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Otaku Coin Cryptocurrency Slated to Launch in Summer or Fall

The Otaku Coin Preparation Committee (OCPC) released a concept paper for its Otaku Coin cryptocurrency on May 9. The paper reveals that the committee is seeking to issue coin this summer or fall, and a voting platform is slated for 2019.

The committee plans to issue 100 billion Otaku Coins at once, with no additional issuances later, and is also planning the release of a specialty wallet at the same time.

The OCPC states that its issuance is not an initial coin offering (ICO), so it will not directly sell Otaku Coin at launch to raise funds. Of the issued coins, 61% will be "used for funding projects which will contribute to the development of otaku culture," or will be distributed to users at no cost. The remaining 39% will contribute to operating expenses for the prospective Otaku Coin Fund. These expenses include software development, marketing, and personnel and activity costs, among others.

Tokyo Otaku Mode initially proposed the project in December, though the OCPC allegedly functions separately. OCPC currently plans to launch the tentatively titled Otaku Coin Fund as an "even more thoroughly decentralized organization" before launching the coin.

Tokyo Otaku Mode CEO Nao Kodaka said in an interview with YouTuber Akidearest in March that the plan at the time was to distribute coins for free to Tokyo Otaku Mode users first.

Otaku Coin is an ERC20 token, so it will run on the Ethereum platform. A cryptocurrency with an apparently similar launch model is Huobi Token, which Chinese cryptocurrency exchange Huobi released in January. Like Otaku Coin, Huobi Token was issued with a capped supply and without an ICO. At launch, 60% of the coins were given to users who purchased the Huobi Pro "Point Card" as a loyalty point system, while the remaining 40% was reserved for platform operation, team incentives, and user rewards.

According to the concept paper, the goals of Otaku Coin are to allow fans to vote on or fund projects, eliminate foreign currency conversion fees, and implement a reward program for "otaku activities" such as watching anime or purchasing official products.

Otaku Coin holders will be given voting tokens to fund projects through the voting platform. The concept paper outlines a list of possible projects: funding anime production, supporting content creators, and creating or expanding otaku shops and events. The committee plans to launch "model case" projects before launching the platform.

Thanks to buildknuckle for the news tip.