Japanese financial conglomerate SBI Holdings and Web3 infrastructure firm Startale Group have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a regulated yen stablecoin, marking another step in Japan’s push toward tokenized finance and blockchain based settlement. The companies confirmed the plan in a press release shared with Cointelegraph, outlining a framework that places licensed financial institutions at the center of issuance and circulation.
Under the agreement, the stablecoin will be issued and redeemed by Shinsei Trust and Banking, a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI Shinsei Bank. Circulation and market access will be supported by SBI VC Trade, a licensed crypto asset exchange service provider in Japan. The structure reflects Japan’s regulatory approach, which favors trust banks and supervised entities for stablecoin issuance rather than unregulated private issuers.
Yoshitaka Kitao, representative director, chairman and president of SBI Holdings, said the project is designed to support Japan’s transition toward a token economy. He added that circulating a yen denominated digital currency both domestically and internationally could accelerate the delivery of digital financial services that integrate closely with traditional banking and capital markets.
The stablecoin is expected to launch in the second quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and the completion of compliance and operational frameworks. Both companies emphasized that the timeline depends on coordination with regulators and adherence to Japan’s evolving stablecoin rules.
Regulated yen stablecoin aligns with Japan’s payment innovation push
The SBI and Startale initiative comes as Japan intensifies efforts to formalize stablecoin issuance under a clear legal and supervisory framework. The country’s Financial Services Agency, which oversees banking, securities and insurance, recently launched its Payment Innovation Project. The initiative functions as a regulatory sandbox designed to test blockchain based payment systems under regulatory supervision.
The first official pilot under this program involved yen denominated stablecoins issued by three major Japanese banks. These included Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Mizuho Bank. Those pilots demonstrated how bank issued stablecoins could be used for domestic settlement and onchain payments while remaining compliant with existing financial regulations.
Against this backdrop, the Startale and SBI project aims to complement bank led pilots rather than compete with them. The companies plan to introduce a programmable, trust bank issued digital yen that can support cross border settlement, tokenized equities and real world asset flows. By targeting both domestic and global use cases, the partners are positioning the stablecoin as infrastructure for institutional finance rather than retail payments alone.
SBI has emerged as a central player in Japan’s stablecoin ecosystem, pursuing a multicurrency strategy that spans both yen and dollar based digital assets. In March, SBI VC Trade integrated Circle’s USDC into its exchange platform after Japan eased certain stablecoin restrictions. This made SBI VC Trade one of the first licensed platforms in the country to offer trading services using USDC.
SBI has also partnered with Ripple on stablecoin initiatives. In August, Ripple announced plans to bring its RLUSD stablecoin to Japan in early 2026 through SBI VC Trade. Ripple said the product would focus on enterprise and institutional use cases under a regulated framework.
With these initiatives, SBI is positioning itself at the intersection of traditional finance and onchain settlement. The planned regulated yen stablecoin with Startale reinforces that strategy and signals Japan’s intent to play a leading role in compliant stablecoin development as global competition around digital currencies intensifies.
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