Netstars Launches Second Phase of Stablecoin (USDC) Payment Service Demonstration at Physical Stores

Netstars Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and CEO: Li Gang; hereinafter "Netstars") will begin a service demonstration on April 2, 2026, to introduce the US dollar-denominated stablecoin "USDC" as a payment method at the trading card specialty store "TCG BW Himeji Store" (Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture). This demonstration is the second phase of a stablecoin payment service demonstration at physical stores, following the one conducted at Haneda Airport Terminal 3.

[About the Service Demonstration Store]

The "TCG BW Himeji Store" where this demonstration will be conducted is a small store with many inbound tourists due to its location near Himeji Castle. Trading card transactions are globally popular, and stablecoin payments, which are widely used overseas, have high affinity with this field. Through this demonstration, we aim to improve convenience for inbound tourists in payment scenes at small stores and contribute to expanding sales opportunities for stores.

[Flow of Service Usage]

When making a payment at a加盟店 (participating store), the user presents a QR code for payment from their Wallet (in this case, MetaMask), and the store reads it with a payment terminal to complete the stablecoin payment. The加盟店 (participating store) can read the QR code for payment, hand over the product, and settle sales, just like with other payment services. The加盟店 (participating store) can handle everything from entering the amount into the payment terminal to entering sales in Japanese Yen.

We will verify the practicality of stablecoin payments in small stores and connect this to future expansion into various industries and business formats.

■ About Netstars Co., Ltd.

Since its establishment in 2009, Netstars has been developing gateway businesses. In 2015, it was the first to introduce QR code payment services for inbound tourists to Japan as an agent. Since then, it has developed "StarPay," a multi-cashless payment solution that allows stores to collectively introduce and manage cashless payments, including domestic and international QR code payments. Currently, it is working on diversified service development based on the technical capabilities of "StarPay."

*QR Code is a registered trademark of Denso Wave Inc.