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bitFlyer Inc. — Japan crypto-asset exchange overview

Confidence: Likely Updated 2026-05-30 Review by 2026-08-07 Sources 7 Machine-translated Original (JA)
#fintech#jp-crypto-exchange#vasp#bitflyer-holdings
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This entry sits under exchanges index. Read it with FSA crypto-asset exchange registration system — number system / Local Finance Bureau jurisdiction / registration requirements for adjacent context and Japan Financial Regulation — Legal Framework for Tokens, Crypto Assets, and Payments for the broader system boundary.

FSA registration number Kanto Local Finance Bureau 第00003号 · JVCEA member #1002 · registration date 2017-09-29

1. Corporation / shareholders

  • Trade name: bitFlyer Inc. (English: bitFlyer Inc.)
  • Established: 2014年1月9日
  • Head office location: 〒107-6230 Midtown Tower, 9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
  • Capital: 41億238万円 (including capital reserve) (value posted on the official website, point in time unspecified)
  • Parent company: bitFlyer Holdings, Inc. (100% stake, unlisted, established 2018年10月1日, capital 50億円)
  • Shareholder composition (Holdings level): Yuzo Kano approx. 40%, Takashi Komiyama approx. 13%, Sekisui House just under 13% (as of 2022年4月). This ratio is consistent with the 2022年4月 Nikkei reporting (a coalition of minority shareholders + the support of Komiyama / Sekisui House making ACA likely to secure over 50 percent) and the value posted on Wikipedia. Thereafter, the acquisition by the ACA Group fell through at the end of 2022年9月 (Kano’s opposition + the withdrawal of some shareholders’ sale, with the valuation rising to approx. 900億円 as Rakuten and Monex entered), and Kano was reappointed as representative director 2023-03-30. Given these developments, the 2022年4月 ratio has likely changed, but the latest post-reappointment stake (2023–2026年) is unconfirmed in public information (unlisted, IPO in preparation).
  • Accounting auditor: Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC
  • Main bank: Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
  • Corporate number: 2011101068824

2. License / registration status

  • Crypto-asset exchange business: Director-General of the Kanto Local Finance Bureau 第00003号 (registration date 2017-09-29)
  • Financial instruments business: Director-General of the Kanto Local Finance Bureau (Kinsho) 第3294号
  • JVCEA member: Type 1 #1002 — holds both crypto-asset exchange business and crypto-asset derivatives trading
  • Registration for electronic-payment-instrument business / funds-transfer business is unconfirmed

3. Handled currencies

As the handled-list page from the official corporate site could not be obtained, refer to the list posted on Wikipedia (secondary source) (retrieval date 2026-05-18): BTC, ETH, ETC, BCH, LTC, MONA, LSK, XRP, BAT, XLM, XEM, XTZ, DOT, LINK, XYM, MATIC, MKR, ZPG, FLR, SHIB, PLT — 21 currencies in total (subject to change). Official confirmation is needed.

Characteristics: Continued to rank among the top domestically by BTC trading volume (since the first half of 2016年). It has a dedicated Lightning (high-speed trading) order book for BTC/JPY (Lightning Spot). In addition to yen-denominated spot, it also offers leveraged trading (Lightning FX).

4. Scope of business

  • Spot trading (sales outlet / exchange): yes (Lightning Spot)
  • Derivatives (Lightning FX): yes (as a financial instruments business)
  • Crypto-asset lending: unknown (cannot be officially confirmed)
  • Credit card: the “bitFlyer credit card” (issued by Aplus, started 2021年12月. A type that accumulates bitcoin.)
  • Fiat deposit channels: bank transfer (Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, etc.), quick deposit supported (published)
  • Corporate services: a “bitcoin payment service” (multiple track records including the Marui Group and IDOM)
  • Point linkage: a history of linkage with T-Points, Moppy, PeX, etc.

