The New Global Standard from Japan
Japan Smart Chain (JSC) is an Ethereum Equivalent Japan-sovereign public-permissioned blockchain, validated entirely onshore by domestic industry leaders. Engineered as a “compliance-first” Layer 1, embedding blacklist enforcement - making it a trusted infrastructure for regulated digital-asset services without sacrificing usability.
Mission
Our mission is to streamline Japan’s digital ecosystem by building a sovereign web3 infrastructure that addresses real customer and business pain points in the current application layers - delivering solutions that are quick, cost-efficient, trustworthy, and scalable
Our Guiding Principles
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Sovereignty
Validated onshore in Japan by domestic industry leaders.
Within the control of Japan.
Beyond the influence of outside regulatory forces.
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Security
Software upgrades in lockstep with Ethereum.
Leveraging Japan's top engineering talent.
Technical experience with enterprise grade blockchain and financial systems.
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Safety
Governance and blockchain level consumer protections via eKYC/DID.
AML and anti-social compliance policies embedded at the infrastructure layer.
Customers of regulated on-chain services can safely interact with others.
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Scalability
Compatible with major L2 ecosystems from Mainnet launch.
Advancements made to either JSC or Ethereum are mutually beneficial, reducing engineering redundancy.
With nodes located in closer proximity, JSC L1 provides higher transaction throughput and speed than Ethereum Mainnet.
Introducing the Mizuhiki Protocol
Mizuhiki Suite is a modular trust & compliance suite built on top of Japan Smart Chain (JSC).
It provides everything required to anchor verified identity, regulatory compliance, and risk management directly on-chain, so businesses can launch and manage regulated digital services without relying on fragmented off-chain processes. Designed for flexibility across industries, enterprise needs and use cases, with future modules easily integrable.
Project Leadership
Joi Ito is the co-founder of Digital Garage and current President of Chiba Institute of Technology. Ito is an expert in open-source internet projects, previously serving on the board at Mozilla Foundation, Creative Commons, Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), among others.
Russell Cummer is the founder of Paidy, Japan's leading BNPL service. Paidy partnered with over 700,000 merchants, reaching Unicorn status in 2020 before PayPal acquired it in 2021. Previously, Russell worked on credit and derivatives trading at Goldman Sachs in Tokyo. Russell holds a Master of Science in Financial Mathematics from Stanford University.
Gen Kanai is a blockchain industry investor and open-source internet executive. Kanai currently serves as a Director at Animoca Brands, and previously led the Mozilla Foundation's expansion to Asia. Kanai holds a Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College.
Jeff Wentworth is the co-founder of Curvegrid, a Japan-based enterprise blockchain company. Previously, Jeff was Vice President and global product owner of block and object storage at Goldman Sachs. He holds a degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo.
Nikita Kent is a Computer Science major and specialises in Market Design (Game Theory) in the technology sector. Previously, Kent was an analyst at Elevation Capital Management and at the United Nations secretariat. Kent holds a Masters in Economics from the University of Tokyo.
Shota Matsuzawa is a co-founder of Decima Fund, a crypto-focused venture capital firm. Previously, Matsuzawa served as Deputy Director of the FSA in Japan, with a focus on fintech. Matsuzawa holds a Bachelor of Arts from Waseda University.
Marcus Okuno is a Japan Equity Market specialist and outside director at Tsuraha Holdings (TYO:3319). Previously Okuno was Managing Director of Jefferies & Company at the Tokyo headquarters and a Japan equities specialist at Merrill Lynch.
Masaya Kubota is a venture capitalist and a co-founder of Project Coalis. Kubota was a Partner at WiL, investing in notable Japanese startups, after 16 years in tech-focused investment banking at Lehman and Barclays. Kubota holds a Bachelor of Economics from Keio University.
Japan Smart Chain Foundation
JSC is managed by Japan Smart Chain Foundation, an ippan shadan houjin. The Foundation will focus on the governance of Japan Smart Chain, including:
Management of the chain
Management of the validator node network & validator partners
Open source development & JSC developer community engagement
