Japan Regulator to Support Country’s 3 Largest Banks in Stablecoin Issuance

The Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) said it will support the country’s three largest banks in developing a proof-of-concept for issuing a stablecoin.

Japan’s financial regulator said the venture will see Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306), Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316) and Mizuho Financial Group (8411) explore the joint issuance of a stablecoin as an electronic payment instrument.

The experiment will commence this month and will run for the foreseeable future, according to an FSA announcement on Friday.

Stablecoins — digital tokens pegged to the value of a traditional financial (TradiFi) asset such as a fiat currency — have experienced considerable growth over the last two years, surpassing $300 billion on market cap last month.

This trend has also borne fruit in Japan, where the first stablecoin pegged to the yen was unveiled in late October by startup JPYC.

It is against this backdrop that TradFi institutions such as Japan’s largest banks along with regulators and lawmakers are exploring issuing stablecoins and integrating them into their existing financial and technological frameworks.