Tokyo, Nov. 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan's Financial Services Agency said Friday that it will support a pilot project by three major domestic banks to jointly issue stablecoins, a crypto asset backed by legal tender. The agency will provide advice on legal interpretations and foreign trends to the banks–MUFG Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Bank–under a newly established fintech support program. The three banks aim to promote the use of stablecoins as a new electronic payment method. They hope to identify technical and regulatory hurdles through the trial project. Under the pilot scheme, trading house Mitsubishi Corp. will be the first user of the banks' stablecoins, testing whether they can be used to make payments between its Japanese and overseas offices. Stablecoins utilize blockchain technology and are backed by assets including currencies such as the yen and the dollar. The three banks plan to issue stablecoins to corporate customers. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
