SBI Shinsei Bank financial center in Japan for a crypto deposit rewards story.

A Japanese Bank Will Pay Depositors in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or XRP

By Isaac • June 9, 2026 11:36 am • Comments

SBI Shinsei Bank is bringing Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP into the savings account.

The Japanese bank plans a crypto rewards program for depositors this fall, and a pilot starts June 10 that runs for three months.

Customers in the pilot can receive crypto vouchers worth 20% of their deposit interest. Those vouchers can be redeemed for Bitcoin, Ethereum, or XRP through SBI VC Trade.

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This is a bank putting three of the largest crypto assets next to ordinary yen interest. A crypto exchange running a token giveaway is one thing.

A licensed bank tying rewards to deposit behavior is a different signal about where mainstream Japanese finance is heading.

The Block added these details:

According to The Block: SBI Shinsei Bank plans to launch a crypto rewards program for depositors this fall after a three-month pilot starting June 10. Customers would receive vouchers worth 20% of their deposit interest, redeemable for Bitcoin, Ethereum, or XRP through SBI VC Trade.

The pilot covers ordinary savings accounts and time deposits ranging from three months to five years. CoinGecko ranked Bitcoin first, Ethereum second, and XRP sixth by market capitalization during the June 9, 2026 Central-time selection check.

SBI Shinsei Bank plans a crypto rewards program for depositors this fall, citing Nikkei. the pilot begins June 10 and will run for three months.

customers can receive crypto vouchers worth 20% of their deposit interest. the vouchers can be redeemed for Bitcoin, Ethereum, or XRP through SBI VC Trade.

the pilot covers ordinary savings accounts and time deposits from three months to five years. a 300,000 yen deposit would produce about a 500 yen voucher and a 30 million yen deposit would produce about a 20,000 yen voucher, depending on the account structure.

The pilot covers ordinary savings accounts and time deposits ranging from three months to five years, according to The Block, which cited Nikkei reporting.

To be clear about the structure, the bank is not paying deposit interest directly in crypto. Savers still earn yen interest, and a slice of that interest can be converted into a crypto voucher.

Bitcoin.com News added these details:

According to Bitcoin.com News: the rewards pilot begins June 10 and is expected to become permanent in the fall. Vouchers would equal 20% of deposit interest and gave examples of roughly a 500 yen voucher on a 300,000 yen deposit and about a 20,000 yen voucher on a 30 million yen deposit, depending on the account terms.

customers can receive crypto vouchers worth 20% of their deposit interest. the vouchers can be redeemed for Bitcoin, Ethereum, or XRP through SBI VC Trade.

the pilot covers ordinary savings accounts and time deposits from three months to five years. a 300,000 yen deposit would produce about a 500 yen voucher and a 30 million yen deposit would produce about a 20,000 yen voucher, depending on the account structure.

SBI Shinsei plans a permanent launch this fall if the pilot proceeds.

SBI Shinsei plans to make the program permanent in the fall if the pilot proceeds as expected.

The asset list matters for how broadly this reads as crypto adoption. During the June 9 Central-time selection check, CoinGecko ranked Bitcoin first, Ethereum second, and XRP sixth by market capitalization.

Japan’s regulators have moved cautiously on crypto for years, and SBI has long been one of the most XRP-friendly large financial groups in the country. A deposit-linked rewards program that hands savers exposure to the top names is the kind of slow, structural adoption that tends to outlast any single market cycle.

Watch the fall. If a bank can put BTC, ETH, and XRP beside a yen savings rate without friction, more banks will study the same playbook.

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