For overseas crypto users visiting Japan, spending digital assets at everyday shops is becoming easier as Binance Pay connects its payment service to PayPay’s merchant network.
The integration, launched on 30 September 2026, allows eligible Binance users from overseas to make cryptocurrency payments at more than 10 million PayPay-affiliated merchants across Japan, covering restaurants, shops, accommodation providers and other participating businesses.
How Can Tourists Pay With Crypto In Japan?
Visitors can use Binance Pay to scan a participating merchant’s PayPay QR code or show a payment code generated in the Binance app for the merchant to scan.
Payments are processed through HIVEX, PayPay’s cross-border payment network, while merchants receive settlement in Japanese yen rather than cryptocurrency.
This means businesses do not need to accept or hold digital assets directly, while eligible visitors can spend crypto from their Binance accounts without first converting it into yen themselves.
Binance said the service is available to approximately 48 million eligible Binance Pay users across more than 100 countries and regions.
The feature is aimed specifically at international visitors.
Japanese residents are not eligible, and overseas users must be from a jurisdiction where Binance Pay is supported and complete the exchange’s identity verification requirements.
PayPay Opens Its Merchant Network To Binance Pay Users
HIVEX provides the infrastructure linking Binance Pay with merchants that already use PayPay’s payment system.
PayPay has previously connected HIVEX with several overseas QR payment services, including UnionPay App, WeChat Pay and services used by visitors from Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Following the addition of UnionPay earlier in September, PayPay said its merchant network could receive payments from 36 overseas cashless services covering 17 countries and regions.
PayPay estimated that these markets accounted for about 80% of international visitors to Japan.
For participating merchants, the arrangement avoids the need to establish separate integrations with individual overseas payment apps.
Customers can either scan a merchant QR code through a supported payment application or display their payment code at checkout, while merchants can confirm completed transactions through PayPay for Business.
Binance Pay Brings More Than 100 Cryptocurrencies To The Checkout
The Japan integration gives Binance Pay users another way to use their digital asset balances for everyday purchases while travelling.
Binance said its users can spend supported cryptocurrencies directly through the service, with the connected payment infrastructure handling the transaction and yen settlement for merchants.
The company has been expanding similar connections with local payment systems in other markets as it tries to make crypto more usable for purchases beyond exchanges and trading platforms.
Binance Research said in April that Binance Pay had reached more than 21 million merchants globally and had connected with domestic payment networks such as Brazil’s Pix.
The Japan rollout gives the service access to an established local QR payment network rather than requiring Binance to onboard Japanese restaurants, retailers and other businesses individually.
Thomas Gregory Says Japan Can Link Cashless Payments And Digital Assets
Thomas Gregory, Binance’s vice president of Payments & Fiat, said the integration could provide an example of how digital assets can work alongside existing cashless payment infrastructure.
Gregory said,
“Our integration with PayPay reflects a shared vision of making payments more seamless, borderless, and accessible for travelers visiting the country.”
He added that the arrangement gives travellers more payment options while allowing PayPay-supported merchants to serve international customers through their existing payment setup.
Binance And PayPay Already Have A Business Relationship
The latest service builds on an existing relationship between the two companies in Japan.
SoftBank Group company PayPay acquired a 40% stake in Binance Japan in October 2025 as part of a capital and business alliance.
The partnership initially focused on connecting PayPay and Binance Japan for transactions involving Japanese yen and crypto.
Binance Japan users gained the ability to use PayPay Money and PayPay Points to purchase cryptocurrency, while proceeds from crypto sales could be transferred back to PayPay.
In April 2026, users were also allowed to deposit Japanese yen into Binance Japan through PayPay Money before using the funds for crypto purchases, limit orders and exchange trading.
Binance Japan later increased its PayPay Money deposit limits in August, raising the 24-hour limit from ¥300,000 to ¥1 million, equivalent to roughly $2,000 and $6,700 respectively, while the 30-day limit rose from ¥1 million to ¥2 million, or about $6,700 and $13,400.
The new HIVEX service is different from those earlier arrangements because it is designed for overseas visitors using Binance Pay rather than Japanese residents using Binance Japan.
The Service Targets Japan’s International Visitors
The rollout gives Binance Pay a route into Japan’s established cashless payment infrastructure at a time when international visitors can already use a growing number of overseas QR payment services through PayPay.
For travellers who hold cryptocurrency, the arrangement removes an additional step between their digital assets and purchases at participating Japanese businesses.
The campaign is limited to qualifying users, with Binance directing customers to its official campaign page and in-app announcements for eligibility requirements and the promotion period.
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