When are the main crypto events in Japan?
If you only have one trip to plan, make it July. That's when Kyoto's IVS, Japan Blockchain Week and Tokyo's WebX have landed back to back, and when the most side events, parties and hackathons happen. But the year has other peaks worth knowing: the FSA-backed Japan Fintech Week in late February, ETHTokyo in September, and BITCOIN JAPAN in late November.
Dates move. WebX was held in August in 2025, in July in 2026, and is announced for August 2027 at a much bigger venue. Treat the table below as a guide built from the latest editions and announced dates, and confirm on each official site before booking flights. This page is updated in place each year rather than replaced, so bookmark it.
| When | Event | Where | Why go |
|---|---|---|---|
| Late Feb to early Mar | Japan Fintech Week (incl. FIN/SUM) | Tokyo and other cities | Regulators, banks and tokenization talk |
| March | Tourism × Web3 Summit | Nanjo, Okinawa (2026) | City co-hosted tourism and NFT summit |
| Early July | IVS with its Crypto Stage | Kyoto (Miyako Messe and others) | Japan's big startup festival, 20%+ overseas guests |
| July | Japan Blockchain Week / JBW Summit | Tokyo (Shibuya) and partner events | Umbrella for the month’s crypto events |
| July or August | WebX | Tokyo (Tokyo Big Sight in 2027) | Largest by attendance: 13,641 in 2026 |
| September | ETHTokyo (incl. ETHGlobal Tokyo) | Tokyo, plus Komoro and Kesennuma | Hackathon, conference and side events |
| November | BITCOIN JAPAN | Belsalle Akihabara, Tokyo | Bitcoin-only; 27–28 Nov in 2026 |
| December | FUKUOKA BLOCKCHAIN FORUM | Tenjin, Fukuoka (2025) | Prefecture-run; later editions not announced |
| Year-round | Meetups and study groups | Tokyo, Osaka, Okinawa, Sendai | Find them on Luma, Meetup and connpass |
February and March: Japan Fintech Week and a Web3 tourism summit
The year opens with Japan Fintech Week, run with the involvement of the Financial Services Agency. The 2026 edition ran from 24 February to 6 March, centred on FIN/SUM, the fintech conference the FSA co-hosts with Nikkei, under the theme "AI and Blockchain". It isn't a crypto-only event, but it's where regulators, megabanks and brokers talk publicly about stablecoins and tokenizationIssuing rights to assets such as bonds, funds or property as blockchain tokens so they are easier to transfer and manage., which makes it the best week to hear where Japanese finance is heading. The FSA's site lists the 2027 edition for 24 February to 5 March.
Further south, Nanjo City in Okinawa co-hosted the Tourism × Web3 Summit from 26 to 28 March 2026, including the final of the Japan Tourism NFT Awards. We can't say yet whether it will become an annual fixture, but it's a good example of local governments putting money behind web3. More on that trend in our Web3 games and NFTs in Japan guide.
July: IVS in Kyoto and Japan Blockchain Week
July starts in Kyoto. IVS is one of Japan's largest startup conferences, and in 2026 it ran from 1 to 3 July at Miyako Messe, Hotel Okura Kyoto and other venues. Its official site reported more than 13,000 registrations, with over 20% of guests from overseas. The event works with Kyoto Prefecture and Kyoto City, which is unusual backing for a conference with a dedicated crypto track.
That track is the Crypto Stage, run by the crypto venture firm IVC with the media outlet NADA News, following IVS Crypto in 2024 and the IVC Summit in 2025. Passes included a general IVS PASS, a student pass and passes for the invitation-only IVS CORE area. Kyoto in early July is hot, humid and busy with tourists, so book accommodation early. Our Kyoto crypto guide has practical tips, including the fact that there are no crypto ATMs in the city.
Back in Tokyo, Japan Blockchain Week, running since 2018, ties the month together. In 2026 it covered roughly the first half of July and included IVS's Crypto Zone and WebX among its partner events. Its own flagship, the JBW Summit, took place on 12 July 2026 at SHIBUYA STREAM Hall in Shibuya, from 10:00 to 19:00, with registration through Luma and Peatix.
