Japan to Revoke Ban on Foreign Stablecoins in 2023: Report

Japanese regulators are considering changing the existing embargo on stablecoins. According to a report from a local news organization report, the Financial Services Agency of Japan will lift the ban on the domestic use of foreign stablecoins in 2023. 

As reported, the changes are embedded in the new “Revised Payment Services Act.” In the proposed act, there will be a return of foreign stablecoin but in a different dimension. 

The ban on stablecoins in Japan empowered registered banks and mobile money agents to issue stablecoins.

The new law will see the body in charge of stablecoins in Japan become distributors. This means taking away the control of foreign stablecoins from their issuer and putting local distributors in charge. Local distributors in this context refer to cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. 

Also, the changes will keep the transfer of foreign stablecoins to a maximum of $7,500 for every transaction. Despite moves to uplift the ban, the use of stablecoin will still fall under Anti-Money Laundering and Financing Terrorism control. Feedback is already coming to the FSA regarding public opinion on the proposal to uplift the stablecoin ban in Japan. 

Before the proposed changes, cryptocurrency enthusiasts in Japan didn’t have access to stablecoins through any of the 31 exchanges.

Japan is now broadly more relaxed toward the use of cryptocurrency. Due to that, we’ve witnessed direct guidelines for cryptocurrency exchanges to list virtual tokens in the country. 

The relaxed approach attracted international cryptocurrency exchanges to venture into the country and carry out their operations. Recently, Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, acquired a local exchange licensed by the Japanese government.

In another positive development, the ruling party of Japan, through its tax committee, recently stopped cryptocurrency organizations from paying taxes on paper gains from issued tokens.