Crypto
SBI Joins Hands With Solana To Expand Japanese RWAs
SBI partnered with Solana to develop Japan's regulated RWA ecosystem, focusing on stablecoins and institutional blockchain infrastructure.
10h ago 4,280
BLOCKINSIDERLoadingSBI partnered with Solana to develop Japan's regulated RWA ecosystem, focusing on stablecoins and institutional blockchain infrastructure.
SBI Holdings just tied its future to Solana, and the timing is not accidental. The Japanese financial giant announced the partnership on July 13. Solana Foundation will join SBI R3 Japan, soon renamed SBI Solana Global.
The goal is building Japan-based, on-chain financial markets for RWAs. Who benefits first are institutional players seeking regulated, yen-denominated blockchain rails. Why Solana, and why now, connects directly to Tokyo's shifting regulatory posture.
Per SBI's official announcement, the venture targets yen-backed stablecoins, tokenized government bonds, funds, and real estate assets. It also covers cross-border payment rails and institutional on-chain services.
The plan is deliberately sequential: build in Japan first, then expand steadily across Asia. Global markets come next, once domestic infrastructure and compliance frameworks mature fully.
SBI frames this as merging Japan's regulated finance with global blockchain liquidity networks. That merger requires trusted, scalable rails, which Solana's speed and cost profile can support well.
Japan reclassified crypto assets as financial instruments under the FIEA in April 2026. That move placed digital assets alongside traditional securities regulation, tightening investor protections.
Lawmakers are also weighing a flat 20% crypto tax rate, replacing progressive rates up to 55%. Discussions around domestic crypto ETFs could follow by 2028.
Japan's RWA and stablecoin activity already reflects this momentum clearly. SBI's JPYSC became the first trust-bank-backed yen stablecoin, launched earlier this year with no transfer cap.
Japan's three megabanks plan a jointly issued yen stablecoin for commercial use in fiscal 2026. Momentum keeps building steadily across both bank-led and crypto-native rails.
This all unfolded around WebX 2026 in Tokyo, drawing roughly 15,000 attendees this week. PM Sanae Takaichi reaffirmed Web3 support in a video address there.
She outlined a 10 trillion yen startup investment target by fiscal 2027. Her government aims for 100 unicorns and 100,000 startups nationally, continuing a pattern set by prior prime ministers.
Solana's RWA sector hit $3.62 billion by early July 2026, up sevenfold since mid-2025. That growth places it third globally, behind Ethereum and BNB Chain.
Monthly RWA inflows reached $967 million recently, more than any other competing blockchain network. Transfer volume also more than doubled, signaling real circulation, not dormant issuance.
Despite this strength, SOL price has barely moved on the SBI news. Broader market cues and actual institutional flows still outweigh individual partnership headlines for now.
Weekly ETF flows over the past seven weeks stayed persistently under $8 million in gross inflows. Outflows have simultaneously climbed toward $5 million during that same stretch.
That thin margin shows institutional conviction remains fragile despite strong RWA fundamentals. SBI's backing could help, but sustained inflows are needed to shift SOL's price trajectory upward.
SOL is currently trading around $77, down slightly on the day. Price is holding between the $75 and $79 Fibonacci zones, still capped below the $82 resistance level that's been rejecting rallies.
The broader structure still favors buyers. SOL bounced hard off the $60 swing low back in early June and has been climbing along a clean ascending trendline ever since, with each pullback finding support right along that line rather than breaking down.
The next real test sits at the $84 Fibonacci level, and clearing $82 on a daily close would likely open the door toward $90 and eventually the $98-100 resistance zone.
That said, ETF flows are the missing piece right now. Weekly inflows have stayed thin, often under $8 million, while outflows have crept up toward $5 million some weeks, and that kind of tepid demand isn't enough to force a breakout on its own.
If flows pick up meaningfully, a push through $82 toward $84 becomes far more realistic. But if SOL loses the trendline, now sitting around $74-75, a slide back toward $69 support becomes the more likely outcome.
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