# NEC, Ava Labs Explore Biometric Credentials for Japan Stablecoin Payments

By John Kim

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/business/47935
Published: 2026-11-03T18:59:07.000Z
Updated: 2026-11-03T18:59:07.000Z
Section: Business

> Their proposed model would let visitors verify their identity and pay with stablecoins in one approval. The July announcement included no launch schedule.

NEC Corporation and Ava Labs announced an agreement to explore biometric identity credentials and stablecoin payments for visitors to Japan, a proposal that could combine identity checks and payment in a single approval at a merchant if implemented.

NEC announced the memorandum of understanding July 9 at 10 p.m. ET (July 10 at 02:00 UTC). The companies outlined a possible tourist payment model, but did not announce a live service, proof of concept or launch schedule.

The proposed flow assumes a visitor obtains a FaceVC, a biometric identity credential, before arriving in Japan. NEC would provide the identity layer. An Avalanche permissioned Layer 1 would manage identity records and credential revocations, while SETTL would process stablecoin payments. Avalanche’s public C-Chain would support reward tokens and promotional nonfungible tokens, with the networks communicating through Avalanche Interchain Messaging.

The companies’ proposed design would keep biometric information and purchase history in users’ wallets. Only verification proofs and limited transaction information would be recorded on-chain.

The proposal comes as Japan recorded 42,683,600 visitor arrivals in 2025, a preliminary total 15.8% higher than the definitive 2024 figure. The model does not identify a stablecoin, wallet provider, credential issuer or merchant partner.

NEC also identified identity checks for financial institutions, authentication for artificial intelligence agents, digital wallets and cross-border payments as areas for study. The companies would consider proof-of-concept work and commercialization, with no timetable announced.

“We believe FaceVC will grow increasingly important across identity verification, payments, AI agent authentication, and cross-border services,” said Yuya Higuchi, director of NEC’s Biometrics & Vision AI Division.