Major Japanese Brokerages Plan Crypto Investment Trusts

Japan’s investment trust law does not currently classify crypto assets as eligible “specified assets,” meaning retail investors generally must open separate exchange accounts or manage their own wallets. The Financial Services Agency plans to amend the law by 2028 to allow investment trusts and ETFs to hold Bitcoin and Ethereum. Tax rates on related gains could also fall from as high as 55% to about 20%.

A May 17, 2026 report said SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities were internally developing crypto investment trusts, while Nomura Securities, Daiwa Securities and others were preparing to follow. A Nikkei survey of 18 institutions found that 11 intended to enter the market once regulations were finalized. SBI Global Asset Management is targeting 5 trillion yen in assets within three years of launching its products, but has not announced a launch date.