Taiwan's First Regulated Stablecoin Expected to Launch Next Year

**CoinDesk: Taiwan Region of China May Launch First Local Stablecoin in H2 2026** (Dec 3) — The Taiwan region of China could roll out its first locally issued stablecoin as early as the second half of 2026, though regulators have not yet decided whether the token will peg to the New Taiwan Dollar (NTD) or U.S. Dollar (USD)—a choice that will shape the project’s impact on the region’s currency controls, CoinDesk reported on December 3. Thomas Huang, chairman of the Taiwan region’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), told legislators this week that a draft of the **Virtual Asset Service Act** has cleared initial cabinet review and is expected to pass in the next legislative session. The act will include specific stablecoin regulations within six months of enactment, with the token potentially launching as early as late 2026, Huang added. While the legislation does not restrict stablecoin issuers to banks, the FSC and the region’s Central Bank have agreed that initial issuance will be led by financial institutions. A key unresolved question is the token’s peg: stablecoins are digital tokens tied to fiat currencies or real assets, and Huang noted the NTD/USD choice will depend on market demand, with no final decision made yet. If pegged to USD, the stablecoin could bypass a major constraint for the region: strict limits on offshore use of the NTD. By law, the NTD cannot circulate outside the region, and the Central Bank has long regulated transactions not directly linked to the island. Given stablecoins’ suitability for cross-border settlements, this feature could impact decades of efforts to maintain onshore NTD circulation and prevent unofficial offshore pricing. Regulators are currently drafting rules requiring full reserve backing, strict asset segregation, and local custody for stablecoins.