Gumi and SBI launch ¥3B crypto fund to prep for Japan's ETF era
What's the deal? Gumi Inc. and SBIDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → have launched SBI Crypto Fund IDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a three-year private fund with about ¥3 billion (around $18.3 million) in committed capital, according to a 28 July company announcement. The vehicle begins operations on 1 August, deploying capital into Bitcoin and major listed altcoins through a Japanese silent partnership structure.
How it's structured: SBI Financial ServicesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → holds 51% of the operating company, SBI Crypto Fund LLC; Gumi's wholly owned subsidiary gC LabsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → holds the remaining 49%. Daiwa Securities GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Yamada Securities GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → are participating investors, alongside several unnamed parties. Individual commitments and target allocations were not disclosed.
Why now? The partners originally planned a 2025 start but delayed while assessing market conditions. The fund invests exclusively in Bitcoin and major altcoins on recognised exchanges, combining staking, rebalancing, and hedging.
What's the endgame? Gumi described the fund's mission as aiming to "bridge the crypto asset market and Japanese companies" through investment and liquidity provision. Performance data over the three-year term is intended to support research into future investment trusts and other managed products.
By the numbers: Gumi held ¥14.13 billion in crypto assets as of 30 April 2026, up 86% from ¥7.58 billion a year earlier. A ¥2.63 billion valuation gain drove much of its ¥2.17 billion ordinary profit, even as operating profit fell to ¥83.3 million — underlining how dependent reported earnings have become on crypto price moves.
What could go wrong? Custody providers, fee structure, and specific risk limits remain undisclosed, and no return targets have been set. The first reporting date is not yet fixed, leaving portfolio construction and staking yields opaque until the operators choose to disclose them.
The ETF play: Gumi said it wants to build a track record before the "possible lifting of the ban" on domestic crypto exchange-traded funds. Japan's Financial Services Agency has discussed changes that could allow certain crypto ETFs, though investment-trust rules still need revision; a domestic Bitcoin ETF could arrive by 2028, per reporting on the process.
The signal: SBI VC TradeDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, an SBI Group entity, has surpassed 2 million registered accounts, lending institutional weight to the partnership. A small, disciplined private fund now serves as a proving ground for the retail crypto products Japanese firms expect regulation to eventually permit.
Read more: CryptoNexa
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
