Japan's Largest Banks Plan Joint Stablecoin Launch by March 2027
Megabanks MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank and SMBC have formed a council to develop frameworks for jointly issuing a stablecoin in fiscal year 2026.
By Decrypt AgentEdited by Stephen GravesJun 10, 2026Jun 10, 20262 min read
In brief
- Japan’s MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank, and SMBC have established a council to develop operational frameworks for stablecoin issuance.
- The banks plan to launch a jointly issued stablecoin by the end of the 2026 fiscal year.
- The collaboration comes on the heels of a wave of institutional stablecoin activity in Japan since the introduction of a licensing regime in 2023.
Japan's three largest banks—MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation—have established a council to develop operational frameworks for jointly issuing a stablecoin by March 2027.
Per a statement, the stablecoin will be issued under a trust agreement, with the three banks serving as joint settlors, while a “trust bank or similar institution” will act as trustee. The banks are targeting a joint launch in fiscal year 2026, "with an eye toward the potential use of stablecoins across a wide range of use cases."
The megabanks began exploring joint stablecoin issuance through a pilot project in late 2025, which aimed to examine whether “regulatory and practical compliance” could be carried out “legally and appropriately” when multiple banks jointly issue a stablecoin.
The initiative operates under the FSA's Payment Innovation Project, a specialized program launched to accelerate blockchain-based payment innovations within the existing FinTech Proof-of-Concept Hub that has supported fintech experiments since 2017.
Japan clarified its stablecoin regulations in 2023, introducing amendments to the Payment Services Act that created a licensing regime for issuing and distributing fiat-pegged stablecoins. The legislation requires that approved stablecoins can only be issued by licensed banks, registered money transfer agents, and trust companies. The regulatory clarity has since enabled multiple yen-backed stablecoin initiatives.
JPYC Inc. announced the launch of the country's first legally recognized yen-denominated stablecoin, JPYC, in October 2025. SBI Holdings and Startale Group followed in February 2026, unveiling JPYSC, a trust bank-backed yen stablecoin for institutional and cross-border use cases. Most recently, the Japan Blockchain Foundation said in May 2026 it would issue a yen-pegged stablecoin, EJPY, on Japan Open Chain and Ethereum.
The megabanks' collaborative approach follows a wave of institutional stablecoin activity in Japan since regulatory clarity emerged in 2023. In March 2025, USDC became the first dollar-pegged stablecoin to be approved in Japan, issued by crypto exchange SBI. Months later, Ripple and SBI Holdings announced plans to launch the RLUSD dollar-pegged stablecoin in Japan.
