Japan's three major banks are pushing for the joint issuance of "stablecoins" designed to be pegged to the value of legal tender.
According to Nikkei on Oct. 18, Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., and Mizuho Bank are discussing issuing stablecoins with unified specifications.
They are first considering stablecoins denominated in yen, and plan to issue dollar-denominated ones later. The coins issued will initially be usable for in-house fund settlements at Mitsubishi Corp. In this regard, Mitsubishi Corp. said it is "considering using them for remittances."
Nikkei reported that the push by major banks to issue stablecoins is also driven by wariness that U.S.-led dollar-pegged stablecoins could spread in Japan.
Earlier, in August, the Financial Services Agency of Japan approved the registration of a funds transfer service provider for the issuance of stablecoins filed by the fintech corporations JYPC in Tokyo.