Japan’s Banking Giant MUFG Plans to Launch Blockchain Payment Network in 2021

Japanese banking giant MUFG plans to launch its blockchain payment network across the country in 2021 with U.S.-based fintech company Akamai.

AccessTimeIconNov 20, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. UTC
Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:33 a.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), one of the largest banking institutions in Japan, is set to launch its high-speed blockchain payment network with the U.S.-based tech firm Akamai in 2021. 

MUFG and Akamai aim to provide cheaper and more efficient payment services via their joint venture Global Open Network (GO-NET). The network will integrate payment terminals from electronic device manufacturer Seiko Holdings with the bank’s credit card company MUFG NICOS in February, CoinDesk Japan reported. GO-NET initially announced the launch of the payment services to be in the first half of 2020. 

The network also plans in July of next year to start a service allowing customers to buy canned and bottled beverages at some vending machines in Japan by placing a credit card on a machine reader. GO-NET said its payment platform can process 100,000 transactions per second, which exceeds Visa's processing capacity of about 70,000 per second. According to GO-NET, the platform can be expanded to reach as high as 10 million transactions per second for small payments.

Founded in May 2018, GO-NET is a joint venture between MUFG and Akamai, with the bank owning 80% of the firm’s stake. The collaboration between the two companies in developing the payment platform started as early as 2016, according to CoinDesk Japan. 

While MUFG can leverage its existing financial services to increase the adoption of the network, Akamai helps GO-NET build its infrastructure with around 280,000 servers in 136 countries and the blockchain technology that comes with a native wallet.

MUFG has been working on its own digital currency, MUFG Coin, for several years. It is unclear if the blockchain payment network is related to the bank’s coin initiative. 

GO-NET expects the payment services to be fully functional across Japan by the summer of 2022. 

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.