tl;dr
Japanese finance conglomerate SBI Group has partnered with blockchain oracle platform Chainlink to develop cryptocurrency tools for financial institutions in Asia, initially focusing on Japan. Their collaboration targets cross-blockchain tokenized real-world assets like onchain bonds and uses Chainl...
Japanese finance conglomerate SBI Group has teamed up with blockchain oracle platform Chainlink to develop cryptocurrency tools tailored for financial institutions across Asia, concentrating initially on Japan’s market. Their collaboration aims to create solutions for cross-blockchain tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), such as onchain bonds, and utilize Chainlink’s technology to verify stablecoin reserves onchain.
This partnership marks SBI Group's fourth recent crypto collaboration, following agreements with stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group, crypto firm Ripple Labs, and Web3 infrastructure provider Startale. SBI plans to leverage Chainlink’s blockchain interoperability protocol to tokenize RWAs and enhance the efficiency of foreign exchange and cross-border transactions.
Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov expressed enthusiasm about advancing their work toward large-scale production use, emphasizing prior cooperation with SBI on stablecoin settlements and sophisticated fund tokenization. Additionally, Chainlink’s data feed tools will be used to bring net asset value (NAV) data onchain for tokenized funds.
SBI’s CEO Yoshitaka Kitao highlighted that the initiative aims to power compliant cross-border transactions using stablecoins, fostering wider digital asset adoption in Japan and Asia. Supporting this trend, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is anticipated to approve its first Japanese yen stablecoin as early as next month, led by fintech firm JPYC.
Alongside Chainlink, SBI intends to promote Circle's USDC and Ripple's RLUSD stablecoins within Japan. SBI’s crypto subsidiary, SBI VC Trade, plans to introduce Ripple’s stablecoin by the fiscal year ending March 2026. Furthermore, the company will advocate for broader USDC usage domestically.
The collaboration with Startale focuses on building an onchain trading platform for tokenized stocks and RWAs, enabling continuous 24/7 trading similar to platforms like Kraken and Robinhood. While the launch timeline and blockchain infrastructure details remain undisclosed, Startale’s CEO Sota Watanabe has indicated that technical specifics will be revealed later.