Tokyo Stock Exchange Operator JPX To Tighten Rules On DAT Firms Amid Stock Declines: Bloomberg
Japan Exchange Group (JPX) is considering steps to tighten oversight of publicly traded companies that accumulate large amounts of crypto as stocks for digital asset treasury (DAT) firms sink.
According to a recent Bloomberg report that cited sources familiar with the matter, the Tokyo Stock Exchange Operator is exploring measures for companies looking to make a crypto treasury pivot.
JPX May Soon Require Companies To Undergo A Fresh Audit
Among the measures that the JPX is reportedly planning to introduce is a stricter interpretation of existing backdoor-listing rules.
A backdoor listing lets a private company fast-track their route to a public listing by merging with or acquiring a company that is already listed. This is a much quicker alternative to the process of the private company filing for an Initial Public Offering (IPO), and is a common tactic used by new DAT firms in recent months.
JPX already prohibits backdoor listings, and has also warned companies that their fundraising capacity could be restricted if they pursued crypto acquisitions as a core business model.
In addition to tightening the interpretation of backdoor listings, JPX is also reportedly planning on requiring companies to undergo new audits if they pivot into large-scale crypto accumulation.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange operator currently does not have explicit rules that prevent listed firms from amassing crypto reserves.
DAT Stocks Plummet In The Past Month
JPX’s reported plans come as the stock prices for many DAT firms suffer major drops in the past month.
Among those firms is Strategy, which is currently the largest corporate Bitcoin globally. In the last 30 days, the company’s share price has plummeted more than 28%, data from Google Finance shows.
Meanwhile, other DAT firms including American Bitcoin and KindlyMD have seen their stock prices plunge over 18% and 22%, respectively, in the past month.
Japan-based Metaplanet has seen its stock price trade in a similar trend, with its share price that has tumbled more than 17% in the past month. This was after a 6% drop in the past 24 hours.
Metaplanet is the largest corporate Bitcoin holder in Asia and the fourth-largest globally with 30,823 BTC on its balance sheet, according to Bitcoin Treasuries data.
Top 10 largest BTC corporate holders (Source: Bitcoin Treasuries)
In response to JPX’s reported plans, Metaplanet said that it has not been subject to regulatory actions or investigations related to its business operations.
“Metaplanet has conducted its corporate transformation in a lawful and transparent manner, in close consultation with legal, accounting, and tax professionals,” the company wrote in a statement earlier today.
“With shareholder approval at both extraordinary and annual general meetings, we have adhered to all procedures deemed necessary under applicable laws and regulations, maintaining corporate governance as our highest priority,” the company added.
The company also said that news of JPX’s plans is a “natural and healthy development” that Metaplanet believes will “contribute to enhancing the transparency and credibility” of the “emerging” DAT business model.
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