Today, Hiromi Yamaji, the CEO of the Japan Exchange Group (JPX) told Bloomberg that Japan’s first cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund could list as early as next year, accelerating a timeline that regulators and market participants had previously predicted to end in 2028.
The new timeline matters for Japanese-listed firms holding a lot of crypto in their books. Just days before Yamaji’s comments, Metaplanet’s head of Bitcoin strategy, Dylan LeClair, urged the global community to oppose a separate JPX proposal (closing on May 7) that would bar companies holding more than 50% of their assets in crypto from the Tokyo Stock Price Index (TOPIX), according to his remarks at the Bitcoin 2025 conference.
When will Japan launch crypto ETFs?
JPX first showed interest in crypto-linked financial products around March 2025 with the core aim of attracting global capital. At the time, industry consensus placed an ETF launch no earlier than 2028.
Yamaji’s interview today just moved the goalposts forward, stating that asset managers have shown strong interest in developing crypto ETF products and that the exchange is prepared to begin the listing process once legal and tax frameworks are finalized.
As Cryptopolitan previously reported, Japan’s Financial Services Agency plans to classify crypto assets as financial instruments under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act in 2026. As such, a separate tax reform would cut crypto gains from a top rate of 55% under “miscellaneous income” to a flat 20%, matching the treatment for stocks and investment trusts.
Those two changes implemented together would clear the main regulatory obstacles Yamaji referenced.
Several major financial institutions are already positioning themselves. According to Cryptopolitan, Nomura Asset Management, SBI Global Asset Management, and Daiwa Asset Management have all been studying or preparing ETF products.
SBI Holdings also disclosed plans for a fund tracking Bitcoin and XRP, with a separate mixed trust allocating 51% to gold ETFs and 49% to Bitcoin ETFs.
Japanese firms fight TOPIX exclusion proposal
While ETF approval would channel new capital into crypto markets, the proposed TOPIX rule change threatens to pull it away.
JPX is soliciting feedback on a regulation that would exclude firms with more than 50% of their total assets in crypto from TOPIX.
Speaking at Bitcoin 2026, LeClair said that the rule would directly affect Metaplanet, Remixpoint, and ANAP Holdings when the index is rebalanced in October 2026. He also called on supporters to sign a joint letter hosted on the Bitcoin for Corporations website before the May 7 deadline.
Nevertheless, there are various factors at stake here. While index inclusion drives passive fund inflows, exclusion reverses them. The US saw this play out earlier when MSCI proposed removing digital asset treasury companies from its Global Investable Market Indexes.
At the time, Cryptopolitan reported that JPMorgan analysts warned that removing Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) from MSCI alone could trigger roughly $2.8 billion in passive outflows, with an additional $8.8 billion at risk if other index providers follow through.
According to its February 2026 review, MSCI eventually decided not to proceed with the exclusion.
Key events in Japan will decide crypto investment outcome
Two deadlines will shape the short-term outlook of things. The TOPIX public consultation closes May 7. Any amendment to the Investment Trust Act and the tax reform bill (which are both prerequisites for ETF approval) would need to advance through Japan’s legislature before JPX can begin its listing process.
From the currency point of view, Yamaji noted that the yen briefly weakened past 160 per dollar today and called the level “excessively weak,” and that 130 to 140 yen per dollar is a more appropriate range. He then went on to add that a stable exchange rate is the best way to attract global capital.
