SBI Holdings partners with StarTail to tokenize Japanese stocks using blockchain, aiming for faster, cheaper, global equity trading by 2027.
SBI Holdings, one of Japan’s largest financial groups, is preparing a major move into blockchain technology. In a new partnership with Singapore-based startup StarTail Group, SBI will develop a blockchain-based system to tokenize equities, simplifying and reducing the costs of trading Japanese equities, particularly popular with foreign investors.
SBI Holdings to Tokenize Stocks Using Blockchain by 2027
TV Tokyo initially reported the news and discovered that SBI seeks to apply blockchain to digitize conventional shares. Such tokenized shares may be operated like crypto assets, though still be connected to the underlying stocks. Consequently, the prices would remain constant as compared to unstable cryptocurrencies. This could significantly decrease the cost to trade and provide a format to trade within seconds, without the need of an intermediary like a brokerage in order to make a transaction.
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The report said that this platform has already been under construction by SBI and StarTail Group. Assuming an optimistic outcome, the first tokenised stocks may become available by the end of 2026 or in the year 2027. Other financial assets, including bonds and crypto ETFs, will also be traded on the platform, enhancing a wider digital finance environment.
The project aligns with the greater vision of SBI to combine old money with modernization through digital technology. The Chairman and CEO of SBI, Yoshitaka Kitao, has been advocating the collaboration of financial and digital power for a long ago. SBI, with more than 50 million customers via its banks and securities businesses, envisages a large opportunity to introduce blockchain to the mainstream finance services.
Increasing the presence of digital asset trading will allow SBI to provide its enormous customer base with a revolutionized and productive means of investing. This change would also help international investors. They often pay high trading fees and face delays when entering Japanese markets. As a result, Japanese stocks would become more attractive and easier to access.
SBI to Share Plans at WebX on August 22
SBI is not alone in this push. In the United States, companies such as Robinhood and Kraken already work to tokenize U.S. stocks and ETFs on the blockchain. The government of the United States has been interested in sponsoring this trend. The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), under the new administration, has started to write clear regulations regarding the tokenized assets. This cordial atmosphere is provoking firms to take steps ahead at a fast pace.
Comparatively, Japan is yet to mature in the process of experimenting with tokenized stocks. Although Japan gave a nod to a stablecoin issuer that connects with fiat currency earlier in the month, there hasn’t been any thorough debate on how to tokenize shares. This places SBI in an innovative position in the country and potentially influences regulation in Japan in the future.
Mr. Kitao will be able to tell more about this blockchain platform at the WebX crypto conference, which will start on August 22. He has even intimated that this new venture is going to be a revolution in the financial industry all over the world. It is a wonderful moment to establish a business that will transform the crypto-assets world totally, he said.
Lastly, SBI has taken this step of tokenizing equities, which is a brave step into the future of finance. Should this work, it would help to break down barriers and reduce expenses and make Japanese financial products available to more people worldwide, all made possible by blockchain.