July or August: WebX, the biggest by attendance
WebX is organized by CoinPost, Japan's best-known crypto news site. The 2026 edition, on 13 and 14 July at The Prince Park Tower Tokyo near Shiba Park, reported 13,641 attendees, 233 speakers, 134 sponsors and more than 70 side events. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi addressed it by video, and policy was a big theme. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government backed the 2025 edition as an official supporter.
The organizer has announced WebX2027 for Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 August 2027 at Tokyo Big Sight, a venue it says is nearly 1.8 times larger. If you go, plan for the side eventsEvents run by companies or communities around a main conference, often free with registration: meetups, panels and parties. as much as the main halls: exchanges, wallets and protocols host meetups across Tokyo all week, many free with registration on Luma.
September: ETHTokyo and side events beyond Tokyo
September belongs to EthereumA blockchain that runs smart contracts, self-executing programs that power most NFTs and DeFi apps.. ETHTokyo bundles a hackathon, conferences and side events into one week; in 2026 the core ran from 19 to 27 September. ETHGlobal Tokyo, the hackathonA short, intense build event where teams create projects over a few days and compete for prizes., took over Toranomon Hills Forum from 25 to 27 September, with the Pragma Tokyo conference there on the 26th. Other sessions ran at the University of Tokyo's Ito Hall, enXross DAO at Tokyo Dome City, FabCafe in Shibuya and Tsutaya Books Daikanyama.
The programme also leaves Tokyo. ZuCity Japan, a pop-up city gathering, ran in Komoro, Nagano, from 13 September to 3 October, and Hackatsuon 2026, a residency and hackathon co-hosted with Kesennuma City in Miyagi, ran from 28 September to 11 October. A JPYC Marche in Shibuya featured the yen stablecoinA token designed to hold a steady value against a currency, such as JPYC for the yen or USDC for the US dollar. JPYC; see our JPYC guide for how it works.
November: BITCOIN JAPAN in Akihabara
For bitcoin only, mark late November. According to the organizer's press release of 30 July 2026, BITCOIN JAPAN 2026 runs on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 November at Belsalle Akihabara (floors B1, 1 and 2), a few minutes' walk from JR Akihabara Station's Electric Town exit. It's hosted by ANAP Holdings, co-planned by Diamond Hands, a community known for its LightningA payment layer built on top of bitcoin for fast, cheap small payments, often used for QR payments in shops. work, and operated by SBI Event Create.
Day one is BITCOIN JAPAN SUMMIT, a business conference. Day two combines BITCOIN JAPAN EXPO for bitcoiners and BITCOIN JAPAN FESTIVAL, a hands-on programme that general visitors can join. The release said several ticket types were planned, including a "Bitcoiner Expo" ticket, with details to follow on the official site. Akihabara also has one of Japan's few working bitcoin ATMs; check crypto ATMs in Japan before relying on it, and see where to spend bitcoin in Japan for venues that take sats.
December: Fukuoka's blockchain forum
Fukuoka Prefecture held FUKUOKA BLOCKCHAIN FORUM 2025 on 22 December 2025 at ONE FUKUOKA BLDG. in Tenjin: about 80 seats plus a livestream, focused on using web3 for regional revitalization. A 2026 edition had not been announced at the time of writing. Fukuoka City has also run the Fukuoka Web3 Pitch (March 2024, at Engineer Cafe) and a FUKUOKA DAO CAMP (2023). The city's startup-friendly policies are covered in our Fukuoka guide.
Where are the crypto meetups in Tokyo and beyond?
Conferences come a few times a year; meetups happen every week. In Tokyo, the obvious first stop is Tokyo Bitcoin Base in Yotsuya (Shinjuku), a multi-floor bitcoin space open weekdays from 10:00 to 18:00, about six minutes' walk from Yotsuya Station. It runs book clubs, language classes taught by Sophia University students and member-organized events, celebrated its first anniversary with a festival in April 2026, and has an English version of its website. The Bitcoin Tokyo group on Meetup.com has around 2,700 members, and Fracton Ventures' Ethereum Meetup Tokyo series is listed on Luma.
