Japan brokers prepare crypto funds

Japan’s largest brokerages are preparing for a market that Japan’s rules do not fully allow yet. Nikkei reported on May 17 that SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities are developing cryptocurrency investment trusts in-house for sale to retail investors once the regulatory framework is in place. Other large firms, including Nomura Securities and Daiwa Securities, are preparing to follow after rules are clarified, according to the report. The immediate significance is distribution, not a confirmed launch date. The planned products would let Japanese investors buy bitcoin- and ether-linked exposure through ordinary brokerage accounts rather than opening separate crypto exchange accounts. Nikkei reported that SBI Securities plans to sell funds developed by SBI Global Asset Management, while Rakuten Securities is using Rakuten Investment Management to build similar products. (asia.nikkei.com) ### Which firms are actually building products now? SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities are the clearest names attached to active product work. Nikkei reported that both are developing crypto investment trusts internally, with SBI’s lineup spanning exchange-traded funds and investment trusts tied to liquid assets such as bitcoin and ether. Rakuten’s products are being designed for trading through its smartphone app, according to the report. (asia.nikkei.com) Nomura Securities and Daiwa Securities were cited by follow-on reports as firms that have already announced plans to develop trusts within their groups. SMBC Group, including SMBC Nikko, has formed a cross-group task force, and Asset Management One under Mizuho Financial Group has begun preliminary research, according to accounts of the Nikkei report. (asia.nikkei.com) ### How broad is the interest across Japan’s brokerage industry? Nikkei’s survey of 18 major Japanese brokerages found that 11 would consider offering crypto investment trust products once the regulatory framework is finalized. That number is the clearest measure so far of how widely the brokerage industry is preparing for regulated crypto fund products. (theblock.co) Nomura’s own April 16 survey points in the same direction on the demand side. Nomura Holdings said 65% of respondents viewed crypto assets as a portfolio diversification opportunity, and 79% of those considering investing over the next three years said they had plans to invest. The survey covered 518 investment professionals in Japan from December 16, 2025, to January 29, 2026. (theblock.co) ### What has to change before these funds can launch? Japan’s Financial Services Agency is working on a regulatory path that would formally allow crypto assets inside investment trusts. Accounts of the Nikkei report said the FSA aims to revise the enforcement order of the Investment Trust Act by 2028 so cryptocurrencies can be added to the list of specified assets that investment trusts may hold. (nomuraholdings.com) A separate policy track is also moving. Reports summarizing the Nikkei article said Japan’s cabinet approved a bill in April that would reclassify crypto under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, with possible effect as early as fiscal 2027 if passed in the current Diet session. The FSA’s April 10, 2025 discussion paper said crypto assets are already widely recognized as investment targets and that domestic exchange accounts exceed 12 million, with user deposits above 5 trillion yen. (theblock.co) ### Why are firms preparing before the rules are final? Nomura said on April 16 that Japan has made progress in developing a regulatory framework for crypto assets, citing discussions by the Financial System Council’s Working Group on Crypto-asset Systems in late 2025. That statement does not announce a fund launch, but it shows one of Japan’s biggest brokerages publicly tying its digital-asset work to regulatory change. (theblock.co) The next concrete marker is legislative and regulatory, not commercial. The cabinet-backed bill now depends on action in the Diet, and the FSA’s work on investment-trust rules points to a 2027-2028 window for the framework that brokerages are preparing around. (theblock.co) (nomuraholdings.com)