The Progmat Coin ecosystem is taking shape in Japan. With a market maker, wallet provider and cryptocurrency exchanges on board, Progmat and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) hope to launch two stablecoins in the summer of 2024.
Stablecoin platform Progmat Coin, MUFG and wallet provider Ginco have begun a study with the goal of issuing a yen-denominated XJPY stablecoin and dollar-denominated XUSD stablecoin, Progmat said in a statement. This is in addition to the platform’s function enabling stablecoin issuance.
#japan #stablecoin #crypto #payments@ginco_inc, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, and #Progmat are starting a joint study to introduce an “infrastructure stablecoin” with the aim of improving the settlement efficiencies among the players in the crypto asset market by leveraging… pic.twitter.com/Ei3I7t2bVb
— Norbert Gehrke (@norbertgehrke) November 7, 2023
Liquidity provider Cumberland and crypto exchanges Bitbank and Mercoin also figure into the Progmat plans, and other crypto asset-related businesses are invited to join. Binance Japan announced in September that it was conducting a joint study with MUFG on the issuance of stablecoins pegged to various currencies.
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The XJPY and XUSD stablecoins will be intended to improve the efficiency of settlements between crypto asset exchanges, with XUSD for use in cross-border settlements. Japanese crypto exchanges use banks for settlement, according to the Tokyo Fin Tech blog, causing delays that the Progmat system will eliminate.
MUFG introduced the Progmat platform in February 2022 in a consortium with other large Japanese banks. It is regulated under the revised Payment Services Act that came into effect in June 2023. The revised act provides for three types of stablecoin. Progmat would support the “trust” type coin, issued by trust banks.
MUFG said in June that Progmat would be used for banks to issue stablecoins on Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche and Cosmos. Only banks are allowed to issue stablecoins under Japanese law, and stablecoins on Progmat will be required to undergo licensing ahead of launch.
Progmat Coin is not working in a vacuum. Blockchain startup Soramitsu is exploring a new stablecoin exchange for cross-border payments to Asian countries using Camboodia’s central bank digital currency as well as stablecoin. Tokyo-based startup G.U. Technologies is also reportedly creating a stablecoin platform.
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