According to a report Friday (April 10) from Nikkei, a draft amendment before the country’s Cabinet would place crypto assets under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, a framework used for stocks and securities. 

Assuming the measure passes during the current legislative session, the law could go into effect as soon as fiscal 2027, the report said.

Before now, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) has regulated crypto under the Payment Services Act, due to the digital currency’s potential use as a payment method.

But with crypto becoming an investment instrument, the FSA wants to move regulation to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, the report said.

The new law will also create tougher penalties for crypto violations, the report said. For example, operating without registration could lead to a 10-year prison term, compared to the current three-year sentence. Fines would also be increased, from 3 million yen to up to 10 million yen (around $62,000).

In other digital asset news, PYMNTS wrote last week about new Federal Reserve research that shows the large majority of stablecoins aren’t flowing through the real economy. Instead, they are either sitting idle or circulating within cryptocurrency markets rather than being used to pay for goods and services.

A briefing released last week by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City explores how stablecoins are actually used, based on data across industry platforms. 

“The takeaway is blunt: payments barely register, while most activity remains inactive or tied up in financial infrastructure rather than commerce,” PYMNTS wrote.

These findings reinforce a pattern that PYMNTS Intelligence has chartered across corporate finance functions. In the March 2026 data book, “Stablecoins Gain Ground: Why CFOs See More Promise There Than in Crypto,” interest among executives in stablecoins continued to surpass actual deployment.

According to that report, more than 40% of middle-market firms say they have at least discussed or tested stablecoins, yet only 13% report actual use. The gulf between awareness and implementation highlights an ongoing hesitation among finance leaders. Stablecoins are seen as potentially useful, but not yet integrated into everyday financial operations.

“The data also helps explain the idle balances identified in the Fed’s research. Firms are not rejecting stablecoins,” PYMNTS wrote. “Instead, they are holding back until the operational case becomes clearer, particularly as they weigh how these tools would integrate with treasury systems and payment workflows.”

Money looks — and feels — different than it did a generation ago. The era of checkbooks and paper cash is fading; in its place is an all-digital ecosystem of instant payments, peer-to-peer apps, online shopping and real‑time betting markets. That shift has changed not only how people transact, but how they think about money. If we want our children to grow into financially capable adults, schools must catch up. New Hampshire is finally doing just that.

Today’s payments are frictionless. Venmo, PayPal, Zelle and similar apps let teens split dinner bills, send gifts or trade cash for concert tickets with a tap — and without the tactile reminder that handing over cash provides. That digital ease reshapes spending psychology: abstraction and immediacy can weaken the emotional “pain” of parting with money, making impulse purchases and casual transfers feel less consequential.

Layered on top of effortless payments are prediction markets and widely available sports gambling. Betting apps normalize risk‑taking behavior and create fresh avenues for rapid losses — especially among young people who grow up seeing real‑time odds, live lines and social feeds celebrating wins. Online shopping amplifies the problem. The fewer trips consumers make to local retailers, the more normalized becomes a culture of instant gratification: one click, next‑day delivery and a new item arrives before the buyer has reconsidered the impulse.

These trends matter beyond individual households. Roughly two‑thirds of the U.S. economy depends on consumer spending. When consumers overspend, accumulate avoidable debt or lack basic savings and investment know‑how, the ripple effects are real: financial stress at home, reduced long‑term economic resilience and less stable local economies.

That’s why financial education in schools is no longer optional. For over 25 years, the NH Jump$tart Coalition has advocated teaching personal finance in classrooms across the state. This fall brings a major milestone: beginning September for the 2026-2027 academic year, New Hampshire will require a standalone half‑credit course in personal finance for graduation, in addition to the existing half‑credit economics requirement. New Hampshire joins about 30 states that have adopted similar graduation requirements — a recognition that personal finance skills are foundational, not extracurricular. Reinforcing that momentum, Governor Kelly Ayotte has declared April as Youth Financial Literacy Month, a statewide acknowledgment that building these skills must start early.

A required course gives students structured exposure to budgeting, saving, credit, debt management, insurance, investing basics and the behavioral forces that drive spending. It provides a space to discuss how digital payments and gambling products influence decision‑making, how to spot predatory financial offers and how to build financial habits that support long‑term goals rather than immediate gratification.

But passing a graduation requirement is only the first step. Teachers need support. NH Jump$tart and partner organizations are working to provide professional development and classroom resources — many at no cost — so educators can teach personal finance confidently and effectively. Free curricula, interactive simulations, lesson plans and workshops help translate policy into practice in diverse classrooms.

Our next focus must be on measurement: determining what effective financial education looks like and how to scale it. We need clear metrics to evaluate whether students leave the course with durable knowledge, sound habits, and the confidence to make smart financial choices in a digital world. Measuring outcomes will help refine curricula, target teacher training and ensure the investment actually improves financial capability.

This new requirement, bolstered by the Governor’s proclamation and years of advocacy, signals a shift in priorities: New Hampshire recognizes that helping students manage money is as essential as reading and arithmetic. With two‑thirds of the economy riding on consumer choices, teaching financial literacy is not merely a personal benefit — it’s an economic imperative. By equipping young people to navigate digital payments, resist instant gratification and understand risk, we strengthen families, communities and the broader state economy.

New Hampshire has taken a meaningful step. Now we must ensure schools, teachers, parents and students have the tools and the evidence to make that step count.

Daniel H. Hebert is the state president of NH Jump$tart Coalition. He lives in Hillsborough.