Sony to Issue USD Stablecoin for Gaming and Anime Payments, Backed by Sony Bank and Bastion

Sony plans to issue a US dollar–denominated stablecoin for payments inside its gaming and anime ecosystem, targeting launch as early as fiscal 2026. Sony Bank has applied for a U.S. national bank charter and will form a subsidiary to manage the stablecoin business. The project partners with Bastion (a U.S. stablecoin infrastructure provider backed by Coinbase support); Sony participated in Bastion’s $14.6M funding. Business drivers include large U.S. revenue exposure (U.S. customers ≈30% of overseas sales), avoidance of cross-border FX costs, and reduced card-processing fees to raise margins or lower prices for players. The stablecoin will initially run alongside existing payment methods and could later add features such as in-game rewards, auto-conversion, and cross-platform loyalty. Regulatory context favors a U.S.-based approach: recent U.S. stablecoin legislation (the GENIUS/“stablecoin” framework) clarifies issuance by licensed institutions using cash or short-term Treasuries as reserves and permits broad use cases, while Japan’s rules require 1:1 yen pegs and limit domestic usage. The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has raised objections, arguing potential regulatory and depositor-protection issues; regulatory review may take 12–18 months or longer. Sony’s move builds on its multi-year Web3 investments (NFT platforms, layer-2/mainnet work, acquisitions) and, if approved, could give the company an early advantage in gaming digital payments and prompt competitors to follow — though timing, regulatory approval, and user adoption will determine market impact.