Circle CEO Reveals Possibilities and Prospects of Stablecoin Business in Japan

Expansion of circles in Japan

On the 6th, Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, Inc., which is involved in the issuance of stablecoin USDCoin (USDC) and related infrastructure, said that the company is considering business development including stablecoin issuance in Japan. ’s view was revealed in an interview with CoinDesk Japan.

A stablecoin is a type of digital currency based on blockchain technology, whose value is designed to be stable and linked to a specific asset.

In the global market, USDCoin (USDC) and Tether (USDT), which are linked to the US dollar, have become mainstream, and have been used as payment methods when purchasing virtual currency transactions and NFTs (non-fungible tokens). In the future, it is expected to expand its use in international remittances between companies and services for consumers.

In Japan, under the Payment Services Act, which was revised on June 1, 2023, stablecoins backed by legal tender have been approved as an electronic payment method, and their issuance has become possible. Under this new system, banks, fund transfer service providers, trust companies, etc. are permitted as issuers.

In an interview with CoinDesk Japan, Allaire noted that the Japanese market could be an attractive destination for the company. Allaire said he is currently in discussions with existing business partners and potential future partners to explore potential needs for stablecoins.

Among them is the possibility of issuing a stablecoin linked to the Japanese yen. In addition to USDC, Circle also issues Eurocoin (EUROC). EUROC is fully backed by euro-denominated reserves held by US licensed financial institutions.

According to Mr. Allaire, the Japanese yen is also a currency that is commonly used in the foreign exchange market like the euro. It will be a new opportunity,” he said.

Domestic issuance of stablecoins creates various business opportunities. One of the representative examples is the business-to-business payment field, which has a market scale of approximately 1,000 trillion yen. The advantages of stablecoins that are not restricted to a specific payment platform are expected to improve the efficiency of payments between domestic and foreign companies. If adopted in this space, it will lead to opportunities to earn interest on reserve assets and token issuance fees.

In addition, Circle’s expansion into Japan is considering the option of forming partnerships with distributors. Japanese law requires distributors to hold backing assets when dealing with foreign stablecoins.

Allaire declined to name the specific company, but indicated that Circle itself is familiar with stablecoin issuance technology and intends to seek cooperation on the distribution side.

connection:Circle Inc. Starts Cross-Chain Transfer of USDC on Arbitrum

What is a circle

According to data from CoinGecko, which provides cryptocurrency market data, the total circulation of stablecoins has reached approximately $130 billion (approximately ¥18 trillion). The US dollar-linked stablecoin “USDCoin (USDC)” issued by Circle has a circulation of $28 billion, which is the second largest market after “Tether (USDT)” with a circulation of $83 billion. boast of rank.

Circle is licensed as a cryptocurrency operator and money transfer company in the United States. It has a money issuer license in the UK. In March 2011, it applied for permission to acquire a digital asset provider in France.

Also, in early June, we obtained a Major Payments Institution (MPI) license in Singapore. As a result, the company was able to offer remittance services and digital payment token services that enable institutional customers to redeem USD Coin (USDC) in the Singapore market.

connection:US Circle acquires payment license in Singapore

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