SBI Holdings collaborates with Startale Group to launch the Strium blockchain platform, focusing on the on-chain securities market to innovate digital asset trading and provide comprehensive blockchain-based financial services.

PANews February 5 News, Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings has jointly developed a Layer 1 blockchain network called Strium with blockchain R&D company Startale Group (the team behind Sony’s Layer 2). The network is specifically designed to support on-chain securities trading, aiming to become Asia’s “base trading layer” for on-chain securities markets, providing 24/7 trading capabilities and DeFi composability. Previously, SBI and Startale announced in August 2025 their collaboration to develop a yen-based stablecoin and RWA trading platform, with the goal of enabling cross-border instant settlement, fractional ownership, and compliant on-chain transactions. The proof of concept for Strium was released today, demonstrating key technical capabilities such as settlement efficiency, resilience under high load, and interoperability with traditional financial systems and blockchain networks. Additionally, Startale recently received a $13 million investment from Sony to develop the Ethereum Layer 2 project Soneium and operate Japan’s largest public chain, Astar Network. SBI Holdings has also increased its investments in the crypto space, including investing in Circle’s IPO and developing a potential crypto ETF listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.