Japan has built one of the world’s most conservative stablecoin regimes. But after pioneering a comprehensive legal framework for yen-pegged stablecoins, its bank-dependent structure has been called out for limiting innovation in the decentralized finance sector.

In Asia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan are in the spotlight for rolling out licensing rules for stablecoin operators. While regulators celebrate Japan’s legal clarity, its inward-looking framework could leave the