumoto said that a decision on the feasibility of joining the Libra Association is expected to be made by the end of September following the initial review, which will be completed by the end of August. Matsumoto said that some large companies were already involved and that Libra has great potential.

In Monex Group’s financial results, the crypto asset part of the group is back in profit following the 2019 Bitcoin rally. The company said that cost reduction strategies are in place, and internal controls and security practices have been increased. Coincheck has become profitable for the first time since joining the group, driven by rapid account growth, the offering of a new cryptocurrency, and favorable market activity throughout the quarter. The Monex crypto sector announced a profit of JPY0.14 billion (approximately USD1.29 million).