Japan’s Messaging Giant LINE to Trial Crypto Payments for Online Merchants

LINE is aiming to increase the usage of its native crypto LINK (LN) and will begin trialling the token’s use in payments via its messaging app

article-image

Line application icon on Apple iPhone. Credit: Shutterstock

share

key takeaways

  • LINE Pay will begin trialling payments in LINK to select merchants via its messaging app
  • The trial will take place on LINE’s blockchain network and will run from March through to December

A subsidiary of the Japan-based messaging giant LINE Corporation will begin trialing its native token for use in payments to select merchants via its messaging app.

LINE Pay, the operator of the company’s digital wallet and fintech services, will be tasked with connecting LINE’s LINK (LN) token (not to be confused with ChainLink’s LINK token) with its payment solution, according to a statement Tuesday.

LINE said it is aiming to expand users’ “payment options, increase convenience, and grow the real-life usages” for LINK. It is the first time since 2020 that the messaging giant has made significant efforts to push ahead with its crypto efforts.

Trials will commence March 16 through Dec. 26, enabling customers to use LINK at LINE Pay online merchants in the same way LINE Points are transacted, the company said. The company’s blockchain network will be used for the trial.

As of Q3 2020, LINE’s messaging app boasted roughly 84 million monthly active users in its domestic market, around 66% of Japan’s total population.

The company has been quietly building its payment infrastructure after launching its native token back in 2018.

Last year, LVC, LINE’s crypto exchange operator and blockchain business unit, debuted a crypto lending service, allowing users to lend bitcoin and other cryptos to its BITMAX exchange in return for a rental fee.

LN, whose market cap stands at $867.8 million, is changing hands for $144.2 and is up 23.8% over a seven-day period, according to data by provider CoinGecko.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Featured.png

Research

Helium stands at a pivotal moment in its evolution as a decentralized wireless network, balancing rapid growth, economic restructuring, and global expansion. With accelerated growth in domestic DAUs and Hotspots supporting its network, Helium is leveraging strategic partnerships and innovative proposals to scale internationally. The recent implementation of HIP 138, “Return to HNT,” has unified its token economy under HNT, simplifying participation and strengthening liquidity, while HIP 139’s phase-out of CBRS refocuses efforts on scalable Wi-Fi offload. Meanwhile, governance shifts under HIP 141 raise questions about centralization as Nova Labs consolidates control over the roadmap.

article-image

The DeFi Education Fund has ideas on how the crypto-friendly SEC can bring Commissioner Peirce’s vision to life

article-image

“Be prepared to do more with less,” Framework Ventures’ Michael Anderson said

article-image

Q1 may have been “frustrating,” but things are looking brighter for Q2

article-image

Tokens worth 20% of the current supply of the TRUMP memecoin launched by the president are set to be unlocked tomorrow

article-image

A crypto-industry lawsuit is “moot” now that Joint Resolution 25 has been signed into law

article-image

Fed Chair Powell assured markets that the labor market is in “good place,” dependent on price stability