Japan Eyes Giving Crypto Assets Legal Status: Report

Japan plans to reclassify cryptocurrencies as financial products and implement insider trading restrictions similar to those for traditional financial markets, Nikkei reported Sunday.

For these changes, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is looking to submit legislation to its parliament as early as 2026, following closed-door consultations with industry experts.

The proposed changes would revise the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, positioning digital assets differently from securities while acknowledging their investment characteristics.

While specific criteria on the restriction remain under consideration, Nikkei reports that those would likely “resemble” what’s already in place for “conventional financial products.”

Japan’s Financial Instruments and Exchange Act regulates securities and financial instruments, categorizing them as either traditional “Paragraph I Securities” (like bonds and shares) or “Paragraph II Securities” (including trust interests and partnership stakes).

The Act establishes distinct regulatory requirements for public offerings versus private placements, with public offerings generally requiring securities registration statements and continuous reporting.

Meanwhile, collective investment schemes, which proof-of-stake chains could fall under, are used for real estate securitization in Japan. Those face operator registration requirements with specific exemptions only available for qualified institutional investors.

The regulatory shift comes as Japan opens up to crypto adoption, establishing new frameworks and acknowledging how crypto has expanded its use cases from payments to investments and more, urging regulators to redefine how they oversee the sector.

Crypto investments are taxed “up to 55%” in the country, while financial products such as ETFs “face only 20% capital gains tax,” Tiger Research senior research analyst Jay Jo told Decrypt.

With better safety measures and if lowered alongside how financial products are treated, this could “attract more institutions to crypto investments,” Jo said.

Late last year, Japanese lawmakers urged their regulators to pursue a National Bitcoin Reserve. The country is also home to Metaplanet, a Bitcoin treasury company that has acquired 3,350 BTC so far with plans to add more.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair