Odaily Planet Daily News: The Dojima Exchange in Osaka plans to apply for the listing and trading of Bitcoin futures before the end of March. If approved by the Financial Services Agency, this will become the first traditional exchange in Asia to offer Bitcoin futures trading, and may begin trading Bitcoin futures denominated in Japanese yen as early as the 2025 fiscal year. The number of active cryptocurrency accounts in Japan has almost doubled in the past two years, reaching approximately 7.13 million as of the end of December last year. With the expansion of individual investors' participation in cryptocurrency investment, the demand for price hedging tools in the market is also growing. If there is a synergistic effect between futures and spot trading, the expansion of the Japanese market may attract more institutional investors to participate. At present, Bitcoin futures are mainly traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) in the United States. If the Japanese Dojima Exchange starts offering futures trading, it may become the main price indicator during the Asian trading session. SBI Holdings and other companies are investors in the Dokdo Exchange. SBI Chairman and President Yoshitaka Kitao, who is regarded as a promoter of "Web3," has been advocating for the development of cryptocurrency futures trading on the Dojima Exchange and supporting the Osaka Prefectural Government's vision of an international financial city. (Bloomberg)