Japan to study putting government bond transactions on blockchain

TOKYO: Japan’s Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday it will launch a study group next month to examine whether Japanese government bonds (JGBs) should be adapted for “on-chain” trading using blockchain technology.

The study group will assess the potential benefits, costs and market impact of bringing JGB-related transactions onto a blockchain, a senior ministry official told a briefing.

On-chain functionality, including faster settlement, could for example facilitate the immediate use of government bonds as collateral in repo transactions, the official said.