Outside Tokyo, Kansai Bitcoiners, an Osaka-based Meetup.com group, kept meeting through 2026 (venues are shown to members only). In Okinawa, CODE BASE OKINAWA in Ginowan hosted a run of beginner blockchain workshops built around the Sui network in 2025, and SAKURA innobase Okinawa in Naha held an open forum on blockchain, NFTs and trust in October 2025. In Sendai, the non-profit NEMTUS ran a hands-on blockchain app workshop on 29 November 2025, and it held a developer camp in Hakone in January 2026.
Most of these are listed on connpass (Japan's developer-event site), Luma and Peatix. Search a city name with "web3", "ブロックチェーン" (blockchain) or "ビットコイン" (bitcoin). Connpass events are usually in Japanese, so read the description for the language and skill level before you register.
How do you get the most out of a Japanese crypto event?
Tickets. Main-venue passes usually have early-bird pricing that rises closer to the date, and some events offer student passes. Side events are often free but approval-based on Luma, and the good ones fill up. Register as soon as the side-event lists appear, typically a few weeks out.
Language. IVS, WebX, ETHTokyo and Japan Blockchain Week are international, with English websites and many English-speaking speakers. Local study groups are mostly Japanese. Japanese attendees often trade business cards (meishi), so bring plenty; if you don't have cards, have your X or Telegram handle ready as a QR code.
Getting around and paying. A transit IC card such as Suica covers trains between venues. Don't plan on paying for meals in crypto; our spending guide lists the few places that take it. Visitors can't open accounts at Japanese exchanges, so sort out any crypto you need before you arrive; our crypto for foreigners guide explains why.
Pitches. Conference weeks attract people selling "exclusive" token deals. Don't send money on the spot, and remember that only FSA-registered exchanges may serve Japan residents. Our crypto scams guide lists the common patterns.
- Confirm dates, venue and pass types on the official site
- Register for side events on Luma or Peatix early
- Check whether sessions are in Japanese, English or both
- Bring business cards or a QR code for your social handle
- Decide in advance that you won't invest in anything pitched at the event
Brush up on the vocabulary
Panels drop terms like staking, layer-2 and tokenization without explanation. Our crypto glossary gives each one in plain English with its Japanese equivalent, and the Tokyo crypto guide maps exchange offices and bitcoin-friendly venues around the conference districts.
Crypto events in Japan: FAQ
What is the biggest crypto conference in Japan?
By attendance, WebX, organized by the Japanese crypto media company CoinPost. Its July 2026 edition reported 13,641 attendees, 233 speakers and 134 sponsors at The Prince Park Tower Tokyo. The next edition is announced for 25 to 26 August 2027 at Tokyo Big Sight.
When is Japan Blockchain Week?
Japan Blockchain Week runs in July and bundles the month's crypto events. In 2026 it ran from 1 July for about two weeks, covering IVS's Crypto Zone in Kyoto and WebX in Tokyo, with its own JBW Summit on 12 July at SHIBUYA STREAM Hall. Check the official site for each year's dates.
Are Japanese crypto conferences in English?
The large ones are very international. IVS says over 20% of its guests come from overseas, and WebX, ETHTokyo and Japan Blockchain Week all run English-language sites and draw global speakers. Local study groups on connpass are usually in Japanese, so check the listing before you sign up.
Where can I find crypto meetups in Tokyo?
Start with Tokyo Bitcoin Base in Yotsuya, a bitcoin community space open on weekdays with an English website. The Bitcoin Tokyo group on Meetup.com has around 2,700 members, and Ethereum Meetup Tokyo posts events on Luma. During conference weeks, Luma lists dozens of free side events.
Do I need to buy a ticket to meet people at these events?
Not always. The main venues charge for passes, usually with early-bird pricing, but many side events around WebX, ETHTokyo and Japan Blockchain Week are free with registration. Popular ones fill up, so register early and expect approval-based guest lists on Luma.
Sources
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