What is crypto gambling?

Cryptocurrency has taken off in recent years. Bitcoin entered the mainstream during 2017 as the price exploded from under $1,000 at the start of the year to nearly $20,000 by the end. While the sector has been cooling off over the last year or two, there are many exciting projects that are based on blockchain technology and utilize cryptocurrencies.

Crypto gambling comes in many different forms. On the most basic level, cryptocurrencies can be used instead of fiat currency when gambling online. This means that online gambling will be a lot more anonymous and transaction times and costs will be lower.

Some online gambling platforms accept cryptocurrencies as a payment option to fiat currency, while others accept only cryptocurrencies.

Many innovative gambling platforms have been created using blockchain technology. Many of them have their own types of cryptocurrency.

Japan getting cooperation

While Japan generally embraces new technology, it is cautious about gambling. The country’s strict regulations have proven to be a major obstacle for crypto gambling companies. In March 2019, Tron announced that it would begin blocking all gambling Dapps in Japan to comply with the country’s regulations. (Dapps, or decentralized applications, are commonly used in connection with cryptocurrencies.)

Tron also discourages those in Japan from creating gambling Dapps and encouraged developers to block Japanese IP addresses from using such platforms. The company will work with authorities in Japan to identify breaches of national laws or regulations.

Tron’s compliance is seen as a major reason that co-founder and former CTO of Tron, Lucien Chen, left the team. He believes that the project is becoming too centralized by getting involved in these issues.

Online gambling in Japan

There have long been limitations on the gambling sector in Japan. However, casinos and resort casinos have been legalized in recent years, despite significant resistance because of concerns that gambling addiction will skyrocket.

Countless illegal casinos litter the major cities across Japan. The Japanese government obviously realizes the threat crypto gambling poses to its ability to regulate gambling. That is why it is a major win getting this agreement from Tron to stop all gambling Dapps in the country.

However, there is no denying that cryptocurrencies have a role to play in online gambling. Many Japanese citizens use offshore gambling platforms. One of the main problems they face is making deposits and withdrawals.

This is because bank remittances are under strict regulation and other payment options can be cumbersome. Therefore, a lot of citizens are turning to cryptocurrencies when transferring their funds to offshore gambling platforms.

The government largely turns a blind eye to offshore online gambling. There is no specific law against people using these offshore platforms. However, with the online gambling sector constantly growing, it is only a matter of time before the Japanese regulators have to do something about it.

This could mean implementing stricter measures to stop citizens from using offshore platforms. Alternatively, they could decide to embrace the sector.