Three Japanese Banks to Launch a Joint Stablecoin in 2026

MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank and SMBC plan to launch real commercial transactions with a joint stablecoin in the 2026 fiscal year. This is news for corporate clients, traders and anyone watching how major banks are moving payments onto blockchain.

The project is being built in a trust model. The three banks will act as joint founders of the trust, while a trust bank or a similar institution will take on the role of trustee. Separately, they signed a memorandum to create a voluntary council that will handle operational schemes, corporate governance and regulatory issues. The banks say it directly: this is not a lab test, but preparation for live settlements.

Why is the joint stablecoin of Japanese banks important?

The main story here is not the token’s name itself. More important is that Japan’s three largest banks are trying to build payment infrastructure around a single digital asset and immediately embed control, compliance and user protection into it. For the banking world, this is a serious step because it reduces dependence on slow interbank transfers and expensive intermediaries.

Additional context is this: on November 7, 2025, the preliminary PoC of these megabanks already received support from the FinTech PoC Hub FSA, and Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking and Progmat took part in the test. That case was tied to cross-border payments between Japanese and overseas divisions of Mitsubishi Corporation. In other words, the idea did not appear from scratch; it has already been run through a practical scenario. This matters because corporate payments are often the first to show whether a new payment scheme will live on or remain a presentation.

Market reaction

The Japanese stablecoin market is already moving fast. As of the beginning of June 2026, the global market for such assets was estimated at about $317 billion, of which about $187 billion accounted for USDT and about $75 billion for USDC. Against this backdrop, Japanese banks are trying not to fall behind the pace, but instead to build their own model for yen and corporate settlements.

In a trust model, reserve assets are protected 100% through the bankruptcy-remote function of the trust bank, and this distinguishes it from models where reserves are managed by the issuer itself.

That is why there is so much attention in Japan right now to reserve rules and to who exactly holds the assets. On May 22, 2026, the FSA clarified that for stablecoins of the specific trust beneficiary rights type, it is allowed to use not only deposits, but also certain Japanese government bonds and time deposits with the option of early termination. For banks, this is more convenient, but it also comes with stronger requirements for principal protection. That means the launch will depend not only on technology, but also on how carefully the regulatory filter can be passed.

• MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank and SMBC plan commercial transactions in the 2026 fiscal year.

• The project is being built in a trust model, where the three banks will become joint founders of the trust.

• A voluntary council on operations, governance and regulation is being created for preparation.

• On November 7, 2025, the preliminary PoC already received support from the FinTech PoC Hub FSA.

• At the beginning of June 2026, the global stablecoin market was estimated at about $317 billion.

What does this mean for investors?

For investors and companies, this is a signal that stablecoins in Japan are moving from talk about the future into concrete infrastructure. What matters here is not only the token itself, but also how the banks plan to issue it, who will control the reserves and how the trust mechanism will work. If everything goes according to plan, corporate yen payments could become faster and clearer for large groups with branches in different countries.

There is another point. Japan already has live competition in this area: JPYC launched on October 27, 2025, and the JPYSC project by SBI Holdings and Startale Group was planned for Q1 of fiscal 2026. In other words, the market is not waiting for a single winner, but is moving in several directions at once. For Ukrainian readers, the simple takeaway is this: if major banks start using stablecoins for real settlements, it boosts trust in the entire segment and makes digital assets closer to ordinary finance, not just speculation.

And one more important detail: from June 1, 2026, Japan already launched a service where credit card reward points can be exchanged for JPYC through HashPort Wallet. This shows that stablecoins are entering not only the corporate sector, but also everyday financial scenarios. That is how demand is formed. Those who want to take advantage of the situation can quickly sell USDT TRC20 to Monobank without unnecessary complications and at a favorable rate.

Frequently asked questions

When will the three Japanese banks launch the joint stablecoin?

Real commercial transactions are scheduled for the 2026 fiscal year. For now, MUFG, Mizuho Bank and SMBC are completing preparation through the trust model, the voluntary council and work on regulatory requirements.

How is this model different from a regular stablecoin?

The key difference is that issuance and reserve storage are tied to a trust structure. In the Japanese press, this model is described as one where reserves are protected through the bankruptcy-remote mechanism of the trust bank, rather than only through the issuer’s own balance sheet.

Why is this especially important for Japan?

Because the country has already changed the rules for stablecoins and opened the way to a national payment infrastructure for trust-based foreign yen assets. Against this backdrop, a bank-issued stablecoin looks not like an experiment, but like part of a broader financial reform.

Japanese banks have chosen a slow but reliable model. If it works, other major financial groups will take a close look at this experience.

This material is not financial advice. Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks. Part of this text was prepared with the help of artificial intelligence based on public sources and reviewed by our editorial team.