A unified standard for yen- and dollar-pegged tokens

Japan’s three megabanks — MUFG, Sumitomo Mitsui, and Mizuho — plan to jointly issue corporate-use stablecoins pegged to legal tender, aiming to streamline wholesale settlements and supply-chain payments. According to reporting in Tokyo, the lenders want a common technical standard so tokens interoperate across group networks and enterprise systems. The first pilot, potentially involving trading house Mitsubishi Corp., would test large-value transactions, cross-group invoicing, and programmable payment triggers. The system would ride on Progmat’s tokenization rails, which several Japanese financial institutions already use for asset-backed instruments. Backers argue that bank-issued stablecoins can reduce counterparty risk versus private tokens, while offering faster finality than legacy bank transfers. They also see advantages for just-in-time manufacturing and multi-party logistics, where automated escrow and milestone-based disbursements can cut reconciliation time.

Regulators have pushed for clarity since Japan’s revised Payment Services Act created a category for fiat-backed stablecoins issued by banks and trust firms. The megabanks’ plan fits that framework. Pilots will likely cap exposures, require 1:1 reserves, and ring-fence client assets. Engineers are also testing atomic swaps among tokenized deposits and securities, a step toward real-time delivery-versus-payment. While crypto-native players have entered the market with dollar-pegged coins, enterprises have been reluctant without bank-grade compliance and audit trails. If the pilots succeed, corporates could embed conditional payments in ERP systems, triggering instant settlement when goods clear customs or pass quality checks.

Strategic context: competition and cross-border rails

The initiative arrives as Asia’s payments landscape accelerates. Singapore and Hong Kong are trialing tokenized deposits; South Korea and India are scaling retail fast-payment systems. For Japan, corporate stablecoins could complement, not replace, Zengin and regional RTGS systems by handling programmable use cases that batch wires cannot. The megabanks also see potential in cross-border trade: yen- and dollar-pegged tokens might reduce FX slippage and cut correspondent banking fees for predictable flows. Challenges remain. Interoperability across chains, cyber-resilience, and governance for on-chain blacklisting must be vetted. Legal questions around bankruptcy remoteness and how tokens behave in stress scenarios will face scrutiny. Yet the direction is clear: if regulated banks can prove speed, transparency, and control, CFOs may adopt tokenized cash as working-capital plumbing. Early adopters will likely be exporters, trading houses, and manufacturers seeking settlement precision aligned to production data. If momentum holds, Japan could position itself as a leader in compliant, enterprise-grade digital money in 2026.