Convenience Store Giant Lawson Tests JPYC Stablecoin Payments in Japan’s First POS Retail Pilot
Japanese convenience store operator Lawson is preparing to test payments using JPYC, a yen-pegged stablecoin, in what it says is Japan’s first point-of-sale (POS) linked stablecoin payment experiment. The pilot is expected to begin in early August at Lawson’s Takanawa Gateway City store in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, according to Nikkei.
Lawson, one of Japan’s “big three” convenience store chains alongside 7-Eleven and Familymart, will work with digital asset wallet provider Hashport to allow shoppers to pay for goods through smartphone electronic wallets. The payment process will resemble existing mobile payment flows: a customer displays a wallet barcode on a smartphone, a store employee scans it through the POS terminal, and Hashport updates the user’s stablecoin balance based on the transaction information.
The key feature of the pilot is the direct integration of stablecoin payments with Lawson’s existing store management infrastructure. By linking stablecoin payments to the POS system, Lawson can manage purchase data such as product quantity, payment timing, and transaction details within its current operations. This makes the test more meaningful than simple wallet-to-wallet transfers.
Lawson plans to evaluate the stability of the POS integration and the time required to complete payments before deciding whether to expand the service more broadly across its stores.
JPYC use cases are already beginning to spread in Japan. Chibo, an okonomiyaki restaurant operator, started accepting JPYC at some stores in April, and dental clinics in Tokyo are also planning to introduce JPYC payments in partnership with Hashport.
Japan’s financial sector is moving in parallel. The country’s three largest banks—Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., and Mizuho Bank—are conducting stablecoin pilot tests with the Financial Services Agency. Citigroup has projected that the global stablecoin market could grow from $282 billion last year to between $1.9 trillion and $4 trillion by 2030.
If Lawson moves from pilot to full rollout, it would demonstrate that yen stablecoins can operate inside ordinary store payment systems, not only in remittance, trading, or banking pilots. For Japan, that would mark a practical step toward commercializing stablecoins in daily life.