Taipei: A Taiwan-issued stablecoin may enter the market in the latter half of 2026 at the earliest based on the current timeline for passing related legislation, Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) Chairman Peng Jin-long said Wednesday.

According to Focus Taiwan, at a legislative hearing, Peng explained that the stablecoin’s proposed legal basis, the “Virtual Assets Service Act,” should be placed on the agenda of the current legislative session and is expected to pass during the next session if the bill progresses smoothly through the Legislative Yuan. Following the announcement of subordinate regulations by the FSC, an additional six-month buffer period will be required before the law takes effect.

The Cabinet is scheduled to review the act this week after three prior meetings, which Peng said produced a “high level of consensus.” A stablecoin is a cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, often by being pegged to a fiat currency or other asset.

Peng noted that the draft bill takes inspiration from the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation and does not explicitly require that stablecoins be issued by financial institutions. However, from a risk-management perspective, both the FSC and the central bank have agreed that only financial institutions will be permitted to issue them initially.