Japanese Yen (JPY)
The Japanese Yen is the third most traded currency globally and a traditional safe-haven asset during periods of market stress. Japan is unusual in having low-denomination coins still in wide circulation.
Convert JPY
1 JPY in major currencies
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A short history of the Japanese Yen
The yen was adopted in 1871 with the New Currency Act, replacing the tangled patchwork of Edo-period domain notes. It became a hard currency with the gold standard, went through wartime turmoil, and floated after 1971. The Plaza Accord of 1985 roughly doubled its value against the dollar within a few years, resetting Japan's export economy.
Today the JPY is the third most traded currency in the world and a major reserve currency. Decades of near-zero interest rates gave it a second job: the world's favorite funding currency. Investors borrowed cheap yen to buy higher-yielding assets elsewhere — the famous carry trade — which makes the yen fall when markets are confident and surge when crises force those positions to unwind.
What moves the JPY exchange rate
USD/JPY is essentially a two-country interest-rate story wrapped around a risk barometer.
- Bank of Japan policy: the last major central bank to leave negative rates behind (2024), after a long era of yield-curve control and bond buying
- The US–Japan rate gap: the single biggest driver of USD/JPY — a wider gap favors the dollar, a narrowing one favors the yen
- Risk sentiment: despite low rates, the yen strengthens in global crises as offshore positions unwind and money comes home
- Intervention: Japan's Ministry of Finance has stepped into the market directly when moves turned disorderly, most notably in 2022
The Yen in practice
Japan was famously a cash-first country, and cash still matters at small restaurants, shrines and rural inns — but IC cards like Suica and card payments are now accepted almost everywhere in cities. The standard traveler trick remains withdrawing yen from 7-Eleven ATMs, which take foreign cards reliably.
For Japan itself, a weak yen is a double-edged sword: it lifts exporters and record inbound tourism, while squeezing households through the import bill for energy and food. That domestic tension is exactly why yen moves get political attention faster than most currencies.
Popular Yen conversions
USD/JPY is the most traded pair in Asia and a global benchmark. EUR/JPY and GBP/JPY are popular with trend traders for their volatility. CNY/JPY reflects the enormous trade relationship between Japan and China, and KRW and other Asian currencies are often quoted against the yen as regional benchmarks.
Frequently asked questions
Why has the yen been so weak recently?
Mostly the interest-rate gap: when US rates stayed high while the Bank of Japan kept rates near zero, money moved toward the dollar. The yen tends to recover when the gap narrows, either through BOJ hikes or Fed cuts.
Do I need cash in Japan?
Less than before — cards and IC cards work in most places now — but you should still carry cash for small restaurants, shrines and rural areas. 7-Eleven and Japan Post ATMs accept foreign cards.
Why are yen prices such big numbers?
The yen has no widely used minor unit (sen are obsolete), and it was historically quoted against the dollar at over 100 yen per USD. The big numbers are just how the currency is denominated, not a sign of weakness.