SBI VC Trade, the crypto arm of Japanese financial conglomerate SBI Group, announced on Tuesday that it had completed the registration as an "Electronic Payment Service Provider" that can process USDC stablecoin transactions — making it "the first in the country" to do so.

The company said that it plans to release a beta version of USDC-related services on March 12 for certain users following system maintenance. "We aim to further expedite the full-scale introduction of USDC handling," SBI VC Trade said in a translated statement.

SBI Group noted that it signed an agreement with Circle, the issuer of USDC, back in 2023 "aimed at a comprehensive business alliance."

The Japanese financial giant has been actively expanding into crypto. In December 2024, it acquired DMM Bitcoin, a local crypto exchange that was shut down following a $300 million hack. DMM Bitcoin has been transferring customer accounts and custodial assets to SBI.

Japan revised its stablecoin-related regulations in June 2023 that required service providers to complete registration under the Funds Settlement Act and the Banking Act to operate the circulation of stablecoins, according to the statement.

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