Japanese Crypto Advocate Wins Parliament Seat

cryptonews.com:

A leading Japanese crypto advocate has won a seat in the House of Councilors, the nation’s lower parliamentary house.

Per CoinPost, Takeshi Fujimaki, a former lawmaker who lost his seat in the 2019 election, has been restored to the house under proportional representation rules.

Fujimaki, a 73-year-old crypto and blockchain champion, will take his place in the house following the death of a sitting lawmaker.

And Fujimaki has spoken in favor of issues such as crypto tax reform, US-style crypto ETF approval, and the wider adoption of pro-crypto business policies.

In 2019, he asked the government to scrap taxes on crypto-to-crypto trading. He also asked the government to waive taxes on micropayments made in crypto.

The lawmaker first won election to the house in 2013. But he lost his seat in the 2019 election, when he stood as a proportional representation candidate for the Japan Restoration Party.

Fujimaki has previously worked as the Tokyo branch manager of international financial institutions.

Over the past few years, he has spoken at length about the “importance of blockchain and cryptoassets.”

He has stated that blockchain and crypto could “contribute greatly” to Japan’s future growth. And he claims that the sectors could “revitalize Japan’s economy.”

The lawmaker said crypto and blockchain could help in “attracting capital and talent from around the world.”