Startale, SBI and DigiFT tokenize $1.3bn Japanese fund with JPYSC

Startale Group, SBI Group and DigiFT completed a proof-of-concept on an Ethereum testnet using the regulated JPYSC yen stablecoin to tokenize the SBI Japan High Dividend Equity Fund, which holds about ¥200 billion (roughly $1.3 billion) in assets. The trials tested end-to-end digital lifecycle processes for a manager-led fund.

The partners ran two separate testnet demonstrations. One replaced the traditional multi-day cash settlement for fund subscriptions with near-instant finality using JPYSC as the settlement medium. The other used smart contracts to calculate and distribute dividends automatically to token holders’ wallets after a distribution registry was confirmed.

SBI Asset Management manages the fund used in the tests. Organizers said the demonstrations were designed to work across different fund structures and to operate within regulated frameworks. The setup aimed to shorten settlement windows that typically depend on slower banking processes, and to reduce counterparty exposure by completing settlement on-chain.

Tomoya Asakura, chief executive of SBI Global Asset Management, noted that while costs for passive and active products have fallen, market infrastructure for trading, settlement and distribution still has room for operational improvement. Sota Watanabe, chief executive of Startale Group, described the trials as showing how a regulated stablecoin can handle instant settlement and programmable dividend distribution. Henry Zhang, founder and chief executive of DigiFT, emphasized the role of interoperability for scaling institutional tokenization.

Following the testnet work, the three firms plan further integration tests to connect tokenized equities with institutional decentralized finance platforms. Discussions include potential technical collaborations with projects such as Morpho and Gauntlet to test use cases like collateralized lending and on-chain asset management that operate within regulatory constraints.

The project addresses a specific market pattern: many tokenized real-world assets still rely on traditional bank rails for cash movements and income payments. Using a regulated stablecoin as the settlement layer in the tests was intended to demonstrate automated finality and continuous on-chain processing while keeping operations tied to regulated infrastructure.

Next steps include additional integration trials and technical work toward tokenizing the actual SBI Japan High Dividend Equity Fund for institutional investors, subject to regulatory and operational approvals.