Nidhi Kolhapur

Japanese financial group SBI will acquire crypto exchange Bitbank for ¥46.7 billion ($289 million). After the transaction closes, Bitbank will become an SBI subsidiary, and the combined group’s crypto assets under custody are expected to total about ¥1.1 trillion ($6.2 billion), making it the largest crypto custody provider in Japan. The acquisition strengthens SBI’s position in Japan’s digital asset market. The deal will proceed through the required closing process before integration begins.

The number of unique crypto investors dropped to 651 in the second quarter of 2026, down from a record 2,564 in 2022, marking the lowest level in six years. Only 2020 recorded lower quarterly participation, with 250–450 investors. The decline suggests venture capital activity in the crypto sector is becoming more concentrated among a smaller group of specialized investors. Market participants will watch whether investor participation recovers as funding conditions and market sentiment evolve.

Crypto stocks had a weak June, with MSTR and BMNR among the hardest hit. Strategy (MSTR) extended its steep pullback, falling 40.72% over the past month, making it one of the biggest losers in the group. BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) also stayed under pressure, down 19.86% in the one-month view and 44.27% year to date. Coinbase (COIN) performed relatively better than MSTR and BMNR, but it still saw choppy trading as crypto sentiment remained fragile.