SBI Holdings and SBI Shinsei Bank announced a strategic investment in Circle Internet Group, the issuer of USDC, one of the world’s largest US dollar-backed stablecoins, in conjunction with Circle’s listing on the New York Stock Exchange on 5 June. The total investment amounts to $50 million, with $25 million each contributed by SBI Holdings and SBI Shinsei Bank. Circle’s initial public offering (IPO) opened at $69 above its initial offering price of $31, and closed its first day of trading at $83, once marking a significant increase of over 200%. It was the largest IPO for a fintech company since Coinbase listed on NASDAQ in 2021. Amid strong demand from numerous institutional investors, the SBI Group secured one of the largest allocations of Circle shares.SBI Group believes that digital assets, including crypto assets, will play a vital role in the future of the financial industry, and have been actively investing in and forming partnerships with promising companies in this field. In 2016, SBI Holdings invested in Ripple Labs, a company developing international remittance technology, utilising the crypto asset XRP, and currently hold approximately 9% of its shares as its largest external shareholder. In the same year, SBI Ripple Asia, a joint venture with Ripple Labs, was established to provide blockchain-based payment infrastructure in Japan and across the Asian region. In 2017, the SBI Group invested in R3, a company that provides the Corda, a private blockchain platform for financial institutions. Subsequently, in 2019, SBI R3 Japan was established as a joint venture to offer Corda licensing and its implementation support in Japan. Furthermore, in 2019, the SBI Group invested in Securitize, a company that provides a platform for issuing and managing digital securities on the blockchain. Through these initiatives, the SBI Group has not only made strategic investments but also collaborated with global partners to deliver a wide range of services in the digital asset field. In recent years, US dollar-backed stablecoins have been increasingly expected to serve as a highly immediate means of international remittance. Recognising this as a particularly promising area, the SBI Group has been actively promoting a partnership with Circle in anticipation of regulatory easing in Japan. Circle is a global financial technology company that issues USDC, the world’s largest regulated stablecoin, and is building a digital financial infrastructure that combines reliability and transparency. Since signing a basic agreement for a comprehensive business alliance in November 2023, SBI Holdings and Circle have been deepening collaboration—including the SBI Shinsei Bank Group—to promote the circulation of USDC and the creation of new use cases in Japan. In March 2025, SBI VC Trade, a consolidated subsidiary of SBI Holdings and a registered crypto asset exchange operator, became the first in Japan to offer USDC to the public. Furthermore, to accelerate the adoption of USDC in the Japanese market, an agreement was signed to establish a joint venture company, Circle SBI Japan KK. Following the strategic investment in Circle, SBI Holdings —together with SBI Shinsei Bank—will explore further collaboration with Circle to accelerate joint initiatives and build a platform that broadly integrates USDC into Japan’s existing financial ecosystem. Redisseminated by The Asian Banker
