Stripe and JCB expand access to Japan’s growing ecommerce market

  • JCB is now available to Stripe users in more markets including the EU, the UK, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
  • With the expansion, JCB is available to Stripe users in 39 countries and territories, including preexisting availability in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and North America.
  • The partnership enables easier access to Japan's large and growing ecommerce market.

SAN FRANCISCO AND DUBLIN—Stripe, a financial infrastructure platform for businesses, today announced expanded support for JCB, a leading card network in Japan and one of the top payment networks in the world. JCB is now available on Stripe in 39 countries and territories, making it easy for businesses in those markets to accept payments from 154 million JCB cardholders.

“Working with Stripe to expand our international reach and enable more ways for our cardmembers to pay is an obvious next step in deepening our partnership,” said Yoshiki Kaneko, president and CEO of JCB International Co. Ltd. “Stripe’s global presence and innovative technology is ideal for merchants who value secure and fast transactions, as well as for our cardmembers, who want to pay with their favorite card wherever they are in the world."

The expanded partnership makes it easier for businesses worldwide to reach customers in Japan, which is the fourth-largest ecommerce market in the world. Fast-growing businesses like Slack already accept JCB cards to access the Japanese market, where JCB is the card of choice for millions of consumers. The expanded coverage also makes it easier for JCB cardmembers living or traveling outside Japan to complete purchases online. The Stripe-JCB announcement arrives as Japanese tourists are traveling abroad again in large numbers, with their total international visits up 221% year-over-year this past July.

Recent Stripe research highlights how offering the right payment methods is essential for successful international expansion. In the “State of Asia Pacific checkouts in 2022” report, 84% of consumers in the region said they would frequently abandon their cart if their preferred payment method wasn’t available. This September, Stripe announced a broad expansion of payment methods for its optimized checkout suite, which now supports more than 100 payment methods globally.

Today’s announcement deepens the strategic partnership between Stripe and JCB. Most recently, Stripe powered JCB’s addition of industry-leading features in Japan, including new standards for automated onboarding and faster payout cycles for merchants. Following these enhancements, businesses can onboard and begin accepting online payments with JCB in just a few days, compared to weeks previously, and eligible Stripe-powered businesses can access JCB funds in their accounts in a matter of days (compared to the industry standard of one month).

“With today’s updates, JCB and Stripe are making it easier than ever for global businesses to sell to customers in Japan and across Asia,” said Jeanne DeWitt Grosser, global head of partnerships at Stripe. “We’re excited that our longstanding partnership with JCB continues to deliver new, tangible benefits to internet businesses and JCB cardmembers alike.”