5. Market share / trading volume

  • The 2016年 first-half domestic bitcoin trading volume ranked No. 1位 (bitFlyer official announcement, posted by 2016-08-15 GoodWay)
  • 2025年12月-term revenue: 135億6700万円, operating profit: 42億5700万円 (bitFlyer Inc. 12th-term financial-results announcement, Official Gazette dated 2025-05-23)
  • As of 2020年3月, cumulative customers across Japan, the US, and Europe surpassed 250万 (official announcement, Cryptocurrency Watch)
  • Public data on the number of accounts / recent trading volume is unconfirmed (treated as not published)
  • Competitive position: within the domestic top 3 , with main competitors such as Coincheck, GMO Coin, Inc. — Japan crypto-asset exchange operator overview, bitbank (consistently ranked high in both trading volume and account numbers since 2016年, with a history of an early-obtained FSA registration number of 第00003号). For JVCEA self-regulation and the membership system, see JVCEA: Overview of the Self-Regulatory Framework.

6. History / major events

DateEvent
2014-01-09bitFlyer Inc. established (co-founders: Yuzo Kano / Takashi Komiyama)
2015-04chainFlyer (a blockchain visualization tool) released
2016-08Achieved 1位 in domestic bitcoin trading volume in the first half
2017-09-29FSA crypto-asset exchange registration completed (Kanto Local Finance Bureau 第00003号)
2017-11bitFlyer USA obtained a BitLicense / started US operations
2018-01-23bitFlyer EUROPE S.A. obtained an EU Payment Institution License. Officially announced as the world’s first to obtain licenses across the 3 continents of Japan, the US, and Europe
2018-06Business improvement order from the FSA (deficiencies in internal-management systems, etc. — URL deleted, cross-checked via Wikipedia, etc.)
2019-01Keisei Hirako appointed representative director (Kano stepped down)
2019-05bitFlyer Blockchain, Inc. established (a blockchain-technology subsidiary)
2020-03Tomohiro Mine appointed representative director / management renewal
2020-03Cumulative customers across Japan, the US, and Europe surpassed 250万
2021-03Kuniyoshi Hayashi appointed representative director
2021-12bitFlyer credit card issuance began (Japan’s first bitcoin-accumulating credit card)
2018-10-01bitFlyer Holdings established (conversion to a holding-company structure)
2022-04Reported that the ACA Group broadly agreed with a coalition of minority shareholders on acquiring a majority of shares (Kano expressed opposition)
2022-09-30The ACA Group abandoned the acquisition (no prospect of securing a majority — Nikkei reporting)
2023-03-30Yuzo Kano reappointed as representative director (general-meeting resolution / declared promotion of an IPO)
2024-06-20Officially announced an agreement to acquire FTX Japan K.K. (conditional on Delaware bankruptcy-court approval)
  • 2024年6月 FTX Japan acquisition: announced the acquisition of the Japanese subsidiary of the bankruptcy-filing FTX (see FTX Japan customer-asset 100% return case — the world's first immediate full-return case). The purpose appears to be the acquisition of the customer base / license assets in Japan (official press release 2024-06-20).
  • Recent financial-performance improvement: 2025年12月-term operating profit 42億5700万円 (a trend of improvement over the prior term — per the Holdings 12th-term business report).
  • Current status of overseas corporations: the overseas expansion of bitFlyer USA, Inc. (a Delaware corporation) and bitFlyer EUROPE S.A. (Luxembourg) as of 2018年 has been published, but the operating status as of 2026年5月 cannot be officially confirmed.
  • Use of Tsubasa Honda in commercials: an advertising campaign featuring Tsubasa Honda from 2024年9月 (official release 2024-08-28).
  • Yuzo Kano — co-founder / representative director. Served as representative from the founding in 2014年, and after stepping down for a time, was reappointed in 2023年3月. A face of the industry who led the establishment of the Japan Blockchain Association (JBA).
  • Takashi Komiyama — co-founder. A Holdings-level shareholder with approx. 13% (as of the 2022年4月 Nikkei reporting). He had supported the sale in the 2022年 ACA acquisition, but that acquisition fell through. His current stake after the reappointment is unconfirmed.
  • Keisei Hirako — representative director 2019年1月〜2020年3月.
  • Tomohiro Mine — representative director 2020年3月〜2021年3月.
  • Kuniyoshi Hayashi — representative director 2021年3月〜2023年3月.
  • Ryota Sasaki — Holdings director (as of 2024年).
  • Joel Edgerton — Holdings director (as of 2024年).
  • Sekisui House — held just under 13% as a Holdings shareholder (as of the 2022年4月 Nikkei reporting). It had indicated an intention to sell in the 2022年 ACA acquisition, but that acquisition fell through. Its subsequent holding / sale status is unconfirmed in public information.

Sources