Japan's Utility Giant Kansai Electric Lets Customers Turn Loyalty Points Into JPYC Stablecoin for Everyday Payments

Kansai Electric Turns Loyalty Points Into Spendable Digital Yen on Polygon

Everyday reward points are moving beyond gift vouchers in Japan, with Kansai Electric Power's rewards business opening a new route into blockchain payments.

Through a partnership between MOACT and HashPort, users can now convert loyalty points into the yen-backed stablecoin JPYC on the Polygon blockchain, allowing rewards to become a digital asset that can be held, transferred and spent.

The feature gives customers a way to move value out of a traditional closed rewards system and into their own digital wallets.

Instead of redeeming points for one-time rewards, users can use the converted JPYC for payments or connect it to decentralised finance (DeFi) services.

How Loyalty Points Become Spendable Digital Money

The new service is available through MOACT, the rewards platform operated by a wholly owned subsidiary of Kansai Electric Power.

Users earn NORM Points by completing social-impact activities, including taking part in programmes run by companies and local governments that support community initiatives.

Those points can now be exchanged for JPYC through the HashPort Wallet.

Once converted, the stablecoins remain under the user's control and can be held, sent to others or spent, giving customers far greater flexibility than the platform's existing digital gift voucher options.

JPYC is issued by JPYC Co., Ltd. and is Japan's first regulated yen-pegged stablecoin.

It is recognised as an electronic payment instrument under Japan's Payment Services Act and can be redeemed one-to-one for Japanese yen.

Polygon Expands Its Role In Japan's Stablecoin Payments

Polygon Labs welcomed the integration, highlighting the growing role of the network in Japan's digital payments ecosystem.

The company said on X, describing JPYC as part of "the default rails" for stablecoin payments on its Open Money Stack,

"One of Japan's largest utility companies is turning loyalty points into onchain payments on Polygon.”

According to CoinGecko, Polygon's native token, POL, traded largely unchanged over the previous 24 hours at around US$0.071 following the announcement.

Growing Use Of JPYC Across Consumer Services

The latest integration builds on a series of JPYC payment initiatives designed to connect everyday consumer services with blockchain technology.

On 1 June 2026, HashPort introduced Japan's first credit card loyalty point conversion into JPYC through Diners Club.

That was followed by an in-store payment pilot with telecommunications company KDDI at Lawson convenience stores beginning on 13 July 2026, allowing customers to make purchases using the yen-backed stablecoin.

Polygon has become the primary network supporting these activities.

The blockchain processes more JPYC transaction volume than all other supported chains combined, while 84% of JPYC holders use the HashPort Wallet.

JPYC also surpassed US$100 million in cumulative on-chain transfer volume in April 2026, with that figure now exceeding US$265 million through payments, subscriptions, lending, merchant transactions and everyday spending.

A New Payment Option Instead Of Expiring Rewards

For Kansai Electric, the partnership creates another redemption option for customers while giving loyalty points a practical use beyond internal rewards.

Rather than remaining benefits that may eventually expire, converted points become digital money that users can continue using after leaving the rewards platform.

HashPort said the conversion process has also been structured so that it does not fall under Japan's cryptocurrency exchange or electronic payment instrument trading licence requirements.

Although the service is now available, neither MOACT nor HashPort has disclosed user adoption figures or transaction volumes.

The long-term impact will depend on how widely customers use the conversion feature and where JPYC can ultimately be accepted for payments across Japan.