Japan's Financial Services Agency plans new cryptocurrency and innovation unit

PANews reported on August 29th, according to CoinPost, that the Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) announced its 2026 budget, organizational structure, and staffing plan on the 29th, announcing a major restructuring of its regulatory system. Specific measures include the reorganization of the General Policy Bureau, the establishment of the Asset Management and Insurance Supervisory Bureau (tentative name), and the creation of dedicated departments specifically dealing with crypto assets and cashless payments: the "Crypto Assets and Innovation Office" and the "Funds Settlement Monitoring Office." In the crypto asset sector, the existing "Crypto Assets and Innovation Advisory Office," the "Funds Settlement Monitoring Office," and the "Settlement and Digital Financial Group Monitoring Office" will be integrated into the newly established department, with overall responsibility for regular market monitoring, compliance with disclosure obligations in sales solicitations, adaptive regulatory implementation, and systemic risk mitigation. The tax reform proposals announced the same day also include exploring a separate taxation system for crypto asset transactions, demonstrating the FSA's commitment to building an investor protection system equivalent to that of the stock market from both institutional and organizational perspectives.