Overview
- SBI and Bitbank signed definitive agreements on June 24 that set a ¥46.7 billion purchase price and a phased share-transfer plan executed through SBI’s subsidiary SBICAH GK.
- SBICAH will buy shares from Bitbank’s founder and individual shareholders starting in August and Bitbank will repurchase stakes held by MIXI and Ceres by the end of October to complete the transfer.
- SBI projects the combined group of SBI VC Trade and Bitbank will hold about ¥1.1 trillion in assets under custody across roughly 2.92 million accounts based on April 30 snapshots.
- The transaction remains subject to regulatory clearance, including approval by the Japan Fair Trade Commission, and both companies say Bitbank’s services will continue without disruption during the transfer.
- The deal continues SBI’s consolidation of Japan’s crypto market and is intended to give the group scale to meet likely stricter oversight if cryptocurrencies are moved under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.