Japan-based financial conglomerate SBI Holdings has executed a series of major crypto investments over the past few weeks, becoming the sole investor in Gauntlet's $125 million Series C and EDX Markets' $76 million Series C this week. Last month, SBI agreed to acquire Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank for $289 million and secured a controlling stake in Singapore-based crypto exchange Coinhako in February. The company also recently backed Digital Asset's $355 million funding round, Morpho's $175 million token round, and Circle's $222 million token presale for its Arc blockchain. SBI's accelerated investment pace reflects a broader strategy centered on onchain finance infrastructure, positioning the firm ahead of Japan's regulatory overhaul that will classify cryptocurrencies as financial instruments and reduce capital gains tax from 55% to 20% starting in 2028. Japan's lower house advanced the bill last month, with the legislation expected to take effect next year after clearing the upper house.
SBI Holdings Completes Series of Major Crypto Investments
SBI Holdings became the sole investor in Gauntlet's $125 million Series C and EDX Markets' $76 million Series C this week. Last month, the firm agreed to acquire Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank for $289 million. In February, SBI secured a controlling stake in Singapore-based crypto exchange Coinhako. The company also recently backed Digital Asset's $355 million funding round, Morpho's $175 million token round, and Circle's $222 million token presale for its Arc blockchain. Last month, SBI launched JPYSC, Japan's first trust bank-backed yen stablecoin. SBI has invested in the crypto sector since 2016.
SBI Group Pursues End-to-End Onchain Finance Infrastructure
An SBI spokesperson stated the company is "driving the onchain transformation of the entire group and expanding our digital asset businesses as we endeavor to our next stage of growth." The spokesperson said the full-scale arrival of the "token economy" is "imminent" — an era in which every asset is tokenized and everything from trading and settlement to the execution of various contracts is completed on blockchain. Joseph Goh, director and head of Asia Pacific at crypto investment banking and advisory firm Areta, said SBI is "building an end-to-end digital asset franchise spanning issuance, settlement, market infrastructure, asset management and retail distribution, and doing it across borders rather than just at home." Goh said one of the clearest themes is asset management, noting that by combining Gauntlet's institutional onchain capabilities with the distribution SBI would control through Bitbank and Coinhako, "we have the makings of Asia's first at-scale onchain asset management business." Settlement is another major focus, according to Goh, who pointed to SBI's JPYSC stablecoin launch, the distribution of USDC in Japan through its Circle joint venture, and SBI Shinsei Bank joining the JPMorgan-backed Partior blockchain network to issue tokenized deposits for cross-border payments.
Japan Advances Bill to Classify Crypto as Financial Instruments
Last month, the lower house of Japan's parliament advanced a bill that would classify cryptocurrencies as financial instruments, paving the way for products such as exchange-traded funds while introducing stricter trading and disclosure rules. The legislation, which is expected to take effect next year after clearing the upper house, would also lower the maximum capital gains tax on crypto assets to 20% from the current 55%, in line with stocks and bonds, beginning in 2028. Animoca Brands co-founder and executive chairman Yat Siu said SBI appears to be positioning itself ahead of those changes, building capabilities across crypto so it is ready as digital asset adoption accelerates. Quynh Ho, head of venture investment at GSR, and Mike Bucella, co-founder and managing partner at Neoclassic Capital, said bear markets often provide the best long-term investment opportunities because valuations are lower and competition for deals is less intense.
Portfolio Companies Cite Distribution and Market Access as Strategic Value
Gauntlet co-founder and CEO Tarun Chitra said SBI's footprint across Japan and Asia will help Gauntlet expand its platform to financial institutions, fintechs, and tokenization initiatives that it could not reach on its own, including extending its stablecoin coverage beyond U.S. dollar and euro-backed stablecoins to currencies such as the Japanese yen and Mexican peso. EDX Markets CEO Tony Acuña-Rohter said SBI's relationships across global financial services will support the company's efforts to expand its trading, clearing, and settlement capabilities. Acuña-Rohter stated, "We're actively engaging with SBI's broader digital asset ecosystem, including market makers, stablecoin initiatives, tokenization efforts and brokerages, as we explore opportunities to advance institutional market infrastructure together."
Traditional Financial Institutions Expected to Follow SBI's Strategy
Chitra said he expects institutions in jurisdictions with clearer rules to move first, noting that "brokerages and asset managers with large retail bases are the natural followers." GSR's Ho said she expects institutional activity to concentrate on areas with clear use cases, including stablecoins and payments, tokenized real-world assets, institutional trading infrastructure, prediction markets, treasury management, collateral optimization, and onchain capital markets. Animoca's Siu said he is already aware of some "large" crypto transactions being explored by traditional financial institutions and expects more to emerge as tokenization becomes a larger strategic priority across the industry. Areta's Goh said the trend is becoming increasingly visible across Asia, pointing to South Korea as the next market to watch and noting that diversified financial groups combining banking, securities, and retail distribution are best positioned to follow SBI's playbook.
Execution Risks Depend on Regulatory Pace and Institutional Adoption
Siu said much depends on how quickly regulatory frameworks continue to evolve and how fast institutional adoption of digital assets accelerates, noting that if regulation takes longer than expected, the returns from investments being made today could also take longer to materialize. Goh said "execution is the real test," noting that SBI's acquisition strategy helps reduce some integration risk because both Bitbank and Coinhako operate regulated crypto exchanges, while the firm's minority investments carry relatively limited integration risk by design.
FAQ
What major crypto investments did SBI Holdings complete this week?
SBI Holdings became the sole investor in Gauntlet's $125 million Series C and EDX Markets' $76 million Series C this week.
Why is SBI Holdings accelerating its crypto investments now?
SBI is positioning itself ahead of Japan's regulatory changes. Last month, Japan's lower house advanced a bill to classify cryptocurrencies as financial instruments and lower the maximum capital gains tax on crypto assets to 20% from 55%, beginning in 2028. The legislation is expected to take effect next year after clearing the upper house.
