Soramitsu Leads Project to Revolutionize Japan-Southeast Asia Cross-Border Payments
Japanese fintech developer Soramitsu is spearheading a project to facilitate cross-border payments using stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The company aims to connect Japanese small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) with businesses and individuals in Asia, starting with Cambodia's CBDC, Bakong.
Soramitsu, which has supported the issuance of Asian CBDCs like Bakong in Cambodia and Laos' Digital Lao Kip, plans to establish a Japanese exchange for stablecoins. This exchange will enable transactions at a fraction of the cost of typical cross-border transfers, with fees in the tens of yen per transaction.
To build the necessary exchange infrastructure, Soramitsu is collaborating with Digital Asset and other partners, including Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking. The project team also includes Tokyo-based digital services company Vivit and the Tama University Center for Rule-making Strategies.
Bakong, already successful in Cambodia with 8.5 million users and USD 15 billion in transactions, is used for QR code-based digital payments between Cambodia and other Asian countries. Soramitsu aims to extend this network to include India, China, Laos, and eventually Japan.
With changes to Japan's payment law now allowing banks to issue stablecoins, local startups and regional banks are planning to debut yen-denominated stablecoins by 2024. Soramitsu's project, by leveraging CBDCs and stablecoins, seeks to revolutionize cross-border payments, making them cheaper and more accessible for Japanese SMEs and their Asian counterparts.
