JPYC issues Yen-pegged stablecoin

The Japanese company JPYC issued a cryptocurrency on Monday. According to the British news agency Reuters, the stablecoin of the same name is the first to be pegged to the yen, the Japanese currency.

JPYC is legally an electronic means of payment, the company announced. The cryptocurrency can be exchanged for yen at a 1:1 rate and is backed by domestic savings deposits and Japanese government bonds. The stablecoin supports the Avalanche, Ethereum, and Polygon blockchains but is planned to be expanded gradually.

At least initially, the company does not want to charge transaction fees to promote JPYC, Reuters reports. JPYC intends to earn money from interest on government bonds.

No transaction fees for now

“We hope to drive innovation by providing startups with access to low transaction and settlement fees,” JPYC CEO Noritaka Okabe said at a press conference, according to Reuters. “Increasing global interoperability would also benefit us, so we are open to capital investments.”

Introducing a Japanese stablecoin is a remarkable step. In the East Asian country, many still use conventional payment methods such as cash and credit cards. “There is great uncertainty about whether yen stablecoins will catch on in Japan,” Tomoyuki Shimoda told Reuters. He is a former senior official of the Bank of Japan and now a researcher. “If megabanks enter the market, it could accelerate development. But it could still take at least two to three years.”

JPYC plans to issue cryptocoins worth 10 trillion yen, equivalent to more than 56 billion euros, in the next three years.

(wpl)