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Sony Reveals It Owns a Cryptocurrency Exchange and Renames It S.BLOX – Ledger Insights
Last year Sony has made a discreet acquisition of Amber Japan (formerly DeCurret), a local cryptocurrency exchange. Multiple media outlets have reported that Sony plans to launch a cryptocurrency exchange, but Amber Japan has continued to operate after Sony acquired it in August 2023. It was under the radar because the acquisition was made through Sony’s subsidiary Quetta Web, which does not appear to have a website. Today, Amber Japan announced it will rename S.BLOX and disclosed Sony’s ownership.
S.BLOX said it updated its WhaleFin cryptocurrency offering in January and will further improve it. It plans to cooperate with various businesses of the Sony group. However, it already offers a promotional offer for customers of Nuro Mobile, Sony’s mobile contract reseller. New WhaleFin signups receive 3,000 Yen worth of Bitcoin, equivalent to $18.60. Nuro Mobile is part of Sony Network Communications.
Last year the same division invested in Startale Labs, the founder of Astar Network, a Polkadot parachain. Furthermore he has established a joint venture with Startale for create a Sony blockchainwith plans to exploit the group’s intellectual properties throughout the metaverse. With its ownership of Sony Pictures, Music and PlayStation, the group has many brands it can distribute.
Meanwhile, Sony Bank is about to launch its Sony Bank Connect App offer NFT entertainment rewards tied to financial products. It began pre-registering users for the web3 app two weeks ago. The group also provides an NFT marketplace, SNFT, where users can price their NFTs.
The digital bank has been quite active in the blockchain space. For example, it is planning to issue stablecoin on the Polygon blockchainIn March it experienced a $1 million issuance of a green finance security token aimed at retail investors using dollars, having previously launched its own real estate token.
Given the large amount of intellectual property within the Sony Group, it is easy to imagine how blockchain could bring together offerings from different parts of the group.