The moves by SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities are happening against the backdrop of a significant regulatory shift being driven by Japan's Financial Services Agency. The FSA is reportedly weighing rules that would allow investment trusts and exchange-traded funds to hold cryptocurrency under the Investment Trust Act, a change that analysts estimate could open up a market worth approximately $6.4 billion if spot crypto ETFs are approved, with that approval potentially coming as early as 2028. Japan also recently reclassified crypto as a financial instrument, introducing annual disclosure requirements and insider trading restrictions that bring digital assets meaningfully closer to the standards applied to regulated securities.

The broader industry response suggests the regulatory momentum is being taken seriously well beyond just the two leading brokerages. In a Nikkei survey of 18 firms, 11 others including Nomura, Daiwa, and Mizuho Securities said they would consider entering the crypto investment trust space once the regulatory framework is finalized. Nomura and Daiwa have signaled concrete plans to develop products once the rules are clear. SMBC Group has formed a dedicated task force, and Asset Management One under Mizuho has begun early research. The pattern mirrors what happened in the United States ahead of and following the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in early 2024, where regulatory clarity acted as a starting gun for broad institutional participation that rapidly accumulated tens of billions of dollars in assets.