SBI Shinsei Bank plans to launch a service that rewards deposit customers with cryptocurrency exchange vouchers based on their account balances. According to a report from Nikkei, customers will receive vouchers equal to 20% of their interest payments, on top of their yen-denominated interest. The vouchers can later be exchanged for Bitcoin, Ether, or XRP within a set timeframe.
To redeem the vouchers, customers need to open an account with SBI’s crypto exchange arm, SBI VC Trade. This move effectively turns a traditional savings product into a crypto on-ramp. It might expose mainstream bank customers to digital assets without them having to make direct purchases, which is an interesting step for the Japanese market.
Campaign details and timeline
Before the permanent launch, SBI Shinsei will run a three-month campaign starting Wednesday. The campaign will cover ordinary deposits as well as time deposits ranging from three months to five years. It’s a careful rollout to test how customers respond to the crypto-linked rewards.
SBI Group has been making several crypto moves lately, possibly preparing for broader digital asset adoption in Japan. On March 18, SBI VC Trade launched a retail USDC lending service. Users can lend the stablecoin to the platform under fixed-term agreements in exchange for returns. But it’s worth noting that this is structured as a loan to the exchange, not a bank deposit. So users take direct counterparty risk, which is something to keep in mind.
Expanding in exchange and securities markets
SBI has also been expanding its position in the local crypto exchange market. On May 1, the group said it was considering acquiring shares in the Bitbank trading platform to make it a consolidated subsidiary. This came just a month after SBI VC Trade absorbed Bitpoint Japan, another local exchange.
The group’s securities arm is also getting into crypto investment products. SBI Securities reportedly plans to sell funds developed by SBI Global Asset Management. These include investment trusts and exchange-traded funds focused on crypto assets like Bitcoin and Ether.
All these moves suggest that SBI is working to build crypto access points across regulated channels: from bank deposits and exchange services to securities products and stablecoin lending. It seems like a coordinated effort to bridge traditional finance with digital assets, though it remains to be seen how quickly Japanese customers will embrace these options.
