Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings launched the trust-based stablecoin JPYSC on Wednesday together with Singapore-based fintech company Startale Group. The launch marks an important step in Japan’s stablecoin regulatory process, which has gained momentum in recent years.
According to the announcement, SBI carried out the first issuance of JPYSC today. The issuance process is managed by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank, while distribution is handled by the licensed crypto exchange SBI VC Trade. This division of responsibilities between the two institutions also shows how the stablecoin’s trust structure will work in practice: reserve assets are held on the banking side, while user access is provided through the exchange.
SBI described JPYSC as follows: “JPYSC represents Japan’s first example of a trust-based stablecoin structure in which reserve assets are managed by a trust bank. Unlike previously issued fund transfer-type stablecoins, JPYSC is not subject to the 1 million yen transaction and balance limits that apply to those instruments.”
This point is especially important because previously launched fund transfer-type stablecoins in Japan were not practical for institutional use due to this restriction. JPYSC’s trust structure removes that limit, making the stablecoin usable for both individual users and large-scale institutional transactions.
Focus on Low Costs and Institutional Use
The company expects JPYSC to attract both retail and institutional users thanks to its low transaction costs and support for block trading. According to SBI, the stablecoin’s potential use cases include serving as a yen-denominated base asset in on-chain foreign exchange markets, institutional lending transactions and the settlement of tokenized real-world assets.
These use cases show that JPYSC is intended to be more than just a payment tool. The aim is to position it as part of institutional financial infrastructure. In particular, the emphasis on a “yen-denominated base asset” suggests that SBI wants to position the stablecoin as a reference asset for currency pairs and derivative transactions.
For now, JPYSC is only accessible through SBI VC Trade accounts. The company links this limitation to the fact that the stablecoin’s regulatory and tax status has not yet been fully clarified. The differences between Japan’s tax regime for crypto assets and the expected regime for stablecoins will determine how long this clarification process may take. SBI VC Trade is also planning to launch a lending service based on JPYSC in the near future, which indicates that the stablecoin may also open up to DeFi-like use cases.
The First of Its Kind
SBI announced that JPYSC is the first yen stablecoin in Japan backed by a trust bank. It also said that JPYSC is the first stablecoin to be classified as an electronic payment instrument under the Payment Services Act. This classification places JPYSC in a different category under Japanese law and separates it from previous stablecoin arrangements.
The company summarized its goal as follows: “JPYSC aims to establish a yen-denominated settlement and liquidity infrastructure for domestic and international on-chain financial markets.” This statement shows that SBI does not intend to limit the project to Japan’s domestic market alone, but is also targeting cross-border use cases.
Japan’s Stablecoin Push Continues
Japan has been taking steps in recent years to integrate regulated stablecoins into the mainstream financial system. Last October, Japanese authorities approved fintech company JPYC’s stablecoin of the same name as the country’s first legally recognized yen-backed stablecoin.
The launch of JPYSC shows that this trend is continuing and that different institutions are trying to enter the market through different structures. While JPYC operates under a fund transfer model, JPYSC uses a trust model. This indicates that Japanese regulators are allowing multiple stablecoin structures to develop at the same time.
This competition is not limited to fintech companies. Japan’s three megabanks, MUFG, SMBC and Mizuho, are currently working on a joint stablecoin project. Earlier this month, the banks announced that they plan to begin live commercial stablecoin transactions during the 2026 fiscal year.
