Japan considers allowing banks to trade cryptocurrencies

According to Nikkei, Japan's Financial Services Agency (FSA) is considering allowing subsidiaries of banking groups to launch crypto asset trading services, an area currently dominated by branches of securities groups.

The financial watchdog is also moving to lift the ban on banks buying and holding cryptocurrencies for investment purposes.

Cryptocurrency asset service providers in Japan must register with the FSA. However, banking group subsidiaries are currently not allowed to register under the Banking Act.

As a result, many of the operators are registered as securities group companies, such as SBI VC Trade of SBI Holdings or Rakuten Wallet, an affiliate of Rakuten Securities Holdings.

The FSA wants to amend these regulations so that securities firms affiliated with banking groups can also provide crypto asset services, increasing the accessibility of crypto trading. This will also allow bank-affiliated securities firms to compete on equal terms with their peers backed by securities groups.

However, one concern is that cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and investors could suffer significant losses. The FSA will require bank-affiliated securities firms to thoroughly explain this risk to individual investors.

The FSA will also consider allowing banks to buy and hold crypto assets for investment purposes. The FSA's supervisory guidelines will be revised so that cryptocurrencies are considered investment assets similar to government bonds and stocks.

To ensure that cryptocurrency investments do not harm the financial health of banks and cause losses to customers, the agency will consider a framework to ensure financial soundness.

Specific discussions began on October 22 at a working group meeting of the Financial System Council, an advisory body to the Japanese prime minister .

The FSA's move to ease regulations comes amid a surge in the cryptocurrency market. According to the Japan Virtual Asset and Virtual Currency Exchange Association, the number of active cryptocurrency accounts in Japan reached 7.88 million in August 2025, a fourfold increase in five years.

Outside of Japan, institutional investors are increasingly incorporating cryptocurrencies into their portfolios. British bank Standard Chartered began offering digital asset trading services to institutional clients in July.

Source: https://vtv.vn/nhat-ban-xem-xet-cho-phep-ngan-hang-giao-dich-tien-dien-tu-100251023151402218.htm