JPYC, Japan's first licensed yen stablecoin, launched on South Korea's largest crypto exchange Upbit this week and rapidly appreciated above its intended 1-yen peg amid heavy retail demand. The token briefly reached the equivalent of more than 3 yen before supply increases restored stability.
Upbit announced the JPYC listing on September 17, pairing the stablecoin against the won, tether, and bitcoin. Trading opened at a reference price of 8.81 won and immediately jumped to 12 won. Within hours, Korean traders were paying 35.7 won per token, with exchange charts showing candle wicks touching the 37 won range—valuing a token designed to maintain a 1:1 yen peg at more than three times its intended price.
Supply Surge Restores Peg
JPYC is backed by government bonds and bank deposits and remains redeemable for 1 yen through JPYC Inc. When secondary market prices climbed substantially above this redemption value, traders had a strong incentive to mint new JPYC at 1 yen and sell it on Upbit for multiples of that amount.
The response was substantial. JPYC minted ¥1.68678 billion on September 17 alone, more than 12 times the previous single-day record of ¥139.16 million. Within roughly 48 hours, circulating supply climbed from approximately ¥1.9 billion to more than ¥4.2 billion. As fresh supply reached the market, the premium dissipated and prices drifted back toward the intended peg.
The JPYC/KRW pair ranks among Upbit's most active trading markets. Before its Upbit debut, JPYC's primary trading venue was Uniswap, where it traded mainly against stablecoin USDC.
