SBI Buys Coinhako, Builds Cross-Border Asia Crypto Empire

He called the yen side of onchain settlement "one of the most strategic positions in Asian finance over the coming decade" and said that is exactly what SBI is building toward.

One technical limitation remains. JPYSC does not yet support withdrawals to external wallets. "Its use is currently limited to accounts within SBI VC Trade, and it does not yet support withdrawals to external wallets or remittances and settlements via public blockchains," a spokesperson said. That keeps the stablecoin inside SBI's own platform for now.

Sota Watanabe, CEO of Startale Group, which works with SBI on JPYSC, said the company's continued investment in digital assets reflects growing institutional confidence in blockchain infrastructure. "Blockchain is increasingly being viewed as financial infrastructure rather than an emerging technology," he told CoinDesk, adding that Japan is well-positioned to lead the sector because of its regulatory framework and financial institutions.

SBI agreed to buy Tokyo-based exchange Bitbank for about $289 million in June. That deal is expected to close in October pending regulatory approval. The firm previously acquired crypto exchange Bitpoint in 2022. It also led a $76 million Series C round for institutional exchange EDX Markets and a $25 million Series C for crypto risk manager Gauntlet.

The spokesperson said these investments are part of an effort to build an end-to-end digital asset business covering exchanges, tokenization, stablecoins and blockchain infrastructure across Asia. The strategy is based on long-term infrastructure development, not short-term crypto market cycles.

"In light of the expansion of cryptocurrency ETFs in the United States, as institutional investor participation raises liquidity, market credibility, and risk management standards, we expect that retail participation will also expand," the spokesperson said. Centralized exchange trading volumes rose for the first time in five months in June, with spot volume climbing 15.3% to $1.11 trillion and real-world asset perpetual volumes hitting a record $311 billion.