Laser Digital Japan, a Nomura unit, is the first crypto exchange licensed in Japan since 2022. A pending tax cut to 20% and a new securities law could reshape institutional appetite.
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Laser Digital Japan, a unit of Nomura's digital asset arm, became the first firm in four years to register as a crypto asset exchange service provider in the country. The company announced the licence on August 21.
The approval lands as Japan shifts its crypto rulebook. Parliament passed legislation on July 15 to move digital asset oversight from the Payment Services Act to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. The change would tax qualifying crypto gains at 20%, down from the current maximum of 55%. Those tax provisions are projected to take effect on January 1, 2028.
Japan had not licensed a new crypto exchange since 2022, when the Financial Services Agency tightened registration standards after the Coincheck hack. The gap left several global platforms serving Japanese clients without local authorisation. Laser Digital's registration breaks that freeze.
Laser Digital Japan registered under the Payment Services Act with the Kanto Local Finance Bureau (No. 00032). It also joined the Japan Virtual and Crypto Assets Exchange Association (JVCEA), the self-regulatory body for licensed operators.
Hideaki Kudo, Representative Director and Head of Laser Digital Japan, said clearing the review process marks “an important milestone in our roadmap to serve the Japanese market.” Kudo, a former Nomura executive, opened the Tokyo office in October 2025 and entered pre-consulation talks with the FSA at the time.
The company's initial focus is liquidity for domestic virtual asset service providers. Trading access for institutional investors will follow later.
A 2026 Institutional Investor Survey published jointly by Nomura and Laser Digital found that 65% of respondents view crypto assets as a way to diversify portfolios. About 79% said they intend to invest over the next three years.
“Sophisticated investors are increasingly looking for access and the necessary quality of infrastructure behind it,” said Steve Ashley, Laser Digital’s co-founder and executive chairman.
Co-founder and CEO Dr. Jez Mohideen said Japan’s digital assets market “is entering a new phase of maturity.”
Nomura spun off Laser Digital in 2022. The Zurich-based subsidiary has since secured regulatory approvals in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. In August 2025 it was the first firm in Dubai to get a licence for OTC crypto options. In May 2026 it gained conditional approval from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a national trust bank charter – a first for a subsidiary of a Japanese financial institution.
With the Japan licence in hand, Laser Digital is now licensed in four regulated markets. The timing lines up with the coming tax cut and the likely resumption of institutional crypto activity in Tokyo.
The broader crypto market analysis shows that regulatory clarity remains a key variable for institutional flows globally. Japan's move to bring crypto under existing securities law and lower the tax burden may accelerate that trend.
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