Japanese financial group SBI Holdings is seeking to expand its presence within the crypto sector, announcing plans to take a controlling position on the Singapore-based exchange Coinhako.
In an announcement on Friday, the Tokyo-listed company said its wholly-owned subsidiary SBI Ventures Asset had signed a memorandum of understanding with Coinhako's parent company, Holdbuild, to inject capital into the corporate and acquire shares from existing investors. If accomplished, the transaction would give SBI Holdings a majority stake and make Coinhako a consolidated subsidiary, subject to regulatory approval.
“Integrating Coinhako into the SBI Group as a consolidated subsidiary is just not just an investment in a single platform,” said Chairman and CEO Yoshitaka Kitao, describing the acquisition as a part of a broader effort to construct a world infrastructure for digital assets, including tokenized securities and stablecoins.
Financial terms and ownership details weren’t disclosed, and each the structure of the investment and the share purchases are still under discussion, in accordance with the announcement. The non-binding deal gives SBI a licensed base in Singapore, one in every of Asia's most vital regulated crypto hubs.
Coinhako operates a licensed crypto trading platform in Singapore
Founded in Singapore, Coinhako operates a regional digital asset trading platform and related services through Hako Technology, a Major Payment Institution (MPI) licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The group also operates Alpha Hako, a registered virtual asset provider regulated by the Financial Services Commission of the British Virgin Islands.
In 2021, SBI Holdings invested in Coinhako through the SBI-Sygnum-Azimut Digital Asset Opportunity Fund, a joint vehicle with Switzerland's Sygnum Bank.
Yusho Liu, co-founder and CEO of Coinhako, said the brand new partnership would enable the exchange to scale institutional-level systems and “meet the increasing demand for tokenized assets and stablecoins, ensuring that Singapore stays at the guts of the world’s next-generation economic system.”
Cointelegraph reached out to SBI Holdings for comment but didn’t receive a response via publication.
SBI Holdings expands blockchain presence
SBI Holdings has been lively in blockchain projects for several years, investing in tokenization projects, payment networks and crypto-related firms.
In December 2025, SBI partnered with Web3 infrastructure company Startale Group to develop a completely regulated Japanese yen-denominated stablecoin targeting tokenized asset markets and cross-border settlement. The token can be issued and redeemed by Shinsei Trust & Banking, a unit of SBI Shinsei Bank, while licensed crypto exchange SBI VC Trade will handle circulation.
In August, SBI Group partnered with blockchain oracle network Chainlink to develop digital asset tools for financial institutions in Japan and across Asia Pacific.
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