Japan's First Yen Stablecoin Launches Today, Major Banks Collaborate to Build Digital Payment Network

On October 27, Japan welcomed its first stablecoin fully backed by Yen and government bonds, JPYC, marking a significant step forward in the country's blockchain finance sector. The stablecoin has been approved for issuance by the Financial Services Agency of Japan and can be fully swapped with Yen. Initially, transaction fees will be waived, and profits will be generated through interest on Japanese government bonds.

Meanwhile, Japan's three major banks—Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui, and Mizuho Bank—will jointly launch an enterprise-level Yen stablecoin settlement system on October 31. The system is built on Mitsubishi UFJ Bank's Progmat platform and is expected to connect to over 600,000 NetStars payment terminals by mid-November, aiming to significantly enhance practical application scenarios.

The launch of JPYC signifies that the global stablecoin marketplace will see its first non-USD stablecoin supported by major economies. Currently, the total size of the stablecoin marketplace exceeds $286 billion, with 99% denominated in USD.

Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Ryozo Hino recently stated publicly that stablecoins "could become key participants in the global payment system" and may partially replace traditional deposit functions.

Although digital payment adoption in Japan has increased from 13% in 2010 to over 42% in 2024, the public’s preference for cash transactions remains a major challenge for the promotion of stablecoins.

Analysts expect that the JPYC token linked to Yen will see significant growth over the next two to three years and will gradually expand into decentralized finance, asset tokenization, and cross-border settlement fields.

These developments demonstrate that Japan is systematically promoting the application of blockchain technology in finance through regulatory innovation and collaboration with financial institutions. This could reshape capital flow patterns across Asia and strengthen the market demand for Japanese government bonds.

In summary, Japan is attempting to deeply integrate traditional banking systems with digital currency infrastructure, aiming to break the monopoly of USD stablecoins and provide new options for the Asian digital payment market.

This initiative will also accelerate the digitalization of Yen and may reshape regional capital flow methods. However, whether it can change people's cash usage habits and whether other countries will widely adopt and follow suit remain critical challenges.

#日本稳定币 # JPYC