Blockstream Opens New Office in Tokyo as It Expands in Asia
The company plans to drive Japanese adoption of Bitcoin Layer-2 and self-custody technologies.

What to know:
- Blockstream, the Bitcoin technology firm, has opened a new office in Tokyo as it expands in the region.
- The crypto firm, co-founded by Adam Back, aims to drive adoption of Bitcoin Layer-2 and self-custody technologies in Japan.
Blockstream, the crypto company co-founded by legendary bitcoin
The company will be partnering in the region with Diamond Hands, Japan's leading Bitcoin strategic consultancy, and investment firm Fulgur Ventures.
Blockstream plans to drive adoption of Bitcoin Layer-2 and self custody technologies in Japan, the company said, as well as the tokenization of real world assets (RWA).
Japanese corporates have shown increased interest in the world's largest cryptocurrency. Metaplanet (3350), the hotel investor, recently announced the largest capital raise in Asian equity market history to buy bitcoin.
Blockstream is looking to support local businesses that want to participate in the bitcoin economy, and can offer treasury, payments infrastructure, and custody solutions, the company said.
"With increased regulatory clarity and rising institutional interest in bitcoin now is the moment for Blockstream to establish a direct presence in Japan, one of our most important markets," said Adam Back, co-founder and CEO of Blockstream.
"We look forward to empowering Japanese enterprises and individuals to fully harness Bitcoin as the foundation for a financial future that's secure, scalable and decentralized," Back added.
Blockstream Capital, the investment arm of the business, recently invested $75 million in bitcoin in Komainu, a crypto custody joint venture between Nomura, Ledger and Coinshares.
Read more: Nomura-Backed Komainu Receives $75M Bitcoin Investment From Blockstream Capital
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KuCoin Hits Record Market Share as 2025 Volumes Outpace Crypto Market

KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
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Agora's Nick van Eck bets on stablecoin boom in enterprise payments

Agora CEO Nick van Eck sees stablecoin adoption shifting to real-world business for cross-border payments.
需要了解的:
- Agora, founded by Nick van Eck, is shifting its focus from DeFi growth toward using its AUSD stablecoin for enterprise payroll, B2B and cross-border payments.
- Van Eck argued that traditional companies will adopt stablecoins slowly due to infrastructure, policy and education gaps, but sees the biggest gains in replacing costly, pre-funded cross-border payment systems.
- He said he expects corporate-controlled chains like Circle's Arc, Coinbase's Base and Stripe's Tempo to dominate as the market consolidates, and aims for Agora to become a top-five global stablecoin issuer by building tools that feel more like bank accounts than crypto.











