Bitbank starts handling ASTR

Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank will start handling ASTR, a token based on a Polkadot parachain that connects different blockchains and is developed by Stake Technologies, which developed the Astar Network, a public blockchain from Japan.

Astar is the third public blockchain project in the world to obtain a connection quota. It can be used for dApps staking, a proprietary staking scheme, transaction fee payments and governance voting, etc. As of September 9, its market capitalization is 19.24 billion yen with a unit price of 5.19 yen.

In an advertisement published in the Nikkei newspaper on September 26,  Stake Technologies commemorated ASTR’s listing on Bitbank on the same day. Chief executive Sota Watanabe said the advertisement featured the logos of 329 Japanese companies or projects which yielded their support.

Watanabe further commented in his Twitter that “A ‘revolution’ that will make society more open while allowing all individuals to have opportunities [in areas such as] economy, culture, politics, organization.”

He also said he wanted to make the newspaper advertisement a public property to uphold the spirit of Web3.