The Japanese government has approved a proposal to amend the Payment Services Act, aimed at reforming the regulatory framework for cryptocurrency brokers and stablecoins. The bill has been submitted to the Diet for consideration and is expected to be passed in the near future. According to information released by the Financial Services Agency (FSA), the new regulations will allow crypto companies to operate as "intermediary businesses," meaning brokers will no longer need to apply for the same license as crypto exchanges and wallet operators. The bill also provides greater asset-backing flexibility for stablecoin issuers, allowing them to use certain Japanese and US government bonds as backing assets for stablecoins instead of the 1:1 cash deposit currently required. However, only certain bonds with a remaining maturity of three months or less are eligible, and the bond backing ratio cannot exceed 50%. The rest still needs to be held in a current account. For crypto brokers, the new rules will not require them to meet financial requirements or anti-money laundering regulations, significantly lowering the barriers to market entry. Brokers only need to prove that they do not directly handle client funds to obtain the new license. According to reports, large Japanese companies including Mercari, SBI Securities and Monex Securities have expressed interest in the brokerage business.