PTT Hot Discussion: Taiwan's Issuance of Stablecoins? The Financial Supervisory Commission States "There Are Banks in Discussion"

With the new wave of stablecoin Compliance emerging in the United States and Hong Kong, there is external interest in whether Taiwan has the opportunity to issue a New Taiwan Dollar stablecoin, and the topic has swept through the PTT forum. On August 26, the Financial Supervisory Commission of Taiwan stated that the draft Virtual Asset Service Act was submitted on June 27, and if it is announced and implemented in the future, the Commission will establish management regulations for stablecoin issuance. Only qualified issuers will be able to apply for the issuance of stablecoins domestically. It is indeed under consideration by banks, but nothing is certain yet.

According to foreign reports, the Financial Services Agency (FSA) of Japan is expected to approve the issuance of the first yen stablecoin as early as this autumn, drawing market attention. The media is also concerned about the timeline for the implementation of Taiwan’s current virtual asset service law, and whether any financial institutions will express intentions to issue a TWD-denominated stablecoin.

The Deputy Director of the Banking Bureau of Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission, Hou Li-yang, pointed out that the draft includes regulations on the issuance and management of stablecoins, including the requirement to obtain permission for the issuance of stablecoins in Taiwan, as well as provisions for the management of stablecoin issuers. The Financial Supervisory Commission continues to exchange opinions with the Central Bank and has also adopted suggestions from the Central Bank regarding the auditing of reserve assets, information disclosure, reserve fund allocation, and business reporting.

As for the subsequent process, Hou Liyang stated that after the future draft is published and implemented, the Financial Supervisory Commission will establish regulations for the management of stablecoin issuance based on the authorization, and only qualified issuers will be able to apply for the issuance of stablecoins domestically according to the law. It is understood that there are currently banks considering this, but nothing has been confirmed yet.

The Secretary-General of the Securities and Futures Bureau of Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission, Huang Zhonghao, explained that the draft of the Virtual Assets Service Act was submitted on June 27. Due to the fact that the special law framework has multiple chapters, 20 public presentations have been held previously to communicate with the outside world and revisions have been made based on feedback from various sectors. The content of the draft involves multiple ministries, such as the central bank, and the regulatory aspects, including criminal responsibility, also involve the Ministry of Justice. Further details will be sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation only after a cross-ministerial review meeting is convened, and currently, a timeline cannot be provided.

Currently, the stablecoins circulating in the market are pegged to fiat currencies. Due to differences in issuance methods and mechanisms to maintain stability, there are various stablecoins in the market such as US dollar stablecoins and gold stablecoins. At present, the vast majority of stablecoins circulating on-chain are US dollar stablecoins like USDT and USDC. In simple terms, stablecoins serve as the settlement currency in the digital asset market, allowing individuals to buy and sell digital assets on the chain using stablecoins based on timing and demand, such as cryptocurrencies.

(Source: PTT)

PTT users speculate which banks are currently under discussion, with comments mentioning banks such as “Wang Dao” and “Fubon.”

One netizen even said: “If there really is a New Taiwan Dollar stablecoin, maybe I won’t need to cash out when I move bricks on the blockchain in the future.”

(Source: PTT)

Others responded with “wait and see”, “having a beginning is always a good thing”, “discussing means there are no plans to act”, etc.