"SBI Holdings to acquire Bitbank" Jun 25, 2026

SBI Holdings is acquiring Bitbank, one of Japan's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, in a move that signals continued consolidation within the Japanese digital asset market. The deal reflects SBI's long-running strategy of expanding its crypto footprint domestically, and positions the financial conglomerate as a more dominant force in retail crypto trading in Japan.

Bitcoin was trading at $61,180, Ethereum at $1,630, and BNB at $561 as of 8 a.m. Eastern on June 25th, with all three assets down slightly on the day.

A Coinshares survey of 261 European wealth advisors found that 52 percent of UK advisors report more than half of their clients' digital asset exposure sits outside their management. The firm identified firm policy as the primary driver of this gap, not advisor knowledge deficits or weak client demand. Sixty-one percent of advisors work at firms that either restrict digital assets outright or provide no clear guidance on them. Advisors at restrictive firms are 8.5 times more likely to have unmanaged client exposure compared to those at firms with clear institutional support. Italy had the lowest management gap among surveyed countries at 12 percent. These findings arrive as Europe's MiCA regulatory transition concludes on July 1st and the UK is considering allowing authorized funds to allocate up to 10 percent of holdings in crypto ETPs, meaning the policy environment is shifting in ways that could close or widen these gaps depending on how firms respond.

Kraken is partnering with Maple Finance to launch what they describe as the first fully on-chain warehouse facility for digital asset-backed loans. The structure gives Kraken OTC borrowers access to USDC liquidity while posting Bitcoin and Ethereum as collateral. It uses a bankruptcy remote special purpose vehicle that mirrors traditional asset-backed security arrangements, with Kraken acting simultaneously as loan originator, seller, servicer, and junior lender. The facility extends Kraken's broader lending push following its Flexline product launch earlier in 2026. The on-chain structure is notable because it attempts to bring institutional-grade credit infrastructure directly onto blockchain rails rather than relying on off-chain legal arrangements alone, though the practical resilience of that structure in a stress scenario remains to be tested.

Thai authorities issued arrest warrants for eight individuals, four Chinese nationals and four Myanmar nationals including a Chinese businessman, over an alleged illegal crypto mining network. The operation is accused of stealing approximately $28 million worth of electricity, with the Department of Special Investigation leading the case.

Kalshi is reportedly in talks to raise fresh funding at a $40 billion valuation, with a deal potentially closing as early as the third quarter of 2026. That figure represents a sharp step up from a $22 billion valuation reached just the prior month during a $1 billion Series F round, and from a $5 billion valuation as recently as October 2025. The pace of valuation increases is striking and reflects either aggressive investor appetite for prediction market exposure or expectations of significant near-term revenue growth. Kalshi recorded $21 billion in trading volume in June 2026 through the survey date, compared to roughly $9 billion for Polymarket and its US platform over the same period. The company is federally regulated by the CFTC but continues to contest state-level restrictions, including an active lawsuit against Illinois over a licensing bill. The regulatory patchwork means Kalshi's growth trajectory carries meaningful legal uncertainty even as its market position strengthens.