EDX Markets, the institution-only crypto exchange backed by Citadel Securities, Fidelity and Charles Schwab, closed a $76mn Series C funding round on 7 Jul funded solely by SBI Holdings, the Tokyo financial group behind Japan's first trust bank-backed yen stablecoin. It is the first time EDX has disclosed the size of a funding round.
EDX Markets Raises $76mn from Japan's SBI Holdings
8 July 2026 - 13:50 CEST
By Isabelle Castro
EDX said the capital will expand its trading, clearing and settlement capabilities and fund product development as it scales globally to serve institutions.
Focus on institutions
EDX is positioning itself to capitalize on the large-scale institutionalization of crypto as banks move into the sector. As an institution-only exchange that pairs a trading venue with a central clearinghouse, it introduced EDX FlowConnect earlier this year, a crypto-as-a-service product that lets client firms offer digital asset trading to their own customers without building the infrastructure in-house.
EDX also filed with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on 2 Apr to establish EDX Trust, a proposed national trust bank that would add regulated custody and settlement to its offering. The application places EDX in a queue of crypto firms waiting on OCC trust charters.
SBI deepens digital asset investments
For SBI, the Tokyo-listed financial group behind SBI Securities and SBI Shinsei Bank, the funding adds to earlier bets on digital asset infrastructure. In June 2025 it backed Circle's IPO with a $50mn investment split evenly between SBI Holdings and its SBI Shinsei Bank subsidiary. The group is also Ripple's largest external shareholder, with a roughly 9% stake.
SBI handles dollar-denominated stablecoins domestically, including RLUSD and USDC, and in February issued JPYSC, Japan's first trust bank-backed yen stablecoin, developed with Startale Group. Last month, it agreed to buy Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank for 46.7bn yen ($289mn).
"We believe trusted market infrastructure will serve as a critical foundation for institutional adoption," said Yoshitaka Kitao, chair and president of SBI Holdings.
