On September 24, 2026, the Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on two proposed rules implementing the Fed’s responsibilities under the...

On September 24, 2026, the Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on two proposed rules implementing the Fed’s responsibilities under the...

On September 24, 2026, the Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on two proposed rules implementing the Fed’s responsibilities under the...

Japan’s three major banking institutions—Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), Mizuho Bank, and MUFG Bank—alongside Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation and systems integrator TISI, have successfully conducted a joint proof of concept (PoC) for bank-issued stablecoins and advanced cross-border settlements. The trial stems from an initiative selected in November 2025 under the Financial Services Agency’s (FSA) "Fintech Proof of Concept Hub / Payment Modernization Project (PIP)". The demonstration tested the execution of cross-border transfers between the domestic and overseas offices of major Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corporation, evaluating operational workflows, technical infrastructure, and regulatory compliance under Japanese financial statutes. Under the tested architecture, the digital tokens were issued as "specified beneficial interests in trust" pursuant to Article 2, Paragraph 9 of Japan’s Payment Services Act. Mizuho Bank, MUFG Bank, and SMBC acted as joint settlors (co-trustors), while Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking served as the trustee. ## Sign up for Japan FinTech Observer Cutting through the noise of Japanese Finance & FinTech Subscribe Email sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. The model relies on a trust-based structure specifically chosen to accommodate institutional transaction scales without statutory circulation caps: * **Reserve Backing and Price Stability:** The stablecoins are backed by fiat deposits held as trust assets within the banking system, ensuring value parity and depositor-grade stability. * **Permissioned Network:** Circulation is strictly confined to verified corporate entities that have completed standard bank Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and identity screening procedures. * **Broad Liquidity Base:** Joint issuance across the three megabanks allows the network to pool their corporate client bases, establishing wide institutional distribution. ### Allocation of Roles and Technical Integration The participating firms divided operational and regulatory oversight to simulate a live multi-bank issuance environment: * **Mizuho Bank, MUFG Bank, and SMBC:** Defined evaluation criteria and operational schemes, assessed business and system requirements as joint settlors, and tested the full transaction lifecycle—including issuance, distribution, transfer, and redemption. SMBC supplied the blockchain infrastructure utilized in the trial, developed in collaboration with TISI. * **Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking:** Handled trustee-side validation, mapping trust operations, evaluating user-protection mechanisms, and testing the administration and management of underlying reserve assets. * **TISI:** Served as the primary technology provider, integrating the wallet infrastructure, stablecoin issuance mechanisms, and business operational workflows. The consortium placed particular emphasis on verifying Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) frameworks, multi-settlor administrative controls, and system resiliency across international transfer scenarios. ### Findings and Commercial Roadmap The consortium confirmed that the joint multi-bank issuance model demonstrated structural safety, operational reliability, and technical feasibility throughout the simulated transfer and redemption flows with Mitsubishi Corporation. The trial advances a broader initiative announced on June 10, 2026, in which the three megabanks established a consultative council with the objective of launching live commercial transactions using a co-issued stablecoin within fiscal year 2026. The effort dovetails with several complementary digital asset projects undertaken by the banks earlier in the year, including a February 13 trial exploring blockchain-based trading and title transfer of traditional assets, and a September 29 pilot integrating trade finance settlements with the TradeWaltz® platform. Moving forward, the consortium plans to maintain discussions with domestic and foreign regulators, financial institutions, and corporate participants to address cybersecurity, AML/CFT mandates, and user protection as they advance toward commercial on-chain financial services and tokenized deposit structures. * * * Financial Heavyweights Complete Landmark Stablecoin Settlement Pilot for Digital Securities MarketA consortium of leading Japanese financial institutions and blockchain technology providers has successfully completed Phase 1 and Phase 2 of "Project Trinity," a joint trial validating Delivery versus Payment (DvP) settlement for secondary market security token transactions using stablecoins. The consortium includes major firms such as Sumitomo Mitsui Banking CorporationJapan FinTech ObserverNorbert Gehrke

Central bank money will settle digital government bonds The Bank of Korea plans to use institutional central bank digital currency, rather than privately issued stablecoins, to settle transactions in a government bond tokenization pilot scheduled for 2027. The decision puts…

Startale Japan has launched Japan's first digital corporate bond utilizing a yen-denominated stablecoin for all payment processes. This innovative bond, named Startale Bond, will use JPYSC for both interest payments and principal redemption. JPYSC is a trust-type stablecoin issued by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank, designed to maintain a one-to-one peg with the Japanese yen. This marks a significant step in integrating stablecoins beyond typical crypto trading into traditional corporate financing. The stablecoin's issuance and management are handled by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank, with SBI VC Trade overseeing distribution and Startale Group providing the underlying technology. This collaboration aims to offer new avenues for corporate fundraising and individual investment by moving finance onto the blockchain. The development aligns with a broader global trend of financial institutions exploring stablecoins and tokenized assets. Japan, with its defined regulatory framework, is seeing experimentation with local-currency stablecoins and blockchain-based settlement. The Startale Bond's use of JPYSC throughout the bond's lifecycle demonstrates its potential as a settlement layer for conventional securities. This project could pave the way for future applications in corporate finance and tokenized securities. Overall, Startale is positioning itself to bridge blockchain infrastructure with traditional finance in Japan.

Here's a hypothetical scenario: you want to use $100 out of your bank account to buy newly issued stablecoins. The company issuing the stablecoins takes your dollars, puts them in its own bank account, and gives you a balance you can send around on a blockchain. You got the product you wanted, and somewhere in […] The post Stablecoins may not drain banks of dollars but they can still make lending more expensive appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Washington, Thursday, 1 October 2026.The Federal Reserve requested public feedback on proposals integrating payment stablecoins into banking supervision under the GENIUS Act. Notably, the framework ma

Fed Moves Bank-Issued Stablecoins Toward the Starting Gate The Federal Reserve has begun defining the machinery through which regulated banks could issue payment stablecoins under the GENIUS Act. W3 Meteor ID: FED-STABLECOIN-930202621480 Date & Time: September 29, 2026 — Federal Register publication Origin: The Federal Reserve proposed an application framework for insured state-member banks seeking approval to create subsidiaries that issue payment stablecoins, implementing the GENIUS Act's requirements. Visibility: U.S. banks, prospective stablecoin issuers, financial institutions, regulators, payment companies, and eventually businesses using dollar-based digital payment infrastructure. Trajectory: The Meteor began accelerating on September 24, when the Fed released two GENIUS Act proposals covering stablecoin reserves, capital, risk management and bank applications.

The Federal Reserve is proposing a rulebook for bank-issued payment stablecoins that gets strikingly specific. Basically, every $1 of tokens must be backed by at least $1 of permitted reserves, customers generally must be redeemable within two business days, and an issuer that stays short of required capital could ultimately be forced to liquidate its […]

Britain's largest banks have completed what the industry describes as the first transactions anywhere using tokenised deposits to move money between one another, a milestone for a blockchain-based form of bank money that the Bank of England favours over privately issued stablecoins.

Today's Kiffmeister #Fintech Digest

Lightspark’s new Visa card programme, issued by Lead Bank and processed by Lithic, settles in USDC while converting funds to local currency at the

SoFi says the launch expands how card issuers, acquirers and merchants can manage settlement and liquidity through trusted payment infrastructure, while providing a path to broader adoption of bank-issued stablecoins in payments.