Japanese regional banks jump in on cashless payment initiative

J-Coin enables transactions without the need to install readers.

Half of the regional banks in Japan will be reportedly introducing the cashless payment system developed by Mizuho Financial Group called J-Coin in an attempt to comply with the government’s dedicated digital push ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, reports Japan Times. 

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Through J-Coin, individuals can carry out transactions without the need to install dedicated readers. Transactions will be processed through a smartphone app that makes use of a barcode, telephone number or Line identification number.

Mizuho Bank is said to launch J-Coin on March 1 with regional banks progressively rolling out the service from March 25, sources told Japan Times.

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The new service will then be offered to individuals with accounts at regional banks like Chiba Bank and Nishi-Nippon City Bank. Appliance retailers such as Bic Camera Inc. and Yamada Denki Co. are set to start adopting the J-Coin system in April whilst other firms like East Japan Railway Co., convenience store chain FamilyMart Co. and restaurant operator Royal Holdings Co. are considering joining the service as well.

The Japanese government is aiming to expand adoption rates of cashless payments as part of its Society 5.0 strategy with the end-goal of having digital payments account for 40% of all financial transactions by 2025. Banks have also tied up to launch a unified QR code payment service that is slated to launch on April 2020.