USDC Adoption Boosted by Partnership Between Circle and SBI Holdings (Japan)

Circle is introducing USDC to the Japanese market through a partnership with SBI Holdings, marking a significant milestone for stablecoin adoption in Japan.

According to a press release statement from Mar. 25, SBI VC Trade, a cryptocurrency exchange under SBI Holdings, will start full-scale trading of USD Coin (USDC) on Mar. 26. This makes USDC the first internationally recognized dollar stablecoin to be legally acknowledged under Japan's stablecoin framework, following approval from the country's Financial Services Agency.

Circle has been collaborating with banking partners and regulators for the past two years to make this possible. Jeremy Allaire, Circle's CEO, believes that Japan's clear stablecoin regulations present substantial opportunities for cross-border transactions, digital payments, and financial innovation.

"We are proud to bring USDC to businesses and consumers in Japan, and with Circle Japan KK and the strong support of SBI Holdings and leading exchanges, USDC is well-positioned as a secure and transparent digital dollar that caters to the needs of Japan's growing digital economy."

— Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle.

SBI Holdings views this as a crucial step towards improving the usability and accessibility of digital assets for both consumers and businesses. In addition to SBI VC Trade, USDC will soon be listed on Binance Japan, bitbank, and bitFlyer, expanding its reach further.

Circle has also been working on increasing USDC adoption outside of Japan. On Mar. 20, GCash, the largest digital wallet in the Philippines with around 100 million users, added support for USDC. Stablecoins are starting to play a more significant role in GCash's remittance market, which processes over $65 billion in transactions annually.

Circle has also made progress in Dubai, where USDC and Circle's euro-backed EURC became the first stablecoins to be authorized under the new framework of the Dubai Financial Services Authority. They are now available to companies operating in Dubai's economic free zone for use in financial services, treasury operations, and payments.

As of Mar. 25, USDC's market capitalization is $59.75 billion, according to data from DefiLlama, with $2.6 billion minted in the last 30 days. Although Circle's main competitor, Tether (USDT), still holds 61.93% of the stablecoin market share, regulatory scrutiny of the company is increasing, especially in Europe, where it has been delisted from several exchanges.

In contrast, Circle continues to enhance its reputation as a regulated and widely accepted stablecoin by adhering to the Markets in Crypto Authority regulations.