Metaplanet Goes Full Satoshi: Buys Securities Firm, Dreams of BTC Yield 🍣

Metaplanet, the Tokyo-listed Bitcoin treasury company, said on Friday it will acquire Siiibo Securities in a 2.1 billion yen ($13.1 million) deal to form a wholly owned securities subsidiary. The company entered into a share transfer agreement to purchase 100% of the Japanese financial instruments business operator, with closing expected in July, after which Siiibo Securities will be renamed Metaplanet Securities.

The acquisition marks the first step in Project Nova, Metaplanet's strategy to build a Bitcoin-centric financial ecosystem in Japan. "We will develop and distribute Bitcoin-related yield products directly to Japanese investors, supported by the 40,177 BTC on our balance sheet," CEO Simon Gerovich wrote. The company's Bitcoin holdings carry a net asset value of 457.6 billion yen (about $2.8 billion), making Metaplanet the largest publicly listed BTC holder in Japan and the third-largest in the world, according to data tracker Bitcoin Treasuries.

Siiibo's existing licensing, corporate bond platform and customer base will allow Metaplanet to develop income-oriented products, including BTC-linked bonds, and provide direct access to Japanese investors seeking yield. Metaplanet said the new subsidiary will also enable it to distribute other securities products tied to digital assets in the future.

The move comes as Japanese firms position themselves for a possible regulatory shift. Japan's Lower House reportedly passed a bill on Thursday that would classify crypto assets under the country's financial instruments framework, a change that could pave the way for crypto exchange-traded funds and revised tax treatment. In April, the Japan Securities Clearing Corporation, part of Japan Exchange Group, said it would launch a proof of concept with Mizuho, Nomura and Digital Asset to test the use of Japanese government bonds as digital collateral on the Canton Network. SBI Shinsei Bank is also reportedly preparing a deposit-linked crypto rewards service through SBI VC Trade that would let customers receive vouchers redeemable for $BTC, $ETH or $XRP.