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SBI Holdings acquires Bitbank for $289 million, creating Japan's largest cryptocurrency exchange; bipartisan U.S. senators urge CFTC to investigate Polymarket's "deceptive marketing."

According to BBX data, last weekend Japan's largest financial group completed the most important cryptocurrency acquisition, and U.S. bipartisan senators launched a new regulatory offensive against prediction market platforms. The core developments are as follows:SBI Holdings, Inc. (Tokyo Stock Exchange: 8473) announced the acquisition of the Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Bitbank (privately held) for approximately $289 million. After the transaction is completed, SBI's cryptocurrency business will surpass all competitors, creating Japan's largest cryptocurrency exchange. SBI Holdings is one of Japan's largest independent financial services groups, already owning cryptocurrency-friendly network bank SBI Shinsei Bank, cryptocurrency asset custodian SBI Digital Asset Holdings, and multiple Bitcoin mining and cryptocurrency venture capital investments. Bitbank is one of Japan's largest spot BTC exchanges and holds an official cryptocurrency exchange license from the Financial Services Agency (FSA) of Japan. This acquisition marks a shift for traditional Japanese financial institutions from "strategic trial" in the cryptocurrency sector to "scale acquisition dominance," alongside the joint stablecoin plan of the three major banks: Mitsubishi UFJ ($MUFG), Sumitomo Mitsui ($SMFG), and Mizuho ($MFG) (targeting March 2027), forming the most intensive wave of cryptocurrency layout in Japan's financial industry by 2026.U.S. Senators John Curtis (Republican, Utah) and Adam Schiff (Democrat, California) reported on June 28 that they jointly sent a letter to the CFTC, urging it to conduct a formal investigation into the prediction market platform Polymarket (privately held), citing a "concerning" investigative report regarding Polymarket's "deceptive marketing" practices, which accused it of systematic misleading in user acquisition and risk disclosure. This is the third regulatory offensive against prediction market platforms initiated by Congress this year (previously, the House Oversight Committee launched an insider trading investigation on May 22); the two senators come from different parties, which is significant. For Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ: $HOOD), this investigation poses indirect pressure—Robinhood's prediction market/event contract business (which achieved a record daily trading volume in June) faces the same regulatory qualitative disputes as Polymarket; however, Robinhood's defensive advantage lies in its ongoing application for a CFTC Designated Contract Market (DCM) license, providing a clearer compliance path compared to Polymarket.

The U.S. Congress discusses the Federal Reserve's "streamlining of the master account" and evaluates whether cryptocurrency and fintech companies can directly connect to the central bank's payment system

On Wednesday, the U.S. House Financial Services Committee held a hearing to discuss the changing roles of banks and fintech companies, with one focus being the "streamlined master account" proposal that the Federal Reserve is considering, which would allow certain crypto banks and fintech companies limited direct access to the Federal Reserve's payment system. A Federal Reserve master account allows financial institutions to directly use the Federal Reserve payment network and gain the most direct access to the U.S. dollar monetary system. Institutions without this account typically need to rely on partner banks that have master accounts to provide services.The so-called "streamlined account" is a limited-function version intended to provide limited access for new financial institutions. Republican Congressman Dan Meuser stated at the hearing that access to the Federal Reserve payment system is no small matter, and the core issue is which institutions should be allowed to directly use these critical payment channels. Traditional institutions like community banks are concerned that crypto and fintech companies are not subject to equally stringent regulation, and direct access could pose risks to security and stability. The crypto industry generally supports the proposal, arguing that direct access to the Federal Reserve payment system should have been opened long ago, as it would help reduce reliance on intermediary banks and promote innovation.In May of this year, Trump also signed an executive order requiring the Federal Reserve to assess policies for opening central bank payment channels to fintech companies, including crypto companies. Previously, the Kansas City Federal Reserve had approved Kraken's parent company Payward for a "limited purpose account" in March, sparking discussions in the market about the extent to which crypto and fintech companies should have direct access to Federal Reserve services. A representative from Anchorage Digital stated at the hearing that if the U.S. wants to continue as a global financial center, it needs to allow for innovative federal and state regulatory frameworks.

SBI officially issues Japan's first trust bank-supported yen stablecoin JPYSC

Japan's financial group SBI Holdings announced the official issuance of the yen stablecoin JPYSC, with the first issuance completed. This stablecoin is managed by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank for reserve asset management, while the licensed cryptocurrency trading platform SBI VC Trade is responsible for circulation and distribution. SBI stated that JPYSC is Japan's first yen stablecoin managed by a trust bank and is also the first to be recognized as a "similar product to electronic payment means" under the Payment Services Act. Unlike the previously launched fund transfer-type stablecoins in Japan, JPYSC is not subject to a single transaction and account balance limit of 1 million yen.SBI expects that JPYSC will attract retail and institutional users with lower transaction costs and the ability to support large transactions, and it can serve as the yen-based asset for on-chain foreign exchange markets, institutional lending, and RWA (real-world asset) tokenized settlements. Currently, JPYSC is only available to SBI VC Trade account holders, with plans to expand its usage after regulatory and tax frameworks are further clarified. SBI also plans to launch JPYSC lending services.In recent years, Japan has been continuously promoting compliant stablecoins to integrate into the mainstream financial system. Following the approval of JPYC in 2025 as Japan's first legally recognized yen stablecoin, Japan's three major banks—Mitsubishi UFJ Bank (MUFG), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), and Mizuho Bank—are also jointly advancing stablecoin projects, with plans to launch commercial trading in the fiscal year 2026.
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