Japan's three largest banks, MUFG Bank, Mizuho Bank, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, are teaming up to launch a yen-backed crypto stablecoin by March 2027. The move is part of the Financial Services Agency (FSA) Payment Innovation Project.
The megabanks have established a joint council to develop and co-issue the stablecoin, which will be issued under a trust agreement with all three banks acting as joint settlors and a trust bank or similar institution serving as trustee. This is not a pilot project but a full-scale initiative that has gained momentum since regulatory clarity was introduced in June 2023.
The FSA's Payment Innovation Project provided the formal channel for a late-2025 pilot, which examined whether multi-bank stablecoin co-issuance could be carried out 'legally and appropriately.' The answer was yes. Collectively, MUFG, Mizuho, and SMBC oversee more than $7 trillion in assets, making this the largest institutional Japan stablecoin initiative to date.