On August 25, the WebX 2025 Conference was held in Tokyo, Japan. Former US CFTC Chairman and Circle Chief Legal Officer & Head of Corporate Affairs Heath Tarbert, along with Japanese Liberal Democratic Party Senator and Chair of the Senate Budget Committee Satsuki Katayama, participated in a roundtable discussion focusing on stablecoin regulation and application.
During the roundtable, Satsuki Katayama expressed a cautious stance toward central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and emphasized that stablecoins are a critical entry point for the widespread adoption of the crypto industry. She noted that international concerns exist regarding privacy and surveillance risks associated with CBDCs, and domestically, some in Japan have questioned their decentralized nature. The House of Representatives even once proposed a ban on related exploration. Currently, CBDCs in Japan remain in the research phase and have not yet entered commercial implementation. Instead, Japan prefers to prioritize the development of stablecoins. With young people being the primary holders of crypto assets in Japan, she pointed out that the country is pushing for a reclassification of cryptocurrencies, planning to move them from "miscellaneous income" to the regulatory scope of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. This would reduce the maximum tax rate from 55% to 20% (aligning with the US), and multi-party negotiations are underway to finalize the plan by year-end. If the cryptocurrency tax adjustment is implemented, the use of stablecoins in daily transactions could become more widespread, while CBDCs are not a short-term priority. She also revealed that Japan had collaborated with institutions like the European Central Bank on CBDC research, but progress has been slow. Future directions will be determined based on market demand and technological maturity.
Heath Tarbert highlighted that the US regulatory environment for crypto has undergone a significant shift from past stringency to support. The passage of the Genius Act is of great importance, as it effectively equates stablecoins to cash for the first time, providing long-awaited regulatory clarity and establishing the foundation for stablecoins to be backed 1:1 by high-quality liquid assets. However, the US still has much work to do in digital asset regulation, such as clarifying the classification of other digital assets and improving market structure legislation for custody services and exchange rules. Additionally, the implementation details of the Genius Act have not yet been finalized. Regarding stablecoins, Heath emphasized their broad application scenarios. Beyond enabling efficient entry and exit in crypto asset trading, they can serve as reliable dollar savings tools for people in non-G20 countries, reduce cross-border remittance costs by up to 6%-7%, and optimize corporate cross-border transactions by enabling instant settlement and avoiding foreign exchange fees. Circle's payment network, leveraging USDC, connects global financial institutions and provides an example of efficient conversion between different currencies. On the topic of CBDCs, the US remains cautious. Heath mentioned that many in the US are concerned about privacy and surveillance risks associated with CBDCs, and the Genius Act effectively prohibits the Federal Reserve from launching a CBDC in the near term. In the future, dollars on the blockchain are more likely to exist in the form of stablecoins.
