SBI Shinsei Bank launches crypto rewards for depositors…

SBI Shinsei Bank, the banking arm of Japan's SBI Group, plans to launch a cryptocurrency rewards program for depositors this fall, with a three-month pilot kicking off June 10. Under the scheme, deposit customers receive vouchers worth 20% of their interest payments, redeemable for BTC, ETH, or XRP through SBI Group's crypto exchange arm, SBI VC Trade — which customers must register with before redeeming.

The mechanics are straightforward: a 300,000 yen ($1,872) deposit earns roughly 500 yen ($3) in vouchers, while balances of 30 million yen ($187,288) or more unlock 20,000 yen ($125) worth. The program covers ordinary savings accounts and time deposits with maturities ranging from three months to five years.

Why it matters

This is a mainstream Japanese bank using its deposit base as a crypto onboarding funnel — a structurally significant move in a market where retail crypto adoption has historically lagged behind institutional interest. By tying vouchers to SBI VC Trade account creation, SBI Shinsei is converting passive savers into active crypto exchange users at scale, with BTC, ETH, and XRP as the entry assets.

The initiative sits inside a broader SBI Group crypto push: the group is in preliminary talks to acquire a stake in exchange Bitbank, SBI Securities and Rakuten Securities are developing in-house crypto investment trusts for retail sale, and SBI Holdings co-developed a blockchain for onchain stocks alongside a trust bank-backed yen stablecoin, JPYSC.

Market impact

For BTC, ETH, and XRP specifically, recurring voucher-driven demand from a major Japanese bank's depositor base represents a new structural inflow channel — modest in absolute size initially, but meaningful as a precedent.