bitFlyer’s CEO Hunts Wall Street Talent to Become ‘Number One’ Exchange

Yuzo Kano, the CEO of the Japan-based bitFlyer crypto exchange seems to be working towards building a global empire, recruiting talent from the financial industry to establish the cornerstone.

Kano, a Goldman Sachs alum himself, reportedly plans to build the exchange’s staff to 300 persons by year end–he has already doubled the exchange’s staff over the past six months. “My target is to be number one in the world,” he said in a Bloomberg report. “To get there, I need to grow headcount. And those with the best skills come from global banks.”

Former Financiers Have Attractive Experience Working in Regulated Markets

bitFlyer has been making a concentrated effort towards becoming “the world’s most compliant exchange.” Kano is apparently particularly attracted to talent with experience in the financial sector because of their knowledge of working in regulated markets. The same report revealed that bitFlyer boasts former executives from Barclays Plc and Credit Suisse Group AG.

#bitFlyer is the worlds most compliant #virtualcurrency exchange! As the only exchange with licenses to operate as a financial/payment institution in the #USA, #Japan, and the #EU! #cryptocurrencynews #cryptocurrency #crypto #bitcoin #fintech #regtech pic.twitter.com/2uYCzfp9sY

— bitFlyer Europe (@bitFlyerEU) April 27, 2018

Razin Ashraf, head of recruiting firm Divine Solutions Japan, told Bloomberg that “crypto companies need finance guys to fill roles across the board: business development, sales, account management, operations, and compliance, just to name a few.”

At press time, bitFlyer ranked as the 20th-largest crypto exchange in the world by volume, according to data by Coinmarketcap.

Japan has been recognized as a global leader in cryptocurrency regulation ever since the country’s passage of the Virtual Currency Act in April of 2017. Among other things, the act legally legitimized Bitcoin and Ethereum as forms of payment and provided a process for exchanges to gain licensure.

The regulations are one of the reasons that Kano sees Japan as the best place to base his operation. However, he has big plans for building additional offices in South America, Africa, Australia, and other parts of Asia; the exchange also has already established offices in Luxembourg, San Francisco, and Tokyo.