The company is exploring whether a native stablecoin can offer better protections
Sony Bank, the financial arm of the Sony Group Corporation, announced it has begun researching issuing its own stablecoin pinned to fiat currencies, like the Japanese yen. The trial will occur on the Polygon blockchain in partnership with Belgium blockchain firm SettleMint.
Jun Watanabe, President and Representative Director of Sony Network Communications, confirmed the reports in an X post. Sony Bank states it will evaluate any legal matters related to transferring yen-backed stablecoins. It expects these experiments will take place over the next several months. The firm said it could possibly take advantage of lower fees for customers who send money and make payments using stablecoins.
Sony Bank plans to launch stablecoin and Sony plans to launch a blockchain with us. It is getting ready. https://t.co/J6jqsjGnTa
— Sota Watanabe (@WatanabeSota) April 5, 2024
Sony also says it would contemplate it as a payment method for companies that use intellectual property (IP), such as games and sports, owned by the Sony Group.
The Sony Group has also recently experimented with integrating other Web3 technologies into its functions. Its video game division filed a patent in March to create nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in an enterprise it dubbed the “NFT framework for transferring and using Digital Assets between game platforms.”
Sony Network Communications began a joint venture with Singapore-based Web3 infrastructure architect Startale Labs last September to construct Sony’s blockchain network. Watanabe said at the time that the company hopes to develop a global infrastructure that “underpins the Web3 era” and pushes innovation across various industries. The blockchain is expected to launch later this year.
Japan has also been investing in the Web3 community during the past year. In February, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced it seeks to expand strategic domestic investments into Web3 startups by authorizing limited partnership firms to obtain and keep crypto assets.
