New Crypto Giant? SBI's Bitbank Deal Could Create Japan's Largest Crypto Exchange

SBI Holdings is moving to buy Bitbank in a deal that could reshape Japan’s crypto exchange market. The planned takeover, involving regulatory review, would combine Bitbank with SBI VC Trade and potentially create the country’s largest crypto platform group by custody assets.

Key Takeaways:

• • SBI is making a bold JPY 46.7 billion bet to take over Bitbank and expand its crypto footprint.
• • The deal still needs regulatory approval before it can officially close.
• • If completed, the combined platform could significantly boost SBI’s assets under custody, user base, and influence in Japan’s crypto market.

SBI Drops $300M to Take Over Bitbank

Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings is expanding its crypto business in Japan with a JPY 46.7 billion (around $300 million) deal to buy Bitbank, one of the country’s better-known exchanges. The agreement was signed on June 25, 2026, and the purchase will be handled through SBI Crypto Asset Holdings GK (SBICAH), a wholly owned SBI subsidiary.

The deal isn’t done yet. It still needs clearance from Japan’s Fair Trade Commission, which reviews business combinations. Until that clears, the transaction can’t close. If completed, the combined group is expected to hold about 1.1 trillion yen (roughly $7 billion) in crypto assets under custody.

SBI already runs its own exchange, SBI VC Trade. Once Bitbank is folded in, the combined platform could become a major force in Japan’s crypto market. SBI laid out the expected scale:

“Upon completion of the transaction, based on a simple aggregation of the figures of SBI VC Trade and Bitbank as of April 30, 2026, the Company Group is expected to have approximately JPY 1.1 trillion in assets under custody and approximately 2.92 million crypto asset accounts.”

Behind the scenes, the deal structure is a mix of share purchases and new share issuance. Bitbank will use funds from the capital increase to acquire treasury shares from MIXI and CERES. Once these steps are completed, SBI is expected to indirectly hold 100% of Bitbank’s voting rights through its subsidiary.

Bitbank Brings Users, Trading Infrastructure, and a Clean Security Record

Bitbank has been around since 2014 and operates out of Tokyo. One standout detail: it has maintained zero hacking incidents since its founding, per SBI’s filing.

Its business performance has moved with the market. Net sales jumped from 3.86 billion yen in 2023 to 7.95 billion yen in 2024, then dropped to 5.82 billion yen in 2025. Operating income followed the same pattern, swinging from a 2.80 billion yen gain in 2024 to a 970 million yen loss in 2025.

SBI is betting that combining Bitbank’s user base and trading activity with its own platform will create a larger domestic crypto group, with the “Company Group” referring to the combined operations of SBI VC Trade and Bitbank following completion of the transaction. The Japanese financial giant noted:

“Among domestic crypto asset exchange service providers, the Company Group is expected to rank first in terms of assets under custody and to be among the top class in terms of number of accounts.”

Beyond just scale, SBI is also looking at future crypto infrastructure. The company highlighted stablecoins and on-chain finance as key areas it wants to build out using the combined platform.

If everything goes as planned, the first phase of the deal should happen around August 2026, with full completion targeted for October 2026 after approvals and other closing conditions.