Key Highlights
- SBI Holdings plans to acquire 100% ownership of Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank.
- The transaction will be completed through the subsidiary SBICAH GK.
- Regulatory approvals, including Japan Fair Trade Commission review, are still pending.
SBI Holdings, Inc., a Japanese internet-based financial conglomerate, announced today that it has entered into a basic agreement and a share transfer agreement to acquire full control of Bitbank, Inc., one of Japan’s cryptocurrency exchanges, making it a wholly owned subsidiary.
According to the official release, at a Board of Directors meeting held today, SBI Holdings resolved to proceed with the transaction through its wholly owned subsidiary SBICAH GK. The deal involves multiple parties, including Bitbank CEO Noriyuki Hirosue, MIXI, Inc., and CERES, Inc. The company has already concluded both the Basic Agreement and the Share Transfer Agreement.
The transaction remains subject to regulatory clearance, including review by the Japan Fair Trade Commission, and other customary closing conditions.
Why SBI is buying Bitbank
SBI Holdings has been expanding its crypto asset businesses in Japan and overseas, primarily through its subsidiary SBI VC Trade Co., Ltd. The acquisition of Bitbank aligns with the group’s strategy to strengthen its business foundation, expand product offerings, grow its customer base, and generate synergies across its domestic crypto operations.
Beyond traditional crypto trading, SBI is also targeting opportunities in digital assets, including stablecoins and on-chain finance.
The announcement notes that Bitbank, which operates the “bitbank” exchange, has maintained a record of no hacking incidents since its founding. The company said this has contributed to customer trust and its position in Japan’s crypto market.
“By welcoming Bitbank into the SBI Group, we aim to mutually leverage our customer bases, advanced service development capabilities, robust security and compliance frameworks, and other management resources,” the announcement stated.
How the deal would work
Upon completion of the transaction, a simple aggregation of figures as of April 30, 2026, shows the enlarged group will command approximately JPY 1.1 trillion in assets under custody and around 2.92 million crypto asset accounts.
SBI said the transaction is intended to strengthen its position in the crypto and digital asset sectors while creating operational synergies across the group. The acquisition will be executed in stages. Under the Share Transfer Agreement, SBICAH will acquire common shares of Bitbank from CEO Noriyuki Hirosue and other individual shareholders for cash.
Following this, Bitbank will conduct a third-party allotment of new shares to SBICAH (capital increase). The funds raised will then be used by Bitbank to repurchase all remaining shares held by MIXI, Inc. and CERES INC. as treasury stock. Once the series of transactions is complete, Bitbank will become a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI Holdings, with an indirect voting rights holding ratio of 100.0%.
SBI expands its stablecoin
SBI Group has taken a leading role in Japan’s regulated digital asset ecosystem with the successful launch of JPYSC, the country’s first trust-backed yen stablecoin, on June 24, 2026. Developed in partnership with Web3 infrastructure provider Startale Group, JPYSC introduces secure, compliant on-chain yen liquidity within the domestic banking framework.
Complementing this, Ripple’s US dollar stablecoin RLUSD also went live in Japan, distributed through SBI VC Trade.
From early talks to a full acquisition plan
In May 2026, SBI Holdings first signaled its interest by sending a letter of intent to Bitbank and commencing preliminary discussions on a potential partnership and investment. At the time, the move was positioned as an exploratory step toward bringing the crypto exchange under the SBI Group as a subsidiary, subject to regulatory approvals in Japan.
Those discussions have now resulted in the formal conclusion of a Basic Agreement and a Share Transfer Agreement.
The deal also reflects the ongoing consolidation trend in Japan’s crypto sector as companies seek scale, technological edge, and regulatory compliance advantages amid growing institutional interest and potential stablecoin adoption.
SBI Holdings did not disclose the financial terms of the acquisition. Further details are expected to be released as the regulatory review progresses and the transaction advances toward closing.
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