SBI Takes Full Ownership of Bitbank After $290 Million Acquisition

SBI Holdings has completed its takeover of Japanese exchange Bitbank, bringing one of Japan's busiest XRP markets under its umbrella. The $290 million acquisition was finalized on October 1, with SBI taking full ownership of Bitbank.

The deal, which was first announced in June, involved a three-step process. First, SBI closed the purchase of shares from individual shareholders, including Bitbank CEO Noriyuki Hirosue. The second step saw SBICAH GK, a wholly owned SBI unit, subscribe to a third-party allotment of new Bitbank shares. Finally, Bitbank used the cash generated from this process to repurchase shares held by Mixi and Ceres.

As part of the acquisition, Tomohiko Kondo, president of SBI's existing exchange SBI VC Trade, joined Bitbank's board. Hirosue remains at the helm as CEO but has also become an outside director at SBI VC Trade. The integration of Bitbank into the SBI group is expected to create a more comprehensive and stable crypto ecosystem in Japan.

The takeover brings significant assets under SBI's control, with approximately $6.97 billion (¥1.1 trillion) in custody assets and around 2.92 million crypto accounts across the group. This puts SBI at the forefront of Japanese exchange operators by custodied assets, as noted by Bitcoin.com News when the deal was first announced.

The merged business is expected to build 'new financial services utilizing stablecoins,' with plans already underway for a yen stablecoin, JPYSC, through SBI Shinsei Trust Bank. This integration marks another step in SBI's strategy to create Japan's largest crypto exchange and further establish itself as a major player in the Asian market.