As Nikkei has reported, the coin that has yet to be named will be circulated to retail stores and regional banks. It permits standard dealings such as the purchase or transfer of money between individuals at considerably lesser expenses than credit cards.
The coin of Mizuho is planned to go live in March 2019 and can be exchanged to yen on a 1:1 ratio, operating via a smartphone app and utilizing QR codes to be scanned in shops.
Users and retailers shall not be charged a fee for cryptocurrency dealings, including the transmission of funds between their smartphones and bank accounts, or the transfer of funds to other users or bank accounts of the stores. In return for the free service, banks would benefit from collecting additional information on the patterns of end user spending.
Over the past few years, the Japanese financial services group has investigated the digital currency space. The most recent plan itself is the consequence of the J-Coin venture, launched in 2017 by a consortium of banks, which was backed by Japan’s central bank and financial regulator to be ready for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
Mizuho is also extremely interested in blockchain technology. Last year, a trade finance deal was completed through a blockchain involving the transmission of data from Japan to Australia with vital financial data. Japanese banks have progressively created their own cryptocurrencies or utilized the primary technology to streamline operations and take away the Japanese from their intense cash addiction.
For example, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Japan’s major lender, reported earlier this year strategy to trial a new cryptocurrency called MUFG Coin, which guarantees to establish a borderless shopping experience.