During the "Open QUICK 2026" seminar hosted by the financial information service QUICK on July 10, Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama announced that the government is on track to legalize cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) within the country.
This comes in response to the success of such products in overseas markets.
The Japanese House of Representatives recently passed a revision to move the oversight of spot cryptocurrencies from the Payment Services Act (PSA) to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA). This elevates crypto assets to fully regulated "financial products." In layman's terms, they will be treated the same as traditional stocks and bonds.
ETFs that cryptocurrencies could debut on the exchange as early as next year.
SBI's ETF move
In May, Japanese financial titan SBI Holdings proposed the launch of a new cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund (ETF) product.
The company's filings outline plans for a dual-asset ETF that provides regulated exposure to both Bitcoin, the flagship cryptocurrency, and XRP.
On top of that, SBI proposed a hybrid investment trust that combines gold and crypto assets. It would allocate 51% to gold-based ETFs and 49% to crypto-asset ETFs (such as Bitcoin ETFs). This hybrid product is meant to attract both conservative institutional and retail investors.
SBI has set a highly ambitious goal for these products. The Japanese financial behemoth wants to secure roughly ¥5 trillion (roughly $32 billion) in assets under management (AUM) within three years of their launch.
SBI wants to secure a first-mover advantage over other major Japanese financial groups, such as Nomura and Rakuten Securities, which could also wade into the ETF sector.
Notably, SBI has maintained one of the longest institutional relationships with Ripple, the company behind the XRP cryptocurrency.
Dan Burgin
U.Today Editorial Team
