SBI Holdings to Fully Acquire bitbank, Creating Japan’s Largest Crypto Asset Platform by Assets
Following the signing of a Letter of Intent in May 2026, SBI Holdings' board of directors has approved a definitive agreement to turn cryptocurrency exchange bitbank into a wholly-owned subsidiary. The transaction will be executed through SBI’s specialized unit, SBICAH LLC, and involves a total acquisition cost of approximately ¥46.7 billion.
The multi-stage transaction involves a combination of share purchases, a third-party allotment, and share buybacks:
- Initial Share Purchase: SBI will initially acquire 53,704 shares from bitbank CEO Noriyuki Hirosue and other individual shareholders. This phase is scheduled for execution around August 2026.
- Capital Injection: Around October 2026, SBICAH will subscribe to a third-party allotment of 48,952 new shares issued by bitbank.
- Share Buybacks: Using the capital raised from the new share issuance, bitbank will buy back and retire all remaining shares held by major corporate backers MIXI and Ceres.
Upon completion of these sequential steps—targeted for October 2026—SBI Holdings will hold a 100% voting stake in bitbank. The final closing remains subject to clearance by the Japan Fair Trade Commission and other standard closing conditions.
Strategic Rationale and Market Impact
The combination of bitbank with SBI’s existing crypto arm, SBIVC Trade (based on April 2026 data), will reach approximately ¥1.1 trillion in customer assets under custody. Total crypto accounts will scale to roughly 2.92 million, positioning SBI as the clear domestic market leader in customer assets and among the top-tier in account volume.
SBI noted that bitbank’s uncompromised security track record—maintaining zero hacking incidents since its founding—complements SBI’s institutional framework. The alliance aims to drive deeper group synergies, enhance trading service sophistication, and capture new market opportunities across stablecoins and on-chain financial sectors.
Target Profile & Financial Outlook
Founded in May 2014, Tokyo-based bitbank operates under the leadership of CEO Noriyuki Hirosue. Prior to this agreement, Hirosue held a 30.86% stake, with MIXI and Ceres holding 26.22% and 22.39% respectively.
Financially, bitbank’s performance has closely tracked broader crypto market cycles. For the fiscal year ending December 2025, bitbank reported net sales of ¥5,815 million and experienced a net loss of ¥696 million (non-consolidated), following a highly profitable fiscal year 2024 where it generated ¥2,102 million in net profit on sales of ¥7,947 million.
SBI Holdings stated that the transaction is expected to have a negligible impact on its consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ending March 2027.
Norbert Gehrke
