Japan's three megabanks, Mizuho, MUFG and SMBC, are jointly issuing a single-brand trust-type stablecoin. We unpack why it skips the 1-million-yen cap, why banks are building a tool that could drain their own deposits, and how it lines up with Japan's revised Payment Services Act, the US GENIUS Act, EU MiCA and the digital yen.
Japan's government and three megabanks gained access to a frontier AI model for cyber defense, with the digital minister calling to expand it to critical infrastructure. Set against the new US executive order and the EU AI Act, here is how Tokyo's approach differs.
Japan's three megabanks—MUFG, SMFG, and Mizuho—posted a combined net profit of 5.26 trillion yen ($33B) for the fiscal year ended March 2026, breaking the 5-trillion-yen barrier for the first time. We unpack how BOJ rate hikes drove the surge, how the numbers compare to JPMorgan and HSBC, and what Japan's monetary normalization means for global markets.
Anthropic's Head of Global Affairs Michael Sellitto arrived in Tokyo May 15 and confirmed the company is weighing participation in the cyber defense corporate alliance proposed by Japan's ruling LDP. Modeled on US Project Glasswing, the framework will test Japan's distinctive 'middle path' — an AI Promotion Law with no penalties, sitting between the EU AI Act's hard regulation and the deregulatory turn under the Trump administration.