Hotlink Group, a publicly traded company in Japan, has announced its active investment in decentralized finance (DeFi) using the synthetic stablecoin USDe.
The company revealed that its subsidiary, Nonagon Capital, has made an initial investment as part of a broader plan to allocate $4 million towards DeFi initiatives. While USDC remains a popular choice among institutions due to its regulatory compliance, Hotlink has opted for the higher yield associated with USDe.
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Understanding the USDe Approach: Yield Over Basic Custody
Hotlink’s selection of USDe, issued by Ethena, over established fiat-backed stablecoins such as USDC or USDT underscores a strong focus on maximizing treasury returns.
Traditionally, firms have leaned towards stability by choosing USDC (Circle) because of its fiat-backed design and transparent reserves, meeting strict risk management standards. USDT (Tether) has faced long-standing regulatory challenges, making it less suitable for corporate balance sheets.
In contrast, USDe uses a synthetic approach to maintain its $1 peg through delta-neutral hedging, which pairs long positions in assets like Ether with equivalent shorts in derivatives. This strategy enables USDe to achieve high yields from staking rewards and funding rates in derivatives, which fiat-backed stablecoins like USDC cannot match.
The management of the USDe operation is a complex task requiring active management through sophisticated derivatives and staking methods. The involvement of Nonagon Capital, a specialized Web3 venture firm, is essential for navigating these complexities and seizing high-yield opportunities.
Corporate Strategy Shift: From Bitcoin Investment to Stablecoin Utilization
While some companies in Japan have adopted a Bitcoin Treasury Strategy, incorporating BTC into their balance sheets, the focus on stablecoins has rapidly become central to Japanese corporate digital finance strategies as of 2025.
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Bitcoin is often regarded as a speculative asset or “digital gold,” while stablecoins are seen as “programmable money,” emphasizing their operational efficiency. They offer quicker, cheaper solutions for international money transfers and cross-border e-commerce compared to traditional banking. Additionally, stablecoins facilitate higher yields in DeFi, a kind of capital efficiency absent in low-interest yen deposits.
A Deloitte survey of North American CFOs from Q2 2025 indicates this trend, revealing that 39% of finance leaders view stablecoins as advantageous for enhancing cross-border transaction facilitation.
Hotlink’s initiative is an innovative step towards achieving core treasury goals of preserving asset value and optimizing capital through the advantages of stablecoins and DeFi.
JPYC’s Future: Prospects for Domestic Utilization
The likelihood of Hotlink or other Japanese companies adopting JPYC alongside USDe is notable.
The updated Payment Services Act in Japan, implemented in June 2023, has prepared the regulatory ground for stablecoins. Recent reports indicate that JPYC Inc., the issuer of JPYC, may become the first approved domestic Fund Transfer Service Provider to issue this asset as an electronic payment instrument this fall.
The primary advantage lies in eliminating foreign exchange risk. As JPYC is yen-denominated, its use in yen-based transactions mitigates the currency volatility associated with dollar-pegged stablecoins, a crucial element for corporate finance in Japan.
JPYC’s regulatory framework is well-founded. It provides Japanese corporations with more regulatory assurance and trust than foreign options like USDC or USDT. While USDe aims for a global, dollar-based DeFi yield, JPYC has the potential to serve as a foundational layer for domestic payment advancements and yen-based DeFi within a regulated environment. This dual-coin strategy—high yield internationally and regulated functionality domestically—may gain traction throughout Japan’s corporate sector by 2026.
