"Unicorn Startup: Series C funding & Fin Tech Outlook"

Mike Kayamori, Liquid Group Inc. CEO

Language: The speech and Q & A will be in English.

 

Japan's cryptocurrency industry, reputed to be one of the most bustling and properly regulated in the world, has got a big boost with global cryptocurrency platform Liquid.com becoming a "unicorn," or a company valued by investors at more than one billion US dollars.

Liquid, which was founded in 2014 and in 2017 became the first global cryptocurrency exchange licensed by Japan's financial regulators, recently announced the achievement at the close of an initial Series C funding round led by investment firm IDG Capital and backed by Bitmain Technologies, the world's largest maker of cryptocurrency mining rigs. Liquid is now one of the only two tech unicorns in Japan's startup sector.

The FCCJ hosts a roundtable with Liquid Group Inc. CEO Mike Kayamori who is due to speak mainly about the ongoing Series C funding as well as the outlook of financial technology. Proceeds from the funding will be used to spur Liquid's global expansion and product development, and support its move into the security token market. "Our vision is to make financial services accessible to all, which means bringing more people into the digital asset space so that anyone can be a part of it," he said in a statement.

Kayamori, who holds a Bachelor of Law from the University of Tokyo and an MBA from Harvard Business School, is a co-founder of QUOINE, a Liquid Group fintech firm which operates Liquid.com, with more than two decades of experience in investment, business management, IT and venture capital across Japan, the United States, India and Southeast Asia. Before joining QUOINE, he served in senior positions at SoftBank Group, Gungho Asia and Globespan Capital Partners

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Professional Activities Committee