Japan Welcomes Foreign Stablecoins into Payment System
Japan's Financial Services Agency has introduced new rules allowing foreign-issued trust-type stablecoins to operate as regulated payment instruments in the country. The changes, which took effect on June 1, reclassify qualifying foreign stablecoins as Electronic Payment Instruments under the Payment Services Act.
The reform, published under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, requires foreign issuers to meet a rigorous equivalence standard to qualify. Their home jurisdiction must match Japanese requirements on licensing, auditing, Anti-Money Laundering controls, and same-currency reserves to limit exchange-rate risk.
Major local players are already preparing for the change, with SBI VC Trade exploring licensed services involving global stablecoins such as USDC. The reform arrives as the United States advances its own crypto legislative framework, with the Senate Banking Committee recently moving the CLARITY Act forward with a bipartisan vote of 15 to 9.